Turk Wendell thinks his job is thankless. When he does it well, he claims no reporters talk to him. When he messes up, everyone does. After last night’s 2-0 Mets’ loss to the Marlins, there was a crowd around Wendell’s locker.
Where was the slider to Derrek Lee on his two-run, ninth-inning homer that ended what had been a scoreless game?
“It was over the center-field fence,” said Wendell, who gave up his fourth game-winning homer of the season. “It started in my hand.”
In disappointment, Wendell becomes sarcastic. Last night, he was Dennis Miller. Wendell was the only pitcher to give up any runs last night.
Wendell (4-4) took the loss. Armando Almanza (2-0) recorded the final two outs of the game for the win. Lee’s homer came on a 1-1 pitch.
“Of course, it’s thankless,” Wendell said. “I go out and do my job. Let’s see, the last two times out I pitch two scoreless innings and no big deal. [Last night,] I go out and pitch one-third of an inning, screw up the game, and everybody wants to talk to me.”
In May, a lot of reporters spoke to Wendell. He allowed decisive homers to the Giants’ Jeff Kent, the Rockies’ Bubba Carpenter and the Dodgers’ Kevin Elster.
The starters, righty Bobby Jones and the Marlins Jesus Sanchez, exchanged zeroes all night. These two were unlikely pitchers to do so as both nearly have been lifted from their rotations during the season. Last night they were awesome.
Awesome is a way to describe the Mets’ Mike Piazza as well. However last night – despite extending his hitting streak to 21 games – his RBI streak ended at 15 games, two shy of Ray Grimes’ record set in 1922.
Piazza flew out to right with two men on in both the first and the third inning then just missed a home run in the eighth.
Bobby Valentine also thought Robin Ventura’s shot with two men on was going out in the eighth but it died in deep right center and was hauled in by center fielder Preston Wilson.
The Mets also lost an opportunity to move within one game of the Braves, who were trounced by the Expos 17-1 last night. The third-place Marlins moved to 42-41.
Jones left after throwing six shutout innings. His stuff looked like the ’97 All-Star version. He threw 101 pitches, 69 for strikes, and didn’t walk anyone. He struck out five.
“I felt good, I had good life on my fastball,” Jones said. “I think a lot of that has to do with my last two side sessions being short.”
Besides Wendell, the Mets got shutout relief from Dennis Cook and John Franco.
After Luis Castillo led off the game with a single, Jones retired the next 11 batters. In the fifth, the Marlins threatened, putting two men on base with no out. But this was not a problem for last night’s Bobby Jones.
Lee led off the inning by launching a drive to off the Aqua Monster in left field. Lee, acting very Rickey-esque, watched the flight of the ball, apparently believing it would leave the yard. It didn’t.
Benny Agbayani retrieved it and fired into second, a moment late to get Lee, who had picked up his hustle.
Alex Gonzalez followed with a bunt single to put runners on first and third with no outs. It didn’t matter. Fresno Jones was on the mound and in control.
Like Dwight Gooden in his hey day, Jones mowed down the next three batters on strikeouts. He got Paul Bako swinging. Sanchez looking and Castillo on a sweet change.
You don’t usually expect a pitcher’s duel when one guy, Jones, comes in at 3-3 with an 8.10 ERA and the other, Sanchez, enters at 5-7 with a 6.01 ERA.
Jones and Sanchez have both made their spots in the rotation precarious. After being skipped in the rotation last month, Jones went down to Triple-A Norfolk to work on his stuff. When he returned he was pitching for his job.
“It comes down to being comfortable out there,” Jones said. “I’m not going to make excuses and say mechanics were causing me to have a rough start.”
Last night, it was a rough ending. The Expos gave the Mets a chance to move closer to the Braves, but they couldn’t.
