Mets Choking

[RockCoCougars]

With all the talk about the Phillies, it seems that a lot of people are overlooking the recent "difficulties" the Mets are having right now. As we stand, the crew is only .5 games behind the Mets. I would almost think that their situation is more dire than that of the Brewers. Their bullpen is horrible (even worse than the Brewers), they have 6 road games in a row coming up, they play the Cubs 4 times, and they have the added pressure of avoiding last year's collapse in a pressurecooker media market. Worst of all, Nelson Figueroa is their scheduled starter for Wednesday. Not sure what everyone else thinks, but I believe they are much more "catchable" at this point than the Phillies.

[Oldcity]

This is actually something I've been keeping a close eye on, and I agree it's being overlooked by many. There is a decent cushion between the Brewers and Astros, so if the Brewers can beat out one of the Mets or Phillies they're probably in.

[trwi7]

Yeah, I believe we need to catch the Mets if we want to make the playoffs. Philadelphia has a cupcake schedule so they should win that division. We need to hope we turn it around and the Mets continue to struggle.

 

So we need to be big time Nationals, Braves, Cubs (ugh) and Marlins fans for the rest of the season.

[BrewerTerp]

Agreed. I've said this all along. When the time comes around, things will be getting pretty tight in the Mets dugout. Not much confidence in the starting rotation anymore either.

[bucks2281]

They have three more against Washington, three against Atlanta, and four against a Cubs team who will likely be playing for nothing (maybe except HFA). The three games against Florida will present a challenge, though. I think the Brewers, Mets, and Phillies have pretty similar schedules down the stretch -- it will come down to who plays the best. However, I do believe the NYM bullpen could be the "x-factor."

[holybannana]

Yeah, I've been watching them too and feel like they might bail us out here...

[BrewerTerp]

Also, this day off has been big for the fans and the club. At least to me, I've come to this realization: It's now a 12 game season. We have a new manager, a great rotation, and a lineup that can still do damage. No one is giving up from the top down in the Brewers organization. Its a dog fight from here on in.

[DuWayne Steurer]

It's funny, because I was just looking at the standings on ESPN, saw we were only a 1/2 game behind the Mets, and was thinking this exact same thing. My 2nd thought was "I wonder if someone on Brewerfan started a thread about it?"

 

Not that I'm exactly hopeful the Brewers will start playing like gangbusters (though I hope to heck I'm wrong), but it's a thought.

[dlk9s]

Not that I'm exactly hopeful the Brewers will start playing like gangbusters (though I hope to heck I'm wrong), but it's a thought.

Right.

 

I think all of the hopeful and "what if" scenarios work under the assumption that the Brewers start playing decently. Obviously, if we keep losing, it doesn't matter what the other teams do.

[pebadger]

Would anyone put it past to the Cubs to decide which team they want out and then 'tank' the games against the other team in the final week (provided they've already clinched)? Their final 7 are NYM/MIL, so they certainly have the oportunity to decide someone's fate, should they choose to do so.

[dlk9s]

Would anyone put it past to the Cubs to decide which team they want out and then 'tank' the games against the other team in the final week (provided they've already clinched)? Their final 7 are NYM/MIL, so they certainly have the oportunity to decide someone's fate, should they choose to do so.

I thought about that for a moment, but I realized that even if it was discussed, it would be really hard for the players to not try to win once they got on the field.

 

If we get lucky (and are still in the wild card hunt), we might not have to face Harden or Zambrano in the last series. I could definitely see Lou resting Harden to get ready for the playoffs (he would pitch final game against us if I counted correctly) and we would miss Zambrano.

[owbc]

The likely situation for the final weekend is that the Cubs have clinched and the Brewers will still need help. In that scenario, I just can't see how the Cubs will let their rival walk over them. I know if we were in opposite situations, I would want the Brewers to do everything possible to stop the Cubs from making the playoffs.

[Dmiles23]

If we get lucky (and are still in the wild card hunt), we might not have to face Harden or Zambrano in the last series. I could definitely see Lou resting Harden to get ready for the playoffs (he would pitch final game against us if I counted correctly) and we would miss Zambrano.

To me, that's the difference between the Cubs/Mets series and the Cubs/Brewers series. I just can't see any way the Cubs pitch Harden or Zambrano against us. They will want both of those guys rested before the playoffs. But I imagine they would both throw in the Mets series. An extra day rest for each of them would probably be beneficial. But I think it would be tough on Zambrano and/or Harden if they didn't pitch for 9 days before the playoffs. As it stands now, Harden is scheduled to pitch game 2 and Zambrano is scheduled to pitch game 3 of the Mets series. I wouldn't be surprised if they are bumped back to games 3 and 4, but they will still pitch against the Mets, and most likely not against the Brewers.

[naivin]

At this point, unless the Brewers win the next 6-7 in a row, I don't see any scenario under which Zambrano or Harden pitch in that final series. Perhapss not Dempster either, as those three will likley be their rotation for the playoffs. We may see one of them, but that should be it.

 

It is probably safe to assume however that Harden and Zambrano will almost certainly pitch against the Mets however, and then get their rotation set for the playoffs.

[TuesdaysWithRillo]

Why couldn't we get a piece of the pie against this horrible Mets bullpen?

[jeffy]

In that scenario, I just can't see how the Cubs will let their rival walk over them. I know if we were in opposite situations, I would want the Brewers to do everything possible to stop the Cubs from making the playoffs.

That would be a foolish and short-sighted decision. As others have said the Cubs will likely be looking beyond the games with Milwaukee and setting themselves up for the best possible chance of winning the NLDS. Anyway, the Brewers are not the Cubs #1 rival St. Louis is.

[rluzinski]

I could also see the Cubs giving some positional players a day or two off in that last series.

[cubfan1126]

Strictly my opinion:

Lou goes with the rotation as it is now set for the remainder of the season.

And Jeffyscott is right - Our #1 rival is St Louis followed by that other team that plays baseball in Chicago.

Quite frankly, since we've been in the same division most of our battles have been over 5th and 6th place (before last year). That's hardly the stuff that rivalries are made of.

[dlk9s]

I could also see the Cubs giving some positional players a day or two off in that last series.

Yeah, I figure a couple key guys get to rest each game.

[Team Canada]

We're officially chasing the Mets now (.5GB). Honestly, even given the past 2 weeks I feel pretty good about that.

[sbrylski]

We're officially chasing the Mets now (.5GB). Honestly, even given the past 2 weeks I feel pretty good about that.

Yeah, I was going to post something like this in the silver lining thread.

[BadgerFan]

We're officially chasing the Mets now (.5GB). Honestly, even given the past 2 weeks I feel pretty good about that.

I won't feel good about anything until we win A FRIGGIN GAME. I don't care if the Mets lose 10 in a row, as long as we're losing every day I can't even think about the playoffs.

[moofnelson]

Met's choking? New Flash: The Brewers are choking, too. In fact, they began choking before choking was cool.

[dlk9s]

Met's choking? New Flash: The Brewers are choking, too.

Everybody realizes this.

[Invader3K]

If we can just string together a few wins...