All that can be said about NEW YORK is: Sigh. I love the people who run this club, from the ticket takers to the owners. But this year the wheels could fall off even worse - and farther - than last. I think Jason Bay is a legitimate power source, and I thought Jeff Francoeur a steal, but that begs the question of what the Mets now expect from the guy who is still their top offensive prospect, Fernando Martinez. If Bay, Beltran, and Francoeur are to be the outfield for awhile, why is Martinez still there? Plus, the silence about Beltran is ominous. The ominousness of Daniel Murphy's bat is silent. And there is nothing - nothing - dependable in any of the three categories of pitchers, except for Johan Santana, Pedro Feliciano, and Frankie Rodriguez, and the latter is just another closer now. It is absolutely plausible that by June 1 the only questions will be whether or not to give Ike Davis a taste of the majors, whether or not to start screwing up Jenrry Mejia the way the Yankees messed with Joba Chamberlain, and if some Japanese team will take Luis Castillo off their hands.
DIVISION PREDICTIONS: I'll take the long odds that the Braves' breaks fall the right way and Cox goes out with a winner in a tight race over the Phillies. The Marlins will hit a ton but waste the brilliance of Josh Johnson and Ricky Nolasco by using 11 different fifth starters and half a dozen closers. The Mets will have their nightmare collapse and be wondering if they can unload not only Castillo, but maybe Beltran and Reyes, too. They will finish a few games ahead of the Nationals - but only a few.
Leave a comment or drop me a line at DyHrdMET [at] gmail [dot] com.
Become a fan of RememberingShea on Facebook.
Become a Networked Blog
