Mets Mess: Collins Thinks Santana Can Start on Opening Day

First published on Blogcritics


In the alternate universe I sometimes imagine, Johan Santana has won 20 games every season for the New York Mets, Jason Bay has hit 35 homers a year, and Jose Reyes is still flashing his infectious smile at shortstop. This is the same universe where Carlos Beltran belted a homer off Adam Wainwright of the St. Louis Cardinals instead of looking at a called strike three to end game seven of the NCLS in 2006. Of course, a World Series Championship followed. Ah, that universe is a grand place to be.

Stepping back through the portal to this time and place, Santana is a rehabbed former Mets ace who now doesn't scratch his nose without Mets pitching coach Dan Warthen running over with the first aid kit. However, Santana has shown great progress coming back from his shoulder surgery, and now a report in the NY Daily News  indicates that manager Terry Collins thinks that Santana will be ready to pitch against the Atlanta Braves on April 5, 2012, at Citi Field.

We Mets fans are hungry for good news. Is Ike Davis going to be okay? Will Daniel Murphy be able to come back and hit like that again and learn to really play second base? Can 21 year old Reuben Tejada master shortstop, filling in the awfully big shoes of Reyes as a hitter and fielder? Will David Wright bounce back? Will Jason Bay remember how to hit the way he used to in Boston? Will Mr. Met get a new look, replacing the eternal smile with a resolved grimace?

Collins is an honest guy - we all learned that last year - and he is not one to play games with the press and the fans. He calls it like it is and this is admirable to say the least. Sometimes when he is speaking, I can picture GM Sandy Alderson standing in the shadows getting a little nervous, but Sandy should remember not to hide from the truth. His predecessor Omar Minaya did and it led to his downfall. Remember Sandy, the truth can only set you free.

For now Mets fans are allowed to dream a little. We can see a photo of Santana throwing the ball and be hopeful. We have to be because otherwise the season is over before it even starts. Collins says he admires Santana's work ethic, and he believes in Warthen to the point of getting the ace ready on time and in one piece. That, for now, Mets fans, is something to make us smile.

So let us move forward and watch with hope as this team begins spring training. If things get bad before April 5, we always have that alternate universe to revisit; however, the problem is that its only a temporary place to stay and then we have to come back to reality, one that has been a tough place to be for Mets fans since September 2006.

Photo Credit - NY Daily News

NFL Free Agency, MLB Trading Deadline, and Tiger Back in the Saddle: It's Christmas in July for Sports Fans

Article first published as NFL Free Agency, MLB Trading Deadline, and Tiger Back in the Saddle: It's Christmas in July for Sports Fans on Blogcritics.


As I was watching Sports Center on ESPN today I felt like my head was spinning. Not only am I trying to keep an eye on the "Bottom Line" for everything up to the minute, but I am also watching the action concerning NFL free agents, MLB trades, and the news about Tiger Woods coming back after three months on the shelf with a bad leg. I couldn't help thinking this was like Christmas in July for sports fans.
Yes, so much is happening and it is sometimes tough to process it all at once. For me as a New York Mets and Jets fan, I am watching what the Mets did with the Beltran trade, how he is doing in San Francisco, when pitcher Zack Wheeler is heading to Port St. Lucie, and how the Mets keep winning despite losing their best hitter.

In the world of Gang Green, we have the signing of Santonio Holmes to a new five year deal. This makes lots of sense to me, and as Mark Sanchez continues to develop and get better at the passing game, Holmes is without a doubt going to be his go-to guy. There is also the exciting prospect of the Jets obtaining Nnamdi Asomugha, but as they were courting him the valuable Brad Smith, who will be greatly missed as a wide receiver and kick returner, was signed by the Bills.

The Jets had better do something more because the New England Patriots picked up Albert Haynesworth and Chad Ochocinco (which is like saying Donald Trump got more money playing Lotto). The Jets need to get moving on Asomugha and fast, considering they have also lost Braylon Edwards and Kellen Clemens and are looking to restrucure deals with other players.

