Mets 8 , Phillies 8 (top of the 15th)
While giving the Mets all the credit on earth for their resilience in coming back from a couple of deficits (the 2nd time on a Jose Reyes 2 run HR off his shoelaces of all things), Philly’s Ryan Madson is on the verge of redefining long relief. If this goes on much longer, we’ll see Tom Glavine pinch hitting.
Gary Cohen totally lost it when Cliff Floyd hit a line drive to center in the 14th, a ball that was a good 20 feet short of the warning track. I think somebody wants to go home.
Phillies third string catcher Chris Coste, 33, and just promoted from Scranton, has yet to play in a big league game. Madson has hit for himself twice already. As Cohen has pointed out more than once, if Coste can’t find his way into a 15 inning game, what’s it gonna take?
(UPDATE : Mets 9, Phillies 8 in 16. Carlos Beltran ends the marathon with a sick laser shot past the right field ‘pen, or as Jon Miller would’ve put it, “onto the streets of New York.” And with the conclusion of this marathon, we are officially spared any possibility of seeing Ron Darling in a rally cap._)
Repoz at Baseball Think Factory has an item tonight about the scout that signed Albert Pujols now stocking shelves at Wal-Mart. On the other hand, the guy also inked Braden Looper, so who’s to say karma isn’t at work. Pujols smacked HR no. 23 against the Giants earlier tonight (the Cards are ahead, 7-4, in the top of the 7th) and you have to figure by the time he’s hit number 90 they’ll stop pitching to him.
Apparently, Alex Rodriguez hits home runs that count, too.
The Royals managed to hit 4 HR’s off Detroit’s Kenny Rogers tonight, and they still lost. George Brett was on XM 175 earlier today and claimed that Allen Baird’s difficulty in improving K.C despite the increased payroll comes down to “nobody wants to play for a team that lost 100 games.” Doug Mientkiewicz is a nobody?
Dear Phillies,
Pls put Madson back in rotation; I hear that Double A Reading could use Gavin Floyd. Pls trade Abreu for Barry Zito. Make J-Roll take pitches and then hit grounders. Also: pls heal Cole Hamels’ shoulder. He is like Philly’s unicorn/chimera/Pegasus and since we haven’t seen him at The Vault, we don’t believe he exists thus ruining yet another dollar dog night at the park!
In all fairness to Gavin Floyd, if it were not for a hamfisted 1st-baseman, a LF who might not beat Bonds in a footrace and a “wall-shy” RF (as in froze when he hit the warning track on Matsuis double) Floyd would have likely thrown at least a 6 IP 2 run QS and that is okay be me from a rookie 5th starter. Another note: Philly is getting a bit ahead of themselves in regards to Cole Hamels. Reports now say that Hamels will be starting on Sunday, but keep in mind he hasnt yet proven himself as being even a Taylor Bucholz or Justin Verlander, much less the Second Coming Of Steve Carlton. Given his history of injuries lets not count the chips until they start cashing in.