Mets 10 Brewers 2
Perhaps last night will make them right again.
The Mets smashed the Bad News Brewers 10-2 at Shea and pounded out 13 hits in the process. It was as if the calendar read August. The Mets are back … maybe. Their third win in 11 tries this month was forged by the team that looked a lot like the one which began September alone in first place.
The righty Bobby Jones, after only lasting two innings in his last outing, returned to his solid second-half self, throwing eight innings of two-run ball.
-He was supported by some stellar defense and, to borrow the team’s slogan, the Mets were “Amazin’ Again.”
-The Mets, who had a team meeting before yesterday’s game, moved to two games behind the Braves, who lost last night to the Marlins 5-4.
The Mets entered the game with a 4½-game lead in the wild-card race over the Diamondbacks, who played late last night against the Dodgers in LA.
A look at the boxscore of this game shows it is not littered with zeroes as has been the rule of late for the Mets.
Instead, Benny Agbayani and Edgardo Alfonzo hit solo homers and the Mets, playing without a resting Mike Piazza and Mike Bordick, got contributions from everyone in the order.
When Derek Bell led off the sixth with a single to center it marked the first time the Mets put up double-digit hits since Aug. 25 when they had 16 knocks in a 13-3 drubbing of Randy Johnson and the Diamondbacks at Shea.
Since the Mets have taken the blame, they deserve the credit for last night’s hitting, but a dash of John Snyder didn’t hurt as well.
Snyder, the Brewers’ starter, came in at 3-8 with a 5.86 ERA. He left after 4 1/3 innings, having giving up more hits, nine, to the Mets since the Padres Woody Williams gave up that number Aug. 21.
The difference was Williams threw nine innings, giving up just four runs, three earned, in a 5-4 Padres win that night. Snyder gave up seven runs, five earned, in his 4 1/3-inning stint.
The Mets’ bats did damage in the second aided by the Bad News Brewers, who played a brand of defense that wouldn’t even get them to Williamsport.
A one-out walk to Todd Pratt and a single to center by Kurt Abbott brought up Jones in a bunt spot. The pitcher did his job, but Brewers catcher Tyler Houston didn’t.
He threw the ball into the stands along the first base line, allowing Pratt, who was on second, to score. This set up the most Little League-looking play since they let the Bad News Bears play in the Astrodome.
With men on second and third, Agbayani singled to center past second baseman Ron Belliard’s dive. Center fielder Lou Collier charged the ball and tried to throw out Jones at the plate.
The throw missed the cutoff man and was up the third-base line, so Jones scored easily. Houston fielded it and tried to nail Agbayani at second, but the in-the-dirt toss short-hopped Mark Loretta and went into center.
Collier picked up the ball and fired home as Agbayani chugged around third for what they call a “home run” in T-ball. The throw was cut off and the relay barely beat Agbayani, but Houston couldn’t hold on and the Mets were up 4-1.
It was all Jones, who, along with Rick Reed, has been the biggest reason why the Mets have improved so much, needed.
It wasn’t only the offense last night for the Mets. They also played excellent defense, which was a staple of how they became a first-place team.
With a run already in, Ventura made a nice charging play in the first to throw out Jose Hernandez. In the second, centerfielder Jay Payton ranged into right center to steal a Belliard liner headed for the gap.
In the third, Zeile – whose move to first base has been a non-issue all season – made a diving stop on a hard grounder down the first base line.
The Mets’ attack put up single runs in the third on an Abbott run-scoring single to center and the sixth on a Payton fielder’s choice.
In the fifth, they scored twice on run-scoring singles from Payton and Pratt.