David Wright is About to Get Red Hot

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David Wright's 2011 campaign has already seen its fair share of ups and downs, but current signs point to an uptick.  Specifically, I am talking about how well he is seeing the ball of late.

Wright has now drawn a walk in 7 consecutive games and raised his OBP from .322 to .347 over that span.  In addition to the walks, he stroked seven hits and cut down on his K rate.  The downside is that the hits have not come at the most opportune times, and he has not driven in any runs over the last week.

A quick look through Wright's career stats show that this current consecutive games with a walk streak is the longest of his career.  The numbers also show that when Wright walks with frequency, the power numbers follow.

History tells us that this will be the case here, and that David will have a monster May.

Good Morning Mets Fans!

The Mets licked their wounds on Monday after back to back losses and came out firing on all cylinders.

Led by the top of the order, specifically Angel Pagan, the Mets erupted for 14 runs and beat one of the American league's top pitchers.

Angel Pagan is playing at a very high level and now has his average up to .304 on the year after stroking 4 hits in 6 at-bats in last night's contest.  He scored three times and drove in 4 as well.

"Angel's playing extremely well," Mets manager Jerry Manuel said. "He's been big."

Pagan is thoroughly enjoying his baseball renaissance, but he also knows that some of his playing time is likely to diminish when Carlos Beltran returns.  I personally envision a 4-man rotation in the outfield with Bay, Beltran and Pagan playing about 80% of the time, and Francoeur playing 60%.

"What's in my mind is to help the team as much as I can and to protect Carlos' spot; that's a big responsibility," said Pagan.

David Wright reached base 5 times on two singles, an RBI double, a sacrifice fly and two walks.  He is looking more and more relaxed at the plate, staying far steadier in the box, and his bat looks quick.

Jose Reyes continues his penchant for multiple hit games.  In fact, he has had a multiple hit game in 9 of the Mets last 13 games.

Big Ike Davis and Jason Bay also got into the act--Ike had 3 hits and 3 RBIs, and Bay had 2 hits, 2 walks and 2 RBIs.

When the game began it looked liked Jonathan Niese had absolutely terrific stuff.  After not allowing a hit over the first three frames, a 90 minute rain delay, plus another near 30 minute "delay" of the Mets batting around, cost him his rhythm and control.  I was actually surprised Jerry Manuel let him go back out there after the long delay, but the skipper thought he could coax Niese through 5 to get him the win.

"We had a very, very long inning. It probably cost him," said Manuel.

After exiting in the 5th just one out away from a win, Niese looked more embarrassed then anything else.  Fortunately Fernando Nieve came on and pitched extremely well for 2 1/3 and picked up the win.  Bobby Parnell came on and pitched a scoreless 8th with 2 Ks, lighting up the gun at 97 and 98 mph.  Ryota Igarashi pitched a scoreless 9th to seal the win.

All in all a great win for the Mets, who come back tonight with RA Dickey on the hill.

Enjoy your coffee!

Scoreboard
Final	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Detroit (38-31)	0	0	0	2	4	0	0	0	0	6	8	0
N.Y. Mets (40-30) «	2	0	8	1	0	3	0	0	x	14	16	0

Player of the Game

New York
A. Pagan	AB	6
	R	3
	H	4
	HR	0
	RBI	4

Good Morning Mets Fans!

How sweet it is!  The Mets are playing inspired baseball, they have won 10 of their last 11 games and they are a remarkable 17-5 since the 21st of May.

Yesterday Jon Niese kept the streak alive with 7 solid innings and the offense took care of the rest as the Mets beat the Indians 8-4.

Niese won his third start in a row in his hometown (or close to it) and has proven to everyone that he has the stuff to be a solid middle of the rotation starter.  In the month of June, Niese is Niese is 3-0 with a 1.57 ERA

"This is what we anticipated," manager Jerry Manuel said after the Mets tied a season high with seven doubles, two by Ike Davis. "We're built on pitching and defense. If we stay hot with the bats, we'll be a really, really good team."

The offense was solid throughout, and each starter had at least one hit.  The only down news was Jason Bay leaving the game with a thigh bruise that he received after another hustle hit.  The hustle hits have been a staple of Bay's game all year long, but this one is likely to cost him at least one game.

"It knotted up on me," Bay said. "My left leg hit his butt. We'll see how I feel tomorrow."

David Wright hit a key double to plate two.  He now leads the National League in RBIs with 52.

