Pepper

Waiting for the next meaningful game....

The Mets are already whistling by the graveyard following their third loss in four games. Brave faces are the order of the day among the Metropolitans, but in the not so distant reaches of their collective minds they must be wondering if it's deja-vu-all-over-again time as their lead, 3.5 games a week ago, has shrunk to a half game over the Phils.

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Chase Utley's power outtage has lasted nearly four months now with a brief interlude and it's time to lay the blame squarely where it belongs...participating in the All Star Home Run Derby. First Bobby Abreu, then Ryan Howard for a stretch and now Utley have all participated in the Derby and with the exception of Howard all came out of it worse off. Henceforth, a reverse incentive clause should be written into all Phillies' contracts stating that participation in the event will mean an automatic deduction of $100,000 from their salaries. Furthermore, Ramon Henderson should be prohibited from attending the All Star game at all.

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Speaking of Howard, his late season surge has been marked by more than a passle of home runs and rbi's. He has also cut down significantly in his number of strike outs, the best argument yet that putting the ball in play is always better than fanning. While we are on the subject of the big man, his defense has shown marked improvement lately. Yes, he still makes the occasional bad throw or decision, but he's been scooping with the best and catching every pop fly in his zip code.

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Speaking of late season surges, Ryan Madson, who in the past has faded in the late season more often than not, has been far more steady when called upon of late. The same cannot be said for his bullpen mate Chad Durbin, who appears to have either lost something on his fastball or his command.

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How many teams have ever fired a manager who is tied for the Wild Card with two weeks left in the season? If you said none, go to the head of the class. It seems to me Ned Yost's firing had less to do with the slump his team is enduring than with the bizzarre strategic moves he made Sunday in both ends of the day-night doubleheader. If I were the Brewers' GM, I would also have been worried about the last two weeks of the season with Yost at the helm. After all, the Brewers haven't exactly been eliminated from post-season contention.

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Meanwhile, the Tampa Bay Rays need to win the next two games from the Red Sox to take back the momentum they had a mere week ago when the took two from Boston at Fenway. Now in a virtual tie for first, a loss tonight would be demoralizing to Tampa Bay to say the least. They've managed to hang in there despite losing top players to the DL and now, with Longoria back, they have to seize the moment of what has already been a magical carpet ride.

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Maybe every pitcher should take a start or two off in the late season like Carlos Zembrano did if the results would be the same. I guess one could say he has recovered, no? It's s real shame the game had to take place in Milwaukee, but if MLB hadn't moved the site for that series the post-season might have been pushed back even further and that would be worse for all fans.

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The Florida Marlins' young studs will have a lot to say about who wins the NL East and Wild Card as they face the Phillies and Mets in the final two weeks of the season. The Phils head to Florida this coming weekend and the Mets end their regular season in Miami a week later. The Marlins left Philadelphia last week after having taken two of three from the Phils and made no bones about their delight in messing with the home team's post-season plans. When the Phils do face the free-swinging Fish they'd better take a page from Jamie Moyer's game plan and throw lots of off-speed stuff because Florida has made it clear all season they are going to hit the fastball.

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Are there many teams which are more dysfunctional than the once-proud Baltimore Orioles? As the O's struggle toward the finish line in another losing season (I've lost track of the last time they had a winning one) they will, no doubt, take stock of themselves again this off-season. Regrettably, the one decision they really need to make is to fire the owner. That should happen when pigs, with or without lipstick, fly!