An Inch at a Time

While Friday's game was a tough one, it was nice to see the Mets take care of business at home against a struggling team. With the emergence of Kris Benson, it's not having a one-two punch where you know more times then not you're going to walk away with two wins.

And Benson really got it done yesterday. Eight shutout innings in which he only gave up four hits and a walk is about as good as you can ask. Had his pitch count not gotten towards the upper end of what he's used to (125 pitches) he probably would have come out and finished the game out. The Mets bats weren't asleep either. They racked up six runs on twelve hits. Mike Piazza hit a two run homer and also had an RBI single. Carlos Beltran was two for four with a triple.

Saturday's game was nice because for once, it was the hitters bailing out Pedro instead of Pedro bailing out the offense. A three run first inning put the Dodgers ahead early, but by the end of the third, the Mets had tied it up. The Dodgers took a 4-3 lead in the fourth and a 5-3 lead in the sixth but the Mets stormed back with four runs in their last three innings to give Pedro his twelth victory.

Pedro's line looked pretty mortal. Seven innings, eight hits, two walks and five runs. He also only struck out four. Jose Reyes had a monster game. Four for five with three runs, two RBIs, and his tenth triple of the season. He also stole two bases, and in all, the Mets swiped five. And while we're probably off the triples/walk watch (10/14), you have to give credit to Reyes for providing a lot of offense when the Mets really needed it.

In Friday's game you have to give credit for the comeback, even if they came up short. The Mets went down 6-0 in the top of the fifth, but stormed back with five in their next two innings. Unfortunately the Dodgers pen is still very solid even with out Gagne, and once the struggling Jeff Weaver was pulled, the bullpen held the Mets scoreless over three innings.

The Mets scored all of their runs via the homer. Doug Mientkiewicz hit a two run shot, and Carlos Beltran went yard with a three run shot.

With the Nationals still struggling, things are really starting to tighten up again. The Mets are in fourth, but they're only three and a half back. Only four and a half games seperate first and last so you'd think everyone would be buyers as the trading deadline looms.