Three Up and Three Down – Opening Series Sweep Edition

The New York Mets open the 2012 season with a three game sweep of division rivals, the Atlanta Braves. The Mets were so very good this series, that the 3 downs are going to seem picky, but here we go.

3 Up:

• Johan Is Back: Johan Santana looked sharp in the Mets opening day 1-0 win. Any time your starter doesn’t give up a run, it’s a good thing. So much of this season depends on what the Mets can get out of Santana, let’s just hope he remains solid this year.
• Sluggers-R-Us: David Wright hit a monster homer run on Saturday. Lucas Duda hit a pair on Saturday, and it seems all Daniel Murphy does is hit doubles. I doubt the Mets will have any problems scoring runs this season.
• Decent Bullpen: Our new closer Frank Francisco has three saves in three opportunities. The bullpen was lights out this weekend! Parnell, Rauch, and Ramirez were more than solid. Ten innings pitched, one earned run, one walk, ten strikeouts! Nice job guys.

3 Down:

• Lack of Key Hits: Like last year, too many times the Mets are leaving runners in scoring position. They need to work on getting those key hits.
• Torres To The DL: To be honest, I didn’t like the Torres trade. He’s an aging center fielder, and so far this pre-season and regular season he’s proven that he can’t stay on the field.
• Five Unanswered Runs: Just nit-picking here, fact is I’m thrilled. The Mets gave up 5 unanswered runs yesterday. Not good. They need to be able to slam the door on the opposition.

As I mentioned, the “Downs” were very picky, but I think every Met fan should be thrilled by the start this season. It doesn’t get much better than sweeping three from the Braves. Davey Johnson & the Nationals roll in here Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, lets hope that good things continue to happen for the Mets.