We also get the news that Tiger Woods (now 21 in world rankings) will participate in Bridgestone Invitational in Akron, Ohio, next week. Tiger is even tweeting about it, saying he is "Excited to get back out there!" This is good news for golf fans who have missed his presence. This is Tiger's time to rise above the personal problems and the injuries and rebuild his career and image.

Besides all this happening, we are hearing about Plaxico Burress and Tiki Barber trying to get back into action. It would be amazing to see what would happen if they both got offers from a team (maybe the NY Giants?). We also have Rory McIlroy getting his Irish up at the Irish Open in Killarney, telling a commentator "Your opinion means nothing." And what about NBA stars getting offers from foreign countries like Japan, Germany, and Russia? You would think what happened with NFL would have shaken things up a bit, but if guys like Kobe Bryant and Carmelo Anthony start signing contracts, you know it's going to be a long winter for basketball fans.

With all that is going on right now, these are indeed exciting days for sports fans; it's sort of like Christmas in July if you like surprises and finding presents under your barbecue grill. The Jets could make many fans happy by wrapping up Asomugha with a big red bow and getting him to sign on the dotted line. So kids, mail out those letters to Rex Ryan (I mean Santa) ASAP and let him know how you feel.

Photo Credits:
Nnamdi Asomugha - raidersgab.com
Tiger Woods - Getty Images

Mets Mess: Beltran Goes to SF Giants for Pitcher Zach Wheeler

Article first published as Mets Mess: Beltran Goes to SF Giants for Pitcher Zach Wheeler on Blogcritics.

The long awaited trade of outfielder Carlos Beltran came to fruition on Wednesday, July 27, with the New York Mets sending him and cash to the San Francisco Giants for minor league pitcher Zach Wheeler. In doing so the team's general manager Sandy Alderson kept his promise to get something substantial in return for Beltran before the July 31st trading deadline. It will be interesting to see if Wheeler develops as expected or becomes another member of the Mets Hall of Lame.


The writing has been on the wall for the past week or so regarding Beltran. He recently spoke in public about how much he loves the Mets, his teammates, and the city. In fact, we heard more from Beltran in the last seven days than we did in the seven years he has been a Met. It's a pity he became talkative now, kind of like a girl you bring home on a first date after you've decided not to call her again.

Once the trade was announced, the Mets clubhouse became a cheering section to let everyone know how much Beltran will be missed. According to the chatter, Beltran was a mentor, a great friend, a confidant, and a true leader. It's too late for any of that to matter now, but it would have been nice to know about all this behind the scenes stuff sooner. I don't know if it would have changed the outcome of things, but now Beltran is off to greener pastures.

The trade bodes well for a number of reasons. First, it shows that Alderson can make the deal that needs to be made. Second, the Mets didn't back down and accept a lesser offer (which was apparently coming in from the Phillies, the Braves, and Texas Rangers). The most important thing is that Alderson got an arm. The Mets need pitching like the Titanic needed lifeboats, so this is definitely great news.

Zach Wheeler was the sixth pick in the first round of the 2009 First-Year player draft. The Giants were apparently quite high on this fellow, and the Mets did a good job of scouting him. Will Wheeler eventually make his way to Citi Field and become a member of the starting rotation? You can bet that Alderson believes that and we will have to wait and see if we Mets fans can become believers too!

Photo Credits:

Beltran - Daily News, Wheeler - bleacherreport.com

Mets Mess: Team Should Trade Reyes Now!

Article first published as Mets Mess: Team Should Trade Reyes Now! on Blogcritics.

The New York Mets are now 50-50 this season, and the only place they are going is like those cruises to nowhere from New York City. They will circle around and around but achieve nothing, except giving people a good view of the city while they drink and eat. That is basically the same proposition at Citi Field this season.
I know this will be an unpopular point of view, but I think the Mets need to trade Jose Reyes as soon as possible. Yes, I too am going to miss his trademark smile that lights up the dugout, but we have to think about the future here. We also have to be realistic about investing in Reyes for the long haul.

