I'm Getting tired of being right all the time...

Once again, as has happened several times in bizarre circumstances on this site, I called it. I said Pedro going to the Phils could only end one way: him being healthy and dominant for them, and helping them to ultimately eliminate the Mets once again from the playoffs. What happened tonight? Well, Pedro, who is undefeated since joining the Phillies, absolutely dominated the Mets for 8 shutout innings in the game that officially eliminated the Mets from playoff contention. Now, obviously, the Mets haven't had a realistic hope for the playoffs in months, but really, how else could this season end but being officially eliminated by Pedro? Still think Pedro's not a capable pitcher anymore, Jerry Manuel? Great job. It's alright, though. You and Omar have job security. What an organization!

....by the way, as some of you may know, I'm also a Detroit Lions fan, so as the Mets officially had the nail driven in their coffin for 2009, the Lions kicked off another massochistic season today by being annihilated by the New Orleans Saints. Something tells me that football season won't be cheering me up much....

This can only end one way....

Two years ago, as part of the epic collapse of the Mets, Pedro Martinez started a game against the Phillies in which he blew an early 7-0 lead in a game the Mets eventually lost. Remember, the Mets eventually lost the division to the Phils by a game. Now, that same Pedro Martinez has signed a one-year deal with those same Phillies. What does this mean for the Mets? If history is any lesson (and I am a history major, so I sure hope it is), we know that Pedro will both stay healthy all year (which he never did for the Mets) AND be absolutely dominant (or at least he will be in games he starts against the Mets). Can't wait to see this one play out. And anybody who thinks that this time it could be different, remember that the Mets are throwing a minor-league quality lineup out there every day.

Alou is Back!

If nothing else, the Mets roster is beginning to slightly more resemble the Mets roster with Duaner Sanchez returning recently and tonight's return of Moises Alou. Sure, both catchers from our preferred Major League roster are on the Disabled List currently, and Pedro will miss several more weeks, and El Duque is -- well -- El Duque, but some people are making their returns.

Last year, when Alou actually played, he was an RBI, BA, and HR machine. Tonight, in his first at-bat of the season, he has an RBI single (which, granted, should have been a double play ball if Diamondbacks 2B Orlando Hudson didn't simply miss it completely). There's been plenty to complain about with this Mets team this season, but Alou is currently batting 1.000 with an RBI. There's not much we can say in complaint about his performance when he's actually been on the field......yet.

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By the way, the Mets have switched back tonight to the order with Ryan Church batting second and Castillo in the 8-slot. They're scoring again. Incredible... Amazing how so many blogs and other fans have called for this, and it's taken this long for Willie Randolph to go with it.

Mets Home Opener about to Begin

I've been listening to the introductions of the Mets' players in the pregame ceremonies for the final Home Opener at Shea. A couple things stood out:

• Obviously, Johan Santana received the loudest and most sustained ovation. He was also the only new Met who received an introduction including the words, "Welcome to New York..."
• The next loudest ovation was predictably for David Wright. In 3rd place? John Maine. I am personally a big John Maine fan (I'm wearing a Maine jersey today), so I appreciate that the crowd at the game recognizes like I do how well Maine pitched for us last year despite his tail-off in the August.
• Scott Schoeneweiss received -- if nothing else -- a quieter reception than he was expecting (Said Schoeneweiss over the weekend about the upcoming player introductions: "I'm scared to death of it because I always get booed. Can't I just wear my hoodie out there?"). I heard more boos than cheers, but it wasn't as loud as I expected.
• Aaron Heilman was not booed, despite already having given up a few costly runs this season, along with his checkered past including that homerun he gave up to Yadier Molina in the '06 NLCS.

Anyway, today's the final Home Opener for Shea Stadium. So I leave you with these song lyrics:

Now we see them rushing

To the stadium in Flushing.

Big Shea will see its last game in the Fall.

We've got Maine and Ollie Perez,

Moises and Chavez,

Santana's our guy and we're finishing high

So let's play ball.

We're talking baseball (Jose Reyes and Mr. Wright)

Talking baseball (Delgado's bat is dynamite)

Pedro, Church, and Billy -- they're all set.

And Carlos Beltran -- he's as good as it gets.

We're talking baseball. Baseball and the Mets.

