Capuano Looks To End Season On A High Note

September 27, 2011

7:10 PM ET

Citi Field

TV: SNY

RADIO: WFAN 660

NEW YORK METS

Starting Pitcher: Chris Capuano (11-12, 4.55 ERA)

Unlike a few of his teammates, Capuano will try to finish his season on a winning note. Against the Reds, he is 3-3 with a 5.23 ERA.

CINCINNATI REDS

Starting Pitcher: Bronson Arroyo (9-12, 5.09 ERA)

Arroyo will need to pitch a complete game tonight in order to record his seventh consecutive season of 200 innings pitched. In his career, he is 7-3 with a 3.49 ERA against the Mets.

METS LINEUP:

Reyes-SS, Tejada-2B, Harris-LF, Wright-3B, Evans-1B, Thole-C, Baxter-RF, Pridie-CF, Capuano-LHP

NOTE:

The Mets have exercised Terry Collins' option for 2013, which means two more years of Terry.

According to the NY Post, the Mets plan on having Dan Warthen return as pitching coach next season.

Judge Makes Decision In Madoff Mess

According to CNBC, the judge presiding over the lawsuit between Madoff trustee, Irving Picard, and Mets ownership, has dismissed all but two counts against the Mets.

Ian Begley of ESPN New York tweeted that the two counts remaining are "actual fraud and equitable subordination." Begley also tweeted that both parties will meet in court on Wednesday afternoon to schedule proceedings for the remaining claims.

Michele Steele of Bloomberg Television is reporting that the judge is still allowing Picard to seek the $1 billion from the Mets.

So what does this all mean for the Mets? I don't know. I'm not a lawyer, and I'm not even going to pretend like I understand all of this nonsense.

Despite the ruling being in favor of the Mets' owners, however, I don't see much of a change. As far as I can tell, the Mets are still broke, nobody knows if they will be able to re-sign Jose Reyes, and the Wilpons are still running the show.

Sorry, Mets fans, I don't think the Wilpons are going anywhere any time soon.

Mets Morning News: Wright's Back Okay, Reyes Leads Batting Race, NimmoVisits Citi, Mets Block Yanks

David Wright was drilled in the back by a pitch from Francisco Cordero in the ninth inning of last night's game. Luckily, the pitch was nowhere near where he suffered a stress fracture in his lower back.

"I'm a little sore, but that's probably to be expected," Wright said. "It just got me in a weird spot. It didn't get me in the back. It got me more kind of like under the armpit, like the lat.

"I'm not worried about that," Wright continued, referring to the stress fracture. "I'm just worried about motion with my left arm. We'll be able to probably judge it a little better tomorrow."

Jose Reyes has the slimmest of leads in the National League batting title race. He is currently ahead of Ryan Braun with a .33396 average. Braun is at .33393.

"I can't lie to you; I see it on the scoreboard because people were cheering about it," Reyes said. "I'm going to continue to play my game. I don't want to put anything in my head the last two games.

"There's no doubt, I think about it a little bit now because there's two games left. That's something that I have to be clear in my mind; continue to put a good swing on the ball and see what happens."

First round draft pick, Brandon Nimmo, made his first appearance at Citi Field before yesterday's game. He took batting practice and spoke with reporters about his desire to join the Mets.

"I’d love to be up here as soon as possible, but I do understand the process," Nimmo said. "Some guys get rushed through too soon and it’s detrimental to their whole career. I want to do this right."

According to Jerry Izenberg of The Star-Ledger, the Mets blocked the Yankees from bringing their Triple-A team to Newark for the 2012 season. Essex County Executive Joseph DiVincenzo was disappointed with the move, saying:

"Unfortunately, the Mets exercised their territorial rights to block this temporary partnership and have prevented the chance for baseball fans to come to Newark and Essex County to watch players in minor league baseball’s highest classification on their way up to the major leagues. It would have rejuvenated interest in one of the highest levels of the sport in an important urban area."

For The Love Of All That Is Holy, Please Stop Bunting

The Mets inability to bunt has once again cost them as they lost to the Reds by a score of 6-5.

• Chris Schwinden went five innings, giving up three runs on five hits, while striking out five and walking one. For the second straight start, Schwinden left the game with a lead, and it was ruined by the bullpen.

• The Mets scored three runs in the third inning on a single from David Wright and a two-run double from Nick Evans.

