The timing of today’s New York Mets – Colorado Rockies game was apt. Played at lunchtime, this game was a lot like the meal itself. At the beginning, it was light and easy, stress-free without great substance. But then it was left out in the sun for three hours, and things started to sour and […]
Author: Brian Duricy
Game Recap July 7: Guest Starring Home Run Apple
What happened on the field was difficult to overshadow the news taking place off the field. Just hours before first pitch in Queens, it was revealed that Matt Harvey is considering season-ending shoulder surgery to deal with thoracic outlet syndrome – a syndrome that has affected multiple MLB pitchers. Prior to this news, we were […]
Game Recap June 30: Credit Where Credit Is Due
Coming into last night’s start, Steven Matz and John Lackey were having quite similar seasons. Matz was 7-3 with a 3.29 ERA while Lackey was 7-4 and the same ERA. Matz had the edge in FIP with Lackey leading in WHIP, and each had gone 4.1 innings in their last start, giving up six and seven […]
Game Recap June 23: The New Normal
Some baseball games are greater than the sum of their parts. When I saw the Cleveland Indians play the Tampa Bay Rays on Tuesday, this was not the case. The city of Cleveland, still ecstatic over the Cavaliers’ NBA Finals victory, cheered loudly and often, but the game never seemed within reach of the Rays. […]
Game Recap June 16: The Other Game Six
You might have heard that Thursday night had a game six between two upper echelon teams. You know, the sport with the ball, the one where you try and outscore your opponent? Yeah, that one. Only, the one you’re thinking of doesn’t have a man christened Big Sexy doing things that one with that name […]
Michael Conforto Can Escape His Slump By Minding The Strike Zone
In each sport, one event can signify an exit from that worst of five-letter words: slump. For baseball’s hitters, that event is a home run–if you’re in desperate need of positive mojo, a grand slam should catalyze a reversal of fortunes. On Tuesday versus the Pittsburgh Pirates, Michael Conforto found himself in just the position he […]
Game Recap June 9: Started With a Bang, Ended With a Whimper
With the third-lowest scoring offense in the majors, the Mets’ five-run performance on Thursday night in Milwaukee seemed much more explosive than its 1.29 runs above their season average would suggest. Coupled with an outing by Bartolo Colon that can be best described as Bartolian in both stat line and surprisingly agile playmaking, the team appears […]
Cespedes’ Improvement In Queens Isn’t Just About Power
For the vast majority of May, Bryce Harper held a mid-.200s average with above an OPS of 1.000; for most of that period, he was something of an outlier. Were the season to have ended on any of those days, he would’ve set the record of having the lowest seasonal batting average with an OPS that high. But, […]
Game Recap May 19: What Went Wrong
Today, while playing tennis, a group of kids watched behind the fence while waiting for their own hits to start. A flat serve to the body produced a short, sitting ball to my forehand that I promptly ran towards, only, I tripped over myself and flailed my racquet unsuccessfully at the ball. Clearly, I looked […]
Game recap May 12: Bartolo does not hit a home run (and the Mets barely hit at all)
Thursday is the off day for a lot of teams, but May 12 still offered two intriguing pitching matchups in the National League. The Arizona Diamondbacks trotted out Zack Greinke versus the San Francisco Giants’ Johnny Cueto. But the marquee matchup contained the man widely regarded as one of the best, if not always the […]