Make no mistake, Reyes is having his career year. At twenty-eight years old, he is at the height of his powers. He is exciting to watch, and I have never seen any player bust it from home to third base like when Reyes hits a triple. That alone is worth the price of admission.

No matter how much we like what Reyes does on the field, we have to be honest
with ourselves, Mets fans. Reyes is fragile, extremely so. He is like a baseball version of a Faberge egg: he is very nice to look at, has something great inside of him, but heaven forbid if you drop him.

Reyes has been on the disabled list this year and many times in other years. His legs, the bread and butter of his act, are always subject to injury. He plays hard all the time; his hundred and fifty percent attitude is very admirable, but it is exactly this kind of play that puts him in harm's way.

Every Mets fan and Jose's teammates are holding their breaths every time he runs the bases. At any moment he can pull up to a base, hold the back of his leg, and cause blood pressure to rise collectively around the park.

There is absolutely no better player on the Mets, and his stock is rising each day, so that is why he must be traded. A long-term deal with Reyes will be a disaster. Say you give him a seven year deal; you know he is very possibly going to be on the disabled list at some point in any of those seasons; sometimes even for a long haul. So if the Mets are thinking of giving him a Carl Crawford type contract (7 yrs/$142M), they should realize what they are getting because Reyes has been their employee since 2003.

Sandy Alderson, although new to the Mets, has been around the block a few times. He has to know that Reyes is like the stock market, so he should follow the "buy low; sell high" philosophy. Reyes will never have this great of return again in his career, so this is the time to shop him and get a great deal.

I am a big Mets fan but I am also a realist. We have no chance of the catching the Phillies and even less of a chance of being the wild card team, so why not secure the future now? Alderson should get as much as possible for Jose Reyes (especially pitching prospects). He should turn around and trade Carlos Beltran too before the deadline for top outfield prospects. Any team trying to make low-ball offers should be rejected.
It will kill me to see Reyes in another uniform, but I can live with Beltran going elsewhere. Still, I can accept Reyes going if we get something really good in return, something that will make 2012 the year we make a run for it all.

Sandy Alderson, you have one week to make the best deals possible, so go out and come back with some really good stuff in your shopping bag, or the good will we've been seeing at Citi Field this year is going to run out very quickly. You know what you have to do, so get it done by July 31st. We're waiting!

Photo Credits: Reyes - Daily News
Faberge Egg - pbs.org

Mets Mess: Beltran Gets Standing Ovation Before Last at Bat

Article first published as Mets Mess: Beltran Gets Standing Ovation Before Last at Bat on Blogcritics.

Carlos Beltran is most certainly going off to see the wizard; his teammates know it, the fans know it, and most importantly, he knows it. It was actually a fitting moment at Citi Field on Thursday, July 21, when Beltran came to bat in the ninth inning of what is no doubt his last home game as a New York Met.

You may ask: what were the fans cheering about? Beltran came to the team as a much anticipated Superman, but we got more of Clark Kent than anything else. Many times over the years it seemed like Beltran wasn't even in the lineup. Of course, that was true during his extended stays on the DL, but even when he was in the lineup, it was like he wasn't there.

I, like most Mets fans, probably can never forgive or forget that called third strike from Adam Wainwright in the NLCS in 2006 that sent the Mets home. It was one of those moments etched in memory, indelible as say Bill Buckner's mishandling of Mookie Wilson's grounder in the 1986 World Series. Red Sox fans would never forget that either.

I was surprised by the applause and the standing ovation. For a second there, it seemed like the audience of Jersey Boys after they sing "Who Loves You" and the people stand and keep applauding for actors who are not Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons. It's an incongruous moment, and Beltran walks out the door and into New York Mets history. I truly doubt he will be remembered as fondly as Ed Kranepool, Cleon Jones, Mike Piazza, and Tom Seaver. He is probably stuck somewhere between Carlos Delgado and Bobby Bonilla; in other words, he goes into the limbo section where he will be mostly forgotten.

