Happy (almost) New Year fellow Mets fans! I hope you all had a great Christmas, Hanukah, Kwanzaa or a mix of all three. As usual, gifts were plentiful under the tree but sadly scarce at Shea stadium. Since fresh topics are about as rare as Christmas hams this time of year, I figured I’d just jot down some random thoughts on the Amazins’ possible 2008 rotation.
Most of us have been begging Omar to go out and get us a frontline starter this winter. As time progresses the likelihood of that happening grows ever distant. I would love to have a Johan Santana or Erik Bedard starting on opening day 2008, but it seems more likely that it will end up being a (hopefully) healthy Pedro Martinez taking the ball. Pedro Martinez on a bad day is thankfully a lot better than some pitchers on their best. I hope I get to finally see him pitch live this April.
Some might disagree but I think John Maine has earned the number two spot in the rotation (barring a trade). He seems to have the makeup of a future ace and certainly showed it at times last year.
Ollie Perez…what ever will we do with you?! Seeing him pitch sometimes can leave you awe stricken at his incredibly nasty arsenal of pitches. It’s just when he gets that lost beagle look in his eyes that makes me nervous. Too much of that this year, and I’ll be begging Omar to relocate him closer to Mexico…and FAR away from Shea/Citi Field.
El Duque, hopefully you will be relegated to the bullpen and placed in traction to save you from yourself. Although if not, we could certainly do worse than having you as a number four guy in the rotation. I do believe that Omar will eventually sign Livan “McNugget” Hernandez, your chunky brother, to take your spot in the rotation.
Finally, Mike Pelfrey the onetime jewel amongst our young pitchers… Will this be your break out season? I certainly hope so. It isn’t that Mets fans don’t like you, it’s more of the urge to win now that makes us seem impatient or irrational. Take the ball and win…it’s all we ask Mikey!
I hope everyone has a great New Year and we enjoy many one sided Mets victories this coming season! These are just some opinions…what are some of yours?
