Game 71: Rangers at Mets

The final game of the series. John Maine Street goes up against Millwood.

The next series is the Rangers vs. the Braves. It is a return of Tex to Texas. And here are the matchups:

• Hudson vs. Padilla (could Tex get beaned by the bean specialist?)
• Reyes vs. Feldman (will Feldman still have a job as a starter?)
• Morton vs. Gabbard (isn't Morton Horton's friend?)

OK, on the last one, I didn't have any real question, so I just through that one together. And yes, Morton is Horton's mouse friend. Anyway, I sent a wager request to a friend of mine in Atlanta to see if she wanted to talk some SMACK about the Rangers/Braves series. I'm trying to figure out a way to go to one of those games.

Maine did some nasty work the last time he pitched against the Rangers. He has one career start against them, and didn't get the decision. He did give up two solo HRs in 6.1 innings, walking three and K'ing 4. Yeah, those two HRs were the only hits he gave out, and so he has a 2.84 ERA and a BAA of .095... so those numbers look pretty good. He's 7-6 for Atlanta when he starts, but his actual record is 6-4 with a 3.60 ERA for the season.

Maine pitched against the Rangers on September 13th of 2005, and the Braves won that game 4-3. That game was in Texas. The current Ranger roster is 7-21 (333) with 3 doubles and 5 RBIs. Hamilton, Bradley and Byrd are the ones who have done the damage on Maine.

Kevin Millwood is a career 7-5 in 19 starts and a total 22 appearances. He has a career 122.2 innings against the Mets with a 3.38 ERA and a .227 BAA. The Rangers are 3-0 since his return from the DL and Millwood has pitched 6 innings in each of his last three starts. He has a 4.91 ERA and a 4-3 record. Hitters are batting .312 off of Millwood this season, but only hit a HR in 11 innings on him (6 in 66 innings).

The last time Millwood went up against the Mets was back on July 16th, 2004 when Kevin Millwood pitched for the Phillies. Millwood needed 105 pitches to get through 7 innings. He gave up one run on three hits and four walks, while striking out 6. Box Score

Mets to Watch:

• Luis Castillo: 18-54 (333 BA); 1 double, 1 triple, and 4 RBIs
• Marlon Anderson: 11-34 (324 BA); 4 doubles and 3 RBIs
• Jose Reyes: 5-12 (417 BA); 1 double
• Moises Alou: 5-11 (455 BA); 2 doubles, 1 RBI
• Damion Easley: 5-7 (714 BA); 1 double, 1 HR, and 2 RBIs

Other notable things would be Brian Schneider has 2 HRs in 27 at bats, Carlos Delgado has 5 RBIs in 5 at-bats and that the current roster is 62-213 (291 BA), 13 doubles, 2 triples, 4 HRs, and 23 RBIs. That's a little more than one RBI per 10 at-bats. Pretty tough. If Millwood should face 30 batters, the run total would 3.24 runs. More than likely to be 3, though.

Yes, I just had to do something with that awful Sidney Ponson pic. Doesn't that just look painful? Seriously, what does that do for your pitch?
Forecast: This is going to be a great game. The only thing REALLY going against the Rangers is that it is a day game. And the Rangers couldn't put together a children's puzzle in a day game. They just don't have any glue and can't stick a stamp on a honey poster. Score: Mets win it 4-2.

Home Plate