May 11, 2007 — The Mets hammered the 40 Plus Pirates into submission, 20-3, Thursday night at the Paul E. Joseph Stadium in Frederiksted in six innings. As was the case in their first game of the season, the Pirates drew first blood but could not carry on beyond the early innings.
The Mets, the league’s newest team, on the other hand, showed that they will be a team in the hunt for the championship this year. They are deep in pitching, have a good defense and can match any team in the league offensively. They also may have a slight edge in the power hitting department over the rest of the league.
The only negative in Thursday's win over the Pirates was the appearance of some of the players trying to rub the lopsided loss in the faces of the team of veteran players. Leading 18-3 with the game in its waning moments, a couple of the Mets players were still stealing bases, trying to run up the score. This did not go over well with Pirates manager Gilberto Belardo, and he let the Mets Manager know it.
The Mets Manager, who was also dismayed by his players’ action late in the game, humbly apologized to Belardo.
Batting first, the Pirates scored two runs on a passed ball and a steal home by Cruz Soto to take the early lead. The Mets responded with five runs in the bottom of the inning to take the lead for good, and they were never challenged after that. They scored five runs on a two-run home run to left field off the bat of Tony Cruz, an RBI ground out by Leandro Reyes and two Pirate errors.
After the Pirates failed to score in the top of the second, the Mets extended their lead to 7-2, scoring two runs on a two-run double to right off the bat of Tony Cruz.
The Mets then closed out the game with five more runs in the bottom of the fifth for a final score of 20-3. RBI singles by Dwayne Harvey, Edwin Derweer and Bon, an error and a wild pitch accounted for the Mets runs in the inning.
After the Pirates failed to score in the top of the sixth, the game was mercifully called due to time constraints.
Miguel Gonzalez pitched three-hit ball to pick up the win, while Alejandro Pena took the loss for the Pirates. Tony Cruz led the Mets offensive onslaught, as he was 3-for-4 with a home run and six RBIs. Bon was 3-for-4 with two RBIs, and Moreno was 2-for-2 with a home run and three RBIs. For the Pirates, Enrique Soto was 1-for-2 with an RBI and Cruz Soto was 1-for-2.
