I think we need to be careful when we try to decipher what’s going on in a guy’s head … especially when that head belongs to Mike Pelfrey. Because really, I’m not sure I want to know.
But Pelfrey sure has a way of letting things spiral out of control and turning bad innings into bad games, doesn’t he? He gave up two in the first inning … all right, so did Jon Niese against Florida. But Niese pulled it together and set down the rest of the Marlins. Pelfrey responds in the second by throwing a bunt into right field, giving up a run, and then becoming so upset he tried to gnaw off his own limbs. And then he gave up four more runs in the third, effectively out-sucking Cole Hamels from the night before. Difficult feat, but leave it to our ace-like substance.
(And on the bunt, I don’t mind that he let the ball drop. I don’t even mind that he went to first base, because that was the best way to get two by getting Blanton out and then turning Orr into a tag play. It wasn’t a bad idea. But for the love, take your time and make the throw!)
Any serious cranial analysis beyond Pelfrey’s habit of turning bad innings into bad starts by being frustrated is probably better left to smarter individuals. (My expertise is creating fictional conversations between two random movie stars living in Pelfrey’s head, but it’s way too early for that.) But when the sinker isn’t sinking, the ship will be … quickly. All roads lead to Pelfrey finding his sinker first and foremost. Everything else will fall into place after that. Hopefully it’ll be soon.
Now a bunch of good things happened after that, with the Mets responding to being down a touchdown by tying it in the fifth. But Blaine Boyer was completely unlucky in the bottom of the fifth with a cheapie double and a deflected infield hit that would have been an out otherwise, and the Mets dropped a tough one 10-7. It doesn’t come down to anything else but the number one pitcher, the ace-like substance, to be better. It’s one thing to be outdueled by Josh Johnson. It’s another to be outdueled by a pitcher just because he stunk a couple of innings later than you did.
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