Mets Merized Online

Jose Reyes has been a staple on this Mets team for seven years, from the time he was 19 years old. After 2009 limited him to just 36 games, we are expecting big things from Reyes this year. We were expecting more run production, more triples, more swiftness….and maybe a revival of The Jose Reyes Spanish Academy. But, now that spring games have started, Reyes appears to be MIA.

Reyes was following up a physical for the first spring training game, he didn’t make the trip to play the Braves, and he didn’t appear on any split squad. Now, the Mets are saying that Reyes is being tested for a thyroid imbalance, just one day after clearing Reyes to play today.

I really hope the patterns of 2009 don’t come back to haunt us. First, we lose Beltran, and now Reyes can’t play until he gets the results back from his thyroid examination. Last season, in many cases, the Mets mishandled the injuries to their team. We went from contenders to bums in just under a month.

I still have a lot of questions about this Mets team, but one of them shouldn’t have to be about the condition of one of our star players. The Mets should have said yesterday that he was going back to New York for testing. If the Mets were more straightforward with their fanbase, I feel there would definitely be less treading waters between the Wilpons and the fanbase.

However, I do feel that this Mets team is in better shape than last year’s squad. We have guys to cover the guys and hopefully the minor league guys are building experience before we thrust them into New York.

We want the truth, not, “Oh, he’ll be back today……PSYCH!”

In the last 24 hours, Mets fans watched in agony as John Lackey signed with the Red Sox and Roy Halladay got traded to the Phillies. And I hate to add anymore pain to this, but the Cardinals have allegedly offered Matt Holliday one the highest contracts in their team history, according to ESPN.

Sure, we made an offer to Jason Bay, but it is for four years and Bay wants a guaranteed five years. We signed Chris Coste, Henry Blanco and made an offer to Bengie Molina, because apparently, Omar Minaya’s goal this offseason is to sign every free agent pitcher on the market.

Well guess what? We can say next year is our year all we want, but I’m tired of waiting! I’m tired of Omar Minaya signing the same type of player. I’m tired of our rotation falling apart in the middle of August, I’m tired of our core players not performing when it really matters, and most of all, I’m tired of the ownership doing nothing about it. And the sad part about the whole thing is that ownership doesn’t feel the need to do anything because they know once Spring Training rolls around, we’ll all be rooting for the Mets, albeit with our eyes covered. The only thing that the Wilpons and the front office have done for the fans was send an email saying that “sorry we sucked, maybe we’ll do better next year.”

Well, when this time next year rolls around, the whole “sorry we sucked, maybe we’ll do better next year” thing won’t cut it. They should really send a letter that says, “sorry that Omar sat on his hands the last two offseasons and signed 37-year-old and 38-year-old catchers and we will fix it.”

I understand that the Mets can’t sign every free agent player on the market. I would gladly welcome Jason Bay (back) to the Mets. But our rotation is one huge hole that should have taken precedence over acquiring an outfielder.

As we all know by now, Wallace Matthews wrote yet another column bashing the Mets. And we, as fans, have every right to be angry. We have every right to boycott Matthews and use our Newsday for our fireplaces. But did we even take the time to consider that maybe, just maybe, Wallace Matthews might be right for a change?

The Mets made a blip on the playoff radar in 2006, but lost thanks to a Scott Spezio triple and the most infamous 2-run home run in Mets history. 2007 was an epic collaspe and 2008 was deja vu. 2009….don’t even go there.

Every off-season, we make our wishlists: “I hope they sign Matt Holliday!” or “I hope we acquire a #2 starter!” or (on the top of my wishlist) “They should just get a bionic arm for Johan Santana.” Every offseason, we watch Omar Minaya sit on his hands as the Yankees buy their 27th World Series ring.

The difference between the Yankees and the Mets is that the Yankees say their committed to winning and they show their fans that. The Mets say they’re committed to winning and that means a 20% hike in ticket prices.

