Baffling And Baffled

How can one be angry after a 1-0 win which helps spoil playoff positioning for another team? Well let me show you:

First off, Daisuke Matsuzaka, who will be known more for Dice Clock than he will for his recent stretch of good pitching, pitched seven and two thirds of scoreless baseball to get the win in his first ever start against the Cincinnati Reds. He has a 1.37 ERA in his last four starts. It’s so nice of the Mets to rehabilitate Dice Clock so that he can pitch well for another team next season. If we’re lucky, he’ll go to the Braves or Phillies and stick it to us in 2014 after the Mets saved his career. Meanwhile, the Mets will replace him with Bronson Arroyo just in time to watch the 36 year old start to pitch as if he’s 72. Can’t wait.

But what kills me is that LaTroy Hawkins got the save. Good for LaTroy. Wonderful. But what good does it do this organization to have Hawkins, who was thought to be unavailable with a triceps issue, come in and get the save when you have Vic Black … who only threw 14 pitches in last night’s victory … available in the bullpen? Said it just mere hours ago but here it is again: Black should have been closing the past two weeks. And I’ll use the same principal argument as to why Mike Baxter is starting instead of Matt den Dekker, which Gary, Keith and Ron brought up and were 100% correct on. Why?

Is it because the Mets want to make sure that they “put their best team on the field” so that the Pirates don’t get all pissed off at them for not putting their best out there against a playoff contender? Hell I hope not. Because once again the Mets would put the feelings of another team over what’s best for their own franchise. (And it wouldn’t be the first time that the Mets capitulated to the Pittsburgh Pirates.) Yeah, let’s continue that culture and merely exist to fill out everybody else’s schedule. It’s part of what’s wrong with this absolute mess of a franchise that strives for good citizenship and mediocrity in the baseball community.

But the good news is that the Mets victory clinched a road record over .500 for the season, and in the process it caused a rift between Ryan Ludwick and Reds fans as he called them out for not coming to the games against the Mets with some more energy. (Hey Ryan, our crowds respond to the Mets pretty much the same way … they have a way of putting us to sleep too so don’t feel bad.)

Also, I’m hearing among my circles that Shin Soo Choo will indeed sign with the Mets next season at a fairly affordable price … but only if Sandy Alderson makes him 300 sandwiches between now and Opening Day.