POTG: CF Juan Pierre (4 H, 2 R, 2B, 2 SB)
Runner Up: C Michael Barret (3 H, 2B, 2 R, 2 RBI), PH Phill Nevin (HR, 2 RBI), RP Glendon Rusch (2 H, BB, 2 K)
Mets rise to 55-37, win the series
Cubs drop to 35-56
Poor, poor ESPN. Blatantly scheduling a game between the biggest markets possible (despite being a irrelevant matchup well ahead of time) in a hopes for a big ratings lead-in to the ESPY, and the Cubs screw it all up by imploding AND making the game go long in the process, thus delaying their precious fake award show. (There’s a positive!)
Outside someone dying or Z! suffering an arm injury – which would be followed by people jumping off ledges and dying – I think the 6th inning was the bottom. The whole sixth; responding to that with an 8 minute half inning when everyone needs a moment out of the sun surely didn’t help things. But the top – I dunno.
Ironic things from the earlier discussions with Dusty (both in game and pre game)
1) Dusty talking about not having to bail Sean out much this season (he really should’ve done it sooner)
2) Dusty talking about loving his bullpen.
The good thing is horrible soul crushing losses count no more than any other loss. The bad thing is, even if we’ve reached bottom, I don’t think we’re bouncing back up just yet.
Side effect of a super Novoa: He’s so going down instead of Rusch being cut loose when Prior comes back (presuming Bynum takes Theroit’s spot.) Even if it’s better in the short term, it doesn’t look long term, and that’s what we’re supposed to do here. Maybe I’ll be wrong.
Side effect of a weird ESPY-caused started time: A friend was headed to Vegas Sunday, really wanted to bet on this game, and wasn’t sure if he was going to make it. Despite also being a Cubs fan, he figured easy money could betting on the Cubs not winning a series. I have no idea if he made it in time – haven’t talked to him, and said he wasn’t going to call unless/until he banished himself to his hotel room when the numbers turned too red, so I guess that’s a good sign – but it led to quite the range of emotions during the game – from “oh no, I bet he got in to bet this game” when it was 5-0, to “oh no, I bet he didn’t get in time to bet this game” when it was what it was. I’m just a ray of positivist.
Another friend and I were discussing the ethics of betting on your own team; he’s was staunchly against such things, and as a guy who wears a Cubs wristband half the time (and sometimes while sleeping), I could not imagine rooting against the Cubs (unless a loss meant they promised, on their life, that the team would be awesome forever and ever if they lost once more) for monetary gain. But…from a cold business perspective, is there any team that’s a more reliable bet right now? If you’re going to get good odds against them (and baseball oddsmakers almost always make the home team the favorite, logic be darned), that may be a safer and more profitable bet than on any other team right now. The Cubs have been pretty consistent at losing. I could see the reasoning to do it – I just couldn’t ever pull the trigger on doing it.
(Then again, I don’t bet, so that’s hard to see.)
ACTUALLY, now that I think about it, I seem to recall I told him just to take the Over. Alas.