Real-time game comments

Thoughts during the game last night:

• Ian Snell is a pitcher. He sure seems to have figured something out over the past few games. Two weeks ago, they were talking about sending him to AAA or the bullpen. He pitches better when he's pissed, and maybe they were just trying to push his buttons. But that gives them more credit than I'm willing to concede. Walk describes Snell as a "free spirit." That's what people used to say about Walk when he pitched. This must have been intended as a compliment. Snell made Delgado look particularly sick on his eighth strikeout. As I often do, I agree with Walk: "Snell deserved a better fate tonight."


• Dave Littlefield: Please end Chris Duffy's and all Pirates fans' misery and send him down to AAA already. He is not ready. Rotate Doumit, McLouth, and Burnitz in right and center and live with the degraded defense. If you're not going to do that, at least take Duffy out of the leadoff spot. McLouth is not being given a fair chance to succeed with this team. Duffy is being given more than a fair chance, and he is not succeeding. We're choosing to optimize on the wrong guy.

• Duffy's route to Cliff Floyd's fly in the 7th was Redmanesque. Let's blame it on the weather.
  

• What Freddy Sanchez is doing is known as "playing your way into the lineup."


• The only "We Will" commercial that doesn't now make the Pirates look ridiculous is the Mazeroski/Casey spot. So it's now the only one they use. Add the money wasted on the unusable spots to the sunk cost of the veteran acquisitions. The Mazeroski/Casey ad is bad enough to have to sit through once in an evening. After viewing it four times last night, I'm considering adding a TiVo in the bedroom. As real success for the Pirates becomes increasingly unlikely in the present and recedes into an increasingly distant past, it gets mythologized, like the Ottoman Caliphate.


• Walk has been highly critical of our approaches during the game in the loss to the Cubs and again last night, and after the loss to the Cubs, Brown was highly critical of Randa. These guys seem to be finding it impossible to toe the company line. Good.


• I like Mets fans a lot better than I like Yankees fans. They're a lot scruffier and edgier. I was one for a short time when I lived in NJ. White Sox fans are cooler than Cubs fans too.


• Defense behind the plate is overrated. Exhibit A: Brad Ausmus. Exhibit B: Mike Methany. However...I have no idea whether the correlation between Paulino's entry into the lineup and the improved pitching represents causation or coincidence, but at this point, I might also be inclined not to mess with it. Meanwhile, the batting average and defense from Paulino are nice, but I hope we start to see some power sometime soon. Here's the first indication I've seen that Cota is going to be the odd man out.
  


• After a good first week or so, Jose Castillo has completely disappeared at the plate.


• I'm warming up to Matt Capps. "Here it is. Hit it if you can." He could be a nice closer someday. Marte has looked great lately. Torres dominated the middle of the Mets order in the 9th, and Hernandez was strong too. Good night for the bullpen overall. Gonzo just got beat by a good hitter.
  


• Craig Wilson batted for Burnitz in the 9th with two on. The fact that Tracy made this move was one of the best things that happened this whole game, despite the result.
  

• Wagner, Sanchez, and Bradford. The Mets have a veteran bullpen all right, with lots of different looks.