With opening day less than a week away, it’s time to weigh in with a brand new edition of “3 Up & 3 Down”. Here’s what I’m looking forward to in 2012, the 50th anniversary season of New York Mets Baseball!

3 Up:

  • The Return of Johan Santana:One word comes to mind when I think of Johan Santana; warrior. Who could forget Santana’s performance against the Marlins a few years back, with the season on the line? It’s plain to see in each and every start that Johan wants the ball, and he’s going to give you his all every time he takes the hill. If the season were to ride on one game, I would want Santana to be my pitcher. A healthy Johan means the Mets have a stud ace in their rotation, something that was sorely missed last season.
  • The Ike & David Show: The fences at Citifield have been brought in which should help David Wright, and Ike Davis looks to be healthy even though he’s shown some signs of rust this spring. It should be a lot of fun to watch these two bat back to back in the Mets line up in the 3-4 spots. I’m expecting huge season from both of them.
  • Fifty Years of Fun & Memories: A look ahead at 2012 would be incomplete if I failed to mention the Mets will be celebrating 50 Amazin’ years of National League baseball in New York. Banner Day has returned, and I’m sure the Mets have plenty of other fun events in store for us to look back upon as we delight in some of our team’s most memorable moments.

 3 Down:

  • Sorry To Say, No Jose: With Jose Reyes now down in Miami, Derek Jeter can reclaim the crown as New York’s most exciting shortstop. Reyes brought energy and excitement to the Mets, he will be missed. Good luck to Ruben Tejada.
  • What’s Up In Center Field: The big question over the last couple of weeks has been, who will play center? Andres Torres was slated to be the starter, but he hurt his leg and even if he was healthy, he’s 34 years old. How many games did Sandy & Terry expect to get from this aging journeyman center fielder? Scott Hairston was expected to be the backup for Torres, but Hairston has also been sidelines this spring too with an ailing oblique strain. Both choices leave me wanting more.
  • Time For Fans To Come Back: Sadly, for a myriad of reasons, a lot of Met fans have left the fold. If your reading this, you’re not one of them. Whether it was the 2007 collapse, the Madoff issue, dislike for the Wilpons or anything else, it’s time for the Met fans to come out and support their team. It’s time for this newer generation of Met fans to pick up themselves up and stick with their team through good times and bad, just like the first and second generations of  Mets fans did. Don’t be so quick to jump ship. Let’s embrace this team, and all that it has meant to us over the last 50 years. For most of us, that has been our lifetime.