Agghhhhhhhhhh...Aghhhhhhhhhh!!!

"Aghhhh……aghhhhhhhh!!!"

Why are we so pissed off? Why are we so angry? I'm dropping this one Kinison style!

We're so angry because:

• The Mets traded one of the greatest right handed pitchers in the history of the game in Tom Seaver - "agghhhhhh"
  
• There wasn’t a Wild Card in the 80’s - "agghhhhhhhh"
  
• of Terry Pendleton - "aghhhhhhhh"
  
• Lasorda brought Hershiser in from the pen to close out Game 4 in ’88 - "aghhhhhhhh"
• We had to watch John Franco blow saves for 14 years! - "aghhhhhhhh"
• We had to watch his successor Armando Benitez for 4 even worse years. - "aghhhhhhhh"
• Kenny Rogers walked in the season-ending run while Rickey and Bobby Bo played cards in the clubhouse - "aghhhhhhhh"
• Timo Perez failed to run hard in Game 1 of the 2000 World Series - "aghhhhhhhh"
• The 2000 World Series Champs seemingly shared the anabolic needle like it was a “j” at Woodstock - "aghhhhhhhh"
• "Who Brought the Dogs Out" was a theme song in 2000 - "aghhhhhhhh"
• Robby Alomar was a bust
  
• Kazmir was traded for the wrong Zambrano - "aghhhhhhhh"
• The Marlins have won two championships in 10 years - "aghhhhhhhh"
• Generation K turned into Generation KO - "aghhhhhhhh"
• Beltran failed to swing - "aghhhhhhhh"
• We could really use Brian Bannister right now - "aghhhhhhhh"
• We have to watch those Giseppe Franco commercials in between every inning - "aghhhhhhhh"
• The organization held a sing a long contest and… - "aghhhhhhhh"
• they played that rick astley song - "aghhhhhhhh" talk about adding salt to the wound and this was our own organization humiliating us - "aghhhhhhhh"
• Tom Glavine puked all over September last season - "aghhhhhhhh"
• Delgdo forgets to cover the bag - "aghhhhhhhh"
• Delgado is hitting under .200 - "aghhhhhhhh"
• Delgado didn't come out for a curtain call - "aghhhhhhhh"
• The team can't hit with men on base - "aghhhhhhhh"
• They lost 13-1 to the lowly Pirates - "aghhhhhhhh"
• They are so freaking inconsistent - "aghhhhhhhh"
• We will forever be humiliated by the ’07 collapse unless a championship is won - "aghhhhhhhh"

That's why we're so angry!

Feel free to add any other reason I may have missed. I know there's plenty more.

Timely Hitting is the Key

Benny Agbyani, Jay Payton and Timo Perez. Remember those guys? If you don’t, and you’re reading this, then God bless you, young Mets Lifer and welcome to our site. For most of us who do remember, they were a trio of outfielders who helped the Mets get to the 2000 World Series to face the juice-induced Yankees.

If the Mets can win the NL with those guys in the outfield, then there is no reason that this 2008 Mets team should not make it. When you roll out guys like Carlos Beltran, Johann Santana, David Wright, Jose Reyes, Pedro Martinez and Carlos Delgado, you expect to win, period! No excuses.

But it’s going to take more than star power to win this year. People can talk about how Jose Reyes needs to chill out, or how Willie needs to use his bullpen better (funny how no one complained about this in ’06). The biggest key for the Mets this year is getting timely hits. It’s all about fundamentals and last year, the Mets stunk it up with men on base. How many times did Reyes get left at third with less than 2 outs? How many times did they fail to move a runner over? It was downright infuriating to watch, almost on nightly basis. There is no question a ghastly inept bullpen (and a guy named Glavine) sabotaged the season for the Mets down the stretch last year, but if guys do what they’re supposed to do in basic hitting situations, you’re going to win most games.

If you look at this offense objectively, it’s not overwhelming by any stretch of the imagination. The Phillies have a far superior lineup, and the Braves are better as well. Angel Pagan is a nice story but the Mets need Alou’s presence desperately, especially if a quickly-aging Delgado can’t rediscover his once sweet stroke. And while I think Luis Castillo is still a productive two hitter, I have to admit I am concerned about his wobbly legs. (Waive Gotay? Total brain fart, Omar. Terrible decision) But, with Reyes, Wright and Beltran, at the top, all the Mets need is some good ‘ole situational hitting from the back of the order; kind of like Agbayani, Payton and Perez.