Mets tied for NL Wild Card playoff spot with one game to go!
On only three days rest following his longest start of his career, Johan Santana showed no signs of fatigue. He struck out nine Marlins in a complete game shutout that put the Mets atop the NL Wild Card standings, tied with the Milwaukee Brewers.
Heading into this game, the Mets didn’t even control their own playoff destiny, meaning that if they won their final two games, they could have missed out on the playoffs. However, they still had a chance to make the playoffs by hoping for a Brewers loss, which came true tonight. The Chicago Cubs, without even a need to win another game following their clinching of their own division and home field advantage in the National League, kept playing hard without their starters and knocked off the Brewers today in Milwaukee.
On the other hand, the Phillies clinched the NL East divisiion title for the second season in a row. Whoop dee do. I don’t care. That to me is just as important as Dallas was when they won their division. The Giants still beat them that season in the playoffs when it mattered most.
From here on out, if the Mets keep winning, more games will keep coming. A win tomorrow would mean at least a one-game playoff with the Brewers on Monday. What else does that mean? It will also be home, at Shea, giving the Mets a chance to make the playoffs in front of their home crowd. But even better, if the Mets win and the Brewers lose tomorrow, an automatic ticket to the postseason will be punched tomorrow for New York.
Who will the final postseason spot in 2008 belong to? Find out tomorrow at 1pm on SportsNet New York! Pre-game coverage begins at 11:30!
Mets lose to Marlins, no longer control playoff destiny
Fresh off a walk-off victory last night at Shea, the Mets were hoping to build off their win and take game one of the final regular season series at Shea Stadium. Instead, the Marlins, although eliminated from playoff contention, came to play and brought in their starters. Hanley Ramirez and Co. took a 2-0 lead in the first inning, which went on all the way to the sixth inning when the Marlins began to pile it on. The Shea seats emptied out in a hurry, and the Mets never recovered. The Mets lost game one of the series, slipping out of the wild card lead since the Brewers won, and also slipped a disappointing two games behind Philadelphia for the division.
The Phillies clinched at least a tie for the NL East crown, but with a Mets loss or Phillies win in the next two days, the NL East belongs to Philadelphia. In order for the Mets to make the playoffs, they not only need to win, but need the Brewers to lose at least one of their final two games.
Johan Santana will be pitching tomorrow on 3 days rest, even with a weather system approaching New York.
If the Brewers and Phillies win out, the Mets will be eliminated from playoff contention by default. All the Mets can do now is win and cry for help. Their game with the Marlins begins at 1:10 pm tomorrow at Shea Stadium, while the Brewers play an hour later and the Phillies play at 4.
Church’s Duck, Duck, Goose-like slide helps Mets beat Cubs
The Mets were down 6-4 when Robinson Cancel hit a line drive between the second and first basemen that easily scored a run. However, Ryan Church was right behind him and it was difficult to see if he would be able to make it home in time. He didn’t make it home in time for the throw, but Church ran to the outside and the catcher dived for Church. He missed, and Church curled around him and dived toward home plate after already running past it. The catcher saw that he missed and dived for him, but Church quickly leaped again and slammed his palm on the plate before being touched, tying the game.
In the ninth inning, Jose Reyes led off the inning with a single. However, later in the inning it appeared Daniel Murphy was making the nightmares of last night visible. After repeated unsuccessful bunts, it was obvious there was some miscommunication between either manager Jerry Manuel, Church, or the third base coach. Church went on and fouled off a 2-strike bunt attempt with Reyes taking off toward second base.
This made every Met fan cringe. David Wright then struck out to make matters worse, but the powerful Carlos Delgado was coming to the plate. Wanting no part of Delgado, Cubs skipper Lou Piniella opted to intentionally walk him, bringing up Carlos Beltran. Beltran hit a hard line drive off the glove of the diving first baseman to score Jose Reyes from second, giving the Mets a crucial win in the playoff race.
