Results tagged ‘ David Wright ’
Dodgers 3, Mets 2: Three Up, Three Down
One step forward, one step back. One step forward, one step back.
Three Up:
1. RHP Jeremy Hefner: A nice rebound for a starting pitcher who sorely needed it. The Mets would have done well to take better advantage of Hefner’s day, but can at least hope it’s the start of better things to come.
2. SS Ruben Tejada: If defense can slump, Tejada is currently on fire with the glove. But his greatest contribution Thursday may have come on the bases, where he deftly scrambled to third on a wild pitch in the third, allowing David Wright to hit a game-tying sacrifice fly.
3. 2B Daniel Murphy: Murphy continues to show a knack for fortitude when it counts, singling to further a rally in the sixth inning and walking to advance another rally in the eighth. You’d still like to see more power from Murphy, but he’s a good bat to have with the game on the line.
Three Down:
1. 3B David Wright: If nothing else, Wright has to advance the lead runner to third base with two men on and no outs in the eighth. He did not, and the Mets did not score. The rest, as Howie says, is in the books.
2. LHP Scott Rice: Rice had been playing with fire with free passes all season, but it was actually a leadoff double to a right-handed hitter that did him in Thursday. The Dodgers played ABC baseball from there, moving Nick Punto over on a groundout and scoring him on a single.
3. C Anthony Recker: Recker’s job is extremely difficult, coming off the bench to play no more than once a week. Still, he failed to put the ball in play twice in three at-bats Thursday, which — rust or not — won’t earn him any additional playing time.
Three Up, Three Down Season Standings:
+8
C John Buck
+4
2B Daniel Murphy
+3
RHP Matt Harvey
+2
INF Justin Turner, RHP LaTroy Hawkins, OF Marlon Byrd
+1
LHP Jon Niese, OF Collin Cowgill, LHP Robert Carson, LHP Scott Rice
-1
RHP Jeurys Familia, RHP Dillon Gee, RHP Brandon Lyon, OF Lucas Duda, C Anthony Recker
-2
RHP Greg Burke, LHP Aaron Laffey, OF Jordany Valdespin
-3
OF Kirk Nieuwenhuis
-5
LHP Josh Edgin
-6
1B Ike Davis
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Rockies 11, Mets 3: Three Up, Three Down
The Mets just hit a new Rocky Mountain low.
Three Up:
1. 3B David Wright: A nice offensive game for Wright, who redirected two balls up the middle for RBI singles. Wright is — and has always been — at his best when he’s hitting to right and center field.
2. 2B Daniel Murphy: Murphy continues to display a lack of range at second base, but that’s excusable as long as his offensive production is high. It was Thursday, when he singled and doubled in four at-bats, scoring twice.
3. SS Ruben Tejada: Good for Tejada. So maligned for his defense all season long, Tejada made a sensational throw to rob Troy Tulowitzki of a hit in the third inning, proving that his defensive prowess still exists.
Three Down:
1. LHP Josh Edgin: Edgin’s inability to record outs is growing into a legitimate problem. He’s struggling against left-handed and right-handed batters alike.
2. RHP Scott Atchison: When a reliever faces three batters and does not record an out, it’s not a good thing. Atchison had been solid all season until Thursday, so perhaps this is merely a blip.
3. OF Jordany Valdespin: Two hits are nice, but Valdespin’s fielding error directly contributed to the Rockies’ third run, which loomed huge at the time. He needs to improve his outfield reads, because right now he is costing the Mets runs on a near-daily basis.
Three Up, Three Down Season Standings:
+6
C John Buck
+4
2B Daniel Murphy
+3
RHP Matt Harvey, OF Marlon Byrd
+1
LHP Jon Niese, INF Justin Turner, LHP Scott Rice, RHP LaTroy Hawkins, 3B David Wright
-1
RHP Jeurys Familia, LHP Aaron Laffey, RHP Dillon Gee, OF Mike Baxter, SS Ruben Tejada, OF Jordany Valdespin
-2
RHP Greg Burke, OF Lucas Duda
-3
OF Kirk Nieuwenhuis
-4
1B Ike Davis, LHP Josh Edgin
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Rockies 8, Mets 4: Three Up, Three Down
The Mets must regret losing this game, the first half of a day-night doubleheader. They simply let it slip away.
