Net Positive

7-6 victories over the Phillies mean very little at this point … other than the fact that the Mets currently own them in their own park which, even when the Phillies are terrible is a nibble of heaven for those of us who still have 2007-2009 fresh in their minds. But 7-6 victories over the Phillies where your prized prospect hits the game winning home run in the ninth inning mean a little bit more.

Amed Rosario’s ninth inning oppo taco off of Hector Neris was the difference in a typically softball-ish Citizens Bank Park Mets/Phillies battle. On top of that, it was Rosario’s first major league dinger which put a bow on nine innings of lunacy. It certainly saved Wilmer Flores’ bacon, as his baserunning blunder with two outs in the eighth with a 6-5 lead (he wandered as he didn’t know how many outs there were) ran the Mets out of the top of the eighth and was extra painful when Cesar Hernandez’s home run off Jerry Blevins tied the game in the eighth. Of course, the baserunning blunder came after a discussion on our latest edition of the Burgerball Podcast where we discussed which member of the Mets should be kept for fear that he’s the next Daniel Murphy or Justin Turner. Of course, we picked Flores and it was an easy choice. His numbers improve every year, and this year’s numbers against righties are healthy.

But then he forgets how many outs there are. Please Wilmer, don’t be the next net negative. I want you around a few more years.

And hey! Dominic Smith plays baseball too!

Smith made his major league debut on Friday wearing Tom Goodwin’s number by way of Kevin McReynolds, and went 1-for-3 with a seeing eye single up the middle in the fourth. He also let a Freddy Galvis double go off his glove in the sixth which led to the fifth Phillies run, but let’s chalk that up to nerves, speed of the game, whatever will make me feel better now that Lucas Duda is in Tampa Bay. Not long after that, Smith was double switched out of the game by Terry Collins because apparently Collins gets paid by the double switch, and gets paid the professional rate when it’s a double switch that sends a good player or a player that needs to be evaluated out of the game. But all in all it was a good night for the players considered to be the latest edition of “the future”.

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Speaking of Dominic Smith, let’s pour one out for Fernando Salas, designated for assignment to make room for Smith. Or in this case, DFNieve’d, as Salas pitched five times in seven days to start the season, six times in seven days to start May, and four times in five days near the end of May. He may not have had a good year anyway, but with that usage he never had a chance. We at this blog salute Fernando Salas as he washes away in the waves of overuse, perhaps joining Fernando Nieve for some drinks and some stories at the Tired Reliever bar in Port St. Lucie. Some pitch to remember, some pitch to forget.

(Some pitch because Terry wants to take advantage of that righty-righty matchup.)

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And hey, if you’re in Wappingers Falls tonight, take a trip to see Matt Harvey make a rehab start with the Brooklyn Cyclones against the Hudson Valley Renegades, who are all too happy to hype his appearance against them.

Tomorrow's regularly scheduled game will start at 7:05pm or later. Matt Harvey will still be starting the game! Questions? 845-838-0094

— Hudson Valley Renegades (@HVRenegades) August 12, 2017

I have a question: Why are the Hudson Valley Renegades tweeting from Tennessee? Or did I fail geography again?

Today’s Hate List

1. Tommy Joseph
2. Cesar Hernandez
3. Ron Villone
4. Norm Charlton
5. Rob Dibble