Liveblog: 4/1 Mets vs. Cards

It's 8:08 and I need the game to start. C'mon.

Top 1st - Carpenter vs. Reyes, Lo Duca, Beltran

Reyes - First pitch of '07 is a ball that just missed the bottom edge of the zone.
Second pitch - called strike
Third pitch - foul
Fourth pitch - ball
Fifth pitch - groundout to Albert.

1 out, 0 on.

Lo Duca - First pitch strike.
Second pitch- ball
Third pitch - called strike
Fourth pitch - foul
Fifth pitch - foul
Sixth pitch - groundout, Kennedy to Albert.

2 out, o on.

Beltran - First pitch strike.
Second pitch - called strike. Hmm... Wainwright redux?
Third pitch - Ball
Fourth pitch - Groundout, Kennedy to Albert.

3 out.

GREAT first for Carp! Nobody got the ball in the air -- looks like the cutter and sinker are working. Let's go OFFENSE!

Bottom 1st - Glavine vs. Eckstein, Wilson, Pujols

Eckstein - First pitch to a Card this season is also a ball.
Second pitch - called strike.
Third pitch - fouled off.
Fourth pitch - A HIT!!! First base hit for the Cards this year is a single by Eckstein to center field.

1 on, o out.

Wilson - first pitch fouled off.
Second pitch - ball, just low.
Third pitch - double play, 5-4-3. I told you I don't like Wilson. At this rate, there will never be anyone on for Albert.

0 on, 2 out.

Pujols - first pitch ball
Second pitch - ball, they're careful with him. Justifiably.
Third pitch - ball. Give him something to hit!
Fourth pitch - high strike.
Fifth pitch - swinging strike on the corner.
Sixth pitch - Pujols flies out middling-deep to Beltran. Ah well, there's time.

Good first for both pitchers. We move to the second with no score.


Top 2nd - Carpenter vs. Delgado, Wright, Alou

Delgado - first pitch, fouled back.
Second pitch - ball on the inside corner.
Third pitch - flyout to RF, Wilson handles it.

0 on, 1 out.

Wright - first pitch, called strike
Second pitch - ball, low
Third pitch - groundout, Eckstein to Pujols.

o on, 2 out.

Alou - first pitch, first hit for the Mets. Single to Jimmy Edmonds in CF.

1 on, 2 out.

Green - first pitch, called strike.
Second pitch - called strike.
Third pitch - ball in the dirt.
Fourth pitch - another hit, but it's a dinky flair that shorty Eckstein should have caught if he was an inch taller. C'mon, Carp, let's not give into the unfortunate two-out runners-on situation we developed in Spring Training. First and third.

2 on, 2 out.

Valentin - first pitch, ball inside.
Second pitch, called strike.
Third pitch - ball. C'mon, blue, that was a strike. Locate, Carp.
Fourth pitch - sharp groundout to Pu, the Gold Glover. Inning over, Carp escapes with only mild difficulty.

3 out.

Bottom 2nd - Glavine vs. Rolen, Molina, Edmonds

Rolen - first pitch, ball high and tight.
Second pitch - ball low.
Third pitch - groundout, Reyes to Delgado.

o on, 1 out. C'mon, offense!

Molina - first pitch, ball, high
Second pitch - ball, high
Third pitch - flyout to Beltran. I dislike this pattern.

0 on, 2 out.

Edmonds - first pitch, called strike, nothing wrong with that one
Second pitch - called strike
Third pitch - ball, just missed
Fourth pitch - called strike. Weak, Jimmy. We don't strike out looking.

3 outs. Quick inning for Glavine.

Top 3rd - Carpenter vs. Glavine, Reyes, Lo Duca

Glavine - first pitch, called strike.
Second pitch - hit? What the hell, Carpenter? No, no. Bad boy. Glavine singles. The Mets usually hit Carp well, for some reason, but the pitcher? No.

1 on, 0 out.

Reyes - first pitch, called strike. The Mets are doing a lot of looking tonight.
Second pitch - fouled away.
Third pitch - swinging strike on nasty changeup. First K of '07 for Carpenter as Reyes goes down on three.

1 on, 1 out.

Lo Duca - first pitch, ball, inside
Second pitch - ball, low
Third pitch - ball. It was not either. Get it right, blue.
Fourth pitch - called strike, inside corner.
Fifth pitch - forceout at second, Rolen to Kennedy. Glavine nabbed, Lo Duca aboard at first.