The Phillies had the night off, meaning the Mets are now only one game behind them in the NL East. The Brewers and Mets were tied heading into today, but the Brewers are in extra innings right now so the wild card standings will be determined later tonight. Obviously, if Milwaukee wins, nothing changes, but if they lose, the Mets will then hold a one game lead in the Wild Card race.
The Marlins, who already announced in the middle of their series with the Atlanta Braves that they would play hard and try to knock the Mets out of the playoffs, head to Shea for the final three games of Shea Stadium and the 2008 regular season. The Washington Nationals will be heading to Philadelphia to take on the Phillies in their final three games.
Thanks to the information provided by Metsblog.com , I can tell you the playoff scenarios should the Mets, Brewers, and Phillies be tied at the end of the season. The Mets and Phillies will play a one-game playoff Monday in Philadelphia. The winner will win the NL east, and the loser plays the Brewers in a one-game playoff for the wild card spot. That game would either be in Philadelphia or New York, not Milwaukee.
Santana the Stopper cuts Phils NL East lead to 1.5
With five games remaining in the 2008 MLB season, Johan Santana proved to everyone the reason why the Mets gave him $137.5 million this past off-season. He turned an entire stadium of boos into cheers both on the mound and at the plate.
Santana’s magical broken-bat single in the middle innings sent the crowd into a state of excitement. The Mets went on to take a 6-2 lead by means of a clutch David Wright two-RBI bloop single, and a Jose Reyes triple down the first base line. Reyes was so pumped following his triple that he began to clap and jump all over the place. Johan, on the other hand, threw 125 pitches, the most of his career, and was still popping his fastball in the glove at 93 miles per hour. He was so fired up during this game that, following his release of a pitch, he would jump up and down.
In the ninth inning, everyone held their breath from the very first pitch by Pedro Feliciano. He was able to get an out, but allowed two base runners. Here we go again. Jerry Manuel and pitching coach Dan Warthen began to work furiously in the dugout, then Manuel went to the bullpen to bring out the reliever Luis Ayala. Ayala got his first man to ground out to Delgado, who could have turned a double play, but took the safe route and touched first base for the second out. Ayala got the next batter to pop out to Jose Reyes, who caught the ball and immediately did a fist pump similar to the one Carlos Delgado does in the final out of a big game.
The Philadelphia Phillies lost to the Atlanta Braves, 3-2 to trim the Mets deficit in the NL East to only a game and a half. If the Phillies lose today, and the Mets win today and tomorrow, the Mets and Phillies will have a tie for the NL East. This is because the Phillies have a day off, meaning the Mets can gain another half game on them.
The Brewers lost, but that may be a good thing. This means the Mets won’t just settle for a Wild-Card spot, they instead know they need to keep fighting and get that Division Title wrapped up. If they are able to wrap the division title up, I see this team going deep in the postseason.
Who knows, maybe Santana is the only pitcher that can get this team a win because he is able to go so far and prevent the bullpen from blowing a game. With Carlos Zambrano pitching for Chicago tonight, Oliver Perez needs to be at his best when game-time approaches at 7:10 pm tonight at Shea Stadium.
Do or die time at Shea
The Mets are beginning to slip, but still have the lead in the NL Wild Card race by a game and a half. However, the Mets were greeted following their loss to the Braves by a Brewers win and a Phillies win. This increased the Mets deficit in the NL East race to two and a half games.
At this point, the Mets have to be ecstatic that the NL-leading Cubs are coming into town. Why? The Cubbies have already clinched their division, meaning they can basically lay back for the next week. The four-game series at Shea begins tonight at 7:10 pm.
Tonight is rally towel night at Shea, and the playoff atmosphere should be alive and well as if it was 2006 again. The Mets should be in a comfortable position now, with their final seven games of the season being at home.
Writers easily find flaws in this team in every which way. I know the bullpen remains in a state of emergency, but that’s why the Mets give guys like Carlos Beltran $119 million.
In June, I didn’t think I’d be saying on September 22nd that the Mets control their own playoff destiny. The Mets don’t even need to win all of their remaining games to get into October. If they win five of their final seven games, they are guaranteed a playoff spot.