NL RBI LEADERS		RBI
David Wright	1. David Wright, NYM	52
	2. Troy Glaus, ATL	51
	3. Albert Pujols, STL	49
	4. Jonny Gomes, CIN	48
	5. Corey Hart, MIL	47

Angel Pagan finished the game with 3 hits and 3 RBIs--he looks like he's out of the mini-slump.  When Pagan and Reyes are both hitting at the top of the order the Mets score runs in bunches--yesterday they did just that.

And finally, another tip of the cap to Elmer Dessens for pitching two innings to close out the win.

This is Mets baseball, this is your team, and this is why we endure...it's a magical run.

Enjoy your coffee!

Scoreboard
Final	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
N.Y. Mets (37-28) «	0	0	5	0	0	3	0	0	0	8	14	0
Cleveland (25-39)	0	0	0	2	1	0	0	1	0	4	9	0

Player of the Game

New York
A. Pagan	AB	5
	R	1
	H	3
	HR	0
	RBI	3

Related articles

• Post Game: Mets 8, Indians 4 (metsblog.com)
• Mets 8, Indians 4: Mets Win Their Sixth in a Row (nytimes.com)
• Mets double up Indians, make it six straight victories (cbssports.com)
• New York Mets Score Plenty Of Runs For Jonathon Niese In Sixth Straight Win (bleacherreport.com)
• What to do with Angel Pagan? (metsreport.com)

Strange and Wonderful Days at Citi Field

Yesterday was both a strange and wonderful day at Citi Field.

The Mets split a doubleheader with the Padres--in game 1 the Ace, Johan santana struggled.  In game 2, Jonathan Niese was one swing away from a perfect game.

There was also a triple play, a finger by some cretin named Lady Gaga, 4 strikeouts by David Wright, 4 hits on his birthday from Jose Reyes, a Henry Blanco homerun, and a whipped cream pie to the face of Niese from Angel Pagan.

Artwork courtesy of the wonderul Joe Petruccio

Niese (3-2) struck out six and walked none. He was sheer brilliance and only needed 108 pitches for the complete game, 1-hit, shutout.

"Ever since I came off the DL, I haven't felt anything," said Niese. "Before that, I felt some lingering soreness. When I went on the DL, I got some rest and it's paid off."

Ollie who?

Good Morning Mets Fans!

How sweep it is!

After taking the first two games in relatively easy fashion, the Mets used the hot bat of Jeff Francoeur, and the positive energy of skipper Jerry Manuel, to come back from a 5-0 deficit and complete the sweep of their Florida rivals.

The Mets fell behind on another sub-par outing by Takahashi, who gave up two long balls yesterday and  did not look sharp, especially after the first time through the order.  Not willing to quit, the Mets chipped away and benefited by Fredi Gonzales strange deicion to pull Ricky Nolasco after only 82 pitches.

That move ignited the Mets.

Jeff Francoeur is hot---boiling hot--at the plate, and he proved his mettle again yesterday with a tying, three-run homer in the seventh inning.  It was the big blow that keyed two rallies that put the Mets on top and upped their home winning streak to 8 games.

"I know this is a big yard but I knew I got that one," said Francoeur, who is batting .500 (18 for 36) during his 10-game hitting streak. "I was sure nothing was going to stop it."

Prior to the Francoeur bomb, Angel Pagan demonstrated why he has become one of the most valuable men in the lineup.  Pagan smoked a two-run single in the sixth and scored the go-ahead run when Ike Davis grounded into a double play in the eighth.

"Right now our offense is a lot better than three or four weeks ago," Pagan said. "We can do more things and I think this comeback helps us. ... We just kept fighting."

David Wright chipped in with 3 hits and continues to mash.  His strikeouts are down, and he is driving the ball with authority.

The Mets are now 18-4 in their last 22 games at Citi Field. They have the best home record in baseball, including 22 home wins.

"This was one of those games that tests your character," catcher Rod Barajas said. "That tells you what you're all about. That was an awesome win being down 5-0 early."

The Mets also received a big boost from their skipper.  I've been tough on Jerry all year, but he definitely out-managed his counterpart yesterday. Manuel kept the team positive, and he also put Angel Pagan in motion on a key full-count pitch to Bay, with great results as Bay stroked a single that sent Pagan to third, where he ultimately scored the key run.

"We've been taking chances and our baserunners are making good reads," Manuel said. "We felt like if it's a breaking ball we might get a stolen base. The only thing you worry about is hitting a line drive at somebody, but with people moving around it's a lot harder to hit a line drive at someone. If you do, you just tip your cap."

The bullpen, for the most part, did their job.  Igarashi had a rough time of it, but Elmer Dessens, Pedro Feliciano and Frankie Rodriguez were all up for the task.

