Mets Juggle Their Pitchers, and Warily Eye the Dodgers’ Strong Arms

This isn't supposed to be our year.

I'm a Met fan - relax, folks. When you have Tyler Kepner writing about the Mets, you might as well have Michael Kay and his awful voice/commentary calling Mets games (both of them will have nothing good to say).

This isn't our year, but damn it's nice to seem them winning. Who cares what happens at the end of the season? We're not there yet - just enjoy that we have a bright future with all these great arms!

Hope the Mets (whether they win pennant) will give serious thought to getting rid of some players who just appear to be inadequate and disappointing. Niese, who just proves every time he is out that he can't pitch against quality teams. Might add Duda and Murphy to the list, it might be nice to see a ball hit in their direction and they handle it!! Murphy is a genuine hitter but Duda is so erratic at bat that it is not worth spending more time on him.

The words of St. Louis via the Bronx, Flushing, Houston and New Jersey sage L.P. Berra ring true this late in the Mets season: IT AIN'T OVER 'TIL IT'S OVER!

Let's not get ahead of ourselves. The division is not yet won. Timely late inning hitting has bailed out the largely mediocre pitching that has characterized the Mets in recent weeks. The Mets have lost 4 of 6 to the lowly Marlins in the past two weeks. Yes they swept the Nationals with late inning hitting heroics but winning in the post season usually requires great pitching and the Mets are slipping in that department.

I am a Nats fan and salute the Mets for what they have done thru shrewd trades. But, the Mets have benefitted greatly from a weak division and the Nats off year. The Dodgers are not having an off year and they are peaking. If their bullpen doesn't blow up they'll beat the Mets in October and might even manage to finally figure out St. Louis.

I remember when some pitchers threw 300 innings. They were the exceptions, true, but over 200 innings was always the norm. Now a guy is done after 180 innings? Some of those 300 inning guys pitched for many years so the 'burn bright, burn short' label doesn't apply. Baseball did this to their pitchers. The throwers haven't changed, they way they have been used has changed, and it hasn't improved the game.

Ok. Speaking on behalf of many long time Mets fans. I don't want to hear about playoff issues. We ain't there yet. The Nats have a new life. We looked flat for two games. (I was worried after the first loss). Let's taste the pennant winning champagne before we worry about the afternoon shadows at Chavez Ravine.

Might want to focus on, you know, actually getting _to_ the postseason before worrying about matchups. That sound you hear is the Washington Nationals stampeding their way back into the race.

Kepner, the Yankees mouthpiece-is using his usual caustic words reserved to any team except his beloved Yankees.
The Jays just dropped 30 run on the Yankees a week ago. Kepner will never mention a word about it or the Jays powerhouse hitters. . Instead he wrote on Monday about wild card game scenario, with quote from Girardi they "will/must" win the division.
Compare that to this piece today about the Mets
“the Dodgers’ duo is fearsome’. “..Neither is anywhere close to his career high in innings pitched.”

deGrom is in his second season (first full season), Harvey is in his first full season without injury (and it's been abbreviated). Syndergaard came up in May, and Matz has made four starts. These guys are great, and have great futures, but they are young and very inexperienced. Jon Niese is a mystery - it seems like anything can happen in any of his starts.

What about starting Colon in the first game against LA - a veteran to show the way and maybe calm the nerves? I know most of the talk puts Colon in the bullpen, and maybe that works later on, if they advance. It's a decision that doesn't need to be made for a couple of weeks, but maybe it's food for thought.

It might be tired arms. It might also be simple human nature. At 9.5 in front, there is very little motivating the Mets right now. Let's see how they play when each game means a little more. I think they'll rise again.

The Mets will be fine. I'm guessing Dodger fans are quietly smiling. Come our way.
What I haven't missed is the empty stadiums.
Tampa Bay was notorious for this.
Baseball are you becoming trivial?

Kershaw's one of the best I've ever seen, but he's more of a lull-you-to-sleep -guy than a blow-you-away -guy. He can be beaten. It's the guys you don't think about, like Ellis (pick one) who sneak up and beat you. The Mets can handle this; ya just gotta...what's the word I'm looking for?

Of course we will get there. We've done fairly well surviving starting pitchers until we can attack the bullpen. That has to be the plan against the Dodgers as well.

And we can't burn out the starters trying to gain home field advantage. We shouldn't need to. Over two to three weeks, no team has more pitching depth than we do.

To look on the bright side, this year was not supposed to be our year, not with Wheeler on the shelf and Harvey just coming back and Syndergaard and Matz totally unproven. Next year was supposed to be our year. This year is gravy. Look in the mirror and see if you're not smiling already. Sure, we want more. Who doesn't, and maybe it will come. But let's rejoice that our team is 83-62 and not 62-83.

No mentiom in the column of Kershaw's past playoff breakdowns?

2 words.

House money.

We will be happy with anything short of somehow choking the division away...

No one wants to face Kershaw and Greinke in the Southern California twilight. Shades of facing Nolan Ryan in Anaheim 40 years ago. That said, aren't we all waiting for Kershaw to be a big-time postseason pitcher?

Pitching is only half of the winning equation. The Dodger bats have an uncanny knack of going to sleep at critical moments: remember, they were no-hit twice in ten days not that long ago. Kershaw and Greinke, certainly reminiscent of Koufax and Drysdale, may lose 1-0, but an L is an L.

I'm worried about the pitching. Ever since the Mets' bats exploded, yes, they've scored 7-12 runs a game, but the opposing teams have kept pace a lot of the time. DeGrom has not been the same finesse pitcher and looked like he needed a rest several starts ago. Colon is untouchable when against <.500 teams, Matz is unproven, Harvey has gotten pounded, is nail-biting over his future, and Niese is moody. The Mets' batters have been blazing, but they could potentially cool off right in time for the playoffs. I'm happy and surprised this can even be a conversation, but the team is for sure not a shoe in for anything. Hopefully, Kershaw's post-season Achilles Heel kicks in, and assuming Greinke is a loss, let's see who else L.A. can throw out there.