Three Up:
1. 3B David Wright: This was an easy one. Wright’s two home runs (to right and center) were the only reason the Mets had a chance to win until the eighth inning; he now has 10 homers in 30 career games at Coors Field.
2. LHP Scott Rice: Nice job by Rice to induce a double-play ball in a key spot in the sixth. Though Rice later walked two batters, he did the job the Mets asked him to do.
3. RHP LaTroy Hawkins: Similar deal as Rice, striking out the only batter he faced to escape a jam. We give middle relievers plenty of grief when they don’t come through in these spots, so it’s time for a little credit when they do.
Three Down:
1. RHP Dillon Gee: Tough day for Gee, who battled frigid conditions and extra rest on the mound, showcasing an uncharacteristic lack of control. That’s two poor outings in a row for Gee.
2. 2B Daniel Murphy: More distressing than Murphy’s 0-for-3 was the lack of range he displayed at second base, allowing Todd Helton’s critical two-run single in the fifth inning to squirt through to right field.
3. RF Jordany Valdespin: Leading off, Valdespin finished 0-for-5. Playing right field, he gave up extra bases on Chris Nelson’s double in the sixth inning and Eric Young’s RBI triple in the eighth — both of them playable balls.
Three Up, Three Down Season Standings:
+6
C John Buck
+3
RHP Matt Harvey, 2B Daniel Murphy
+2
OF Marlon Byrd
+1
LHP Jon Niese, INF Justin Turner, LHP Scott Rice, RHP LaTroy Hawkins
-1
RHP Jeurys Familia, SS Ruben Tejada, LHP Aaron Laffey, RHP Bobby Parnell, RHP Dillon Gee
-2
LHP Josh Edgin, RHP Greg Burke, OF Lucas Duda
-3
OF Kirk Nieuwenhuis
-4
1B Ike Davis
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Mets 16, Twins 5: Three Up, Three Down
Welp, that one was an absolute rout:
Three Up:
1. C John Buck: A grand slam made it four straight games with a homer for Buck, who now has six long balls in nine games behind the plate. His offensive output has been staggering.
2. 2B Daniel Murphy: This is turning into one of the better offensive stretches of Murphy’s career; four more hits Friday upped his season average to .368.
3. 3B David Wright: That’s the type of offensive output the captain has been looking for. Wright still doesn’t have a home run this season, but he produced everything else in a three-hit, four-RBI attack.
Three Down:
1. LHP Jon Niese: The worst thing a pitcher can do with an eight-run lead? Walk four guys in five innings. We’ll chalk this one up to the wintry conditions at Target Field.
2. OF Lucas Duda: Every Mets starting position player rapped out at least one hit except for Duda, who was 0-for-3 with a walk.
3. OF Mike Baxter: This is a tough “down,” but we’ll give it to Baxter for failing to drive in a runner from third with one out in the second. Baxter finished 1-for-5, going hitless until the ninth.
Three Up, Three Down Season Standings:
+6
C John Buck
+4
2B Daniel Murphy
+2
RHP Matt Harvey
+1
OF Marlon Byrd, OF Jordany Valdespin, LHP Jon Niese
-1
RHP Jeurys Familia, SS Ruben Tejada, LHP Aaron Laffey, 3B David Wright, OF Lucas Duda
-2
LHP Josh Edgin, RHP Greg Burke
-3
OF Kirk Nieuwenhuis, 1B Ike Davis
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Phillies 7, Mets 3: Three Up, Three Down
Remember this game? That’s pretty much what happened at Citizens Bank Park tonight.
Three Up:
1. C John Buck: Buck now has five home runs in eight games this season. Mets catchers combined for five home runs in 162 games last season. They’ll take the offensive boost.
2. CF Jordany Valdespin: Leading off, Valdespin rapped out three hits and saved starting pitcher Jeremy Hefner from further damage with his shoestring catch in the third. But it wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows for Valdespin, who also struck out with the bases loaded and was caught stealing for the first time this season.
3. OF Lucas Duda: Both of Duda’s two home runs were rockets, as was his first-inning double. If this is the beginning of a breakout from Duda, the Mets will certainly take it.
