What, exactly, was that bullshit?
The Mets came out smoking, roughed up Aaron Harang, and headed into the clubhouse with a 4-0 lead when the rains came. As it became apparent that this was a serious storm and would be a long delay, I began to fret that that 4-0 lead would be erased in favor of a doubleheader tomorrow.
I don't know what team that was that came back out to play when the rain finally stopped, but I don't want to see it again. Up and down the lineup, they took at-bats like a squad with a double-digit lead on getaway day: six pitches in the 3rd, seven in the 4th, eight in the 5th. Three innings, 21 pitches? Ridiculous bordering on unprofessional, and by the time they seemed to be paying attention again, it was 4-4. Fittingly, the game was then lost on a double error: Reyes' too-aggressive bid to get Scott Hatteberg at third, compounded by his making a bad throw and getting nobody. The miscue seemed to unnerve Sanchez, three runs came in, and that was that.
The more you think about it, the more it's infuriating. This is the kind of hare-and-the-tortoise loss that lets 11.5-game leads erode if there are too many of them, and exactly what Willie Randolph was warning against a few weeks back: the dangers of playing half-assed baseball because you think the rest of the regular season is a formality.
It isn't. Here's hoping Willie closes the clubhouse door and makes that excruciatingly clear.
Bingo. Spot-on. I think these guys are starting to believe some of their press. “Hey, the season's over! We're on the cover of Sports Illustrated! Half of us are all-stars! When do the playoffs start?” Meanwhile the Braves are quietly making up ground. I don't want to be an alarmist with a double-digit division lead, but Willie had better get on these guys a bit.
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