At least he didn't thank God this time.
What could have been a nice, easy (and much-needed win) for the Mets turned into another frustrating affair, as K-Rod blew his second straight save and Terry Collins needed to use almost his entire bullpen to put it away in 13 innings.
Because there was an hour-long rain delay prior to the first pitch, the game was finished after midnight, which is just what you want the night before an afternoon game and a flight to Texas.
All of the goodwill that Rodriguez earned while accumulated 19 straight saves this season has evaporated, as the closer has allowed 11 runs in 9+ innings. If the plan was to showcase him and deal him to a contender before he could reach the magical plateau of 55 games finished (when his $17 million option for next season automatically kicks in), it might be too late. Even during his saves streak, he's been walking a tightrope all season, allowing runners at an alarming rate (his 1.46 WHIP is the highest in his career) and his strikeouts are down, to the point that the K-Rod nickname is a joke.
Of course, if he keeps blowing saves, he won't accumulate finished games, so there's that.
It was nice to see the Mets win in HBP fashion, so soon after the embarrassing balkoff last week, and while Reyes has been cooling off, (usually when he starts hitting flies to center, he's pressing) the triple in the eighth was clutch.
I was actually at Citi Field for Saturday's 6-1 victory against the Angels, my first trip to the park since my self-imposed boycott, when I promised I'd never set foot in the building until Oliver Perez and Luis Castillo were off the team.
NO REGRETS
We wound up watching most of the action from the Shea Bridge between center and right field.
And Carlos Beltran let me know how much he missed me by depositing a bomb just about 20 feet from me, and Mike Pelfrey (Mike Pelfrey!) threw a complete game. It was good to be back.
BASEBALL
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