April 2009
From The Met Wiki
| Month: April, 2009 |
| Record: 9-12 |
| Place: 4th, 4 back |
So much promise, so little performance.
The Mets entered April 2009 with a new ballbark and a new bullpen, and they won their first two. Then they started reminding everybody of the September collapses they were trying to forget.
During April's 21 games:
- They lost four times after taking a 3-0 lead.
- They lost three times when a corner outfielder dropped a routine fly ball, leading to the tie-breaking runs from which the Mets didn't recover. The corner outfielders dropped three other balls as well, but those didn't directly lead to losses.
- Their 2, 3, 4, and 5 starters were awful.
- The normally reliable David Wright led the league in strikeouts, looking unusually lost at the plate. He turned in a few defensive gems, but also made four April errors, worst among third basemen.
Over the last homestand they scored seventeen times in the first three innings, and only twice in the last three. This mirrored their 2008 season. The Mets could have finished the month over .500 and tied with the Marlins had they just held late leads in the last two games. Instead they finished the month at 9-12, 4 games behind the fish.
What went well?
- Johan Santana was the best pitcher in the game.
- Carlos Beltran and Luis Castillo were one and two in the league in Batting Average.
- Reserve catcher Omir Santos was an unlikely hero, hitting safely in all six of his starts, including Citi Field's first grand slam. He also finished a game with a perfect throw to complete a double play. He failed on his final attempt, coming in from the bullpen to pinch hit with the bases loaded and two outs in the bottom of the ninth and the Mets down one. Santos popped out to end the game and the month.
