Apr
9
2012

What We Learned from the Mets’ Sweep of the Atlanta Braves

An article by Robert Knapel

With the first weekend of the New York Mets’ season now in the books, there are certainly a number of things to be excited about. The team got off to a great start and they were able to sweep the division rival Atlanta Braves. Obviously, this was only three games and there is still a long season ahead, but there were a couple things that we learned from this series victory.

Ruben Tejada’s glove is the reason that he is the Mets starting shortstop and it was known by all that he would not be able to replace what Jose Reyes could do offensively. However, what Tejada was able to do in his first 11 at-bats of the year was somewhat telling. There were concerns about Tejada’s offense, but it looks he may turn into a pretty decent offensive player.

Tejada had a nice stroke on each of the doubles that he hit in the final game of the series. It looks like Tejada may have bulked up a bit and he could continue to get bigger. This does not mean that Tejada will become a home run hitter, but he could pick up a lot of doubles if he is able to continue to drive the ball.

Moving the fences at Citi Field in was one of the most talked about things that happened with the Mets this offseason and it looks like its impact was felt early. The Mets hit three home runs during the series, two of which would have cleared the old fences. It seems as the biggest impact that the fences will have is on the confidence of the New York Mets hitters. Seeing the shorter fences at Citi is definitely something that will help the hitters mentally and it should lead to a better performance.

One of Terry Collins’ strategies became very clear this series. If the Mets are winning a close game Collins is going to pull Daniel Murphy and go with Ronny Cedeno at second base late in the game. This defensive upgrade was made by Collins in every game this series. If Murphy begins to look more and more comfortable at second base later in the year, then this change likely will not be made as often.

Another great takeaway from the games this weekend was that Johan Santana is back. It may have only been five innings, but they were scoreless innings and on Opening Day Johan Santana gave us a glimpse of the pitcher that the Mets traded for. That is a huge positive for the team.

There is reason to be excited after the good start to the year, but there is still a lot more baseball ahead of us. The Mets looked much better this weekend than most people thought they would look. There seems to be an energy there that the team did not have for a large portion of last season and this past weekend the Mets were once again a fun team to watch.

About the Author: Robert Knapel

Robert is from New Jersey. He is currently pursuing Bachelors degrees in both Finance and International Business at Washington University in St. Louis. He has been a Mets fan for as long as he can remember. Robert also serves as an MLB Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report.

11 Comments + Add Comment

XtreemIcon April 9, 2012 at 12:17 pm

Don’t forget the bullpen.
- MetsMan86 April 9, 2012 at 12:35 pm
  
  One run through three games and however many innings. The bullpen was a major reason the Mets won the series.
  - jessep April 9, 2012 at 2:20 pm
    
    I agree. The bullpen is an often overlooked piece of any contending team. A solid bullpen can take you a long way. Parnell-Byrdak-Ramirez-Rauch-Francisco looked very solid.
USMF April 9, 2012 at 1:08 pm

It was one series vs one team…we got a long way to go before learning anything. Remember, the Mets started 3-1 last year (if my memory hasn’t failed me) and we know how the rest of April went.

I think the one thing we saw is…if our starters pitch to expectations and we don’t suffer any major injuries, this team ins’t as bad as everyone feared.
Eddie April 9, 2012 at 1:39 pm

What are the chances the Mets are interested in Jonny Damon as part of their platoon in center? I know he throws like a girl and has lost a step, but played sparingly he might come thru in tough situations.
- Vinny B April 9, 2012 at 2:00 pm
  
  I think we are fine with Nieuwenhuis and Hairston in CF.
- Donal April 9, 2012 at 2:08 pm
  
  There isn’t a chance in hell Damon is playing center field for anyone.
- Rich S April 9, 2012 at 3:12 pm
  
  Now way Damon… Byrd from the Cubs is more likely
Vinny B April 9, 2012 at 1:53 pm

We also learned that the Braves can’t hit and their pitching is overrated.
- Rich S April 9, 2012 at 3:14 pm
  
  I heard Heyman or Verducci on WFAN say last week that he could see the Mets having better pitching than the Braves. I can see Mets having 2nd best in the NL East
sarge April 9, 2012 at 5:14 pm

Many games were lost by the confusion of BP last year and this year, I’ll give SA credit for this one, there is some veteran presence though not completely lights out but you have a few pieces that could close so it doesn’t have to fall on Francisco all the time if he is struggling.

Nothing worse than playing a great game and having your BP blow the lead at the end

David looked a lot better at the plate and Duda seems like the 2nd coming of Dunn but hopefully more agile and able to play OF/1B for Mets.

NL East Standings

Team	W	L	Pct.	GB
Braves	23	18	.561	-
Nationals	23	19	.548	0.5
Phillies	20	22	.476	3.5
Mets	16	23	.410	6.0
Marlins	11	31	.262	12.5

Last updated: 05/18/2013

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