ROCK THE KAZMIR
Young blasts pair as Mets rough up A’s ace, 10-1
It was a night that made anything seem possible in a season defined by mediocrity around the majors — a night that defied explanation as the punchless Mets bruised and bloodied the best team in baseball with a longball explosion against the star pitcher they once gave away.
Basically it was a night at Citi Field that you had to see to believe.
The 10-1 victory over Scott Kazmir and the A’s was surely the happiest night the Mets have had in their ballpark this season, and coming on the heels of the 11 runs they scored in Miami on Sunday, you really have to wonder who turned the world upside down.
It’s hard to believe it will last, based on the way this team has hit for most of this season. But the Mets have won five of their last six, and on a night when Chris Young hit two home runs amid speculation the club might dismiss him as a $7.25 million mistake, this is no time for logic.
So Mets fans should just enjoy the feel-good vibe for the moment, and if there is anything significant to take from the rout of the A’s, you should hope it was the triumphant return to the big leagues by Travis d’Arnaud.
His three-run shot off Kazmir, more than Young’s power display, is what should give this team reason to believe that, with the brilliant starting pitching it is getting lately, it still has a chance to make
some noise in an NL East that remains up for grabs.
Yes, if d’Arnaud suddenly blossoms into the All-Star-caliber catcher scouts have projected him to be, he could change the look and feel of the lineup.
In truth, d’Arnaud didn’t look quite like the guy who was tearing up Triple-A pitching to the tune of a .436 average, going 1-for-4 with two strikeouts, but he did blast that home run into the seats in left, and pulled another one hard foul later in the game.
That might just be an indication that his short stint in Triple-A Las Vegas will have a lasting effect. At the very least, d’Arnaud has returned with a new attitude, determined to enjoy life in the big leagues.
“I was putting so much pressure on myself when I was here before,’’ he said, “that I forgot how fun the game really is. Now I’m relaxed, I’m going to have fun.’’
Will it translate the way it did in Vegas? The results there were spectacular as d’Arnaud hit .436 with eight doubles and six home runs in 15 games — this from a guy who was hitting .180 when the Mets finally pulled the plug a couple of weeks ago.
“I’ve never seen anyone hit the ball better at this level than Travis did,” Mets Triple-A manager Wally Backman said on Tuesday. “He was crushing everything from the first day he was here. I think he just needed to relax.”
Yes, the transition from seemingly clueless at the plate to crazy hot was too immediate, too stunning, to simply be the result of hitting against inferior pitching.
In fact, Backman recalled being wowed by some of d’Arnaud’s at-bats against highly regarded prospects. In particular, he cited a home run against Mike Foltynewicz, the Astros’ first-round draft choice in 2010 and currently their top pitching prospect.
“The kid was throwing 98 and Travis hit one about 430 feet off of him,” Backman said. “That just showed you the bat speed that he has. He has big-league ability, no doubt about it.’’
So it seemed clear d’Arnaud was suffocating from the self-imposed pressure to live up to high expectations. “It was 95% mental,” he admitted Tuesday.
It’s not the first time a highly touted prospect failed in his first stint in the big leagues, forcing the club to send him back to the minors. But will it translate at the big league level?
Terry Collins said he saw important signs Tuesday night.
“Not just the home run,” the manager said. “He had better