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WILD-CARD CHASE IS A WEAK EXCUSE
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By JOEL SHERMAN
The New York Post
Friday August 7, 1998

THERE WAS a long game at Shea Stadium yesterday and a short
dramatization of the entire NL wild-card chase.

For 3 hours and 40 minutes, the Mets and Giants displayed their
strengths and weaknesses and it took to the very last pitch to
determine that on this afternoon the Mets would prevail, 9-8. The last
pitch of the regular season isscheduled to be thrown Sept. 27 and it
may very well take until then to determine which NL wild-card
contender will best overcome weaknesses with strengths to prevail.

"The one that rights the ship will win ^the wild card_," Bobby
Valentine said of the imperfect contenders. "The team that gets hot
last is going to get it and the one that gets hot last will probably
be the one that rights the ship."

Living in New York, we tend to isolate our thoughts, analysis and
anger on Met inadequacies. So this was a good 3:40 reminder that this
is no beauty contest the Mets are involved in. Allthe candidates float
between defective and effective.

The Cubs have already lost Jeremi Gonzalez from their rotation and
might be losing the weary Kerry Wood. Besides, they're the Cubs, and
when has this time of year ever worked out right for them? The Dodgers
have made a bunch of moves and spent a lot of money as new GM Tommy
Lasorda has added all the fat to his roster and payroll he lost on
Slim Fast. Yet, he has not incorporated a heart, so the Dodgers went
to Montreal and had the Expos complete a three-game sweep against them
yesterday. Now they may be on the verge of falling out of contention.

Yesterday, the Giants started a piece of their Jurassic rotation in
Orel Hershiser and finished with Jose Mesa, their very own Mel Rojas.

"Everybody has negatives," said Matt Franco, who scored the decisive
run in the ninth when for the second time this series Mesa walked in
the winning run. "No team has tremendous starting pitching, tremendous
relief pitching, tremendous hitting and tremendous defense. If you do,
you are the New York Yankees and you are 60 games over .500. I don't
think we have any more glaring weaknesses than anyone else, right
now."

The Mets are fortunate they do not compete with the Yankees for
anything more than spectators and media attention. For right now, the
Mets' glaring weakness is a bullpen that makes saving games look as
difficult as Saving Private Ryan.

In fact, recently, Matt Franco has saved more games with a clutch
late-inning bat (eight hits in his last 10 pinch-hit tries) than John
Franco has saved with his late-inning arm.

Yesterday, Greg McMichael and Dennis Cook each permitted a three-run
homer in the eighth inning,the kind of triple-double the Mets did not
need. It translated to the Mets' fourth consecutive blown save and
13th in their last 18 tries.

Afterward, Valentine finally conceded his relief shortcomings by
saying, "We need a little session on positive thinking. Right now,
we're going into games thinking what not to do instead of thinking
what we have to do."

That Valentine made his comments from a winning manager's office
accentuated that his club, perhaps, has enough positives to persevere
in this playoff pursuit and/or the Giants and others have enough
negatives.

Bear in mind Giant manager Dusty Baker tried to squeeze a two-inning
save out of Robb Nen yesterday afternoon, less than 18 hours after Nen
threw 15 pitches for a save Wednesday night. Baker's middle relief, at
present, also is filled with dead men walking plus giving up big hits.


The Mets, at the very least, look as if they have other qualities to
buy time for their bullpen.

The six-man rotation the Mets have been going with has been criticized
as just one more affectation by Valentine to show hecan re-invent the
game. Except Valentine said he went to this mode because he wanted to
preserve a strength. And while other contenders such as San Francisco
are trying to figure out how to plug their rotations, the Met starters
appear fresh for the stretch. All but Bobby Jones have been close to
consistently good. Masato Yoshii started yesterday and remained
without a win since May 27, but the bullpen has blown victories for
him in each of his last three starts.

Also, the Met offense suddenly has a forceful look. John Olerud and
Brian McRae have been just marvelous. The addition of Tony Phillips
provides leadoff legitimacy. Todd Hundley appeared more comfortable
both at the plate (three hits) and in the field yesterday. Carlos
Baerga has gotten hot. Matt Franco, Lenny Harris and Luis Lopez give
Valentine versatile late-game options.

Also, the Mets are beginning to develop a pressure flair similar to
last year's magical tinge, as three of their last four victories have
come in the final at-bat.

"We know how to play this type of game," Valentine said.

Will that be enough, with 31 of 50 games left on the road and that
unreliable bullpen? Who knows? But it is worth remembering the other
wild-card contenders are flawed, as well, and that this playoff race
could be about who limps to the finish line best.

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This article has been posted, independent of The New York Post Online
and N.Y.P. Holdings Inc., � Copyright 1998. All rights reserved.

Online:  http://www.nypostonline.com

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