The Impact of the Loss of Ike

When it comes to the Mest if something can go wrong, it will go wrong. Just before a fantastic 7 2/3 innings performance by RA Dickey was stopped by the last 1/3 of the 8th inning in a loss to the Pirates, the most devastating news reached Flushing: Ike Davis is out indefinitely.

What seemed like a freak injury has turned into a Beltran-esque recovery that leaves no timetable for Ike's return. You can argue that the loss of Ike Davis might be the most significant loss of the Mets season. Although he's only in his second year in the big leagues, Ike Davis is very much a linchpin of the Mets lineup and infield.

Davis, who had been swinging a solid bat before his injury, provides the protection in the lineup that guys like Bay, Pagan & Beltran desperately need. Look at the Mets lineup without Davis and you have no threat of the long ball once you get past Beltran. With Bay batting cleanup, he is unprotected. And the bottom of the lineup is void of any true threat. If Davis were to bat 5th, he'd provide protection for Bay and push Murphy or Pagan deeper in the lineup to add some extra significance to the bottom of the order.

On the field, Davis is potentially a gold glove first baseman. We've already seen a few games where if Davis was playing, the Mets may have been able to hold on for a win but instead allowed runs that swayed the tide in the opponent's favor.

With a boot on his foot, Ike Davis could very well be out until the end of July or beyond. While Murphy has played well of late and Turner has overachieved in legendary proportions, the Mets desperately need Ike Davis. He's an RBI guy with significant power which is exactly what the Mets are missing. And he's possibly the surest glove the Mets put in the field.

The loss of Santana is huge. Wright being out hurts. But it's the absence of Ike Davis that will kill the Mets in the long run...if the bullpen doesn't do it first.