On the Mets beat

And for good reason. Billy Wagner, easily the most accessible player on the Mets, was not happy to be fielding most of the questions after today's 1-0 loss to the Nationals. The main reason? He didn't play in the game.

Luckily for The Michael Kay Show on ESPN 1050, the incident just happened to coincide with Wagner's regular Thursday appearance. Here's a transcript of the first five minutes of that interview, during which Wagner suggests there is a lack of "accountability" among some Mets.

KAY: Is this a Mets team that’s kind of reeling right now?

WAGNER: (laughs) You’d have to say so. Today was a tough game. It was very well pitched, but you know, we had plenty of opportunities to make something happen and we just weren’t able to come through today.

KAY: Obviously I have to ask you what happened after the game. We’ve been told that you did not like the fact that everybody came to you to ask you questions and you kind of said where is everybody? People weren’t there. Tell us what happened there Billy?

WAGNER: Well, I mean, it gets to a point where, I didn’t even play today. I was not a participant in the game, and the guys that had participated were gone. I mean, we’re all upset, we’re unhappy with things that are going on, and how we’re playing, and I just felt like I hadn’t even played. I had no role in the game. David Wright’s always there, and the same guys are always there. But there needs to be other guys that are accountable. It gets a little old when the same people keep getting interviewed even when they don’t participate.

KAY: Can I ask who do you think should be there that wasn’t there today?

WAGNER: No, I think that will be rectified tomorrow.

KAY: How so?

WAGNER: Well, I think that those guys will be talked to about how you need to stand there in the bad times rather than just stand there in the good times. So that will be something that will be focused on tomorrow by the team I’m sure.

KAY: I know you’re a good quote, but that doesn’t excuse other people from not being there …

WAGNER: Well, I mean, it gets frustrating for some of the guys that are there. Whether I’m there or David Wright or whoever is there constantly, there comes a point where they don’t need to be answering the questions that should go to someone else. Then it causes that tension because my opinion on something may not be the way it really was.

If you’re not there to answer the questions, the reporters can write whatever they want to. They can write you stunk, you sucked, whatever. But if you’re there to say, 'Hey man, I wasn’t very good today. I came up and I had a chance and it didn’t work out.' Well, you’re accountable. When you’re not there, it gets a little ridiculous.

KAY: Last year there were similar complaints by Paul Lo Duca. Do you think it has anything to do with Latin players or anything like that?

WAGNER: I think it’s just certain guys. I don’t think it’s Latin or white or black. I don’t think it’s a color thing. I think it’s just as a whole there’s guys that need to stand there and take the bad with the good.

KAY: Do you want to be the spokesman?

WAGNER: I don’t think I’m nowhere near the captain of this team. I think that, like you said, I’m a good quote. I’m not afraid to stand out on an island. We all hear the complaints. We know the situation, and yes, we’re all frustrated because we want to win. We’re out there putting out the effort. But somebody’s got to stand up and say enough’s enough. Things aren’t going well, let’s stand there and take the beating and then when it turns around, let’s reap the benefits.

KAY: Have you gone to Willie and Omar about this?

WAGNER: I think they understand. They know what goes on and I’m sure they’ve talked to everybody. That’s just a situation where I’m sure some of this stuff will be brought up tomorrow and see where we’ll go from there. I’m not saying it’s like earth-shattering. I’m just saying that I’m the closer of the baseball team -- I’m not the captain. There’s other guys on this team that need to stand there and answer the questions during the tough times too.

A little weekday baseball from Shea today. Staple here, manning the blog, Baumbach and co. at the yard, you there, hopefully pretending to work while keeping up to date and commenting like crazy.

Mike Pelfrey (2-3, 4.86) goes for the Mets today, and he needs to turn around the 0-3 record over his last four starts. Jason Bergmann (0-1, 11.68) was called up after last night's Nats win to start today for the visitors, and he's spent a month in Columbus after a couple of early-season uglies.

Luis Castillo returns to the lineup today for the Mets. Not exactly a must-win, really, but losing three of four to the Nats before heading to the Bronx? Oof.

Live blog to get rolling in a few...

Top 1: Three flyouts, with one excellent sliding catch by Carlos Beltran on Cristian Guzman's shallow fly. Good job by Pelfrey. With an 'f". 0-0, middle of 1.

Bottom 1: Castillo seems to be feeling OK, beating out a bunt single. But David Wright and Beltran pop out, stranding Castillo. 0-0, end of 1.