• Ryota Igarashi had possibly the his best outing of the season. Igarashi entered the sixth inning with the bases loaded and no outs, and went on to retire three straight.

• Josh Stinson gave up a three-run home run to Chris Heisey in the seventh inning, to give up the lead.

• Jose Reyes finished the night going 3-4 with two RBIs and a run scored. His average is now .334, and he is currently ahead of Ryan Braun in the batting title race. It wasn't all pretty for Reyes tonight. After driving in Mike Baxter with a double in the eighth inning, Reyes was thrown out at second base. Reyes wasn't running hard at all, and then took too big a turn rounding the bag. He would have been the tying run.

• With two runners on in the ninth inning, Nick Evans was asked to bunt. Bunting is never a good choice for this team. Ever. Evans bunted the ball right back to the pitcher, who then got the force out at third base, rendering the bunt unsuccessful.

• The Mets were just 2-11 with runners in scoring position.

Next Up: The Mets continue their series with the Reds tomorrow night. Chris Capuano gets the start. Game time is 7:10 p.m.

Mets Morning News: Carter's Setback, Duda & Pagan Done For Season,Batting Race

According to Adam Rubin, Hall of Famer Gary Carter has suffered a setback as he battles brain tumors. The catcher's daughter, Kimmy Bloemers, wrote in the family's online journal that doctors found "an abnormal and unusual spot" on his right temple.

"When I saw the look on my dad's face, I just wanted to cry," Bloemers wrote. "This journey has been so emotional when there has been just one thing after the next that dad has to conquer. Dad did not complain; he just had look of sadness. I really hate that dad has to go through such a tough road. Dad got the biopsy and actually had several spots removed in various places. We hope to find out the results soon."

Despite this setback, Carter's white-blood cell count has risen to where he can undergo a second round of chemotherapy. That, however, will not begin for a few more weeks.

Lucas Duda and Angel Pagan will be out for the rest of the season. While neither has been diagnosed with a concussion, both are suffering from concussion-like symptoms. Duda smacked his head against the right field wall at Busch Stadium last week, and Pagan hit himself in the head with a back swing.

Jose Reyes trails Milwaukee's Ryan Braun by two points in the race for the batting title. Reyes finished Sunday going 2-4 and raising his average to .331. Braun was 2-3 and finished at .333.

Pelfrey's Season Ends The Same Way It Began, Like Crap

The Mets failed to complete the sweep of the Phillies, losing by a score of 9-4.

• In his final start of the season, Mike Pelfrey lasted just three innings, giving up five runs on nine hits, while striking out one and walking one. Just think, Mets fans, you get to watch this all over again next season because the Mets are not likely to let him go. Awful.

• D.J. Carrasco entered the game to pitch the fourth inning and it didn't go well. In his inning of work, he gave up four runs on five hits.

• Ronny Paulino hit his second home run of the season, a two-run shot, to break up the shutout in the seventh inning. Valentino Pascucci then added another run with an RBI single to left field.

• Justin Turner hit his 30th double of the season in the eighth inning to drive home the Mets' fourth run of the game.

• Jason Pridie was one of the few bright spot in today's game. He finished the day going 3-3 at the plate with a single, double, triple, and a walk.

• Mike Baxter had a busy day in right field. He made two outstanding plays, gunning down Placido Polanco at the plate in the third inning, and making a sliding catch in foul territory to retire Shane Victorino in the eighth inning.

Next Up: The Mets begin their final series of the season Monday night. Chris Schwinden gets the start for the Mets against the Reds', Homer Bailey. Game time is 7:10 p.m.

Mets Go For The Sweep Of The Phils

September 25, 2011

2:10 PM ET

Citi Field

TV: WPIX

RADIO: WFAN 660

NEW YORK METS

Starting Pitcher: Mike Pelfrey (7-12, 4.58 ERA)

Pelfrey makes his final start of the season this afternoon. Pelfrey has made five starts against the Phillies this season, posting a 6.84 ERA. Lifetime against Philadelphia, he is  7-6 with a 5.08 ERA.

PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES

Starting Pitcher: Roy Halladay (18-6, 2.41 ERA)

Halladay gave up four runs on six hits in his eight innings of work Monday. In his career, he is 8-2 with a 3.13 ERA against the Mets.

METS ( OR BISONS?) LINEUP:

Reyes-SS, Tejada-2B, Harris-LF, Evans-1B, Turner-3B, Baxter-RF, Paulino-C, Pridie-CF, Pelfrey-RHP