Beltran always seemed likable and pleasant with reporters and fans. He just never clicked in New York. Let it suffice to say that the best playing he has done for the team has been these last few months. Now he is a leader, playing with effort and gusto, and looking like the guy he should have been the last seven years. What a shame it took so long. How sad for the fans, the players, and for Beltran most of all.

Now he will be in a new uniform the next time he comes to New York. There are a number of teams still in contention that want his services. What will the Mets get back for him? Can you say Jim Fregosi or Pat Zachary without wincing? Hopefully GM Sandy Alderson will realize he is holding all the cards and make certain that he gets a good return on the deal, nothing like those meaningless "players to be named later" he got from Milwaukee for K-Rod.

We bid adieu to Carlos Beltran. Carlos, we hardly knew you, and that is probably the saddest part of all.

Photo Credit: Daily News

Mets Mess: Reality Rears Its Ugly Head

Article first published as Mets Mess: Reality Rears Its Ugly Head on Blogcritics.

Okay, Mets fans, let's be honest. The party is over. Yes, there were a few exciting moments, and manager Terry Collins and his players had us thinking it was 1973 all over again, but those Mets had Yogi Berra as a skipper, and now the deja vu part is not about winning but about accepting one's fate.

The Mets lost 4-1 to the Florida Marlins in an ugly game. "Ugly" is the operating word because the Mets are getting closer to the cellar in the National League East, which means we're moving back into Basement Bertha territory again. The Marlins are a hot last place team; the Mets are as cold as ice and sinking faster each game. If you are looking to the return of Jose Reyes and Carlos Beltran to end the madness, don't get too comfortable because they're probably not going to be around much longer.

There have been rumors about trading Beltran since spring training. Now as the July 31st
 trading deadline approaches, and as the Mets continue struggle and lose games, it is only a matter of time that Beltran will be put in a lifeboat and row safely to a contending team: good for him; bad for us.

Jose Reyes played a game with the Brooklyn Cyclones last night. David Wright is going to get his rehab games in too before coming back. Johan Santana may be back sometime in August. Ike Davis remains in Met limbo, and now super sub Scott Hairston came out of the game hurt. With all these injuries, the Mets should start call their clubhouse the Hurt Locker.

No matter who comes back, who gets traded, and who stays on the DL all season, the Mets and their fans just have to face reality. There's not enough season left for miracles. Collins has done a great job, but you need all the right ingredients to conjure up a recipe for a winning season and playoff run, and Collins is like a baker trying to make a cake without any eggs or flour.

So it pains me to say it Mets fans, but it is all over. Beltran will be gone soon, and Reyes may follow. The AAA boys of Tejada, Turner, Pridie, and Thole will continue to play hard, and they may be able to finish at .500 this year, but don't go holding your breath now. It's more likely we'll be spending the rest of season downstairs with Basement Bertha. We'd better get used to it.

Photo Credits: NY Daily News

Mets Mess: K-Rod Goes to Brewers With Lots of Baggage

Article first published as Mets Mess: K-Rod Goes to Brewers With Lots of Baggage on Blogcritics.

Right after the end of last night's All-Star Game, The New York Mets traded "slugging" relief pitcher Francisco Rodriguez to the Milwaukee Brewers for cash and two players to be named later. It could have been two turtle doves and a partridge in a pair tree as far as Mets fans are concerned; good-bye and good riddance to TKO Rod. Let's hope he took all his baggage with him on the way out the door.

The importance of the K-Rod trade is not just the fact that the team cut out a toxic element in the clubhouse, or saved lots of money on the payroll; it also says something about where GM Sandy Alderson thinks his 46-45 team is headed in the NL East: nowhere! That bodes well for impending trades of Carlos Beltran and Jose Reyes by the July 31 trading deadline.