Top 2: Six up, six down for Pelfrey, including a three-pitch K of Aaron Boone. Kid looks sharp. Must be the absence of the mouthpiece. 0-0, middle of 2.

Bottom 2: Leadoff walk to Ryan Church leads to nothing -- Delgado whiffs rather weakly, then a couple fly outs. Bergmann hanging in. 0-0, end of 2.

Top 3: Couple of walks by the walk-prone Pelfrey, but he gets out of it on a bounced to Delgado by Guzman. Pelfrey needs good command to get deep into this one, obviously. 0-0, middle of 3.

Bottom 3: Good effort by Kearns to get the Mets on the board, but he can only misplay so many balls. You can say Castillo needs to be hustling there with two outs, but it just doesn't happen that often, so no gift run for the home side. 0-0, end of 3.

Top 4: Pelfrey still cruising, with Beltran tracking down Zimmerman's long drive to center the only threat so far. 0-0, middle of 4.

Bottom 4: What a snoozer this is... Not a ton of hustle on either side, some sloppiness and a grand total of two hits, a bunt single and a bloop single, both by Castillo. Yawn! We'll see if Pelfrey can keep the no-no going. 0-0, end of 4.

Top 5: Still no hits for the Nats. Pelfrey walks Jesus Flores again, but Bergmann is an easy two-out mark. Three walks and just 71 pitches for Pelfrey through 5. We'll see how long he can take this, and whether his teammates can actually provide a lead. 0-0, middle of 5.

Bottom 5: Mets still can't make a dent in Bergmann, despite Marlon Anderson's leadoff single. Castillo walked, but David Wright still can't figure out righthanders and pops to shallow left. Also, Jose Reyes whiffs and is now 0 for 12. Blech. 0-0, end of 5.

Top 6: Pelfrey continues, no hits through 6. Just 79 pitches too, with a fourth K, striking out Zimmerman to end the inning. Kid is looking sharp, and he's about the only one. 0-0, middle of 6.

Bottom 6: Alou is sitting today, but maybe it should've been Delgado... Another hideous AB from Delgado, who waves at Bergmann's curve to end a 1-2-3 inning. Pelfrey takes the no-hitter into the seventh, and Bergmann, who had an 11.68 ERA to start today, has been just as good. Howie Rose, in an SNY cameo, says today is Game No. 7,359 in Mets history. Just so you know. 0-0, end of 6.

Top 7: There goes the no-no, courtesy of Aaron Boone, a sharp single to right leading off the inning. But Pelfrey marches on, gets some help from Ramon Castro throwing out Boone on a steal attempt, and now it's a 1-hitter and still scoreless. 0-0, middle of 7.

Bottom 7: With Pelfrey's no-hitter done, Bergmann is officially pitching the better game. Just struck out the side in the seventh, giving him nine Ks on a better lineup. Pelfrey goes out for the eighth, but now a couple mistakes will not only cost him his great outing, but put the Mets in a hole. 0-0, end of 7.

Top 8: That's all for Pelfrey, and the scoreless game. Flores doubles to lead off the inning, moves to third on a sac bunt and scores on a sac fly. Great day for Pelfrey, but now we'll see if the Nats' bullpen can hang onto a 1-run lead. 1-0 Nats, middle of 8.

Bottom 8: That was... Ick. Reyes breaks his little slide with a 25-foot single, but ruins it by trying to take third on Castillo's sac bunt. Nice play by Mackowiak and Guzman, who makes the moving tag on Reyes; but still, you think Reyes might be able to score from second on a hit? Wright then pops to first, inning over. 1-0, end of 8.

Top 9: Matt Wise escapes trouble thanks to his deceptively slow pitches and his leg, which stopped Kearns' liner and kept a run from scoring. Still down one as Jon Rauch enters to save it for the Nats. 1-0, middle of 9.

Bottom 9: Well, uh... Wow. Mets should really have won this one, even after snoozing for eight innings. Willie Harris makes the diving catch of the year on Church's short fly to left -- if Harris can't get a glove on that, it's tied and Church is on third -- then, with Beltran on third and one out, Delgado lines to first and Boone starts a 3-5 DP to end it. 1-0 loss, despite Pelfrey's great outing. Mets head into the Subway Series at 20-19, losing 3 of 4 to the Nats. Carry on.

No DL for Castillo because he's in today's lineup. Just posted by bench coach Jerry Manuel.

