1st Place Mets Sweep Doubleheader

Thanks to a rain-out on Monday the Mets played the Dodgers twice yesterday. The Mets won the first game 4-0 behind a strong pitching performance by Johan Santana. The offense powered them towards a 10-5 victory in a second game where Oliver Perez couldn’t pitch past the fourth inning. The pair of victories left the Mets in first place, half a game ahead of the Philadelphia Phillies.

Game 1 Notes

• Johan Santana’s line: 6IP, 4H, 0R, 3BB, 6K.
• Fernando Nieve (2IP) and Pedro Feliciano (1IP) combined line: 3IP, 1H, 0R, 2BB, 4K.
• Angel Pagan went 1-for-4.
• Luis Castillo went 1-for-4 with 2 RBI’s.
• Jose Reyes went 1-for-4.
• Jason Bay went 1-for-3 witih a solo home run and a walk.
• David Wright went 1-for-3 with a stolen base, a run scored, and a walk.
• Ike Davis went 1-for-3 with a walk.
• Gary Matthews Jr. went 0-for-2 with a walk.
• Rod Barajas went 1-for-4 with a run scored.

Game 2 Notes

• Oliver Perez’s line: 3.2IP, 3H, 3ER, 4BB, 2K.
• Hisanori Takahashi (3.1IP), Jenrry Mejia (1IP), and Raul Valdes (1IP) combined for this line: 5.1IP, 4H, 2ER, 2BB, 5K (all strikeouts by Takahashi).
• Angel Pagan went 1-for-3 with two walks and three runs scored.
• Luis Castillo went 1-for-2 with two walks and a run scored.
• Jose Reyes went 1-for-5 with three runs scored.
• Jason Bay went 1-for-5 with an RBI and a run scored.
• David Wright went 3-for-3 with a walk, a run scored, and four RBI’s.
• Ike Davis went 1-for-2 with a walk and three RBI’s. Jeff Francoeur went 1-for-4.
• Henry Blanco went 2-for-4 with a run scored.

Thoughts

• How great was it watching the offense finally turn out a big game?! Dropping Jose Reyes to the third spot in the order seems to have really worked out so far and what a difference Ike Davis has made.
• Like I predicted yesterday, the bullpen was heavily taxed during the doubleheader throwing a combined 8.1 innings throughout the day. Unless the Mets make a roster change, manager Jerry Manuel needs to be careful not to burn out relievers the rest of the week.
• Oliver Perez is hurting this club more than he’s helping it. That’s no giant revelation, but this club should seriously look into doing something about the pitcher if it is serious about contending.
• On that note, I think it’s time Hisanori Takahashi is moved to the rotation. It doesn’t have to be for Perez, maybe John Maine gets taken out instead.
• Jason Bay is now hitting .412 over his last five games, it’s about time.
• David Wright’s RBI-single in the 5th inning of the second game was the 1,000 hit for his career.
• This was the Mets first sweep of a doubleheader since June of 2007 against the Philadelphia Phillies

Quote

• “He’s making a strong case for himself to be a part of the rotation if we continue to have issues,” Manuel said about Takahashi.

Line of the Day

2-out RBI – D Wright 4, I Davis 2. Two out RBI’s go a long way in the offense putting up big numbers. The Mets struggled mightily in this category early in the season. They’ve been able to turn it around and it’s why they are in first place.

Up Next

• The Mets go for a sweep of the Dodgers and their 7th win in a row Wednesday afternoon.
• Wednesday April 28: RHP John Ely (0-0, no ERA) vs.  RHP John Maine (0-1, 8.64).

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