For the second night in a row, the New York Mets had a lead in the eighth inning only to see it evaporate because of a bullpen that's been extremely leaky of late. The lead was 2-1, but a three-run inning for the Philadelphia Phillies put the game out of reach for the Amazin's.
This 5-2 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies is a tough one to swallow -- not only because of the continued struggles fromt he relief corps -- but because it spoiled a brilliant outing from Mike Pelffrey.
The Mets big right-hander was simply dealing tonight, limiting a strong Phillies lineup to two earned runs in 7 2/3 innings, while allowing four hits and striking out six. It was the kind of outing that makes you wonder why he's been unable to find a groove all season. In fact, he would've allowed only one run had Mike O'Connor (with one out) been able to get Chase Utley out, who instead singled. Jason Isringhausen couldn't get the job done either, walking Placido Polanco, and Tim Byrdak was the second lefty to give up a hit to a lefty, Ryan Howard, he's paid to get out. Howard instead doubled, plating two and taking the life out of what was looking to be an impressive victory for New York.
With all the talk surrounding the bullpen, let's also point out that the Mets had a two-run lead by the third inning (which turned into a one-run advantage), but they had no hits after one out in the fourth inning. You're just not going to win many games when you flip on the hitting off-switch that early, especially against a team that can swing the bat like Philadelphia. The one bright spot for New York remains Jose Reyes, who went 2-for-4 with two runs and two steals in the game.
The Mets will hope to avoid the sweep tomorrow afternoon.