No Beltran, no problem as Mets continue to man up

I don't think I'm going out on a limb by saying Wednesday was the pivotal day of this season, perhaps the most pivotal in the Mets' last few seasons.

The day began with intensifying reports that a Carlos Beltran trade was imminent. By the afternoon, word was out that Beltran was traded to the Giants for 21-year-old pitching prospect Zack Wheeler, with the Mets throwing in around $4 million to pay most of Beltran's remaining salary.

Beltran reportedly took his teammates out to dinner Tuesday night in anticipation of the deal, and said his goodbyes in the clubhouse an hour before Wednesday's game against the Reds. Lucas Duda started in right field, and after saying he was most comfortable in left and at first base than in right, manager Terry Collins responded, "He better get comfortable real fast."

So what happened? The Mets responded the way they have responded to adversity all season. Duda homered, a laser to right. Daniel Murphy, batting third, had four hits. David Wright, batting fourth, homered and drove in four. Angel Pagan, Beltran's protege, doubled in two runs in the first to give the Mets the lead. Jose Reyes had two hits and two runs. And Mike Pelfrey tossed a complete game, his best start of the season, helping the Mets win their third straight in a four-game series in Cincinnati that ends Thursday afternoon.

Man up. That's what Collins has preached all season. The bullpen has an example in Jason Isringhausen of how to bear down. R.A. Dickey is a bulldog. Justin Turner brings the grit. The four relievers who closed out Tuesday's win did so in blue-collar style.

It's old school. Mex loves it. I love it. The Mets draw walks, hit for average, steal bases. They don't get a lot of home runs but they score. They win on the road. If they can figure out how to win at home again — and here's where the fans can help by, you know, showing up to support them — then maybe we've got something here, Beltran or no Beltran.

Anyone criticizing Sandy Alderson's performance so far is an idiot, plain and simple. He quickly defused the K-Rod situation and got a top-40 prospect with top of the rotation talent for a rental player. You can't argue with that. Suddenly, the Mets' farm system has a bunch of future starters in Mejia, Familia, Wheeler and Harvey, not to mention Gee and Niese.

A few words about Beltran. He's one of the best players the Mets have ever had, hands down. Best center fielder, no question. Effortless. A great hitter. Clutch — look up the numbers. Unfortunately, some people remember only his slow start his first season, the called strike three in 2006 and the injuries that derailed 2009 and most of 2010. That's unfortunate. The guy was a professional and classy and in his last seasons a mentor. He will be missed.

But I don't expect the team to roll over. Collins won't allow it. Wright and Reyes and Bay and Murphy and Dickey won't allow it. It's a tough assignment, what with the Braves staying hot and getting ridiculous calls in their favor. But the Mets are still in it and this team will continue to fight. Lots of home games left to make things interesting.

Wednesday was a good day for Beltran, a good day for the Mets and a good day for Mets fans. A win-win-win, which is exactly what the Mets have done to the Reds. Hopefully, it continues.

Do you believe in miracles? YES! But then again...

To be made a saint in the Catholic church, you have to have four miracles. That's the rules, you know. It's always been that. Four miracles, and you have to prove it. Well, this Mother Seton, now they could only prove three miracles. But the Pope, he just waived the fourth one. He just waived it! And do you know why? It's because she was American. It's all politics. We got some Italian people, they got forty, fifty, sixty miracles to their name. They can't get in just 'cause they say there's already too many Italian saints, and this woman comes along with three lousy miracles. I understand that two of them were card tricks.
— Father Guido Sarducci

I thought of this bit as I pondered whether to call the Mets' comeback win a miracle. It's really too strong a word for what happened Thursday. Sure, it was the Mets' biggest comeback since a 10-run eighth inning against Atlanta in 2000, but this was the Pirates, after all. And once Carlos Beltran smacked a three-run homer in the bottom of the third, it was a four-run game and there was definitely hope. This wasn't exactly a down-to-your-last-strike miracle. More like a really good card trick.

I give the team credit for not getting down. Maybe Terry Collins' rant the night before helped. Maybe it was the uplifting presence of Jose Reyes. More likely, it was a combination of perseverance — all four of the Mets' runs in the bottom of the sixth came with two outs — and gifts from the Pirates in the form of two wild pitches, an error and a bases-loaded walk.