1 on, 2 out.

Beltran - first pitch, called strike. As I said. Lookers.
Second pitch - fouled away.
Third pitch - hit by pitch. What is with Carp's control? Get with the program.

2 on, 2 out (again).

Delgado - ulp. First pitch, called strike. Again.
Second pitch - Goddammit. Not good. Two-run double, both men aboard score. 2-o Mets. Eeergh. Don't like that. Taguchi, admittedly, made a big botch of the play in the outfield. I'll put some of the blame on him, but Carp's gotta make his pitches.

1 on, 2 out, 2-o Mets.

Wright - first pitch, ball.
Second pitch - out, Pujols to Carpenter. Damage done. OFFENSE! HELLO THERE!

3 out. 2-0 Mets.

Bottom 3rd - Glavine vs. Taguchi, Kennedy, Carpenter (admittedly, not an inspiring threesome, but we have to start somewhere)

Taguchi - first pitch, called strike.
Second pitch - ball, low
Third pitch - groundout, Glavine to Delgado.

1 out, 0 on. Come ON.

Kennedy - first pitch, ball, low
Second pitch - called strike down the middle
Third pitch - ball
Fourth pitch - HOLY HELL BABY! Welcome to St. Lou! Triple for Adam the Second!!

1 out, 1 on.

Carpenter - first pitch, ball, high
Second pitch, ball, off the outside corner
Third pitch, called strike
Fourth pitch - Dagnabbit, we have to get this run in. Bad bunt turns into fielder's choice, Kennedy nailed at home, Carp to first.

2 out, 1 on.

Eckstein - first pitch, called strike.
Second pitch - ball, high and outside
Third pitch - ball, in practically the same place.
Fourth pitch - Grr. The offense is a bit tepid thus far, even though the squeeze almost worked.... Eckstein flies out middling-deep to Alou.

Top 4th - Carpenter vs. Alou, Green, Valentin

Alou - first pitch, out. I like that. Flyout to Edmonds. Get it out of the air and we'll be good, Carp.

1 out, 0 on.

Green - first pitch, ball. This ump is squeezing Carp like a lemon, and I'm not the only one who noticed.
Second pitch - called strike, high in the zone.
Third pitch - ball, misses slightly high
Fourth pitch - Another bloody-goddamn-hit, single to LF. Settle down, Christopher John Carpenter. He's been dealing with traffic in every inning since the first.

1 out, 1 on.

Valentin - first pitch, hit. First and third again. Not liking what I'm seeing thus far.

1 out, 2 on.

Glavine - first pitch, ball.
Second pitch - ball. It was not! Bloody umpire!
Third pitch - sac bunt, runner advances to second.

2 out, 2 on. Again. Bad things happened last time this was the case.

Reyes - first pitch, ball, nowhere near the zone.
Second pitch - ball, again not touching the zone. CHRISTOPHER!
Third pitch - ball. I mean it Carp, this is not amusing.
Fourth pitch - called strike.
Fifth pitch - ball, walked, bases loaded, Lo Duca up. Ohhhhh shit.

3 on, 2 out. Let's focus, Carp.

Lo Duca - first pitch, ball-that-was-not. Ump still squeezing the hell out of Carp.
Second pitch - ball, off the corner. Let's not be walking in runs!
Third pitch - called strike right down the middle. Why are the Mets so damned patient this year? Scary team.
Fourth pitch - lower, fouled back. 2-2. C'mon, let's get out of this.
Fifth pitch - fouled again. Count remains leveled.
Sixth pitch - ball. Count full. Jesus H. Christ, it's too early in the season for this kind of drama.
Seventh pitch - Aw hell. I really, really don't like this. Don't make me give up on the game in the fourth. Two run single, 4-0 Mets.

BOOOOOOOOOOOOO. Carp's ERA through 3.2 is a most un-Carp-like 9.82. I do not like the Mets. He's also thrown 74 pitches through 4.

Beltran... oh boy.
First pitch- called strike.
Second pitch - ball
Third pitch - padding the lead. 5-0. I suspect that Carp's "it's like every other start" attitude may be a bit of the problem. You've got to come out with a bit more fire and passion... and now it's Delgado again. Bloody hell. Carp's ERA now 12.27. That's got to come down, man.