Now yes, by all accounts, K-Rod was trying to be a model citizen this year, and Beltran has never looked so thrilled to be in Flushing as he has in 2011. Also, even though now injured, Reyes was a lightning rod and had the team and its fans channeling Tug McGraw's "You Gotta Believe"  as they made their way to Citi Field. I'd hate to see his beaming smile gone from the Mets dugout, but that appears more likely now.

Alas Mets fans, reality has reared its ugly head. No matter how much little General Terry Collins has sparked this team, and no matter how well the AAA boys of Turner, Pridie, Evans, and company have played, the truth is it is going to be another "wait until next year" for the boys in blue and orange.

Sad for the team and sad for the fans, but this trade signals that mentality. Maybe now we can just sit back and enjoy the show, but there should be no illusions of a run for the wild card or even more bizarre delusions of catching the the Phillies. This trade put an end to all that.

Good bye to K-Rod and the 2011 season. Ah, just another day in the never ending Mets mess.

Photo Credit: AP

Mets Mess: New Owner Einhorn Has Work to Do

Article first published as Mets Mess: New Owner Einhorn Has Work to Do on Blogcritics.

The New York Mets have a potential new owner - of a minority stake in the team - and he has visited Citi Field to meet the Mets. Keeping in the tradition of the old team song ("Bring the kiddies; bring the wife; guaranteed to have the time of your life"), Einhorn brought his children to the game but perhaps wisely left the missus at home. The Mets lost that one against the Phillies, so it probably was for the best.

Einhorn is the latest entry into the Mets mess, and one has to wonder what he will be able to do to change the misfortunes of the organization. Yes, he is a wildly successful businessman, President of Greenlight Capital, which is sort of a complete opposite of the Bernie Madoff nightmare of an investment firm. Einhorn makes big money and is ready and willing to plunk down $200 million on the Mets, and there is a distinct possibility that he will be able to buy up more of the team, eventually making him the principal owner. So the stakes are high and, since he is such a smart fellow, we have to think that he has a lot more up his sleeve than he is showing in the cards right now.

Mets fans welcomed him at Citi Field on Wednesday night, and the cheers may be for something intangible as hope. Having gone to many games at old Shea over the years, I can tell you that Mets fans will cheer for the simplest possibilities of better things. They also look at what has happened in the past five years to this organization, how it has tanked so miserably since Carlos Beltran was a bystander on a third strike from Adam Wainwright in the NLCS in 2006. Ever since that bat never left Beltran's shoulder, the team has fallen and it can't get up, and all the things that have happened since have driven more and more nails into the team coffin.


Einhorn has a Mets pedigree, and fans always like that. Take a look at this picture of him as a kid. He is wearing a Mets cap and a jersey that he made himself with number 42 on it - the number of Dave Kingman, the big bopper at Shea at the time. It makes me like him right away because he was a fan when it was very hard to be a Mets fan, when "Sky King" (as Mets announcer Bob Murphy called Kingman) struck out and popped up towering fly balls a lot more than he hit homers. If he could be a fan in those dark times, he is probably the right man for the job here and now.

Make no mistake - these are extremely dark times for Mets fans. If you can imagine the team existing within the Star Wars saga, I would say right now we are stuck in the Empire Strikes Back with everything going against us. All the injured players are like Han Solo getting freeze-dried, and the fans are sort of like Princess Leia being a prisoner of Jabba the Hut. We have chains around our necks and things are looking mighty grim, so we have to hope that Einhorn is approved by Major League Baseball soon. This way we can speed things all the way up to Return of the Jedi, and he can be like Luke Skywalker and swoop in and save the day.