Yesterday's and Today's "Non-Mets Player Mets Player of the Day"

I didn't have a chance to post this last night, and frankly I tried to avoid writing after Pedro exited the game with his injury (he'll likely miss 4-6 weeks with a strained hamstring). The "Non-Mets Player Mets Player of the Day" for yesterday, April 1, was Claudio Vargas. Currently a free agent, I wouldn't be terribly surprised to see the Mets go after Vargas to fill Pedro's spot in the rotation while he is out.


For tonight, though the Mets, Marlins, and Braves are still playing, I can announce the winner of the "Non-Mets Player Mets Player of the Day" is Washington Nationals starting pitcher Tim Redding, who pitched 7 scoreless innings in a 1-0 win over the Philadelphia Phillies. This is the 3rd selection for a member of the Washington Nationals organization, with the entire teaming winning the honors for two days in a row to start the season.


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"The Non-Mets Player Mets Player of the Day" is a daily feature on this blog which recognizes the player outside of the Mets organization who makes the greatest contribution that day to the Mets defeating the Phillies and Braves in the NL East. Based on those qualifications, it is possible for Washington Nationals and Florida Marlins players to win this award, as neither are considered serious contenders in the division.

Let's Get Ready to Rumble!

I'm sure that if you all read MetsBlog or even MLB.com or the NY Post -- or really any media that is covering Spring Training -- you are already aware that it has been suggested by Phillies players that there could very well be a brawl between the Phils and Mets in any of their 19 meetings this season. For the record, their first meeting will be on April 8 -- the Mets' home opener at Shea. Here's what Pedro had to say (Quoted by Bart Hubbuch in the NY Post) in response to the comments by the Phillies:

“I don’t believe there’s a reason to be fighting, but we’re over here. Basically, if [they’re] going to have to brawl or whatever, we’re over here. We’ll wait…I love Jimmy Rollins, I love [Brett]

Myers, I love everybody…but I would love to beat the [snot] out of them on the field.”

I love it, personally. I can't remember there being a single real brawl this past season. The closest I can remember was that ridiculous incident at the very end of the year when Miguel Olivo charged Jose Reyes at 3rd Base from the Pitcher's Mound. I think the lack of any actual fights is evidence enough that the Mets lacked the killer instinct they sorely needed down the stretch. Just looking back on Mets History, some of the first events that come to my mind are brawls (and granted that may just be because I have the subject in mind). But think about it: there was RoseBud. There were the Bad Boys of the '86 team, who -- on the rare occasion that they didn't beat a team on the scoreboard, they made certain to beat that team with their fists. In my own lifetime, I can still picture the Spring Training game when Guillermo Mota (yes, a lot of you forgot that we hated Mota long before he was blowing games even while on 'roids for the Mets) drilled Mike Piazza for the 3rd or 4th time in a span of just a couple years, and the benches cleared. Jeromy Burnitz charged literally into the Dodgers dugout and fought off several players (criticize Burnitz's strikeout total all you want -- I sure do -- but that guy at least showed every day that he wanted to win). And at his side for a part of that charge was the Light Brigade of Joe McEwing. But, just like the historic Light Brigade, McEwing was quickly pummeled by numerous Dodgers players (for those of you who are confused, No, the Light Brigade did not fight against Dodgers players. The players in this analogy are cannons). Joe McEwing may have been a scrappy player, but a master fighter he was not.

What I'm saying in all this rambling of memories is simply: Bring it on, Phillies. I'm not quite as afraid of your team now that Ugueth Urbina is rotting in a South American prison. If he comes back to pitch in your bullpen, then I think maybe the Mets and Phils should seek a truce. After all, the last thing we need is for any of our pitchers to get an arm hacked off by a machete, or to have Jose Reyes lit on fire. We need a fire lit under Reyes's ass, not a charred shortstop trying to swipe bases.

By the way, Pedro said later in the NY Post article that it's simply human nature to defend yourself when someone is coming at you. So there, he should now be completely forgiven for throwing Don Zimmer to the ground. After all, wouldn't you do the same? No? You would just step to the side and watch Zimmer pass right on by you? Well, I guess that works, too... But where's the fun in that? Zimmer may have been a fat grandfather, but don't let that simple fact deceive you, Jimmy Rollins. Pedro won't hesitate to throw you to the ground in the same way (assuming you simply put your head down and charge like a bull at Pedro's chest the way Zim did). Or maybe he'll just send a bunch of roosters to attack you...... You don't know what he'll do. And personally, I can't wait to see it. Ryan Howard is chubby, too; maybe he'll go on the attack the way the Zim did. 1000% pay raise or not, I'll still take Pedro in a fight over Howard.

Let the games begin.