Regardless, it was a key victory to get past the ugliness of the previous two games and head into the weekend series at home against Atlanta with a bit of momentum. The bullpen, this time, didn't blow the lead, thanks to fine work by Byrdak, Parnell and Izzy to set up K-Rod, who allowed one run in the ninth but held on.

Mike Pelfrey had tough luck in the first with three bloops and a bunt, but had only himself to blame in the second and third. I give Collins credit for making him stick in there and pitch through five, and Pelfrey retired the last seven batters he faced to keep the damage to a minimum, which ended up being pretty big.

Was this win a turning point? We'll find out against the Braves. Winning two of three would go a long way toward keeping the Mets' chances alive as we wait patiently for Wright to come back, then Davis in a couple more weeks. And then maybe Santana? Can the Mets hang in there that long?

Wouldn't that be miraculous?

Satisfied with one win? Nope.

You tell yourself before the series that one win would be fine, it's a bonus if you get two, and a sweep is too much to even hope for. So when the Mets took game one on Friday night, we should have been satisfied with that, right?

Right?

Of course not. One win down so quickly, we're thinking two, minimum. But then the Yankees hit a couple of cheap homers on Saturday — loved this take at Optimetsic — and even the series. OK, fine, we've got Sunday's game, and the resurgent Mike Pelfrey against Ivan Nova. Sounds promising.

And for 6 1/2 innings, it sure was.

Then Big Pelf melted down like Ollie used to, Mets fan Pedro Beato got unlucky on a dribbler by A-Rod before allowing a legitimate RBI single, and then Pat Misch threw kerosene over everything in an eight-run eighth that could have been, should have been, a lot less damaging.

Pelf fell apart quickly, but the worst was not Jeter — damn him — but hitting Francisco Cervelli as he tried to bunt. So instead of one out, one on and two runs in after Jeter's seeing-eye grounder, it was no outs, first and third. Big difference. Maybe you get out of the former situation with the game tied.

Instead, you end up with bases loaded and one out for A-Rod, who delivered what Terry Collins wanted, a grounder. It was just too weakly hit. Figures. Then the roof caved in.

So now .500 is two games away again. For the Mets to regain that hill and move beyond it, they're going to have to figure out how to score more than three runs a game, especially when Justin Turner doesn't get a hit.

Talk about a case of the Mondays

Could Monday have been any worse?

Turns out David Wright has a stress fracture in his back from making a diving tag almost a month ago. He's out a minimum of two weeks, possible more. The good news is that this type of injury, much like an oblique injury, isn't too serious but does require a lot of time and rest to heal.

So three regulars were out of the starting lineup for Monday's game against Josh Johnson and the Marlins, and yet the Mets still should have won. Johnson didn't have his best stuff but battled. Mike Pelfrey did have his best and had the lead in the seventh when Mike Stanton blasted a solo homer to center to tie the score.

In the ninth, Justin Turner reached second on a throwing error with none out but Jason Pridie failed to get the bunt down and struck out. Two intentional walks sandwiched a fielder's choice by F-Mart, and then Chin-lung Hu grounded out to end the threat.

Keith and Gary lamented Hu's bad luck, hitting it hard up the middle but right to Ramirez, but Hu just cannot hit. Not surprisingly, he was sent down after the game.

Then, first and second with one out in the tenth, and Turner hits a grounder to Ramirez, who boots it off his shoulder of all places, right to Omar Infante at second for the double play. Unreal.

Of course, the Marlins get the lead in the 11th on a two-out single by pitcher Burke Badenhop. Seriously. Dude's second career hit. Terry Collins admitted after the game he told Igarashi not to take Badenhop for granted, and maybe he should kept his mouth shut as a too-careful Igarashi fell behind early.

Jon Niese then hit a two-out triple in the bottom of the inning, but Jose Reyes — two hits, two steals, but no runs — struck out to end the game.

Crappy weather, Wright gets injured, and the opposing relief pitcher, who didn't even have his own bat or batting helmet, delivers the game-winning hit. Now that's a bad day.