There are many things wrong with the Mets, and the truth is most fans know the team has been run poorly for years. Whatever happened between Fred Wilpon and Madoff notwithstanding, we need an infusion of new blood fast. Einhorn may not have much of a baseball background, but he certainly has a great track record in the business world. I hope that he gets involved, rolls up his sleeves, and starts taking the Mets machine apart. When he is all done - and if we are lucky - the Wilpons will let him buy them out and he can start building a winner again.

It seems to me it is time to shake off the ghost of Beltran watching that third strike. The way to do this is to have Einhorn pull a Moses. "Let my people go," he can say to Pharaoh Wilpon. He can let Beltran walk, perhaps Jose Reyes too, and take the team toward a new start with new blood. Hopefully Einhorn will recognize Mike Pelfrey is no ace and get into the market and bring someone here who is, and maybe after a few years the Mets can get back to where they were in the late 1980s, and the Yankees with Posada, Jeter, and Rivera gone will be the second bananas in town again.

We have a long way to go to accomplish that, David Einhorn, but you have to start somewhere, so please get in there and get to work. Mets fans need you to do something and quickly, and if you do then you will have more people in those seats and the chants of "Let’s go Mets" will resound through the new park the way they once did at old Shea. Please do it for the fans, for the city, and for yourself too. Come on, some kid is waiting to make his favorite player’s jersey just like you did. Don't keep him waiting!

Photo Credits- Daily News and SNY.com

Mets Mess: Luis Castillo Released - Perez Still Pitching In

Article first published as Mets Mess: Luis Castillo Released - Perez Still Pitching In on Blogcritics.

I picture Luis Castillo during this spring training as a guy with a bucket on the Titanic. He kept trying to get the water off the deck, but you know how this story ends. So now Luis is gone; either he jumped overboard or got into a lifeboat. Either way, the ship is still sinking.

Castillo always seemed to be the target of the fans. Not only did his hitting leave something to be desired, but so did his fielding. When I think of him I see dropped pop-ups and remember the booing of the crowd. Not a very pleasant memory at all. By all accounts his teammates liked him, but the main reason he is gone is because the fans demanded it.

While the Mets parted ways with second baseman Castillo, troubled pitcher Oliver Perez is still hanging in there. He pitched one scoreless inning yesterday, even striking out Jason Heyward of the Atlanta Braves. Does this mean Ollie might get a shot at being in the bullpen? I'd say grab a bucket, Ollie. Someone has to take up where Castillo left off.

There are also alternating reports of Carlos Beltran feeling better and his knee bothering him. Take your pick, Mets fans, because this is not the player the Mets were supposed to get. He should have been their star center fielder, ostensibly their centerpiece to the puzzle, a super star around whom to build a team. We see how well that has worked out, right?

Alas, the old regime of GM Omar Minaya (and Steve Phillips before him) shelled out lots of money to players who have gone bust. Just take a look at the short list: Beltran, Perez, Castillo, and Johan Santana. Millions and millions of dollars wasted as well as time and at the expense of the team and the fans. People can talk all they want about the money the team lost investing with Bernie Madoff, but the worst investment the Mets ever made was in these players who gave them no return.

Now maybe the Mets can get back to what they used to do well: establish a strong farm system that develops great players like it once did. Clearly, guys like Ike Davis, David Wright, and Jose Reyes give us a glimmer of hope of what can come from that kind of cultivation. We have to hope that GM Sandy Alderson has the vision to do this for the long haul because free agents are just not working out for the Mets. It seems they never have (can anyone forget Bobby Bonilla?).

There isn't much to look forward to this season, but we have to remember the band kept playing on the Titanic even as it was sinking. So grab a bucket, Ollie, but don't think it's going to save the ship before the fat lady sings.

Photo Credits:
Castillo - Daily News
Wright - espn.com

The Eternal Sunshine of the Spring Training Kind

Article first published as The Eternal Sunshine of the Spring Training Kind on Blogcritics.