Feliciano got the win, to go 2-2 on the year, and Frankie picked up his 12th save of the year.

The Mets are off today and face the Padres at home tomorrow.  We all get a chance to breathe and enjoy our coffee!

Scoreboard
Final	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Florida (28-30)	0	0	0	1	0	4	1	0	0	6	10	0
N.Y. Mets (30-27) «	0	0	0	0	0	3	3	1	x	7	12	2

Player of the Game

New York
J. Francoeur	AB	4
	R	1
	H	2
	HR	1
	RBI	3

 Related articles

• Post Game: Mets 7 Marlins 6 (metsblog.com)
• Mets 7, Marlins 6: Mets Win With a Rare Display of Power (nytimes.com)

David Wright is On Fire

David Wright was "sat down" for a game two weeks ago in Washington on May 19th and didn't take the news well.

The all-star third baseman is a proud player, and as the strikeout numbers piled up, the frustration could clearly be seen in his face.  He was getting chippy with umps, tossing his bat a little, and the stress and frustration was easy to see.

He scuffled a bit more after the one game "rest", and then the walks came, and the hits came, and the power came.

Since May 28th, David Wright has walked 7 times and struck out 7 times....a very good ratio.

In his last 7 games, he has struck out only 4 times, and 3 of those came in one game.  More importantly, he has stopped bailing out of the box on breaking pitches inside, and is back to just leaning away.  This was most obvious yesterday--the Marlins continually came inside, and DW just gently leaned away...it was subtle, but an important indicator that he is seeing the ball exceptionally well.

Since May 29th DW is 13 for 25, 5 walks, 4 Ks and has raised his batting average from .244 to .279.

David Wright is back my friends, and he may just be back all the way.

DATE		GAME		AB		R		H		2B		3B		HR		RBI		TB		BB		SO		SB		CS		HBP		OBP		SLG		AVG
JUN 01		@SD		4		1		3		0		0		1		2		6		0		1		1		0		0		.371		.495		.269
JUN 02		@SD		5		0		1		0		0		0		0		1		0		3		0		0		0		.367		.487		.267
JUN 04		FLA		2		1		0		0		0		0		0		0		2		0		0		0		0		.369		.482		.264
JUN 05		FLA		3		2		2		0		0		1		3		5		1		0		0		0		0		.376		.500		.270
JUN 06		FLA		5		1		3		0		0		0		0		3		0		0		0		0		0		.380		.502		.279
June Total:				19	5	9	0	0	2	5	15	3	4	1	0	0	.545	.789	.474

Mets Have Good Numbers vs Ricky Nolasco

Looks like Jerry is paying attention....Cora gets the start today.  DW and Jose could have big days.

	PA	AB	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS	SH	SF	IBB	HBP	GDP
David Wright	44	41	14	4	0	3	10	3	14	.341	.386	.659	1.045	0	0	0	0	1
Jose Reyes	36	35	14	1	1	3	5	1	6	.400	.417	.743	1.160	0	0	0	0	0
Jeff Francoeur	28	26	8	3	0	2	7	1	3	.308	.321	.654	.975	0	1	0	0	1
Jason Bay	18	17	4	1	0	0	0	1	1	.235	.278	.294	.572	0	0	0	0	1
Angel Pagan	10	8	3	1	0	0	0	2	1	.375	.500	.500	1.000	0	0	0	0	0
Alex Cora	9	8	4	1	1	0	1	1	0	.500	.556	.875	1.431	0	0	0	0	0
Fernando Tatis	9	9	2	0	1	0	1	0	2	.222	.222	.444	.667	0	0	0	0	0
Mike Pelfrey	6	6	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	.000	.000	.000	.000	0	0	0	0	0
Rod Barajas	5	4	1	0	0	0	1	0	1	.250	.200	.250	.450	0	1	0	0	0
Johan Santana	4	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	.000	.000	.000	.000	0	0	0	0	0
Henry Blanco	3	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	.000	.000	.000	.000	0	0	0	0	0
Chris Carter	3	3	1	0	0	0	1	0	0	.333	.333	.333	.667	0	0	0	0	0
Ike Davis	3	2	0	0	0	0	0	1	1	.000	.333	.000	.333	0	0	0	0	0
Omir Santos	2	2	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	.500	.500	.500	1.000	0	0	0	0	0
Jonathon Niese	1	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	1.000	1.000	1.000	2.000	0	0	0	0	0
Total	181	169	53	11	3	8	26	10	36	.314	.348	.556	.904	0	2	0	0	3

Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Play Index Tool Used
Generated 6/6/2010.