R.A. Dickey might just be the best pitcher in baseball right now.
Dickey was brilliant on Wednesday night, twirling nine innings of one-hit ball while walking no one and striking out a career-high 12. The merit of the one-hit the Rays did get — a grounder down the third base line that David Wright could’ve gloved but instead tried to barehand and muffed, allowing B.J. Upton to reach first — are debatable. But the utter dominance of Dickey is not.
Following Wright’s muff, Dickey retired the next 22 batters in order. In the process, Dickey passed Jerry Koosman to become the Mets all-time leader in consecutive scoreless innings at 32.2 innings without allowing a run. The Rays “broke” the streak with a ninth inning run thanks to a bad throw that was scored an error on Wright, two passed balls on Mike Nickeas and a groundout. However that was the only blemish on an otherwise lopsided 9-1 Mets win.
After scoring just seven runs over three games in the Bronx over the weekend, the Mets offense showed for the second straight night that its members are alive and well. New York lit up the American League wins leader David Price for seven runs in five-plus innings. Every Met had a hit (even Jason Bay!), six different players drove in runs and seven different men scored in the rout.
After wasting golden opportunities in the first and second innings, the Mets broke out in the fifth, striking for three against Price. It started with a double by Ike Davis and Mike Nickeas followed with a liner up the middle to break the ice and give the Mets a 1-0 lead. A two-out double off the bat of Andres Torres put two in scoring position for Daniel Murphy, who bounced one between the first and second basemen for a two-run single.
New York added four more in the sixth on six consecutive hits and Price was forced to hit the showers before he even recorded an out in the inning. Scott Hariston and Jason Bay started it with singles and Vinny Rottino sent home Hairston with a double. Davis followed with a single to plate Bay and that was the end of the line for Price. On the third pitch by reliever Burke Badenhop, Nickeas sent a bleeder down the third base line that Will Rhymes couldn’t glove, loading the bases. Omar Quintanilla unloaded them with a single that brought Rottino and Davis across to make it 7-0.
David Wright added a two-run double in the top of the ninth off J.P. Howell, which made it 9-0 as he became the last Mets player to get a hit. Torres finished 3-for-5 with two runs scored while, Murphy, Davis and Nickeas each had two hits, at least one RBI and one run scored. The win clinched a series victory in advance of tomorrow’s finale.
Game Ball: The Dickster earns another one. His matchup with Price pitted the NL and AL wins leader against one another for just the second time since 1921. Dickey came out looking like the better ace and appears to be getting better each and every start. He should be a sure bet for the All-Star Game in Kansas City this July.
Turning Point: In the early stages of the game, it appeared as though the Mets had missed their chance, but the suddenly lively Ike Davis offered a third chance to score with a one-out double off Price in the fifth. Nickeas, who was hitting .134 entering the game, lined a single up the middle to kick off the scoring and spell the beginning of the end for Price, who allowed six more runs and retired just two more batters before exiting in the sixth.
Next Game: The Mets look for the series sweep on Thursday afternoon in St. Petersburg as they take on the Rays for the last time this season. Johan Santana (3-3, 2.96 ERA, 1.07 WHIP, 73 K) takes the hill for the Mets, looking for a bounce back after getting rocked last Friday in the Bronx. Santana will be opposed by Tampa’s Jeremy Hellickson (4-2, 2.65 ERA, 1.27 WHIP, 52 K). First pitch is scheduled for 1:10 p.m. and the game can be seen on SNY or heard on WFAN 660 AM.
