Where did the time go? Forty-five years ago today in Mets’ history (1967), Tom Seaver won the first game of his Hall of Fame career in going 7.1 innings in a 6-1 victory over the Chicago Cubs at Shea Stadium. Seaver struck out five and was supported by two RBI from Bud Harrelson and one each from Ken Boyer, Tommy Davis, Ron Swoboda and Ed Kranepool. Seaver went on to win over 300 games (his [...]

Earlier today I posed the question if the Mets were for real. Ten games is not enough of a window to jump on the bandwagon, but it is big enough to sense that there’s something positive going on. 1) David Wright is stroking the ball with authority. Even after missing several games he’s been consistently on, driving the ball to the opposite field which has always been a benchmark of success for him. He’s been [...]

With the Mets in Philadelphia over the weekend, I can’t help but wonder if they have a rivalry with any team. I mean a serious, hate-their-guts rivalry. They definitely don’t have anything with the spice of Yankees-Red Sox. For two seasons, at least, they had something with the Phillies, and in 2007 and 2008 they kicked away the NL East on the final weekend. Jimmy Rollins was right when he said the Phillies were the [...]

The Mets have been here before, saddled with an unproductive player and a huge contract. It wasn’t too long ago the Mets cursed the existence of Oliver Perez. Now it is Jason Bay. A significant difference is while Perez’s attitude in the clubhouse turned teammates against him, Bay remains a popular figure because he plays hard and hustles. He just can’t hit. With Andres Torres on the disabled list and David Wright possibly heading there, [...]

A common thread among all contenders is a strong home-grown core. Teams augment themselves with trades and free-agent signings, but the foundation comes from within. With the exception of left fielder Jason Bay, last night’s line-up was a production of the farm system. Josh Thole, Ike Davis, Daniel Murphy, Ruben Tejada, David Wright, Kirk Nieuwenhuis, Lucas Duda and Mike Pelfrey all came from below. Ideally, a team wants to add one player a year from [...]

One of baseball’s most popular cliches is pitching is contagious, both good and bad. Tonight against Washington, Mike Pelfrey, who struggled during spring training  will attempt to follow up the Mets’ strong showing from its rotation in his first appearance of the season. The Mets have been here before with Pelfrey, and your guess is as good as anybody as to how he’ll come of the game. Eventually, however, Pelfrey must confront his demeans and [...]

The Mets  made it official and announced the five-year, $25.5 extension for Jon Niese, who, if he lives up to expectations will make that a bargain. Premium left-handers are in high demand and Niese has already shown a high upside. Throw in two team option years and the deal could rise to $45.5 million. The Mets have been targets for bad contractual decisions, but this is a sound move because it will enable them to avoid [...]

There was a crispness to the day. Both in the weather and the way the Mets played. It was a delightful day, one that gave us a glimpse of what could be when they put it all together. Hopefully, Mike Pelfrey was taking notes on Johan Santana and pitching out of trouble as he did in the fifth. The talking heads on SNY – and I’m not talking the play-by-play team – were in their [...]

I suppose you could ask for a nicer day, but that would be greedy. It’s bright and sunny, a crispness in the air. The forecast is for more of the same this afternoon at Citi Field. There should be two rules in baseball: Opening Day has beautiful weather and the home team wins. Opening Day, it is written, is about renewal, about fresh starts, about optimism. It’s also about going home to your roots. Wherever [...]

With Opening Day hours away, the Mets began the 2012 season on a positive note by agreeing to a contract with left-hander Jon Niese. In agreeing to the five-year, $25.5 million deal – pending a physical – the Mets will avoid the arbitration and free-agent processes and locked up one of their most important young players. With the Mets resolving their most stressing financial problem is reaching a settlement in the Madoff scandal, their next [...]

Yes, I know it was only one game after so many bad ones, but it was encouraging to watch Mike Pelfrey last night against Houston. One run on three hits in 6.1 innings. I’ll take that every time. By his own admission, Pelfrey said this could be a make-or-break season for him. If he has another one like last year, he could see the Mets cutting ties with him. They’ve already bounced that around in [...]