Joe Janish

This is an image of a Teflon-coated pan. Its non-stick surface makes it a very useful tool in the kitchen, particularly for frying eggs.

However, it has no use on a baseball field.

Last night my beloved New York Mets were beaten in the last inning, partially because of a ball that skipped by first baseman Dan Murphy and wound up a double. Later in the inning, Murphy muffed a grounder to allow the winning run to score.

One could say that Murphy blew the game. In truth, the Mets as a team lost the game. This isn't tennis -- you win as a team and lose as a team. Yes, Murphy can be given a good portion of the blame by the fans and the media -- after all, he'd be given plenty of accolades had he hit a game-winning homer. But when a teammate points the finger, there is a problem.

Murphy's "teammate" Frankie Rodriguez -- and I use the term loosely -- had this to say after the game:

"It looked like a foul ball all the way," K-Rod said. "But regardless, you've got to stop the ball, somehow, some way. After that the game fell apart."

Ironically, it was K-Rod who was charged with the loss -- his sixth blown save of the season. His comment to the media suggesting that Murphy should have stopped a ground ball -- and thereby pinning the blame for the loss on Murphy -- is inexcusable, selfish, and unbecoming of a teammate. Teams can only be successful when all members act selflessly, work together, and pick each other up. You hold yourself accountable for your actions, and do your best to deal with any issues that arise when others falter. If Rodriguez were a good teammate, he would have taken as much responsibility for the loss as he handed to Murphy. It was K-Rod, after all, who threw the pitch that allowed Anderson to double, and it was K-Rod who hit Brian McCann with the next pitch to put the winning run on base.

Learn from the mistakes of the Mets. It's no coincidence they are on their way to a fourth-place finish in the NL East.