Reyes (ss)
Castillo (2b)
Wright (3b)
Beltran (cf)
Church (rf)
Delgado (1b)
Castro (c)
Anderson (lf)
Pelfrey (rhp)

Good question. I'm all out of explanations, and so are the Mets, who have done pretty much everything short of sending him down to Triple-A New Orleans. He's already been stripped of his set-up job, and for a guy every team wanted back in spring training, Heilman's market value has never been lower after his latest meltdown in Wednesday's loss.

Now, with Jorge Sosa gone, it looks like Heilman's next role is middle-to-long relief, and maybe the Mets have to consider stretching him out as a potential spot starter. Why not? If he's not going to be the bridge to Billy Wagner, maybe Heilman can be helpful in other ways, and a change in his job description might be the nudge that he needs. It's still too early for the Mets to go that route, but it's something to think about. People forget that Heilman had a decent five-pitch repertoire before becoming a set-up guy that stuck to a fastball-changeup attack.

For those looking for a silver lining, there's Claudio Vargas, who showed Wednesday that he deserves another turn in the rotation and could be a keeper. His performance also puts pressure on Mike Pelfrey, who could be forced out by Vargas when Pedro Martinez is ready to return.

Turns out Scott Schoeneweis was pretty sick following Tuesday night's game, and after spending six hours in the hospital the following day, he was lucky to avoid an appendectomy. My colleague Anthony Rieber also checked in with this story on the Mets' reclusive ace, Johan Santana, who apparently had no interest in discussing tomorrow's showdown with the Yankees. Looks like you'll have to wait until after that game to hear from Santana because the Mets pretty much keep him off-limits to the media between starts.

Staple here, Lennon and others at the yard, Mets-Nats on tap in a few. Mets (20-17) are coming off a 6-3 win last night over the Nats (16-24) thanks to Ryan Church's 4 RBI.

Claudio Vargas will make his Mets debut tonight. The 29-year-old righthander was 1-1 with a 4.91 ERA in two starts with New Orleans, with seven scoreless innings in his last outing. We'll see if the Brewers castoff can do better than Nelson Figueroa.

Tim Redding (4-3, 3.83) goes for the Nats.

Getting the live blog rolling in a few.

Top 1: Nice job settling in by Vargas after Felipe Lopez rocks a double off the top of the right-field wall. High fastball to whiff Ryan Zimmerman was a highlight. Good stat from SNY: Vargas has a 6.77 first-inning ERA, third-worst among starters with at least 500 IP. He's out, though. 0-0, middle of the 1st.

Bottom 1: That was brief. What was that, 8 pitches? Tim Redding's a good starter, but a weak open from the Mets. 0-0, end of 1.

Top 2: Another good one for Vargas, though to be fair, I'm not sure this Nationals lineup qualifies as major league. Wily Mo Pena has now gone 127 ABs without a home run. Which sort of defeats the purpose of Wily Mo Pena. 0-0, middle of 2.

Bottom 2: Boy, are the Mets looking foolish so far. Moises Alou has a couple lousy cuts, and Carlos Delgado gets completely fooled by Redding's sweeping curve. And in HD, that Apple needs some touching up before it goes over to the new park. 0-0, end of 2.

Top 3: Vargas escapes a mess of his own making, with two walks. Nifty play by Delgado on Redding's attempted sacrifice bunt, and it's still scoreless. And Keith Hernandez, waxing poetic on the subject of women's tights and ex-catchers who went commando, has now officially sickened me. 0-0, middle of 3.

Bottom 3: Nine up, nine down for Redding. Perhaps the second time through the order will be better. Can't be worse. 0-0, end of 3.

Top 4: Vargas is starting to aim a little bit, but luckily, the Nats are really, really, really bad, especially with runners on. Aaron Boone's infield single is followed by Austin Kearns' 1-pitch fly-out, and Elijah Dukes' 6-4-3. Vargas could last 6 at this rate, but his mates have to do something. 0-0, middle of 4.

Bottom 4: That was unfortunate for Beltran and Reyes. Ripped liner by Beltran, right at Zimmerman, who doubles up Reyes to end the threat. David Wright has the first and, so far, only Mets hit, as Redding finally looks human. 0-0, end of 4.

Top 5: Another strong one for Vargas. Catches Pena and Jesus Flores looking. I'd say this guy has already earned his Saturday start in the ATL. 0-0, middle of 5.

Bottom 5: First strike by the Mets, specifically catcher Brian Schneider, who ripped a fastball off the flag display on the RF facade. Redding lost his focus a little, but the one run was all. These ex-Nats are getting their revenge. And Lastings Milledge is sitting tonight. 1-0, end of 5.

