Mets’ performance at plate continues to improve By RAY GLIER Times-News Sports Writer When the Kingsport Mets started the season slowly at the plate rightfielder Derrick Young cautioned that the team’s poor hitting wasn’t an omen of things to come The Mets woulc hit Young said in due time “The pitching we’re seeing now is mostly batting practice from the instructors” Young said last week after a loss at Johnson City “We haven’t seen much ‘live’ pitching real hard stuff and we need time to adjust” Young was right on with his assessment The Mets were four-hit by Elizabethton Wednesday night a 5-3 loss but in the six previous games Kingsport hit a collective 330 The Mets 5-6 and in fourth place in the Southern Division of the Appalachian League are hitting 276 as a team after 11 games That team batting average climbed to 288 following a Mets spree which included scoring 45 runs in six games After 11 games Kingsport is averaging 61 runs per game and opponents are scoring 65 runs an outing If the Mets could put a lid on the unearned runs their record would be above 500 Kingsport has allowed 21 unearned runs or two a game The usual factors (56 walks and 33 errors) are responsible NotesHines has thrown out six of seven runners attempting to steal in the Mets seven home games Third baseman James Morrisette is 8 for his last 21 (380) with ' two homers DH Shortstop Tim Howard is 8 for his last 20 (420) giving the Mets sock in the bottom of the lineup M Castlewood’s Calvin Talford has yet to play for the Martinsville Phillies Talford who will be back in the' area this fall to play basketball at ETSU says he’s anxious to get on the field “They want me to get with the program work out a little more and get in shape” said Talford
