10 Thoughts On New York Mets at Cincinnati Reds (Game 3)

Boxscore

1) Was there anyone in the fanbase who thought today was going to be anything other than an unmitigated disaster? I mean, we have Ollie who — on the best of days — has control problems making his first start after a worthless spring. On top of that, we’re in a minor league ballpark where a fly ball is a home run vs. a righty-heavy line-up. I don’t know what the Vegas over/under was for this game, but if it was anything LESS than 10, it was a gimme.

2) All that said, it was actually wasn’t as bad as I thought. Don’t get me wrong, 8 earned runs over 4 innings isn’t the way they drew it up on paper, but 7 strikeouts and flashes of what we want was more than I was hoping for. We’re pretty much going to have to write off April for Ollie — especially considering we don’t face the Phillies, Yankees, or Braves in April. All that said, he gets a warm-up start against the Padres. That’s probably a good thing. If we’re lucky, his next start will fall against the Nationals.

3) Alex Cora made a start for us today. Orlando Hudson hit triples. Good call there.

4) Look, I understand that Daniel Murphy might be a Triple A player in two years, but eff it — I’m on board the Mancrush Train until it goes flying off the railing.

5) That ticking sound you hear? That’s Marlon Anderson’s time with the team drawing to a close. There’s really no reason to carry him and Gary Sheffield at the same time and, while Sheffield might be playing with a fork in back, he’s probably still better than Anderson was on his best day.

6) Also going to mention — all the runs came from the starter today. The bullpen didn’t let up a run in 4.66 innings pitched. That gives me a tingle in my nether parts.

7) On the other hand — Pedro Feliciano really needs to dial down the 2+ WHIP.

8) I’m doing my best to temper my excitement at the performance of the offense. I feel like opening the season at the Great American Ballpark is great as it allows you to ease yourself in to playing in actual ballparks. Now, the Mets get to travel to the giant, echoing cavern in Dolphin’s Stadium. No problem.

9) Let’s also send a silent prayer to the baseball gods to keep John Maine’s arm attached to his body tomorrow. That would be just awesome.

10) There are occasionally things that creep me out about how terrifying life is. Last night, I was watching MLB Network’s wrap-up show which offered live look-ins on the Angels/A’s game. 24 hours later, the kid I was watching pitch is gone. I watched Scott Boras, a man some would argue has no soul, break down in tears when talking about him and his family. This website is supposed to be irreverent and silly, but I’d like to send my deepest condolences to any Angels’ fan who may stumble upon this and to Nick Adenhart’s family. It’s senseless and unfair and I hope the man responsible suffers for the rest of his life.