After falling twice to the St. Louis Cardinals (86-69) in the seventh inning, the New York Mets  proved they still have a long road to travel before becoming legitimate contenders in the National League.  The Metropolitans (73-82) will send out starter Chris Capuano (11-12, 4.47 ERA) to act as a stopper in the finale in afternoon baseball action on Thursday.

Thus far in this three-game series, New York has had almost everything going for them with one exception, the bullpen.  The Mets relievers have blown one-run leads in two consecutive games, in one of the weak spots that General Manager Sandy Alderson will be addressing next season.

Another thing that Alderson maybe addressing are the dimensions of Citi Field, whose walls have robbed the likes of Jason Bay and David Wright for far too long. According to a report on the official New York Mets site, Alderson is discussing the move with his pitching staff to see what effects moving the walls may have. No changes will be made final until October.

The lineup for the finale today in St. Louis may look different, as Lucas Duda, who banged into the right field wall going after a ball-left Wednesday night’s game with dizziness. There is no word as of yet on the severity of his injury, or how much time the young star will miss. Duda has been a hitting sensation for the Mets, as his .408 on-base percentage is the third highest in the NL.

As for Capuano, who will need to be the stopper in the matinee affair in the Mets final road game this season, the starter has a 5-5 record with a 5.18 ERA in 14 games-13 starts against St. Louis.

Written on September 22, 2011