Three Down:
1. RHP Jeremy Hefner: The first six batters to face Hefner all reached base. Five of them scored. It’s hard to recover from that.
2. 3B David Wright: Wright is 0-for-8 over his last two games, striking out twice Wednesday (including in the first inning, when his whiff left Valdespin out to dry on the base paths). The Mets did well earlier this season without significant production from Wright, but now they need him to produce.
3. 1B Ike Davis: At what point does this become a significant concern? Another 0-for-4 has Davis batting .129 with one home run. Considering what happened last year, it has to be a worry.
Three Up, Three Down Season Standings:
+5
C John Buck
+3
2B Daniel Murphy
+2
LHP Jon Niese, RHP Matt Harvey
+1
OF Mike Baxter, OF Marlon Byrd, OF Jordany Valdespin
-1
RHP Jeurys Familia, SS Ruben Tejada, LHP Aaron Laffey
-2
LHP Josh Edgin, RHP Greg Burke, 3B David Wright
-3
OF Kirk Nieuwenhuis, 1B Ike Davis
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Padres 2, Mets 1: Three Up, Three Down
The Mets had their chances in a 2-1 loss to the Padres. For the first time this season, the list of “Down” candidates was significantly longer than the list of “Ups”:
Three Up:
1. RHP Dillon Gee: The Mets certainly would have signed up pregame for what Gee delivered: 6 1/3 innings and one earned run. That lone run against Gee was in part due to a one-out pop fly that fell for a hit.
2. 2B Justin Turner: Subbing for Daniel Murphy, Turner rapped out three hits in his first three at-bats. That made up for at-bat No. 4, when Mr. Call Me Maybe grounded back to the pitcher with two outs and the tying run in scoring position.
3. C John Buck: After snubbing Buck in this space yesterday, I was tempted to include him here even before he hit a rocket-fueled homer off Huston Street to open the ninth. More importantly, Buck has called three good games in a row behind the plate.
Three Down:
1. OF Lucas Duda: Not a good day for The Dude, who struck out in all three of his at-bats before the Mets double-switched him out of the game. The last of those came in the sixth, when he stared at strike three with the tying run on second.
2. RHP Jeurys Familia: Familia’s season debut went like this: walk, single, wild pitch, run scored. Familia faced three batters, recorded one out and allowed a critical insurance run in the eighth.
3B David Wright: Sorry, Captain, but three strikeouts in three at-bats ain’t going to cut it with the rest of the offense scuffling around you. There will be better days for No. 5.
Three Up, Three Down Season Standings:
+1: OF Collin Cowgill, LHP Jon Niese, RHP Matt Harvey, RHP Dillon Gee, C John Buck, INF Justin Turner
-1: OF Jordany Valdespin, OF Kirk Nieuwenhuis, RHP Greg Burke, RHP LaTroy Hawkins, RHP Jeurys Familia, 3B David Wright
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David Wright has his own bus now
Gray Line New York, which runs a sightseeing service in Manhattan, dedicated a bus to Mets third baseman David Wright today. Here are two pictures of him at the Citi Field dedication ceremony, courtesy photographer Simon Russell:
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Jeter on Wright: “They named him captain for a reason”
Yankees captain Derek Jeter had some very complimentary things to say today about the newest member of MLB’s captain club, David Wright:
Your thoughts on the Mets naming Wright captain?
“Good for him. I’ve played with him in the WBC and played against him a lot. Good for him. He’s represented that organization as well as anyone throughout the years. I know he takes a big part of the responsibility over there. I’m happy for him.”
Will his responsibilities change?
“First of all, just because you’re named captain doesn’t mean that you’ve got to do something that you don’t normally do. He should continue to do what he’s doing. They named him captain for a reason, so it’s not now all of a sudden that you turn into someone that you’re not. I think he’ll do just fine. He just needs to continue to do the things that made him successful up until this point.”
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Projecting the Opening Day roster, 3/19
I’m not ready to place David Wright and Daniel Murphy on the disabled list to start the season, though there’s a good chance that will happen. We should have a much better idea on both of them after this weekend.
