|
|
vs. |  |
| 34-26 (2nd place, NL Central) | 28-31 (4th place, NL East) | |
|
GAME 1: June 7, 2011 @ 7:10 p.m. CDT Miller Park Milwaukee, Wisconsin |
||
|
SBN Coverage: Mets vs Brewers coverage A View from the Other Dugout: Amazin' Avenue |
||
| Game 1 | Shaun Marcum (6-2, 2.78) | vs. | Chris Capuano (3-6, 5.19) |
| vs. Mets | (0-0, ---) | vs. Brewers | (0-0, ---) |
| Game 2 | Randy Wolf (4-4, 3.69) | vs. | Mike Pelfrey (3-4, 5.56) |
| vs. Mets | (0-0, ---) | vs. Brewers | (0-0, ---) |
| Game 3 | Yovani Gallardo (8-2, 3.72) | vs. | Jon Niese (4-5, 3.75) |
| vs. Mets | (0-0, ---) | vs. Brewers | (0-0, ---) |
Eric Simon of Amazin' Avenue was kind enough to take a few moments (on short notice last night) to answer some questions about the Mets to help us get ready for tonight's series opener.
KL: I hate to lead with this, but it might be my most Brewer relevant question. Are the Mets serious about trading Jose Reyes, and if so are they willing to accept a price low enough to keep the Brewers in the bidding?
ES: I don't think they're going to trade Jose Reyes. He means an awful lot to this franchise and I think he genuinely enjoys playing in New York. The big stage suits him, if it suits anyone at all. If they *do* look to move him before the trade deadline, he won't be cheap, so if you've got some ace prospects stashed away now might be the time to dust them off.
Follow the jump for the rest!
KL: The Mets entered play Monday at 28-31, but only seven games back in the NL East. Are you still holding out hope for contention for this team? If not, what would it take to get you to call the rest of 2011 a success?
ES: I'm not especially sanguine about the Mets' chances of making the postseason. The starting rotation is in shambles; David Wright and Ike Davis will be out at least another three weeks; Johan Santana won't be back until the All-Star break, if at all. If they can hang on to Reyes, get some of their injured stars back in the lineup, and play some entertaining baseball, that'll be good enough for me.
KL: Chris Capuano is going to face the Brewers on Tuesday for the first time since leaving Milwaukee at the end of last season. What can you tell us about his first season in New York?
ES: Capuano has been a pleasant surprise. His 5.19 ERA is misleading; he has shown very good control and a decent propensity for missing bats. He's had some sour luck on balls in play which should turn in his favor before too long, and he has been murder on lefties (.229/.280/.300). Seems like a decent guy besides.
KL: Ike Davis has been a .302/.383/.543 hitter when healthy, but I see he's been out recently with a bone bruise in his ankle. How much does he mean to this team, and do you have any update on when he may be able to return?
ES: Davis was the Mets' best hitter before a flukey collision with David Wright landed him on the disabled list with a bone bruise in his left ankle, where he has been since early May and will remain until at least the end of June. He's got a really nice glove and looked comfortable at the plate early on after an up-and-down rookie year in 2010, and he's cheap to boot. The Mets miss him, big time.
KL: I'm guessing most everyone knows about the Mets financial woes and ownership issues. How do you expect them to affect this team going forward? Is this a temporary issue the franchise should recover quickly from, or something that could haunt them for a long time?
ES: It's a bit of a mess, but the Mets bought themselves some short-term relief by taking on hedge fund dynamo David Einhorn as a minority-stake partner, whose $200 million cash infusion will help the team settle some immediate debts and meet all of their payroll obligations for this year. Next offseason will be an interesting one, as the Mets have a bunch of money coming off the books — Carlos Beltran, Oliver Perez, Luis Castillo (which latter two aren't even playing for the Mets this year), and hopefully Francisco Rodriguez — but they have Jose Reyes's contract to worry about and there are reports that the team's payroll could dip to the $100-110 million range, which would impose serious restrictions on Sandy Alderson's ability to make any necessary improvements for 2012.
The specter of the Madoff trustee lawsuit is frightening from a fiscal solvency standpoint, as even a modest settlement could cost the Mets' ownership group hundreds of millions of dollars on the low end and upwards of a billion dollars if the trustees get what they're asking for. I'm optimistic that things will work out, but there's an increasing sense that things are going to get worse before they get better.