Top 6: Apparently, Zimmerman can only focus with no one on base. He crushed a high Vargas fastball to tie the game. Again from SNY: Vargas allows a HR every 22 ABs in his career, worst among ALL pitchers with more than 500 IP. Yikes. Oh, forgot about Alou getting tossed last inning. He was mad. Oh well. 1-1, middle of 6.

Bottom 6: Reyes hits one a long way, but it dies in center. Wright hits one hard, but Zimmerman stays with it for the out. Mets are having better ABs off Redding, but still little success. Vargas heads out for the 7th, and it'll almost certainly be his last. 1-1, end of 6.

Top 7: Well, that was long and painful. Vargas issues a one-out walk and gets lifted to solid cheers. In comes Aaron Heilman, and the boos come quickly. Two-out hits score four Nats runs before Randolph lifts Heilman to a loud chorus of boos. Vargas will take the loss if this stands, but it's all on Heilman. 5-1 Nats, middle of 7.

Bottom 7: Saul Rivera deflects a couple balls for hits, but the Nats reliever does what Heilman couldn't: Get relief outs. Schneider drives in another run with a groundout, but that's all despite first and third with one out. 5-2, end of 7.

Top 8: Perfect inning for Joe Smith... Perhaps Randolph could have gone to Smith first? Ah, it's so easy from the live-blog couch. 5-2, middle of 8.

Bottom 8: Another promising start results in one run and a couple left on base. Luis Ayala gets the biggest out, sawing off Wright, and Rauch allows a run-scoring hit by Beltran before retiring Endy Chavez... Gee, Alou would have been good in that spot. 5-3 Nats, end of 8.

Top 9: Good job by Pedro Feliciano to hold the deficit at 2, though to be fair, Jon Rauch didn't put up much of a struggle. We'll see what Delgado, Schneider and Easley, followed by the pitcher's spot, can do against Rauch. 5-3, middle of 9.

Bottom 9: Quick work by Rauch for the 4-out save. Nats have won two of the first three, and the Mets are continuing to tread water. Back for more tomorrow afternoon, on getaway day.

-- Looks like Pedro Martinez survived today's simulated game in PSL. Martinez, rehabbing from a strained left hamstring, threw 55 pitches and used his whole repertoire during the four-inning stint. Just as important, Martinez fielded his position adequately, and GM Omar Minaya suggested he would need at least one more simulated/extended spring start before stepping up to Class A St. Lucie.

-- Luis Castillo is not on the disabled list -- yet. Manager Willie Randolph was hoping to use him in tonight's lineup, but Castillo, bothered by a sore left quad, flunked his pregame test. Castillo plans to sit again tomorrow, and if he's not ready by Friday, it looks like he's headed for the DL.

And here's your lineups for tonight's game:

NATIONALS
Lopez (2b)
Guzman (ss)
Zimmerman (3b)
Boone (1b)
Kearns (rf)
Dukes (cf)
Pena (lf)
Flores (c)
Redding (rhp)

METS
Reyes (ss)
Church (rf)
Wright (3b)
Beltran (cf)
Alou (lf)
Delgado (1b)
Schneider (c)
Easley (2b)
Vargas (rhp)

Sorry for the bad pun, but here we are, almost at the quarter-pole for 2008, and Ryan Church is on pace for a 32 HR, 120 RBI season. Wow. Raise your hand if you had Church penciled in for that kind of year when the L-Millz trade went down last November. Thought so.

I figured that Church would be more help for THIS season than Milledge, but I couldn't imagine that he'd lead the Mets in a bunch of offensive categories. He's already turned in the defensive play of the year, too, with that incredible throw to help save that May 4 win in Arizona.

Too bad for Nelson Figueroa that his epitaph with the Mets could be the infamous "softball girls" quote he uttered after Tuesday's loss to the mouthy Nats. Figueroa was a nice story for the start of the season, but he's sure to take a pretty big drop down the depth chart now that Claudio Vargas has been called up. The Mets also have Brian Stokes and Tony Armas Jr. waiting a turn down at Triple-A New Orleans.

I'm a little surprised that the Mets went ahead and designated Jorge Sosa for assignment. I know he's been lousy, but that went against Omar Minaya's usual MO of holding onto those pitchers no matter what. Guess he finally admitted to himself that Sosa's $2-million contract was indeed a mistake and there's no sense compounding the error by keeping him on the major-league roster at the expense of Joe Smith.