I am, however, ready to give Omar Quintanilla a roster spot over the struggling Brandon Hicks. The result:
C : John Buck
1B: Ike Davis
2B: Daniel Murphy
SS: Ruben Tejada
3B: David Wright
OF: Lucas Duda
OF: Collin Cowgill
OF: Marlon Byrd
Bench: Mike Baxter
Bench: Jordany Valdespin
Bench: Justin Turner
Bench: Omar Quintanilla
Bench: Anthony Recker
SP: Jon Niese
SP: Shaun Marcum
SP: Matt Harvey
SP: Dillon Gee
SP: Jeremy Hefner
RHP: Bobby Parnell (CL)
RHP: Brandon Lyon
RHP: Scott Atchison
RHP: LaTroy Hawkins
RHP: Greg Burke
LHP: Josh Edgin
LHP: Pedro Feliciano
DL: Frank Francisco, Johan Santana
In the running: C Landon Powell, INF Brandon Hicks, INF Zach Lutz, INF Brian Bixler, OF Kirk Nieuwenhuis, OF Andrew Brown, OF Matt den Dekker, RHP Jenrry Mejia, RHP Jeurys Familia, LHP Aaron Laffey, LHP Robert Carson.
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David Wright scratched with sore ribs
You may have heard that Mets third baseman David Wright was scratched from tonight’s World Baseball Classic game due to sore ribs. MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro was among the reporters who caught up to Wright in Miami. Here’s the Q&A:
How long have you felt discomfort?
“For about a week or so, I’ve had some discomfort in my rib area. Obviously, every time I go in and get treatment for something like that, the team finds out about it. Which is correct. I got a phone call today from our trainer, Ray [Ramirez]. He asked me what’s going on. Obviously, I told him that I wanted to play. I told him everything that was going on.”
Who made the decision to scratch you from the game?
“Every time I go into the training room, you end up on an injury report. The Mets see that. They decided, along with USA Baseball and Joe Torre, that it would be best that they pull me from the lineup today.”
When did the discomfort start?
“When we started training in Arizona. Tomorrow, I’m going to Port St. Lucie to see Mets team doctors. I’m optimistic that they will allow me to come back and re-join these guys. I wanted to play tonight. But I understand the decision that was made from the Mets and Team USA. I’m disappointed. I think that goes without saying, but I completely understand the direction that they’re going.”
How have you been coping until now?
“It was something I was able to manage. Showing up on an injury report a number of different times is when it set off some red flags in St. Lucie.”
“I didn’t go in there right away. This has been happening about a week. I started going in there recently.”
Is it an oblique issue?
“I don’t know what it is. It’s something in the rib area. So like I said, I saw the team doctor here. They’ve talked to the Mets doctors. That’s ultimately when they made the decision to shut it down.”
How does it feel now?
“Obviously, it’s been fine to play with. Again, I understand the precaution that is being taken here. I’m obviously disappointed. I’m upset that I can’t play. But I completely understand. I had a long talk with Joe Torre about it. I told him that I’d like to play. I’d like to try to play. Ultimately, it was taken out of my hands by the Mets and Team USA. It’s completely understandable.”
When do you feel it?
“I don’t feel it much when I play. It’s more just, lounging around. I’ve been having a hard time sleeping, because you get it caught in a certain position. It wakes you up in the middle of the night. It’s more so, when I’m not doing anything, when I’m sitting around, it barks and bothers me. But then once I get it heated up and get it going, I feel pretty good.
“I wouldn’t do anything to jeopardize [anything]. I owe it to the Mets to listen to them and to be ready for Opening Day. That’s extremely important to me. That’s something I obviously don’t want to jeopardize.”
Will this cause you to think twice about going to the next Classic?
“No. This has been one of the best times, obviously, I’ve had playing baseball. This is a tournament that I’ve said all along that I love participating in. I can only hope that I haven’t played my last game for Team USA. This is a wonderful tournament. By no means does this injury have anything to do with the format of this tournament, or playing in this tournament. This is one of those freak things where I woke up one day, and I was a little sore. We hadn’t even started playing any games when I first felt this thing. It’s one of those freak things.”
Follow me on Twitter @AnthonyDiComo.
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