Hansel’s Off On a Turnaround, Harvey Hides High Above The Clouds

The Mets shuffled some deck chairs on the S.S. Minnow today, as Josh Smoker was brought back to the big club while Hansel Robles was sent down. Robles has struggled mightily and the Mets can’t afford to have him set fire to any more games. Even Terry Collins realizes that Robles has problems, and came up with a very astute point a few days ago …

“Left it up and he hit it in the seats,” Collins said of the Simmons homer. “But it was the two-out walk that started it. You can’t walk guys. If you look at his numbers, lefties are hitting .060 against him and he walks a lefty [Luis Valbuena] to start a big inning. We’ve got to be able to get around that.”

That affirms the decision to send Robles down. Also, it proves one unarguable fact:

Terry Collins, in fact … does know Hansel Robles’ splits!!! Dammit!

Matt Harvey got a crack at the San Diego Padres on Tuesday night, and it was really a no-win situation. If he beats the Padres, what do we really learn? Well, a win is a win in any event, and Harvey did in fact beat the Padres. But the way he did it leaves lingering questions. He went five innings, gave up three hits and two runs but walked four. He had the Zack Wheeler special too, throwing 103 pitches in those five innings. Key number there is only 60 strikes.

Still, there are more questions than answers. If this was a case of Harvey gutting it out through his lingering after effects from surgery to get through five innings and give his team a chance to win a game (or at least not take away the chance that was given to him by a seven run first inning), then bravo Mr. Harvey, who was perpetually one pitch away from making that game much closer than what it needed to be. Yet, if this was a case of “I can’t find the strike zone against the San Diego F’ing Padres, then don’t look up because a career might be falling on your head.

But at least on this night, the small step taken by Harvey was more than enough after that seven run first inning by the Mets off of Jhoulys Chacin. Michael Conforto bookended the proceedings with a home run after a ten pitch at-bat, and a two run single. In between there were two hits through gaping shift holes, and Lucas Duda smacking an opposite field double. It was enough for a 9-3 win which also featured a second Duda oppo hit, and a second Conforto home run. The way the Mets are going, there’s no reason to apologize for beating the last place Padres. But man, there’s always a feeling of “why are we taking food out of the mouths of kennel puppies” when you beat a team that’s rebuilding this obviously. Which is all well and good until the kennel puppies beat the Mets in the ninth inning and piss everybody off again.

Today’s Hate List

1. Justin Upton
2. Derek Norris
3. Ryan Klesko
4. Phil Nevin
5. Archi Cianfrocco