Damn Phillies, But All Hope Isn't Lost

It's not the end of the world, but it sure would have been nice for the Mets to win yesterday with their ace against the oldest pitcher on Earth. There's plenty of season left, and it looks like the Mets can make something good out of this season that didn't seem very promising (to me) before the season started.

I have to say that although I don't like the way Jerry Manuel manages a game, I have to give him credit for creating the right tone by focusing on the importance of how a team and individuals handle the inevitable adversity that baseball brings so often.

With a little more creativity in making the best of the team the Mets have, and the players they are still missing, I can see this being a relatively successful season, especially with the questionable talent and performance level in the National League this year.

The first thing I would do if I somehow woke up and found myself sitting in the manager's office at Citi Field is minimize my worst asset. That asset is the back of the starting rotation, and my solution is simple: Use John Maine and Oliver Perez as co-5th starters, and put Takahashi or Dillon Gee into the 4th slot.

The way it would work is that depending on the opposing team and the stadium, I would choose one or the other of Maine and Perez to start when their turn comes up. The other pitcher would come in to start the 5th or 6th inning, with a reliever being used if the starter gets knocked out in the middle of an inning. The two of them should be able to pitch 8 or 9 innings combined, thus making the fifth spot in the rotation a time to save the bullpen not expend it when either Maine or Perez starts. If Gee is brought up, I would replace Manny Acosta, and not a position player.

If somehow whichever guy starts pitches really well, and pitches 7+ innings and the game is close, I would use my usual late inning guys and keep the other co-starter available for long relief in the next couple of games. Maine and Perez would have an opportunity to show significant improvement, and if they don't improve, it won't kill the team.

I would also like to see Chris Carter replace Frank Cattalanotto as soon as possible. Cattalanotto is a good guy, and was worth a shot, but he is not contributing anything but good quotes and a good story. Carter has a good energy level, and possibly a more powerful bat, which would be really nice in the late innings.

As for yesterday, I am not worried about Santana, because his velocity was the same as it's been all season. His location was off, and every pitcher has that happen once every few starts. The team scored some runs for him, which was nice to see. My hope is that the rest of the team will pick him up, starting tonight against the Reds, after he has picked them up so many times.

Lastly, Reyes needs a day or two off.



© Judy Kamilhor 2010