Time will tell if we'll look back on May 16 as a turning point for the season, or even this franchise.

Big Pelf steps up, Davis steps badly (ouch)

These West Coast games are a killer for the blog. They end late, and I am usually exhausted. Especially on Tuesday night, when I missed the game because of softball — 8 p.m. doubleheaders, baby.

Anyway, it was great to see Big Pelf get the win (suddenly, he's 3-3), and pitch into the seventh. He looked solid, despite the three solo homers, and he delivered the two-run double that was the difference in the game. Is he settling in, finally? Is Ronny Paulino working his magic? Whatever — just keep it up, Mike.

Amazing how good news is always paired with bad with these Mets. They take two of three from L.A. but lose Chris Young, probably for the season. They beat the Rockies but Ike Davis gets hurt in a collision with David Wright. It's always something.

Davis hopes to play in Wednesday afternoon's game but don't hold your breath. Wright's getting the day off too, so we're looking at a possible infield of Turner, Reyes, Hu and Murphy.

Loved the work by the bullpen, and the starters are also settling down as well, with Pelfrey's effort coming on the heels of a very strong start by Capuano. Even K-Rod is tossing 1-2-3 innings.

Also, tip the cap to Murphy for stepping back into first base and not missing a beat defensive, with a couple of terrific plays, including the diving stab of a shot down the line. The guy's got a glove. Just don't put him in the outfield.

Mets win, Pelfrey pitches well, but the cranks are still cranky

This post should really be about Mike Pelfrey showing signs of life, pitching into the seventh inning for the second time in his last three starts to help the Mets avoid the sweep Thursday, 5-2. It should be about how Pelfrey may be starting to turn things around, and how we shouldn't have been too shocked that he started off slow, considering his personality, the extra pressure of having to be "the man" in Santana's absence, and the death of his friend and confidante, sports psychologist Harvey Dorfman.

It should be about the win. It should be about Beltran continuing to hit and also play almost every day. It should be about Jason Bay coming back and doubling immediately, about Jose Reyes tripling in two runs, or about K-Rod walking the tight wire again but still getting the save and still, despite all the baserunners, not allowing a run.

But it's not.

You know I've cut Francesa out of my life, and it wasn't as difficult as I thought it might be. Well, now Joe and Evan have been cut from the rotation.

I'm getting lunch and listening to the FAN prior to Thursday's game and a bumper comes on with Chris Capuano promoting the Mets Box Office Blitz. Evan follows by saying, "Be the fifth caller — and five is probably what Capuano's ERA is going to be at the end of the year..."

Are you shitting me?

This is on the day after Capuano pitched reasonably well in a 2-0 duel with Tim Lincecum, allowing two runs in 6 1/3. But no, the Mets are losers, let's just crap on them at every given opportunity.

Of course, misery loves company, and who is more miserable than Joe Benigno? A few minutes later, they're running through the Giants' lineup and noting how awful most of the batters are, and Joe chimes in with, "Well, Pelfrey's pitching tonight so they'll probably score 10 runs."

Evan mindessly agrees, and, like clockwork, Joe adds, "Oh, the pain."

Tune into Mac and Tierney at noon on ESPN 1050, folks.

Metsblog gets into the act as well. We don't need to see the wild card standings every day. And yes, Matt, since you're asking, May 6 is too early to worry about games behind. So cut the standings update back to maybe once a week, if that? Thanks.

And I understand why there is speculation about the Giants maybe trading for Reyes. It makes sense. Reyes is going to be a free agent, the Giants' offense sucks, they have no decent shortstop, they having pitching to spare, and they were in town for three games. You could see it coming a mile away.

But beyond that, can we have a chance to enjoy the season, and enjoy Reyes, before the stories speculating on his future become incessant? Can we at least wait until June? We're starting already on May 1? Come on.

I'm also getting tired of reading about how the Mets may not want to give "too many years and too much money" on a player "who relies on his legs."

First off, if you're going to sign a star player, you are definitely going to pay too much money and run the risk of giving too many years. It's just how it goes. If you're never going to do that, then you're never going to acquire a star player. Simple as that. And make no mistake, Reyes is a star player.

