What a weekend! The last 72 hours for Mets fans has been so surreal, I’m still wondering if it all really happened. The defending World Champion St. Louis Cardinals have been held to 1 run…ONE! all series so far, Johan pitched the first Mets no-hitter in history (still trying to process that one), and R.A. Dickey said “I’ll see your no-hitter and raise you another shut-out” the next day, and the Mets all-time saves leader, John Franco, went into the Mets Hall of Fame. To top it off, the Mets are now in a three-way tie for 1st place in the NL East! WOW!
This afternoon at 1:10 pm EST (weather permitting), the Mets and Cardinals play the final game of a 4-game series that the Mets have already won (which feels great to us and probably even greater to them). The game can be seen on SNY, heard on WFAN660AM and followed on Twitter @MetsWFAN. @dailystache and @Meriwyn. Although sadly I’m at work today and can’t watch the game so you’ll get little to no tweeting from me LOL.
Dillon Gee sure has a heck of a weekend to live up to. Santana’s no-hitter, Dickey’s shut-out and Niese’s 10-strikeout domination have set the bar pretty high for the series finale. Rookie Jeremy Hefner was originally slated to start today, but Collins made the switch to save Hefner in case Johan needs more rest after his 134-pitch outing on Friday night. Also, more help is on the way as Chris Young makes his return to the Mets’ rotation tomorrow night in Washington. Miguel Batista also comes off the DL on Tuesday and will serve as bullpen backup for Young should he need to exit early.
Mets Lineup
1. Kirk Nieuwenhuis, LF
2. Andres Torres, CF
3. David Wright, 3B
4. Lucas Duda, RF
5. Daniel Murphy, 2B
6. Ike Davis, 1B
7. Omar Quintanilla, SS
8. Mike Nickeas, C
9. Dillon Gee, SP
Cardinals Lineup
1. Rafael Furcal, SS
2. Carlos Beltran, RF
3. Matt Holliday, LF
4. Yadier Molina, C
5. Allen Craig, 1B
6. David Freese, 3B
7. Daniel Descalso, 2B
8. Adron Chambers, CF
9. Kyle Lohse, SP
Pitching Matchup
NYM: Dillon Gee (4-3, 4.69 ERA). Gee has been steadily improving and has his 3rd straight quality start last week against the Phillies, where he pitched 6.2 innings and allowed only 2 runs.
STL: Kyle Lohse (5-1, 3.36 ERA). Lohse has had some rough outings as of late, and has not gone past 6 innings in 4 of his last 6 starts. Sloppy defense from the Cardinals hasn’t helped his case.
Stache Keys to the Game(s)
- The high from the weekend is bound to wear off…don’t get discouraged or lose focus
- Keep the rally going, Dillon Gee!
- I don’t really have anymore advice except keep doing what you’re doing!
June 4th in Mets History
Happy Birthday Phil Linz (1939) and Rick Wilkins (1967))! The transactions for this date are too numerous to list as, just like today, it was the first day of the MLB Draft.
LET’S GO METS!!