The Mets haven’t done anything worth talking about in the last three years, unless the conversation is about futility in Mets history. They haven’t tried to improve the team by fixing the holes in our roster *cough* left fielder *cough*. Omar Minaya and Wilpon family may say they are committed to winning but I was always taught that actions speak louder than words. So, Omar, show us you want to win; show us you are committed to this team. Until Omar shows us he wants to win, I hate to say it, but I agree with Wallace Matthews.

Being a Mets fan is hard in general. Try being a Mets fan in Florida. You have idiots in Red Sox shirts come up to you and say, “What happened to you guys?” You have Marlins fans that didn’t show up to Dolphin…err…Land Shark Stadium came up to you and use expletives and lack the general common sense of a bandwagon fan. Florida, unlike other sports cities, has a neat mixture of different baseball fans. Sadly, I think I am the only Mets fan in Southwest Florida. My #1 Fan vanity plate says so.

This season, some really crappy decisions were made and I was anxiously awaiting the day where we called up the Brooklyn Cyclones to replace the Mets. Or at least for the day where the Mets would have to hold open tryouts. Luckily, that didn’t happen.

With the news that Jose Reyes tore his hamstring while testing his torn hamstring tendon, I feel like we are very near the bottom. The bottom would be a firesale (although it has worked for the Marlins). Jose Reyes is the face of our medical blunders, playing in 36 games and being listed as day-to-day for 12 days before being placed on the 15-day DL. I hope for our core’s sake, he does come back in time for spring training.

I don’t think firing Jerry or firing Omar is the answer. You can’t blame Jerry for trying to work with what he’s got, which was essentially David Wright and AAA Buffalo. The lack of depth in the farm system does ultimately fall on the general manager but Omar has made some good moves in the past to try and help us. Getting Frenchy has to be the deal of the year. Hopefully, in the offseason, we can TRADE for a legitimate left fielder, as that position has been a black hole for the last 3 seasons. I do think, however, both of them should be placed on tight, tight leashes. I think the only coach I would retain is HoJo; sure, we’re dead last in home runs but we’re 2nd in the NL in batting average, an eye-opener to me.

While most fans have undoubtedly moved on to football, I’m still checking scores and watching high(low)lights. I’m still a Mets fan; I have to see the end of this atrocious season. LGM.

I’ll be honest. I thought we could do it with Beltran and Wright. I thought we could do it with Wright. I thought we could do it with Francoeur and Wright. I really thought for the longest time that the Mets would make some miracle run and be champions a la 1969. But, with Wright being drilled in the head, what little chance we had at a playoff run now has been diminished.

The Mets continue to amaze me, not by their winning-ness, but by their lack there of and how quickly they went from “Ya Gotta Believe” to “Ya Gotta Be Kidding Me” (and that’s the family-friendly version, folks). I knew it was bad when SportsCenter made a Not Top 10 based on our team alone but I didn’t think it could get worse. Apparantly, the Baseball Gods think differently.

I’m not surprised when the Mets fathom up some new way to lose. Casey Stengel would be rolling in his grave if he could see these Mets! Not covering first base, dropping routine pop ups, the Mets have done it all. Maybe they would throw in a win or two to change things up a bit, but nothing major. The Nationals may be in last place, but even they went on a 8-game winning streak. The Mets longest run ended at 4.

It’s the middle of August and I officially have no more expections for the Mets. I was hoping we could flirt with .500 but even that seems like too much. I just want everybody to come back healthy and ready to play next year. For now, Mets Nation turns its lonely eyes on the well-being of our third baseman. We can’t mess this one up guys.

Today, I called my dad to wish him a happy birthday. The subject naturally went from how many candles he’s blowing out tonight to the Mets. Okay, so we beat the Nationals. The sad thing was that I was excited about it. I threw my hands in the air without looking at the bigger picture; we’re still 9.5 games out, we still have a losing record, we’re still in 4th place. And plus, the Bad News Bears could beat the Nationals with their eyes closed and one hand tied behind their back.