Regarding his legs, it seems to me that players who rely on their legs primarily are the ones who keep their legs the longest. One of them is coaching first, Mookie Wilson. What about Rickey Henderson? Kenny Lofton? These guys were athletes and runners first, like Reyes, and maintained that edge well into their 30s, and played into their 40s.

Will Reyes? Who knows? But to flatly state that it doesn't make sense to give a 28-year-old a multiyear deal because he runs well is ridiculous. He'll be 34 at the end of seven years, and seven likely the longest anyone would go on him. Sure, you could expect some kind of decline by then, but you'd likely have some pretty good prime years in between.

I think you can take to the bank that K-Rod will not finish 55 games this year, or he'll be traded. So that's $12 million off the books to go along with the $19 million for Beltran, and another $18 million for Ollie and Castillo. That's $49 million leaving.

The free agent list isn't terribly impressive and one would think with ownership issues and new management they are not going after the likes of Albert Pujols or anyone else too expensive anyway. But this is still a New York team charging New York prices competing in the New York market with the Yankees and in a division where the Phillies added Cliff Lee to Roy Halladay, Roy Oswalt and Cole Hamels.

They may cut payroll, but they can never go cheap. This ain't Oakland.

Reyes gets $11 million now. Considering the dearth of talent at shortstop, why not pay an extra $5 million or so a year to keep the guy who you already have, a player who when he plays, your team wins, who is beloved by the fans, who is the third-best shortstop in the game, who puts people in the seats at a time when you really need people in the seats?

It's almost mind-boggling. And then you get the people saying it doesn't make sense to trade Reyes unless you trade Wright, too, and bring back a ton of new players to start over.

Really? You think fans are staying away in droves now?

It's depressing, at a time of the year when none of us should be depressed. It's early May, for God's sake! But no, there's no time to just enjoy baseball, to see how this all plays out, to see whether Santana comes back, to enjoy guys like Reyes and Beltran finally playing every day, healthy.

The Dodgers are in town for three this weekend. Which of course means more stories of how these two franchises are on the rocks and doomed.

Sounds like fun.

You could see this one coming a mile away

Short one tonight. Let me say only that if I bet the house against the Mets every time they faced a rookie or unknown starting pitcher, I'd be a rich man today. Vance Worley? Of course.

Probably worse was the way Mike Pelfrey fell apart after three scoreless innings. Perhaps it was too much coming off a week when he lost 11 pounds to the stomach flu. Then he shouldn't have started. Dillon Gee didn't fare much better, though Howard's grand slam was not exactly crushed. What a joke of a ballpark.

Totally agreed with Howie and Wayne regarding walking the anemic Brian Schneider to face the pitcher wth two outs. Yes, Pelf struck out Worley, but the Phils had the top of the order in the next inning, and of course scored two runs. Bad move. Igarashi walked three -- ugly all around!

Loved the homer by Ike Davis. And Pridie showed some pride with his two-run shot in the ninth.

Now we have Jon Niese against Halladay Saturday afternoon, and then Chris Young against Cliff Lee in prime time Sunday night. That .500 road trip? It's gonna be tough now.

Boom Goes the Dynamite

Can we relax now?

Are we all off the ledge? Good.

The cranks and the media will remind us that the Mets are still four games under .500 and disaster is probably always looming around the corner, but screw them. A four-game winning streak is a four-game winning streak, and it happened at home, something the Mets really needed after starting so slowly at Citi Field.

Which the Mets have turned into a bandbox, by the way. It's a small sample size, to be sure, but Citi Field currently has the third-highest home run rate in the NL, even better than Citizens Band Breaker One-Nine Park in Philly.

David Wright — what can we say? Two more home runs today (Jason Pridie had the other Mets homer) and he's tearing it up again, which I doubly love since he's also on my fantasy team.

Jason Bay has come back in a big way and his presence was felt immediately. He and Ike Davis homered in Saturday's 6-4 victory, and Davis hit a bomb on Friday as the Mets scored two in the seventh and two in the eighth (scoring late — gotta love it) in a 4-1 win, the first win in the three-game sweep of the D-Backs.

