I'm finding the results of the poll on that most odious turdheel Clemens shocking.  Out of the current 57 votes, 26 of you actually hate a ballplayer more than you hate the Rickets.  Not hate as much as, which while still morally questionable would allow for say Schilling, but actually hate more than the Texas douche.  Those of you who voted that you hate someone more than you hate Clemens, like Lucy, have some 'splainin to do.  Explain your misguided hatred of other current ballplayers that is greater than the scorn you bestow upon the loathsome visage of Clemens below!

(moved from diaries. --eric)

According to ESPN the Mets designated Park for assignment and called up Lino Urdaneta from New Orleans.  Urdaneta was 1-0 with 6 saves, 5.84 era in 10 appearances.  I guess this means that Sele will take over the 5th starter spot until Hernandez returns, as looking at the roster I'm not sure who else they would use.  Sele, though, hasn been bad--16 hits in 12 innings, 4bb, 10k, 7.3 era.  I'm not sure why they would go this route when Jorge Sosa has pitched very well in New Orleans--4-0, 5gs, 1.13 era, 32ip, 29h, 1hr, 4bb, 29k.  It seems to me this move doesn't really help the Mets as Urdaneta looks to be no better than Sele in the pen (although I don't anythin about Urdaneta beyond his AAA stats) and Sele is no better than Park in the rotation.  Based on the numbers, I would have brought up Sosa to take over for Park until Hernandez comes back.  

*** click here for poll ***

There's an interesting article in the NYT about the Mets strategy in bringing Pelfrey and Humber along.  Seeming to have learned from the leaden days of 1994's Big Three, the Mets are carefully looking at a few things, seemingly taken from Will Carroll's playbook.  (1) The number of innings thrown by them last year and the correlation between increasing the amount and injury.  The article refers to the appropriate increase from year to year as approximately 30.  (2)  The number of pitches thrown per inning.  (3)  The relative stress of each inning, i.e., not all innings are created equal.  

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(moved from the diaries. --eric)

The Mets are now 16-6 (.727) in one run games; 16-14 (.533) in other games and 32-20 (.615) overall.  It has long been established that variance between w-l % in one run games and other games is largely a matter of luck.  The Mets record, therefore, is a little worrisome in terms of predicting future success.  At the same time, Baseball Prospectus adjusted standings page paints a different picture.  The Mets pythagenport standings (based on runs scored and runs allowed) projects the Mets at 29-22 so the Mets are outperforming their expected place in the standings by 2.5 games.  But, based on their expected runs scored and runs allowed (the second and third order wins, the latter adjusted for level of competition) the Mets are actually right on target in terms of wins and losses (31.2-20.8 and 31.4-20.6 respectively).  

What I am wondering is whether the good luck the Mets have had in one run games has been offset by their bad luck in playing so many one run games.  The Mets are 7th in OPS, but 11th in OPS with RISP and 12th in BA with RISP.  As an observer, they have seemed to leave a lot of ducks on the pond.  Another way of seeing this effect is that the Mets RC/27 overall is 5.17 (5th) but with runners on is 4.79 (12th).

I emailed the baseball prospectus guys about this question, i.e., are the Mets due for a fall off because of the one run game records or should they stop playing so many one run games.  If I get a response, I'll update the diary.  What do all of you think?  

** click here for poll **

Even though the Mets are up 7 over the Braves, it would be nice to at least win this series at home.  While it's not crucial, I would love to see the Mets bury the Braves now, especially as they're 3-3 against the Braves this year.  The pitching matchups, though, don't look great and expose the huge falloff after Pedro and Glavine (with or without Bannister).  

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At Baseball Prospectus (behind the subscription wall www.baseballprospectus.com), Will Carroll's Under the Knife reports that Billy "Wagner's middle finger has a torn tendon sheath, causing him significant pain when throwing, as it doesn't allow him to get the same 'pulldown' on his pitches. That tight backspin is key to his boring fastball; without it, he's a bit more hittable, has lost about five mph on his fastball, and is having control problems. No one seems to be sure whether the injury is something Wagner will just have to adjust to, whether rest will help, or whether surgery is in his future. This is definitely one to watch--focus on his control to better gauge where this is headed."

This explains Wagner's uncharateristic performance.  It makes me wonder if this injury is why Heilman has been kept in the pen as he has shown that he could take over the closer's role if necessary.  This injury though could be a big problem for the Mets this year.