Billy Wagner, Jose Reyes, Carlos Beltran, Carlos Delgado, John Maine, Fernando Martinez, J.J. Putz, and now Fernando Nieve all fell to the injury bug and we don’t know when they’re coming back (my money’s on Wagner coming back first). I’m tired of hearing about all of the injuries, I’m tired of hearing Jerry Manuel say that we gotta truck along and stay in contention. I’m wondering if Jerry got the memo that we’re not in contention right now. I don’t know about the rest of the Mets blogosphere, but I’d be happy if we broke .500 with the team we’re fielding day in and day out.

As much as I hate to admit it, I am warming up to Frenchy. However, I don’t think that trading for him was The Move to light a fire under this team. And giving up the entire farm system for Roy Halladay is not The Move either. Getting somebody like Beltran back from the DL would help us tremendously. I think we should just get through the rest the season, and hope for a high enough draft pick that Omar Minaya will probably end up forfeiting to sign a Type-A free agent.

I’ve pretty much convinced myself that 2009 is not our year, unless a miracle happens. Hey, it was 40 years ago yesterday that man walked on the moon! But I don’t blame Omar, and I don’t blame Jerry. Maybe the medical staff and the strength and conditioning staff but not Omar and Jerry.

Even with this team, a part of me inside still believes. I got that from my dad. Happy birthday…and LETS GO METS!

The Mets go into tonight’s nationally broadcast game having already lost the season series to the Yankees. With Livan Hernandez taking on Chien-Ming Wang, we should have a chance. Key word: should. With the recent luck of this team, we will probably embarrass ourselves while making Wang look like Cy Young. The Mets are coasting by, hoping that the Phillies will continue to lose and making every game a “don’t have to win but it wouldn’t hurt to win situation.” The only thing amazing about the Amazin’s right now is that they never fail to find a new way to lose.

I keep going back to the 1962 Mets, trying to figure out what the difference was between this current depleted Mets team and the scraps from the other teams that were used to establish this team. The 1962 Mets were the worst team in modern history, going 40-120 and they were 60.5 games behind the NL Champ San Francisco Giants. Sure, the 2009 Mets may be in second place right now, but they aren’t doing anything to catch up to the Phillies OR try to run away from the Braves (who are now only a half game out of second).

The 1962 Mets were bad. Their pitchers allowed 948 runs, which was the most in the majors that season. Our pitching staff, I feel, does their job by keeping this team in the game (except for the occasional blowout); the offense lets them down. The leading hitter on the 1962 Mets was Felix Mantilla, and he only hit .275! Craig Anderson wishes he had K-Rod’s 20 saves but his 4 saves led the team.

The 2009 Mets, I believe, are worse than the ‘62 Mets. They are uninspiring to watch. They make Little League errors and have already stranded the population of Rhode Island on the base paths. The only thing we have going for us is David Wright and his NL-Leading .348 batting average. My only hope for this team right now is that the front office realizes that we totally stink and try to make it better, even if it means giving up Fernando Martinez or Daniel Murphy.

The 1962 Mets were at least likeable. They were an escape from the Pinstripes of Evil. Sure, they lost, but at least Mets fans back then thought it couldn’t get any worse. It just did.

If you would have told me that the Mets would be in second place at the beginning of June, I probably would have believed you. If you had told me we’d be in second place without Jose Reyes and Carlos Delgado and with Wilson Valdez and Fernando Martinez, I probably would have laughed in your face. If you would have said that 40-year-old Gary Sheffield would be batting clean-up, I wouldn’t have believed that either. And if you said that Bobby Parnell would be your go-to 8th inning guy….yeah, you get the picture.

The Mets are hurting right now, with John Maine being the latest to bite the dust. The bright side of Maine’s placement on the disabled list is that we didn’t wait 12 days, a la Jose Reyes. Instead of him potentially having 1 or 2 bad starts, the Mets can now give someone like Fernando Nieve or Nelson Figueroa a chance.

Even with eight players on the disabled list (at the latest count), the Mets are finding ways to get it done (most of the time). It’s easy to get frustrated with the B-Mets because we’re down two starters, a power bat, etc., etc. When I found myself longing for the days of health but a legitmately bad team, I knew we were in dire straights.