Timely, solid hitting has been a factor in the rejuvenated Mets, but the pitching has come around big-time. Mike Pelfrey, five hits over seven innings on Friday night and he was in command. Dillon Gee, six innings, five hits a walk and five Ks for his second win, earning him a spot on the roster when Chris Young was activated Sunday. Nice work.

Perhaps best of all was Jon Niese today. Seven innings, six hits, two earned runs, two walks and three Ks and he was throwing hard.

Starters going deep helps the bullpen, which has also looked good lately,

My God, is this the same team that was so doomed just a week ago? Yes, it is the same team. A team that hasn't panicked, that despite what the haters say has plenty of talent. That hit some rough weather in the early going and has come out of it intact, with the look of a team that could and should be competitive, which is all we expected, wasn't it?

Take a deep breath now, Monday's an off day, then on the road for Washington and Philly (again).

Aaaahh. That's better.

Fundamentally unsound

Keith Hernandez loves to talk about the "fundys," but on Monday night, the Mets didn't exactly put on a clinic in a 7-6 loss to the Rockies, the first of a four-game set at Citi Field.

The biggest mistakes were made by the bullpen, and involved throwing and catching. First, recent callup Ryota Igarashi walked the leadoff batter, and then later blew a potential 1-2-3 double play by throwing wide to catcher Josh Thole. The inning continued and sure enough, a broken bat single past a diving Jose Reyes scored two and allowed Colorado to tie the score at 4-4.

Then it was Bobby Parnell's turn to screw up. He allowed a leadoff single in the eighth to Fowler, then a wild pitch with one out moved the runner to third. He got Carlos Gonzalez to hit a comebacker, but his throw home to get Fowler was wild as well. The meltdown was complete when the next batter, Troy Tulowitzki, hit a two-run homer. (Tulo also made a terrific play on a Daniel Murphy grounder in the seventh, stealing a hit that would have given the Mets a 5-4 lead.)

Of course, the Mets, down three, rallied for two. Wright homered, Beltran doubled and Ike "Mr. RBI" Davis singled to cut the gap to one with nobody out. But the Rockies retired the next 6 batters and that was that.

Good things: Wright's homer, Reyes with two triples, a two-run double by Willie Harris. You like to see the team continue to battle. And Mike Pelfrey was good, if not great. He settled down, but there were still too many pitches; he didn't make it through the sixth.

The bullpen has been bad so far and has already cost the team a couple of games. Doesn't mean it's going to be this way all season. Igarashi has plenty of talent. Parnell, though, is a bit of a concern. He's thought of highly, espeically by fans, but all he's really proven is that he can throw hard. He's also shown he's not ready to be the closer, or even the eighth-inning guy.

Yes, it's time to start worrying about Pelfrey

Ron Darling said it best early in the game that you learn more about a team when it's down than when it's ahead, and in that sense what we learned about the 2011 Mets is that they not only have plenty of fight in them, but they have the talent to come back and score runs.

What we also learned was that it's time to start worrying about Mike Pelfrey.

It's not just the two straight bad starts. It happens — guys start the season cold. And Pelfrey is historically worse on the road, especially in division games. But this is coming off an unimpressive spring, at a time when not just the media but the team itself made a point of how Pelfrey would need to step up and become the ace of the staff in Santana's absence.

And it's also happening on the heels of the death of sports psychologist Harvey Dorfman, with whom Pelfrey would confide after each and every start. So now you have Pelfrey — never the strongest personality — going through a tough stretch with his team counting on him, without his normal support system.

One would hope Pelfrey or the Mets have found someone to take on Dorfman's role; certainly you can't just replace someone like Dorfman with just anyone, but it seems that Pelfrey at least needs someone to be a sounding board. Again, maybe that's already happened. In any case, Pelfrey's struggles underline the fact that at least right now, the Mets are — as they were before Johan came here —  at team without a No. 1 pitcher.

Which would be fine, if everyone on the staff steps up their game. Chris Young has. R.A. Dickey has. We'll see what Niese can do tomorrow against Halladay. Capuano will get his chance soon. Hopefully, Pelfrey will snap out of it and find his way back.

