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Getting this up the night before, just in case I don't make it out of bed by first pitch. Hey, an East Coast day game, so this is a 10am start, and it's the weekend: I don't get paid enough to guarantee that kind of service [Actually, I don't get paid at all, but then, I've always done this for fun, not fame or fortune. anyone who does blog in the expectation of fame or fortune may wish to rethink their career choice somewhat. Politician or drug lord are probably more suitable professions.]
Miguel Batista = unbeaten in twelve straight appearances. That's quite impressive, especially since the streak has included a six-run outing, a five-run outing and only seven quality starts. But his ERA over that stretch is a very respectable 3.84, and in August, it was better still at 3.41, easily the best in the current rotation, with four of those quality starts coming in a row since August 9th. Still a problem that opponents are hitting over .300 off him, but if he keeps generating those double-plays, it shouldn't be too much of an issue.
The Mets send up Billy Traber, about whom I know very little. However, an ERA of more than seven after your first half-dozen starts doesn't sound threatening, though to be fair, it jumped more than two runs after his last start against the Braves [eight earned runs in 2.2 innings]. With this being the first game in a double-header, it'll be interesting to see how Melvin manages the lineups. Obviously, Estrada will catch one game, but I'm wondering if we might see Montero in the other? With the newly-expanded rosters, we hopefully shouldn't have a problem playing two.