5/13 Game Recap: Mets Play Shoddy Defense, Lose to Cardinals 6-3

The Mets fell to St. Louis tonight 6-3 in the first game of a seven game road trip.

Jeremy Hefner got the start for the Mets and settled in nicely after giving up three runs over the first two innings.  The Cardinals took a 2-0 lead in the first on a ground rule double from Allen Craig and a sacrifice fly from Jon Jay.  The Mets responded in the second, tallying three runs to take a 3-2 lead.  The big play was a two run double off the bat of Daniel Murphy that was misplayed by Carlos Beltran.  The Mets then took a 3-2 lead when David Wright delivered an RBI single.

May 8, 2013; Flushing, NY,USA; New York Mets starting pitcher Jeremy Hefner (53) delivers a pitch during the first inning against the Chicago White Sox at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Anthony Gruppuso-USA TODAY Sports

The game remained tied until the seventh.  Scott Rice relieved Jeremy Hefner, and recorded the first out.  The next batter, Ty Wigginton, lifted a ball to center that should’ve been caught by the recently acquired Rick Ankiel.  Instead, Ankiel played the ball into a double.  The next batter, Matt Carpenter, hit a grounder that ricocheted off Rice.  When no one covered home plate, Wigginton came around to score the go ahead run and put St. Louis up 4-3.  After Rice recorded the second out, Scott Atchison came in to the game and served up a two run homer to Matt Holliday to make it 6-3 Cardinals and close out the scoring.

Highlights:

• After a rough first few innings, Jeremy Hefner rebounded nicely.  His final line: 6 innings pitched, 5 hits, 3 runs (earned), 4 walks, 2 strikeouts.

• Daniel Murphy, who had been slumping, went 3 for 4 with 2 RBI’s to lift his average to .272 and his OBP to .310.

• Scott Atchison, who served up a 2 run homer in the 7th, reported after the game that he was dealing with discomfort in his pitching elbow.  He told reporters that he had numbness in his fingers that left him unable to grip the ball properly.

Thoughts:

Another night, another ugly loss.  It’s fitting that Rick Ankiel (whose signing incensed the fanbase) made the gaffe that led to this game getting out of hand, but that still takes a back seat to the Mets’ inability to get anything going on offense.  After taking the lead in the second inning, they were held without a hit until there were two outs in the seventh.  That simply isn’t going to cut it.

Next Up:

The Mets play the second game of their four game series against the Cardinals tomorrow night at Busch Stadium.  Dillon Gee gets the start for the Mets.  He’ll be opposed by John Gast, who is making his major league debut for St. Louis.
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