Not surprisingly, Joe Blanton was hittable. He held the Mets in check while his team built a 7-0 lead, but then he melted down, so fast that Charlie Manuel couldn't get a replacement ready fast enough.

I loved seeing Pagan homer after working in the dugout with Dave Hudgens, and Keith Hernandez was all over that. Loved seeing the five run rally started by the top of the order, with clutch hits by Ike Davis (again) and Daniel Murphy (in his second at-bat of the inning).

Didn't love seeing them give two runs right back WITH TWO OUTS, but that was weird, wasn't it? A cheapo double by Victorino, a bad job of letting Polanco single after having him down 0-2, and then that infield single off Boyer's glove. Ugh.

The Mets are showing they can score and be resilient. Let's see if they can keep it going against Halladay.

The warning lights are flashing

Reason No. 3 for why Omar Minaya needs to acquire another starting pitcher made itself apparent Monday night in Arizona.

Reason No. 1 is that Ollie Perez and John Maine aren't going to help, and Reason No. 2 is that adding a starting pitcher has the additional benefit of strengthening the bullpen by putting Hisanori Takahashi back into the role for which he seems better suited.

Reason No. 3 is that a stronger rotation overall helps cushion the blow if one of the established starters falters. And brother, Mike Pelfrey is faltering.


Sure, all pitchers have clunkers now and then, but Pelfrey has been slipping for a couple of weeks now. Here's a scary stat: According to Elias Sports Bureau, Pelfrey is the first NL pitcher (and third in MLB) since 1900 to allow more than 50 base runners (hits, walks, and HBPs) while recording fewer than 50 outs over a span of four starts.

Since 1900. Ouch.

Everyone says he's healthy, so be thankful for that. After the game, the call was made for Pelfrey to throw the fastball more, but he's had trouble locating the fastball, so he's throwing more breaking balls, and that's what teams are sitting on. Pelfrey needs to solve his fastball problem — whether it's a crisis of confidence or an adjustment in grip, or some combination — in order to find his way out of the woods.

What concerns me more is the roster. It seems like, as well as he's hitting, Josh Thole will be sent down to catch more (since he's still developing behind the plate). There's no need for Turner to still be here with Reyes and Castillo back, so he should be sent down as well.

There are no backups for either Ike Davis or David Wright, although Alex Cora could play third in a pinch (please don't say Henry Blanco). Nick Evans should stay on the roster as an OF/1B, and Mike Hessman, a 32-year-old career minor leaguer with 18 homers in Buffalo, could be called up to back up Wright. That would leave Carter, Cora and Francoeur as lefties off the bench, with Evans and Hessman as the righties.

Or Minaya could go out and get a veteran righthanded corner infielder to replace the injured Fernando Tatis.

As for the bullpen, if Takahashi moves back, that gives them three lefties with Valdes and Feliciano, to go with K-Rod, Parnell and either Nieve or Dessens. Nieve pitched one good inning against Arizona but imploded in the second, allowing a natural cycle over a four-hitter span (triple, double, single, homer). Elmer Dessens is pitching better, so Nieve would be the odd man out.

So Omar needs a starter and a corner infielder, and the offense needs to get on track (and Arizona is a good place to start).

You can sense Mets fans getting ready to panic. But Monday was the first game since April of last year when the Mets had a lineup full of "starters." We'll see how they jell over this road trip, and if they survive the trip without getting buried, and if Minaya can make the moves he needs to make, the Mets will be in good position for the stretch run.

What, me worry?

Does K-Rod suck, and did Pelfrey melt down?

A few things about the Fourth of July weekend:

The holiday schedule was a full one, and while we went to a party Saturday I forgot that the Mets were on in the afternoon. So I was surprised to get the following text message from my brother:

'Krod sucks'

That's never good news.

Soon after, from someone with an iPhone, I got the gory details of how the Mets chased Stephen Strasburg but lost because Frankie Rodriguez blew the game in the bottom of the ninth for yet another walk-off loss.

I'm not ready to call K-Rod a problem, but he fits right in with other Mets closers of old who made you sweat. He got the save Friday night by picking off a runner at second (nice play by Ruben Tejada) and bounced back to get the 12-pitch save Sunday. His overall numbers are good but he falls in love with the changeup and has trouble throwing strikes. His pitch to I-Rod on the game-winning hit wasn't a bad one, low and away, but he had put himself in a huge hole.

