Originally posted on Midwestropolitan .
It’s quite simple.
The Cardinals took advantage of the bases loaded with one out in the bottom of the seventh inning. A non-power hitter, Felipe Lopez, takes Raul Valdes deep for a grand slam.
The Mets can’t get the big hit. Jason Bay, the Mets cleanup hitter signed this past offseason for this very situation, strikes out with runners on third and second and one out. Fernando Tatis is then promptly robbed of a double to end the inning.
Encouraging Signs
The Mets defense looked sharp. David Wright especially flashed the leather, as he made a couple of nice diving plays at third base.
The Mets didn’t roll over after the deflating grand slam by Felipe Lopez. They were able to plate two runs in the ninth and had the tying run on second, when Luis Castillo grounded out to end the game.
Jeff Francoeur continues his hot streak, adding another two hits to his season tally.
Jenrry Mejia struck out two out of the three batters he faced in the eighth inning.
The Mets still can’t get the big hit with runners in scoring position.
Fernando Nieve and Raul Valdes were not impressive.
Gary Matthews Jr. looked utterly lost in his first three at bats.
I am still trying to figure out what happened to Nieve when he faced Matt Holliday in the seventh inning. Holliday keeps his bat on his shoulder as Fernando challenges him with two fastballs to get the count to 0-2. Nieve then proceeds to nibble at the corners and winds up walking Holliday to load the bases.
Holliday never swung during the entire at bat. I understand it is necessary to try to get him to chase a pitch or two. But once the count gets to two and two, I would rather see Nieve challenge him with a 94 mph fastball that gets plenty of plate.
Holliday didn’t start the game because he was under the weather. Be aggressive.