Laborious

There was no room in the Mets collective luggage for their pitching and their defense as they fly home today. So they just brought it with them to the park today as they took back to back series for the first time in a while by a score of 4-2.

Omar Minaya has to be smiling today, while Wayne Krivsky is pulling his hair out. Minaya's off season acquisitions shone today...between Chad Bradford's latest Houdini act to get out of the seventh with bases loaded and one out and Endy Chavez's clutch two out hit in the tenth to score another Minaya coup: Xavier Nady. Meanwhile newest Cincinnati pariah Gary Majewski, who was part of a trade which cost the Reds Austin Kearns and Felipe Lopez, took the loss in the tenth.

But the difference today was the Mets ability to get out of trouble. In the sixth, there were runners on second and third after an Edwin Encarnacion double to left center with nobody out. Rich Aurilia might have scored on the play, except that a Reds fan reached over the left field fence to interfere with it (notice that the Mets fans retreated). First it's the wave that hurts them, then it's a Reds fan killing them by interfering with a ball in play. Another nice job.

Aurilia then attempts to score on a grounder to second, but he was caught flat footed by Jose Valentin...playing medium to deep...with a good throw to the plate. This could have been another questionable decision like Reyes' throw to third last night on a tag play (which I had no problem with), but Aurilia's late break killed him. The inning ended with a scary Bronson Arroyo tapper in front of the plate with the bases loaded and two outs...but Glavine smartly threw to Castro, who tagged the runner for the third out. You would think that Fluff Castro's expanded cranium would give him more room to remember that with the bases loaded, you don't have to tag the runner coming home...it's a force play. Hey, thankfully it worked out all right is all I'm saying.

The seventh inning was Blueback Bradford picking up for Glavine, and featured Blueback's nasty changeup to strike out Scott Hatteberg with the sacks full and one out.

The eighth inning featured Aaron Heilman, who left a runner at third with two groundouts to David Wright.

The ninth inning featured Pedro Feliciano and Valentin again. Feliciano walked Nellie Fox...oh I mean Chris Denorfia (Keith Hernandez has been a bit heavy handed with the Nellie Fox batting grip references over the last couple of days). And when he tried to steal second with two outs, there was Jose Valentin bringing the ball back from the third base side and employing the no look tag (oh by the way, Denorfia was safe) to basically end another threat even though the half inning lasted about two hours...Feliciano threw about 243 pitches to get out of that inning, but he was unscathed.

Then came the top of the tenth, where the Reds revamped bullpen had a chance to respond to some adversity themselves (Eddie Guardado worked around a David Wright double in the ninth, but the Mets basically provided no threat from the fifth to the eighth), and Krivsky's acquisition Majewski couldn't do it. The Reds GM probably will get some more grief from his friend (and ours) Steve Phillips,

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It looks like this season's Manny Ramirez will be Bobby Abreu. The Philly Daily News reports a potential Abreu for Rodrigo Lopez deal, but ESPN's insider service is rumbling about Abreu coming to Queens...for Lastings Milledge. Funny how when anyone discussed a potential Abreu to the Yankees swap, it was always followed by "well, the Phillies aren't going to ask for too much from the Yanks since they just want to get rid of Abreu's contract." But when it comes to the Mets, who need an outfielder less than the Yankees do, it's Lastings Milledge. I see that Bud Selig is going to have to prepare another one of those "well, I'm not supposed to let this kind of deal go, but in the best interests of the game, of the Yankees, and of FOX's ratings..."

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The Braves now have themselves a closer, trading for Bob Wickman.

Apparently, the Braves grew wistful for a Terry Forster like presence in the clubhouse, and thought that Wickman kind of looked like Dan Kolb in ten years, so they took a chance.

Now if the rest of the putrid Braves bullpen can get the lead to Wickman, I would be worried.

If the Braves follow this by getting, say, Roberto Hernandez, I would be worried.

Until then, wake me up when they get a safe distance on the right side of .500, please.

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So does the amphetamines rule in MLB count for broadcasters too? You've gotta love all of Keith Hernandez's "Kineresque" malapropos that were no doubt caused by the day game after the night game...but especially when thrown against the canvas of today's constant Gary And Keith theme: How the new "greenies" rule would affect a game like this:

"Has Glavine thrown a change up today, Keith?"

"I have to pay more attention."

From a man paid good money to pay attention (money provided in part by our cable bills I might add).

And after that came Hernandez's observation that Bronson Arroyo was going to throw some dipsy-doo curve balls to try to get Fluff Castro to hit into a double play with runners on first and third and two outs.

Not surprising to also learn during the game that Keith had never heard of Red Bull. Silly gold glover, Red Bull gives you clarity!

Gary Cohen obviously had his Red Bull...he's probably the first broadcaster in history to use the word "laborious" during a day game after a night game. Can Elias look something like that up?

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Great scorecard line for Jose Reyes today: 9 9 9 9 K

Great if you're playing five card stud, that is.

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Late add: get ready to laugh your ass off with "the voice of the people"!!! (Careful: If foul language offends your boss, better wear headphones!)