Grand Achievements

I’ve given up on any sort of major achievement in my life. I’m not going to write the Great American Novel. I’m not going to beat Patrick Roy on a backhand roofed to the short side. Curing a disease? The only reason I can identify an MCL from an ACL is because I’ve watched Mets baseball for the last 50 years.

So what I’m going to have to settle for is writing a tweet that turns out to be prescient six days later.

But it's just to show that we look at the fringe stuff way too much. Ruf. Buck's bullpen usage. While those have been issues, for sure, the Mets like most teams need their 3/4 hitters to produce at their normal level. If that happens, the other stuff doesn't matter.

— Metstradamus (@Metstradamus) September 14, 2022

Cookie Carrasco had a tough go of it tonight, giving up three runs in five innings, and Trevor Williams had given up a run in the 5th to make it 4-0 Milwaukee. But the Brewers had long since dove head first into a bullpen game so if there was going to be an opportunity for another signature 2022 Mets comeback, this was going to be it. Sure enough, after the Brewers got the first out in the top of the 6th, Craig Counsell sent in Brad Boxberger to pitch to Mark Canha, Francisco Lindor, and Pete Alonso. Boxberger hit Canha, which I believe was Canha’s 600th HBP this season, and Lindor singled. Then the four hitter produced:

3-run homers on back-to-back nights for Pete Alonso!!! pic.twitter.com/WTCPgXEVtj

— SNY (@SNYtv) September 21, 2022

It was Pete’s second three run HR in as many nights, and the Mets were to within 4-3 of the Brewers, and you just got that feeling that good things were going to happen. In the 7th, once again the Brewers got the first out before Counsell went to a reliever. This time it was Trevor Rogers, who was the major league haul in the Josh Hader trade. Rogers walked Darin Ruf, James McCann, and Brandon Nimmo and I started to realize why the Brewers have been playing to sparse crowds this series.

Then, the three hitter produced:

GRAND SLAM FRANCISCO LINDOR! pic.twitter.com/Cnb6yg0xDq

— SNY (@SNYtv) September 21, 2022

We didn’t get the double “outta here”, but we got the “oh wow” from Gare, which I feel is a fair trade.

The Mets scored seven runs on four hits on two swings from the four hitter and the three hitter, and it was enough to overcome the other stuff which was the Brewers scoring five runs on 11 hits. Of course, they had some help from a four out save by Edwin Diaz who has been used sparsely enough over the last few weeks that he was not only able to get four outs tonight, but pitch the ninth like he was on a mission from God, throwing multiple 101 mph pitches to Brewers hitters that probably have rather been home cooking chicken with NyQuil*. Here’s footage from the ninth inning:

Kid fight

The Mets remain a game in front of the Braves with 12 to play following their victory over Luke Voit and the Harrisburg Senators. The three and four hitters are starting to come around and produce. If they keep that up … the other stuff won’t matter. (And I will have my last major achievement of a smart tweet.)

Today’s Hate List

Luke Voit. Never liked him.

*Don’t cook chicken with NyQuil.