Delgado - first pitch, fouled
Second pitch - chased out of the zone, 0-2.
Third pitch - an out. Thank God. Carpenter, no gold star for you. I do not want to see this again. I question if LaRussa will give him one more inning against the bottom of the order, but this is a good offense that normally hits Carp well and it's making Opening Night go sour.

Bottom 4th - Glavine vs. Wilson, Pujols, Rolen

Sorry, am behind.

Wilson - K's on 6 pitches.

1 out, 0 on.

Pujols - first pitch, called strike
Second pitch- ball
Third pitch - ball
Fourth pitch - called strike
Fifth pitch - groundout. If I don't see something, I may be abandoning this game shortly.

2 out, 0 on.

Rolen - first pitch, ball
Second pitch, flyout. Grrrrr.

3 out. Someone is pitching like a former Cy Young winner here. Someone else is not.

Top 5th - Carpenter vs. Wright, Alou, Green

Wright - first pitch, called strike
Second pitch - ball
Third pitch - ball. I'm going to kill this ump.
Fourth pitch - ball. Bloody hell, Carp has nothing. Get him out of there.
Fifth pitch - a hit. I told ya.... Tony, get off your keister and remove Carp from the ballgame. He is not giving us the best chance to win.

0 out, 1 on.

Alou - pickoff attempt at first.
First pitch - fouled away.
Second pitch - called strike
Third pitch - ball.
Fourth pitch - swinging strike. Second K for Carp. Can they not score this inning? Please? If Carp manages to go 7 (possible, but unlikely, since his pitch count is at 83) I may relent a bit, but not much. This is a stinker, as opening games go. He doesn't have his curveball (a killer out pitch for him) or his command. Not good.

1 out, 1 on.

Green - first pitch, grounds into a forceout. Wright out, Green on at first.

2 out, 1 on.

Valentin - first pitch, ball
Second pitch - called strike
Third pitch- swinging strike
Fourth pitch - fouled
Fifth pitch - got him to chase out of the zone, strikeout, inning over. I suppose by the metrics of Carp's outing to date, this is a successful inning. Practically Cy Young-like... only one baserunner.

3 out. 5-0 Mets.

Bottom 5th - Glavine vs. Molina, Edmonds, Taguchi

C'mon, somebody put a jolt into this crowd. They were so excited and... now look what you've done. Glavine only at 54 pitches through 5, he could go a complete game at this rate.

Molina - first pitch, ball
Second pitch - called strike
Third pitch - No shit? A hit? Yadi dumps a single into CF.

o out, 1 on.

Edmonds - first pitch, ball
Second pitch - fouled
Third pitch - fouled again.
Fourth pitch - ball on the inside corner
Fifth pitch - fouled. Jimmy trying to stay alive and work up the pitch count.
Sixth pitch - grounds into double play. So much for that. Does Edmonds need a little more time to sit?

2 out, 0 on. This is a baaaad Opening Night game. I'm going to need a win by both the A's and the Rockies tomorrow to improve my mood.

Taguchi the Hitless Wonder - first pitch, ball
Second pitch, foul
Third pitch, groundout. I told ya.

3 out. 5-0 Mets. Please do not get shut out on Opening Night at home against the team you beat in the NLCS to reach (and win) the World Series. That would just be humiliating.

Do I have to watch this for another inning.......? Heeba.

Top 6th - Carpenter vs. Glavine, Reyes, Lo Duca

Can we, for the love of Albert, get a 1-2-3 inning for the first time since the opening frame? Please. Thank you.

Glavine - first pitch, ball
Second pitch, ball
Third pitch, ball, good lord
Fourth pitch - called strike
Fifth pitch - called strike, good
Sixth pitch - groundout, Carp to Pu. If you're coming back into form, it's a little late for that, Carp, but better late than never. You get to face the Astros at the JuiceBox next, which won't do any wonders for your ERA. Better keep it together before you get to hit the Pirates and Cubs twice apiece. AND the Cubs have an improved offense now. Let's not disintegrate to badness. I know you are better than this.

1 out, 0 on.

Reyes, first pitch, swinging strike
Second pitch - ball
Third pitch - reached on error by Taguchi. Good christ I'm starting to hate Taguchi.

1 out, 1 on.

Lo Duca - first pitch, ball
Second pitch - foul
Third pitch - An out? Good heavens, what's that? Actually, it's a double play. Good heavens. Reyes doubled off first.

