WP-ROD

This one was on me. All the way. Francisco Rodriguez is one of my Strat team pitchers, and David Wright is also on my Strat team (he normally plays left field, but that's another story).

The Mets beat the Angels in 10 innings by a score of 5-4 to notch Jerry Manuel's first managerial win. I was snoring loudly in Texas, and missed it all, of course. New York took another 1-0 lead in the first on a Wright groundout, and even expanded it to 3-0 before blowing it. Oliver Perez calmed his demons up until the 4th, when Jeff Mathis singled home the first run. The beasts within Oliver really came out in the 5th, when the Halos loaded the bases on two hits and a walk. Vlad "The Met Impaler" Guerrero then singled home the tying runs, and Torii Hunter put LAA on top 4-3 with another hit.

Perez was allowed to stay in, which looks to be the first instance of a non-Willie decision in Manuel's tenure. Peterson and Randolph would have worn a path to Perez in that inning and used at least three bullpen guys, so maybe things will be better. Perez got out of the 5th and got an inning-ending DP in the 6th before giving way to Joe Smith in the 7th with the Mets still trailing.

It must have looked pretty grim, with the Mets down to their last out, David Wright up against one of the toughest righty closers in the game, and Jose Reyes stuck on first because he was too afraid to try to steal with Wright up. K-Rod got strike one, but then after a ball, he bounced one in the dirt, which gave Reyes just enough time to scamper to second. The rest I've seen plenty of times on my Strat computer game, although Wright isn't the one doing it. David smacked one of K-Rod's trademark sliders into left field to score Reyes with the tying run, and after Duaner Sanchez recorded a 1-2-3 ninth, they went on to extras.

It didn't last too much longer. Third batter Damion Easley, who started his career with the California Angels (yes, he's old), hit a 1-0 pitch from Justin Speier into the left field seats, and Billy Wagner had no problems in the bottom of the inning for his 16th save.

Today the Mets get a day off, although they'll have to spend it in LoDo. Or SoDo, whichever. What lame neighborhood names they have in Denver. Let me guess, they call Upper Downtown UpDo? At least they are only one time zone removed from me, and I can maybe catch the first five innings. Yaaayyyy, no more Pacific time zone games!!! Summer is here.