New York Mets slip to San Diego Padres 1-3 as R.A. Dickey gives up three runs - MLB Update
The lack of run-support from the offence costs the starter R.A. Dickey a loss as the New York Mets fall 1-3 against the San Diego Padres at Petco Park, San Diego, California on August 3, 2012 in the first game of three match series.
Dickey has been winning games on consistent basis in the season. Even on Friday, he was terrific on the mound.
The way he has striking out batters right from his first start of the season was visible in the game. Only if there was little support from the offence, he will have easily recorded the win.
Dickey completed a series of scoreless innings from the start in the match. At one stage, it appeared that he will finish his spell scoreless. However, in the sixth and seventh inning, his momentum went awry. The Padres immediately capitalised on it by scoring
three runs against his throws.
Meanwhile, the Mets saw most of their batters struggling to make connections when doing so was needed the most. Despite the fact they struck nine hits, those were not converted into runs.
New York’s manager Terry Collins believes that Dickey was solid on the mound. He has talked about asking Dickey to be impeccable and make sure a poor show by the hitters is counter balanced by him during the game.
"I thought he was fine," Terry Collins. "I thought he pitched a great game. We asked him to go a little bit farther than we usually do, but they weren't exactly hitting the ball hard."
Mets’ catcher Josh Thole rues the chance that he missed while making the play. He feels that inability to gather the ball in his hand properly cost the defeat in the end.
''It's frustrating because the play at the plate was the ball game,'' Thole said. ''It changed the whole dynamic of the game. I just didn't get my free hand on the ball. I was reaching for it. As I was getting to it, I got hit.''
The next two games will decide where the Mets end up after the series. By winning the remaining two matches, New York can win the series and can use the momentum afterward to reverse the decline that the team is going through at the moment.
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