3 out. 5-0 Mets. Still.

Bottom 6th - Glavine vs. Kennedy, Carpenter OR Pinch-Hitter, Eckstein

Kennedy - first pitch, ball
Second pitch - called strike
Third pitch - fouled away
Fourth pitch - ball
Fifth pitch - aaaaan out. Glavine is old! He's not supposed to be this good any more! Either that or the Cards missed the memo that they were supposed to come out and show the Mets why they were champs! Instead, they're showing why they had the lowest win total for a world champion in quite a very long time...

1 out, 0 on.

Skip Schumaker hitting for Carpenter. First pitch - ball
Second pitch- ball
Third pitch - called strike
Fourth pitch - swinging strike
Fifth pitch - a hit! Schumaker aboard. I know better than to think this is going to turn into anything... cough cough.

1 out, 1 on.

Eckstein, please play like the player everyone thinks you are.
First pitch - ball.
Second pitch - ball
Third pitch - called strike, inside corner
Fourth pitch - WOOOOOOOOOTT!!!! DID I JUST SEE THAT? Eckstein doubles and Schumaker scores!!!

1 out, 1 on, 5-1 Mets. I promise I will not say anything bad about Eck for the rest of the game.

Wilson - first pitch swinging, base hit, but Eck thrown out at home. Daaaaamit. Wilson to second.

2 out, 1 on. Pu is up. DO SOMETHING, ALBERT!

Pujols - first pitch, ball.
Second pitch - ball
Third pitch - ball. They don't want to give him anything to hit.
Fourth pitch - called strike. Let's do this, MVP.
Fifth pitch - ball four, Albert walks. They were pitching him very, very carefully there. Now it's up to Rolen. If he gets a run in, I won't leave the game and go get something to eat, which was my plan.

2 out, 2 on.

Rolen - first pitch, fouled away. Swinging early.
Second pitch - fouled again.
Third pitch - hit by pitch, possibly in retaliation (aka the unspoken code of baseball) but a bad time to do so. Bases loaded, and... Yadier Molina, who killed the Mets' hopes last season with his ninth-inning, Game 7 HR, is up. It may be karma. COME ON!!!

3 on, 2 out.

Molina - first pitch, called strike.
Second pitch - ball, low
Third pitch - goddammit. Guess the moving-Molina-up experiment didn't work. The Cards come away with only one run as Yadier gives us a dopy soft pop-up for our trouble.

3 outs. New pitcher coming in for the Cards. 5-1 Mets.

Top 7th - Tyler Johnson vs. Beltran, Delgado, Wright

Nothing like trial-by-fire for the second-year lefty, eh? Carp departs having pitched six innings, five runs, one walk, three strikeouts, ERA 7.50. Fuuuuucking a.

Beltran - first pitch, foul
Second pitch - high heater popped out to Kennedy.

1 out, 0 on.

Delgado - first pitch, called strike. TJ looking good so far, but I said that about Carp and look how that turned out.
Second pitch - swinging strike.
Third pitch - ball, inside corner
Fourth pitch - Nasty! Outside corner, swinging strike, second out.

2 out, 0 on.

Wright - first pitch, high ball
Second pitch - flyout to Wilson.

3 out. 5-1 Mets.

Sharp, quick, crisp, clean inning from Ty Johnson. I like that. Sadly, the last 1-2-3 inning for the Cards since the first.

Bottom 7th - Pedro Feliciano vs. Edmonds, Taguchi, Kennedy

Glavine departs with six solid innings - six hits, one run, one walk, two strikeouts, 1.50 ERA.

Edmonds - first pitch, foul
Second pitch - ball
Third pitch - ball
Fourth pitch - swinging strike
Fifth pitch - fouled again
Sixth pitch - ball. At least he's taking good ABs.
Seventh pitch - infield base hit that he beats out. Jimmy aboard. C'mon, Cards, it's not too late!

Wait, it's Taguchi. Yikes.

0 out, 1 on.

Taguchi - first pitch, ball
Second pitch - GOOD GOD TONY! Get him OUT of there! Flyout to Alou. I suppose the only thing I can say is that it wasn't a DP. Edmonds fussing with his shoulder... not a good sign.

1 out, 1 on.

C'mon, Kennedy. Prove why I like people named Adam so much.

Kennedy - first pitch, fouled
Second pitch - ball
Third pitch - Holy hell, comedy. A double play. I should learn to keep my mouth shut.

