There is No Justice for the Mets

When you start to expect a storybook ending to any game this year, please remember this is 2009. This is the year of injustice for the Mets.

Absolutely nothing can go the Mets way this season. In a season where every star, every important player to the success of this team has found themselves injured, David Wright was the only bastion of hope for Mets fans.

And then yesterday, every Mets fans' heart skipped a beat when Wright was crushed in the helmet by a 95 mph fast ball. I literally gasped when it happened and stared blankly at the TV waiting for Wright to get up. How can this happen? Why is this happening?

Matt Cain had no intentions of hitting Wright, but he did commit the one unpardonable act a pitcher can do, hitting a batter in the head. Thankfully Wright seems to be okay and sustained a concussion but CT scans were negative according to a Mets spokesperson.

But after Wright exited, I found myself thinking that this would be just the spark the Mets needed to jump start this team. Then Santana folded giving up 3 runs in the 6th inning on back to back to back to back to back hits.

The worst part of Santana's outing is when he tried to provide some justice for Wright's beaning by throwing at Sandoval's back. Of course this is the 2009 Mets, so Santana missed him and on the next pitch Sandoval crushed a home run.

The Mets somehow rallied to tie the game and force extra innings and had every Mets Lifer hoping for some justice. But KRod threw the biggest meatball I have ever seen to Benjie Molina who slammed it into left field.

Game over.

So as the day came to a close it found Wright in the hospital, Santana with a loss, KRod with a blown save and justice still avoiding the 2009 Mets.

There are no breaks for this Mets team, unless it's a bone.

Parnell, Pagan and Pitching

The three P's to the Mets victory last night were Parnell, Pagan and solid relief pitching.

I'm not one of those people who thinks Parnell is the great white hope for the Mets pitching staff. In fact I think Parnell should stay in the bullpen. I think the Mets might be making the same mistake the Yankees made with Joba in that you had a young guy who could be a solid closer some day and now you're throwing him into the starting rotation.

But last night that didn't matter. Parnell was throwing some serious gas well into his 85 pitch count limit. He had good control and looked like a different person from his last start. In this season of depression, it's nice to see a bright spot find its way to shine on the Mets if even for a day.

Pagan wanted redemption from his benching this past week and found it in his first at bat as he crushed a high fastball to left field. Oddly enough Pagan finds Citi Field to be a home run hitter's park as he hasn't hit a homer anywhere else. I really want Pagan to be a good every day player. I saw it in him last year and this year, but I don't know if it's for real yet.

And finally the bullpen sealed the deal with another great outing from Brian Stokes and KRod. We expect a solid outing every time from KRod so that's no surprise, but Stokes has come a long way since April and May. I was ready to give up on Stokes, but I think Jerry Manuel's confidence in him has caused Stokes to respond in a positive way. He looks sharp. Throws strikes. And most importantly doesn't back down off of throwing his fastball.

I'm actually feeling good about a Mets game. Who knew that was possible this year? Santana today at 4 pm on FOX.

Fan Dumps Beer on Shane Victorino

Honestly, this is uncalled for. It really is. I'm being serious. It's wrong. Absolutely, totally and utterly wrong. I hope the fan was thrown out of the game for this.

Ok, let's watch the video again.

Trying to Fix the Mets for 2010

There's more than a month of season left, but I'm already looking for hope in 2010. However, there is work that can be done in 2009 to set the stage for a better shot at returning to prominence in the years ahead.

I don't have all the answers and it's unlikely all of these elements will fall into place, but if even half of these suggestions come to fruition I think the Mets will be better off in 2010 because of it.

In my opinion, here's what the Mets need to do:

• Get a new training staff - Come on. No brainer.
• Trade Sheffield, Delgado, and Wagner before the 2009 season is out - Obviously the key to this is that Delgado & Wagner come back off the DL, but even if they can get some low level prospects for them the Mets have to try and get something for them before they just let them go to free agency. I'm not for keeping Sheffield in 2010. Two words: Moises Alou. I've learned my lesson.
• Try and deal J.J. Putz in the offseason for a first baseman - I don't believe Daniel Murphy is the long term solution for the Mets at 1B. I think Putz is worth something to a lot of teams out there. The money will be the issue for many of them, but even if the Mets have to pay a portion of Putz's salary and can in turn get a major league ready 1B, I think it would be well worth it. If the Mets have to package Murphy or a Sullivan to make it work, so be it.
• Go after one of two Roys - That would be Roy Halladay or Roy Oswalt. Halladay is the prize catch, but I think Oswalt in a new situation might be just as worthwhile. The Mets obviously need a #2 starter to follow Santana. The best option is Halladay and I'm willing to trade Parnell or FMart and others to get him for the next 4 years. If Oswalt can be had for cheaper than what's being asked for Halladay, that might be the best fit. But at some point in the next four months the Mets need to cover for the mistake they made with Oliver Perez last season.
• Fire Omar Minaya and Jerry Manuel - I really like Jerry Manuel. I think he's been unlucky with all that has happened, but I think the Mets need to cleanse themselves and start fresh. The past two Septembers and this year's debacle is the writing on the wall that the Mets need to go in a new direction and the simple way to do that is with a new manager and a new vision in the front office. You want to go get LaRussa, bring back Bobby V, or whomever, the end result is that a change is needed.
• Focus on pitching and fundamentals- Unless you sign a big bopper like a Prince Fielder or Adam Dunn, the Mets should build around sound minds and sound arms. We've seen how badly a team can be when they don't have fundamentally sound guys in the field and Citi Field is built for good pitching. This is who the Mets should be.
  

