Let’s hear more about Steven Matz [1]. Let’s see more of his delighted grandpa [2]. Let’s get another look at his delightful sandwich [3]. Let’s relive those three hits from Sunday [4], which is as many as Steven Matz’s teammates collected without his help Tuesday. Let us tally up his four runs batted in, roughly four more than Mets not named Matz batted in last night.
Steven Matz is in a six-man rotation, but he needs to be in our lives every single day to remind us there is good in this world.
Little good came of the Mets’ first post-Matz game despite a few positive developments at Citi Field. Daniel Murphy [5] came back to play a professional third base; Wilmer Flores [6] continued to reacclimate at second; and the pitcher who isn’t a young flamethrower and isn’t an ancient wonder pitched about as well as he is capable of pitching. That’s actually three good things.
Alas, it amounted to bupkes, as the Mets fell to the Cubs [7], 1-0. “Fell” might not be the right word. More like the Cubs scored a run and the Mets found awesome seats on StubHub from which to view it.
Jon Niese [8] is in Jim McAndrew [9] mode these days, pitching well enough to lead any team that isn’t the 1968 [10] or 2015 Mets to victory. He made one questionable call as a fielder, threw one unfortunate pitch as a pitcher and would make a nice addition to the staff of a contender who would be willing to send Sandy Alderson a position player of an offensive caliber anywhere above moribund. No reasonable inquiry will be rejected out of hand.
The Cubs are supposedly interested in Niese. The Dodgers are supposedly interested in Niese. It’s convenient that they are our respective current and next opponents. There’s all kinds of Mets who can be dropped off with Jonathon if so desired. Please give them a good home. Please give us a live bat.
We seem to be competing with the Cubs for a Wild Card. Glad we’re not competing with them for a Pepsodent ad. Joe Maddon is all smiles, bringing in magicians [11] and waxing nostalgic for Lindsey Nelson [12]. Terry Collins is scowling his face off and having his press briefings bleeped [13]. Nobody except a few of his pitchers can hit for him and now Michael Cuddyer [14] has a sore knee [15]. Cuddyer has contributed mightily to the Mets’ offensive drought. But without him…actually, I don’t think it will make a darn bit of difference if Cuddyer isn’t playing, but in theory this isn’t good. My impulse would be to DL him if his MRI shows anything (and by “anything,” I mean if he’s still alive) and give Michael Conforto [16] an audition, in the same Double-A spirit that they gave Dilson Herrera [17] a shot late last summer. The worst that can happen is a few weeks of service time will accumulate and Conforto might be a free agent in the year 2524 instead of 2525.
Unless they’re gonna use Niese to wrangle a sentient left fielder from another organization, what’s the non-Cuddyer alternative? Eric Campbell [18] displaying more of his trademark versatility? Logistic wizardry to return Kirk Nieuwenhuis [19] to the 40-man? Handing Matz a fielder’s glove and pointing him in the general direction of the Acela Club?
Hey, now we’re talking!