There is nothing more scintillating for me as a baseball fan than when I hear the words, "Pitchers and catchers report for duty today in Florida." That sentence makes the hairs stand up on my arms, and I think back to the countless cool spring days that I played ball myself, with the dream of being like my heroes Cleon Jones, Ron Swoboda, or Tom Seaver. Any kid whoever pounded a glove on the cool wet grass of a field on a spring day knows the feeling, and that is why spring training makes us all young again and filled with hope.


Of course, every team - whether it is the major league franchise or the pee-wee league variety - has the fever that spring brings. No one has any wins or losses that count; everyone's batting average or ERA is zero, and there is the feeling that this year we will go all the way. The eternal hope of spring training manifests itself in these cool bright days, and the only way you become boys of summer is by first being the ones of spring.
Reality will set in eventually for all of us as the long schedule that drags its feet through March produces some malaise even among the most ardent fans. We want opening day to come quickly, but as injuries happen and old knees creak, the prospects begin to look less rosy and some of us may even wish to put off that first pitch of the season if we could somehow.

As a New York Mets fan, I don't have that much to be happy happy about this spring. Other teams have signed free agents of note and are ready to compete, but for the Mets fans we are stuck with mediocrity and the prospect of a quiet spring that will blossom into what seems like it will be another one of those wait until next year scenarios.

You know you're in trouble if the most promising new signings are people named Boof Bonser. I mean, even George (the Stork) Theodore had a more baseball appropriate name than that. The Mets are going to struggle this year because of a lack of starting pitching, a suspect bullpen, and question marks about regular players like Jose Reyes, Carlos Beltran, and Jason Bay. In fact, there are so many questions about this team, I think they should adopt the Riddler costume as their new uniform. Can you imagine Luis Castillo walking around saying, "Riddle me this; riddle me that; does anyone dare, give me a bat?"

Still, I want to think of those springs long gone and the ghosts of players who once wore the orange and blue. Where have you gone Tommie Agee? I know you're somewhere up there with Gil Hodges, Tug McGraw, and the rest of the gone but never forgotten Mets greats. At one time we dared to dream and we got a team that beat Hank Aaron and the Braves and Brooks Robinson and the Orioles. That's when they earned their moniker The Amazins. Man, that does seem like a long, long time ago.

So as baseball fans everywhere get ready for a glorious spring, pound a ball wet with dew from the grass inside a glove. Tilt the hat back on your head and look up at the endless blue sky. In the eternal sunshine of spring, anything is possible, even for Mets fans. Even we can dare to dream these days for a little while, or at least until that first pitch on opening day when everything counts and reality sets in.

Photo Credits:
Cleon Jones - Phoenixnewtimes.com
The Riddler - Batman-Superman.com

Mets Should Bench Beltran

This article first appeared as Mets Should Bench Beltran on Blogcritics.

Only two days ago the Mets released Alex Cora and benched Luis Castillo in favor of rookie Ruben Tejada. Both were good moves to help the team, but there is still a general malaise that seems to hover over the Mets, and I think a good deal of the problem is in center field. It is absolutely necessary for Manager Jerry Manuel to bench Carlos Beltran, and it needs to be done starting tomorrow in the game against the Colorado Rockies at Citi Field.

There has been some talk about trading or releasing outfielder Jeff Francoeur, but I think that would be a tremendous mistake. While there have been times when Francoeur has struggled this season, there have been impressive moments too (like his homer off Cole Hamels in the Mets' 1-0 win against the Phillies on Saturday). There is also the undeniable fact that Francoeur adds a positive spark to the team's chemistry, something the seemingly lethargic Beltran has never done in his time with the Mets.

All season long people were talking about Beltran coming back from the disabled list. Everything would be better then, they thought. Well, since Beltran returned to the team the Mets are 7-16. Now, we cannot blame that all on the switch hitting center fielder, but I do believe the team was doing much better with Angel Pagan in center and Francoeur in right field.