Things I Have Learned from the 2009 Mets

• No game is worth staying up past your bedtime to watch
• Baseball fundamentals are more important than anyone gives them credit for
• There's a reason why Angel Pagan hasn't ever been an everyday outfielder
• Bench players rarely become contributors on a regular basis
• Fernando Tatis is the perfect example that lightning never strikes in the same place twice
• You can turn the Mets game off if they are down by more than 2 runs after the second inning
• Tim Redding is a better mid-reliever than starting pitcher
• Star players get big money for a reason
• Livan Hernandez's better days are behind him
• Bad baseball is more painful to watch than Judge Judy
• Although I hate him, the Mets need a guy like Shane Victorino on their team
• It's quite possible that Pedro Martinez would be the #2 starter on this team
• Chances are we'll never see the John Maine who pitched the second to last game of the 2007 season ever again
• David Wright desperately needs a wingman
• Luis Castillo is better than I ever expected him to be this season
• Both Omar & Jerry Manuel need to move on, just to change the scenery a bit
• Daniel Murphy is not an everyday first baseman
• Jeff Franceour should stay a Met
• It's easy to be a Yankees fan
• I remember why I lost a little love for baseball in the mid 90's
• Brian Schneider is this century's Charlie O'Brian
  

Omar Minaya is a Lame Duck GM

I think Adam Rubin enjoyed writing this article a little more than he might of a month ago.

This morning Rubin wrote a story about how Omar Minaya may very well be phased out as Mets GM at the end of the season and be replace by numbers oriented assistant John Ricco.

Rubin cites the always popular "high ranking officials" as the source for the GM rumor, but anyone with any knowledge of this team could have told you these are Minaya's final days with the team.

I wonder if Minaya's blow up with Rubin was the final straw or if he would have survived had that media circus not taken place. Somehow I think Minaya would still be canned regardless of Rubingate, but I'm sure it didn't help his case any.

Omar Minaya joined the Mets with much fanfare and made some significant moves to help bring the team back into the spotlight. Honestly, Minaya has brought some significant talent to the Mets including Beltran, Pedro, KRod, and Santana. And he's gotten some decent players for very little including Maine, Feliciano, Pagan, & Franceour.

Minaya's problem has not been getting talent. His problem has been putting together a team. Minaya has picked up the right personnel on the field, but has failed to put together a unit that is balanced and does the little things well.

To me there isn't a long term strategy to the Mets and in my opinion that onus is on the GM. What are the Mets? Are they a power team? Are they going to play small ball? Are they pitching focused? What is the Mets brand? Right now, it's laughable and we can't stand for that.

Injuries have played a role in Minaya's ultimate demise, but there needs to be a shift in direction for this franchise. Back to back September disappointments and a dismal 2009 season are enough proof of that for me.

This team needs to be built around starting pitching and run production, much like the Angels. Citi Field is built for a team that can utilize speed, hitting to all fields, and solid pitching. Unless we can get Pujols, Adam Dunn and Prince Fielder the Mets can't be built for power in this park.

I'm not saying the Mets need to utterly demolish their core players. In fact, I'm still in favor of keeping Beltran, Wright & Reyes because I think those guys fit that mold, but there are some definite components missing.

Whether Minaya stays or Ricco becomes the replacement, all I ask is for a long term strategy for this team that can be built around contending year in and year out.

Mets Lifers need something to root for. If it's a new GM, so be it.

Mike Pelfrey is Becoming Oliver Perez

The similarities between the two neurotic pitchers are becoming more evident every time Mike Pelfrey takes the mound.

The guy who was once considered a potential #2 starter behind Johan Santana is looking more and more like a #4 or #5 starter at best. Pelfrey has become as inconsistent as Oliver Perez.

Pelfrey can't seem to string together back to back good outings. He's not producing the ground balls off his sinker like he used to. Hitters aren't just getting singles, but are pounding Pelfrey like he's throwing batting practice. It seems like every start Pelfrey has one inning where he just implodes.

Sounds a lot like Oliver Perez.

The other similarity which is more worrisome than his pitching is the mental status of Pelfrey. We all know Ollie is a head case. Somehow that's what makes him intriguing, but also causes Perez to have such disparaging highs and lows on the mound. Pelfrey is looking lost at times on the mound. He doesn't have the mental fortitude to get past a tough situation or an unfortunate break. It just leads him further into the depths of destruction.

Perfect example was last night when Mark Reynolds got his bat sawed off and looked ready to pierce David Wright. Now that was a ground ball that should have gotten the out at first base, but the unfortunate circumstances of being potentially injured by a flying bat caused Wright to not play the ball like he normally would. As soon as that play happened, it sentenced Pelfrey to a loss. Reynolds stole second and then back to back doubles and 3 runs later, Pelfrey had lost control of the inning.

Pelfrey needs some therapy and some lessons in mental strength this off season. I still think he has the stuff to be a solid pitcher for the Mets in the future, but he's got to be more consistent and develop a killer instinct to be a successful pitcher in this town.

Otherwise we'll have two Ollie P's on our hands.