3 out. 5-1 Mets.

Top 8th - Randy Flores (eek) vs. Alou, Green, Valentin

Alou - first pitch, out. Popout to Eckstein.

1 out, 0 on.

Green - first pitch, called strike
Second pitch - ball
Third pitch - flyout to Edmonds.

2 out, 0 on. Sad state of affairs when bullpen brats Johnson and Flores outpitch Carpenter. At least our bullpen looks good... At least we haven't seen Izzy yet. I remain dubious of his recovery.

Valentin - first pitch, ball
Second pitch - called strike.
Third pitch - fouled away.
Fourth pitch - again, flyout to Jimmy. Inning over.

3 out. 5-1 Mets.

Bottom 8th - Feliciano vs. Miles, Eckstein, Wilson

Miles PHing for the pitcher
First pitch - ball
Second pitch - ball
Third pitch - ball
Fourth pitch - called strike. Is it too late to hope for a rally...?
Fifth pitch - ball. Leadoff walk.

o out, 1 on. Mets coaching staff pays a little social call to Feliciano. They decide he is no longer the man for the job and insert a schmo named Joe Smith instead. Joe Smith's parents are unimaginative. Hopefully he is also a bad pitcher.

Eckstein - first pitch, called strike
Second pitch - fouled away
Injury delay? What? Who's hurt? Not having TV sucks.
Okay. Third pitch - sharply fouled, Miles going.
Fourth pitch - a single. 3-4 performance from Eck. I will not say anything bad about him for the next four innings of tomorrow's game.

Tony, you HAVE to pinch-hit Duncan here. No Wilson. Plllllleeeeeease.

No such luck. FUCK.

2 on, 0 out.

Wilson - first pitch, called strike.... wheee....
Second pitch - foul
Third pitch - swinging strikes. HE's TERRIBLE!!! AAAAAH!!!

2 on, 1 out. Big Big Albert at the plate.... COME ON.... one last shot. Now or never.

Pujols - first pitch, ball. Going to pitch him carefully again...
Second pitch - ball, again. Don't chase crap, Albert, be picky. Make them lay it in there... and belt it.
Third pitch - ball. Boooo. Cowards.
Fourth pitch - called strike. Wait for it, Pu... come on.
Fifth pitch - ball. Knew that was coming. Bases loaded again, this time for Rolen.... COME ON!!!!

3 on, 1 out.

Scotty-Ro could tie this game right here. What are the odds he will? I won't dare a guess. The Mets' bullpen is looking as bad as the Cards' look good. But the Cards need to capitalize on their shakiness if they plan to get anywhere. As a really scary scenario, Wells and Looper are the next two guys to face the Mutts.

Pitching change - Aaron Heilman in. Don't be impatient, Rolen. Wait for your pitch. Make him groove it. And blast one. Coincidentally, the same scenario as with Albert.

Rolen- first pitch, ball
Second pitch - holy damning hell. Bloody. Bloody. Hell. Rolen hits it really hard but it turns into a DP. Ladies and gents, the Cards are cooked for tonight.

3 out. 5-1 Mets.

Top 9th - Brad Thompson vs. Newhan, Reyes, Lo Duca

Newhan - singles on fourth pitch.

0 out, 1 on

Reyes - first pitch, singles. Okay, Thompson is bad. ;) Get him out. But seriously... whatever.... just whatever by this point.

0 out, 2 on.

WHOA HO HO! Reyes picked off/caught stealing. Nice job, Molina.

1 out, 1 on.

Lo Duca - first pitch, fouled
Second pitch - whoo the mets scored. thompson bad. cards are losing, all not good. RBI single. 6-1. I think I've seen enough for tonight and I didn't eat dinner. I'll finish the liveblog with the bottom of the ninth when I get back, not that that'll be anything particularly special.

Beltran - grounds into forceout.

Delgado - grounds into forceout.

Bottom 9th - Wagner vs. Molina, Spiezio, Taguchi

Molina - singles

0 out, 1 on.

Spiezio - pops out

1 out, 1 on.

Taguchi - singles

1 out, 2 on.

Bennett - pops out

2 out, 2 on.

Miles - flies out.

Game over. Cards lose. 6-1 your final. W: Glavine (1-0, 1.50). L: Carpenter (0-1, 7.50)

Boooooo.