Beltran is currently batting .197 with 1 homer and 7 runs batted in. Looking at Beltran's offensive numbers is only part of the story. He is not the fielder he once was, not fully recovered from his injury, and he is detrimental to the team when he is on the field. There are balls that should be caught that he can't get to, and this isn't changing anytime soon.

Beltran seems like a nice fellow, but he has never been the player the Mets expected him to be when they signed him. He is also not the leader he should be in the clubhouse. Jeff Francoeur's numbers are not stellar (.247 average with 11 homers and 47 RBIs), but he is an integral presence in the clubhouse, a spark plug on a team that needs a jolt to shake it out of its funk.

Frenchy, as his teammates call him, was supposed to platoon in left field with newly called up rookie Fernando Martinez until Jason Bay returns from the DL. Well, I have a better idea for Manuel and the Mets' brass. Send a message to the team that no one has a lock on an every day job (and that should include David Wright and Jose Reyes as well).

They should bench Beltran on Tuesday against the Rockies. Pagan should be in center, with Francoeur in right, and Martinez in left. Beltran should stay on the bench for a week, and then we can see if the team wins more games without Beltran than with him. The way things are going for the Mets, they have nothing to lose and maybe, just maybe, a few more games they can win.

New York Mets Sinking Like the Titanic

This article first appeared as New York Mets Sinking Like the Titanic on Blogcritics.

The once venerable ship known as the New York Mets has hit a figurative and literal iceberg this season, making it ready to sink like a stone to the bottom of the Major League waters it has navigated tenuously all season. If you will bear with this extended metaphor for a bit, you will come to understand that I foretold this sinking of the ship early in the season, but those supposedly water-tight doors took a while to give way. Now the fall to the bottom of the sea is seemingly inevitable.



Jerry Probably Wishes that Finger Was Loaded

At the helm is Captain Jerry Manuel, who looks no more confident than Captain E.J. Smith did when he stared over the starboard side of his ship (captured forever by an amateur photographer) and was probably wondering, "Why don't we have more lifeboats?" Manuel may have well done the same thing in spring training, staring at his porous lineup and rickety vessel thinking he was never going to make the crossing of the season's waters intact.



Captain Smith Looking for Lifeboats

Like Smith who was prodded by his superior Bruce Ismay into pushing his ship beyond its capabilities, Omar Minaya seems to have done the same thing here. He spent little capital in getting the team sea worthy and brought in guys like R.A. Dickey and Hisanori Takahashi without ever going for a front-end starter. He knew Frankie Rodriguez was combustible as the Titanic engines with all that coal causing a big fire down below, making the steel soft and just ripe for that iceberg.

Now that the Mets have hit the inevitability of the iceberg known as the West coast road trip, we see the sinking ship for what it really is: the pitchers can't swim, the bullpen can't find the binoculars in the crow's nest, and the hitters are struggling with the ropes on the lifeboats. Manuel may be running to the rail and thinking, "Man overboard," but he has to be reminded that like Captain Smith he has to go down with the ship.

All of my fellow Mets fans have to face the facts here. This vessel was never unsinkable and never pronounced to be. In fact, it was so obvious in spring training, that it seemed like putting out to sea in a submarine with screen doors. Still, we were wooed by the surge at the end of April, convinced by the trickery of knuckleballer Dickey and that some sort of second coming of Jerry Koosman could be found in Takahashi, but the problem was that there just are not enough water-tight doors to keep this ship afloat.

Since the return of golden boy Carlos Beltran, the Mets are 2-8 with Beltran hitting an abysmal .188. The rest of the team is not doing much better, so they would do well to jump into the lifeboats, but if they can manage to handle the oars as well as they do bats, they probably wouldn't do enough to get away from the wake of the stinking ship (oh, I meant sinking ship).

Mets fans have to look at the reality of 2010 as it is: another lost season. Put on the life vests, get into the lifeboats, and row fast as you can toward the H.M.S. Carpathia of 2011. As with the survivors of the Titanic, that is the only hope we have and we will have to make the best of it.