One Run And Done

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After Tuesday night’s 7-6 loss in extra innings, the Mets stand at 2-7 in one-run games. Glass half-full? That’s 7 of their 17 losses that could have very easily gone either way. Glass half-empty? Bad teams find ways to lose close games.

Whatever the water level of the Mets’ proverbial glass, this record speaks mostly to their lack of lefty depth in their bullpen and their sub-.200 batting average as a team after the seventh inning.

Now the hitting will either turn around or it won’t; there’s no drill or technique that can improve clutch hitting. The law of averages suggests that the Met bats won’t be this impotent in late innings all year long.

The real culprit is the bullpen. The Mets have one left-handed reliever. And his name is Tim Byrdak. He’s got an ERA of 5.62 and is certainly not a lefty specialist. In Tuesday night’s game, it was the right-handed Taylor Buchholz who began the tenth inning against the lefty Aubrey Huff who subsequently homered. But more depth in the pen – specifically a southpaw or two - will lead to more flexibility for the team. In the meantime Terry Collins is going to have to manage better late in games or he's gonna need a glass full of something stronger than water. 

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