We’re only four games out of the division race and it’s the beginning of June. We could be like the Nationals, who may already be pondering next year’s first overall draft pick. We’re still in the race and the great thing about baseball is that we could go on a 10-game run and be in first place.

We face the Yankees tonight at (New) Yankee Stadium. Livan Hernandez, who I truly think is underappreciated, is on the hill tonight. The Mets are 14-6 in series openers, including an 8-1 record on Fridays. David Wright and Carlos Beltran are absolutely on fire. I would love to have at least Delgado back to give us another power bat, but I’d rather not rush him. I wish Jerry would play Daniel Murphy; if Murph’s just going to keep the bench warm, then I’d rather see him in the minors, where he’s gonna be able to play every day and become a better player.

The Mets are going to be healthy again one day (hopefully soon). But for right now, I think the B-Mets are doing an okay job, even with this last series loss. So change that ya gotta bereave to a ya gotta believe!

LGM-YGB

When I got home from work this afternoon, I went to check my Facebook profile and I found this wall post from by best friend, who will remain nameless and happens to be a Red Sox fan:

“Now I have gloating rights. Sox won 12-5.”

Okay, so I rubbed it in when the Mets won on Friday…..and came back in the ninth to stun the Sox on Saturday but yesterday’s game was just pathetic for the Mets. We had two leads and we blew them both and how the heck did Takahashi drop the ball? Needless to say, I was visiting my grandmother and was spared pretty much the whole game.

However, I think we did pretty good on this road trip. We went 5-5, which isn’t a winning road trip, but it’s not a losing one either. We won 2 of the 3 series that we played in. Considering that half our team is hurt, I’m surprised that we didn’t have a worse road trip since we’re relying on our bench.

Both David Wright and Carlos Beltran had excellent trips, even with Beltran’s knee. Omir Santos came through with another Omir-acle and I really hope they keep this guy up because he’s also making Ramon Castro a better player. I like Gary Sheffield’s presence in the line-up, even though anyone can also argue that they’d rather have Fernando Martinez in the line-up.

With the Mets reluctancy to put anybody on the DL *cough* Reyes *cough*, we as Mets fans have to hope for the best. We’re playing a three-game set against the Nationals, and while I don’t want to sound cocky or anything, but the Mets can afford to rest the players that need to be rested. It’s still early enough in the season to bounce back.

Oh, and I told my BFF that the Mets let the Red Sox win and that they were lucky to avoid the sweep =)

LGM. YGB.

Dear Philly fans,

After seeing John Gonzalez’s letter to Mets fans in the Philadelphia Inquirer, I felt a response was necessary. Okay, we get it, you won the World Series. You’re the best team in baseball and nobody can take that away from you until October. Now the Phillies have won as many World Series in 127 years as the Mets did in 46 seasons.

As a rivalry is renewed this weekend, I would like to remind you that the Mets beat the best team in baseball eleven times to seven last year. Okay, so the Mets got off to a 10-12 start, but quite frankly, I’d rather go 7-10 in my first 17 games than in my last 17 games.

I’d also rather have my best player be in a slump now than in September. Going back to 2007, our best player was in arguably the worst slump of his career and if I recall correctly, he ended up with better numbers than the so-called NL MVP.

If the season hasn’t gone over well with the New York media, then I suggest they get a bat and glove and take Oliver Perez’s place in the rotation or a place in left field. The Mets aren’t playing to please the media; they are playing for the enjoyment of their loyal fanbase.

You talk about being some of the most supportive fans in baseball. How come when things start to go bad for the Phils, you can hear the faintest of “Lets Go Eagles” chants at games? Where were you when the Phillies became the first team in any sport to reach 10,000 losses? Mets fans have stuck my their team, through the good times and the bad and the ones that didn’t have now put on their Yankees hat.

You can go on and on about how you’re “the team to beat” and about how the Mets are “choke artists” or about how Mets really stands for “My Entire Team Sucks” or “Miserable End to September.” Really, the whole bit is getting old. I think you need new insults in the arsenal.

The Phillies may be the team to beat but the Mets will be the team that beats them. LGM

Sincerely,

Jessica DeMattia