OFF (erman) THEIR GAME

Marlins 7, Mets 3
(FLA: 41-37; NYM: 40-40, 9 GB)

Jose Offerman looks awful at first base. This is what I came away from Saturday's game thinking. Just awful. On a play early in the game, Offerman went to field a throw from across the diamond, and he had the wrong foot on the bag, so he was limiting his stretch. The runner was safe. Then, when the Marlins scored 4 runs in the sixth inning to take the 5-3 lead that would prove to be more than enough for the win, Offerman dropped what should have been an inning-ending double play, instead allowing the inning to continue and the Marlins to score two runs. It should have been 3-3, and Offerman should have scooped the ball, but he dropped it, and the Marlins took a 4-3, then later a 5-3 lead. Jeff Torborg (more on him in a minute) and Kenny Albert talked about how the ball was low and in the dirt, and you can't really blame Offerman, but yes you can. He should have had it.

This was just a very frustrating game to watch, and Offerman by no means deserves all of the blame. Most of it, maybe, but not all of it. Save some for Carlos Beltran******. Unreal. Beltran* pops a ball up to first in the third inning, and is mad at himself, so HE DOESN'T RUN TO FIRST. Carlos Delgado makes a really, really smart play, lets the ball drop, then turns a 3-6-3 double play. I defended Beltran* yesterday. I won't defend him again until he starts putting up some solid numbers. This isn't the first time this year he's dogged it - I remember another time earlier this season. He's making a heck of a lot of money - for him to not run anything out is a disgrace. The announcers (again, more on them later) said Beltran* made up for the mistake by blasting a 2-run double to right in the fifth, giving the Mets a 3-1 lead - but I'm not bought that easily. I hope other Mets fans aren't either.

Kris Benson started this game for the Mets, he was 6-2 coming in. He had never before in his career been 4 games over .500. He has yet to get to 5-over. I always talk about Steve Trachsel never pitching (and possibly never pitching well) in big-game scenarios, and how I worry about that. I don't think it is an issue with Benson. And after Saturday, I still don't think it's a problem. Benson pitched very well in this game, and ran into trouble in the aforementioned sixth inning. He got out of that inning with the score still 3-3, as far as I'm concerned. He got done what he needed to do - his defense let him down. Good outing for Benson.

Royce Ring and Danny Graves let the game get out of hand in the 9th, making it the 7-3 final.

Jeff Torborg should be fired. He is brutal. Every other word out of his mouth is about how he managed the Marlins in 2003, and set the table for them to win the championship. And he's full of excuses about why the Marlins fired him (he had so many guys on the disabled list that year) and why he wasn't successful with the Mets (when Willie Randolph broke his hand in 1993, he was one of 15 surgeries - which is why the Mets didn't play well that year). How about the fact that no one respected you Jeff? And no one still does. He also had the nerve to criticize the ring he got from the Marlins in 2003. Are you kidding?! You don't even deserve a ring - if Jeff Torborg had still been managing the Marlins in 2003, they wouldn't have made the playoffs - let alone win the World Series. I know I'm overly critical of announcers, but Jeff Torborg was brutal Saturday.

The friggin' Nationals won again Sunday, so the Mets, at .500, are now 9 games back. This is getting kind of ridiculous. The Mets are just three and a half games back of the Braves for the wild card, FYI.

The only good thing coming out of Saturday was Cliff Floyd "hosting" 'This Week In Baseball', which means he was involved in a lengthy interview, which was pretty good. But I'm still bothered by the fact that he "really worked hard getting ready for this season", and "it's fun coming to the ballpark, and it makes you want to play your best" - why isn't he working hard getting ready for every season, and why isn't he playing hard all the time. That really upsets me. Also, it was great to hear Dontrelle Willis talk (I'm not going to say Jeanne Zelasko had a great interview with Willis, because she was bad, but he was good) during the pre-game. I like Willis a lot - he's very genuine, and fun to watch talk about baseball - he really enjoys himself when he plays.

I have an e-mail that I'm going to answer before I go:

"Dear JohnnyMets,

A few more All Star game items...

*This time it counts. Don't you think they should change the slogan,
borrowing a page from the I Know What You Did Last Summer sequel, and
make it This time it still counts. Or It's counting again this time.
Or Please please watch this time?

*Pedro. I hope Pedro forgoes his annual Dominican holiday and pitches
(starts?) for the NL All Stars later this month. I really want to see
him face Manny or Ortiz or both. In fact, I would be fascinated to see
how he'd fare against the Sox, though I'm not sure when NL East faces
the AL East again in interleague. But here's my question: As a Mets
fan, wouldn't you rather see Pedro get some time off? Dude threw 217
innings last year and 186 in '03, plus the postseason in both those
years, which probably brings the total for the last 2 years to 440 or
something like that. That's a lot of pitches.

*HR Derby: This time it's jingoistic. Which do you find more
entertaining --- the annual HR Derby or the All Star game itself?

Signed,

Dave in Brighton"

I have a big problem with "This time it counts". That implies it never counted before. It did, it counted last year. I agree with you. How about, "This time, LaRussa thinks he has a shot at controlling his fate, but this year he's actually going to lose in the first round of the playoffs."

I'm not sure when the AL East faces the NL East, but can you imagine the Boston media when Pedro* comes back to Boston (or Boston goes to Shea). I won't even watch the news that whole month leading up to it. But the Easts should face each other some time during Pedro*'s contract. MLB screwed it up somehow that the divisions don't rotate fairly from year to year, so even though it's been a while since the Mets faced the Red Sox, I don't think it's happening in either of the next two years. I want to say 2008 for some reason. But I could be wrong. As for Pedro* pitching in the All-Star Game, he's not going to be going all out, I don't think....and one inning couldn't hurt....could it? (Frantically searching for some wood to knock on.)

And lastly, I missed the Home Run Derby in 1999, when it was at Fenway Park, because I was working back in New York. Because everyone I knew was here for that, and it was the "greatest Home Run Derby ever", I feel like watching the rest of them will only be anti-climactic. So I don't really watch the Home Run Derby anymore, but I still do enjoy watching the Game. Don't get me wrong - if the Derby is on, I'll watch it, I just don't get excited about it. The game I get a little bit excited about.

THE KID'S KIDS: The Gulf Coast Dodgers beat the Gulf Coast Mets, 12-1. The Mets could only manage 2 hits. 5-2 on the season now.