My 2nd Citi Field experience (with pics): Deja vu all over again

When I saw the Mets play at Citi Field last year for the first time, I didn’t expect Bronson Arroyo to toss a shutout — but he did. When I was at the game last night, I expected Phillies ace Roy Halladay to do the same thing — and he nearly did.

Doc threw eight beautiful innings, holding the Mets to four hits without walking a batter and ousted Mets spot starter Pat Misch in a 4-0 win.

The Mets would’ve had a legitimate shot to win this game if it weren’t for their three ugly errors which cost Misch three unearned runs. Ruben Tejada’s attempted double play turn sailed into left field, Misch fielded a bunt and threw it into right field, and David Wright let a grounder go through his wickets.

Despite the errors, the most comical part of the night was listening to the boos from fans as Francisco Rodriguez trotted out from the bullpen. It was his first game of eligibility after assaulting his father-in-law.

Now for some pics:

Look at all of that red! In left field, there were more Phillies fans than Mets fans.

The only time we saw the new home run apple was during the seventh inning stretch.
Here’s a picture of the original home run apple, now located in front of the stadium.
Here was the view from our seats ($20 face value).
And here were the bozos sitting in front of us. The guy on the right’s shirt says, “Don’t mess wit da Mets, Aaight!”

You can check out more photos from the game on my Facebook page!

Yankees-Mets Subway Series preview

The Subway Series currently stands at 42-30 in favor of the Yankees since interleague play began in 1997, according to Yankeeist.com. Interleague play in 2010 begins tonight with the Subway Series starting out at Citi Field.

After this weekend, the rest of interleague play wraps up in the middle of June with the Mets heading to The Bronx June 18-20.

Neither of New York’s teams have been playing particularly well heading into the friendly rivalry. (It wasn’t what it used to be; admit it.)

The Mets have dive-bombed to last place in the NL East after beginning May in first place. The Yankees have lost eight of their last 12, but still remain in second place five games behind the Rays.

The Mets have averaged just 4.2 runs per game in May, while the Yankees have averaged two runs better in the month and still hold the highest team batting average and on-base percentage in the majors.

However, I expect this series to be low-scoring due to the quality of starting pitchers, the loss of the DH and both teams’ slumping core hitters.

Pitching Matchups:

Date:	Yankees starters	Mets starters
Fri., 7:10 p.m.	J. Vazquez (2-4, 8.01)	H. Takahashi (3-1, 3.12)
Sat., 7:10 p.m.	Phil Hughes (5-0, 2.25)	Mike Pelfrey (5-1, 3.02)
Sun., 8:05 p.m.	CC Sabathia (4-2, 3.43)	Johan Santana (3-2, 3.72)

Players to Watch:
Yankees: Derek Jeter. He’s always the guy to watch in interleague play. Against the Mets, he’s hitting .386/.441/.596 in 317 career plate appearances. He leads many statistical categories in interleague play and just picked up three hits yesterday to warm up. 

Mets: David Wright. He’s always had great success against the Yankees (.336/.402/.593), but is in a major slump. He just snapped a 15-game streak of striking out at least once and is hitting a meager .262 this year.

Prediction:
Even though both teams haven’t been playing well, they know this weekend is a time to rise to the occasion and create instant classics. Yankees sweep this series, starting with an extra-innings win tonight.

**Luis Castillo is not in the lineup tonight.**

Cervelli is going to be like David Wright

Yankees backup catcher Francisco Cervelli and Mets All-Star third baseman David Wright have one thing in common. And it’s not their bat.

It’s their ridiculously oversized helmets.

After Cervelli’s second concussion in four months (third of his life), he’ll wear a larger, more protective helmet for his dome. Here’s the comparison (via Star Ledger).

When I saw this picture, this post on my buddy’s blog came to mind. It’s hilarious.

UPDATE: Ben Shpigel of the new York Times says Cervelli’s got a new nickname. It’s “Gazoo,” which is named after the Great Gazoo. See video here.