I said in my previous post that I would have been happy to see the Mets split in Washington, which they did, thanks to Sunday's effort against Craig Stammen. Eight runs in the first four innings, four RBIs by Jason Bay and three hits by a healthy Angel Pagan helped Hisanori Takahashi pick up his seventh win.

Monday's homecoming against the Reds didn't go well, but while many are picking on Mike Pelfrey's "meltdown," I can't fault him too much. It was less a meltdown than Pelfrey getting into trouble with a single, a blooper and a walk to lead off the fifth. After that it just got weird and while Pelfrey was ultimately undone, it took a terrible call reversal by the umpires and an equally bad non-strike call on Drew Stubbs to get there. Pelfrey battled — it looked as if he might get out of it with only one run across — but Stubbs and Sal Fasano lookalike Corky Miller put the inning away.

Credit the Mets for having plenty of fight in the dog by coming back to cut the 7-1 deficit down to one, with five runs in the bottom of the fifth. Alex Cora came up big with a two-run double. Fernando Nieve allowed a one-out, solo homer to Votto but then retired the next eight in a row.

Despite the loss, you have to like how things line up for the remaining five days before the break. As of this morning it's still  "undecided" against Johan Santana, and then Niese goes in game three. The Braves series will see Dickey, Pelfrey and Santana, and if Reyes can (finally) get back on the field, maybe the Mets can win four of the next five and the final two series.

And congrats to David Wright for getting (properly) voted in as an All-Star starter. Oh, ye of little faith — how's Wright doing now? In the top 10 in most every offensive category. Reyes was named to the team as well, and while Charlie Manuel did a good job in leaving off Strasburg, I'm not sure how Votto could be left off in place of Ryan Howard. Mind-boggling.

Yeah, maybe Pelfrey got snubbed, but I'd rather see him relax and recharge for what should be a very interesting second half.

Subway Series: Just as it was foreseen

The Mets took two of three from the Yankees at Citi Field, and the Yankees returned the favor at Yankee Stadium this weekend, a series split that gave the Mets a 7-2 road trip that vaulted the club into the Wild Card lead and within three games of first place in the NL East.

That gap was as close as a half game, but the Braves swept the Kansas City Royals while the Mets lost twice in the Bronx. Is there a catchy nickname for when the Braves and Royals face off? Didn't think so.

The Mets didn't manage a win with their top two starters on the mound, as Mike Pelfrey and Johan Santana were out-dueled by Phil Hughes and C.C. Sabathia. But having won eight in a row, it's tough to get too down on them.

Pelfrey just didn't have his rhythm against the Yankees, which I imagine would be a problem for most National League pitchers, seeing as how the Yankees take a particularly leisurely approach to the plate. And it's not just the Yankees: American League baseball, with the DH and short fences, looks like slow-pitch softball sometimes compared to the National League, characterized by bigger fields and more of an emphasis on pitching, speed and defense.

Did you see the grand slam by Mark Texeira? A fly out at Citi Field. Sire, Jose Reyes took advantage for two home runs on Saturday, but as the home team the Yankees have many more opportunities to capitalize on the embarrassing dimensions of their ballpark. Jorge Posada recently hit two grand slams — at least one would have landed in an outfielder's glove in Flushing.

As for Santana, he didn't lose the game as much as Sabathia won, shutting down the Mets lineup. You had to feel for Santana, allowing a runner to load the bases on a fielding mishap covering a bunt, only to allow the cheapie slam to Texeira a batter later. Other than that, Santana was good, not great.

Maybe he was good enough to win on another day, but then again, Santana has been great enough to win a few times this season only to come away without the 'W.'

More amusing than the games themselves was the nonsense concerning Reyes and his celebrating, or the comments made by Keith Hernandez about Cervelli's futile attempts to deke runners on base by feigning passed balls.

It's apples and oranges. Reyes celebrates when he does something well, or when his team succeeds. Lots of players do to different degrees. Yankees fans who complain about Reyes should pay attention to themselves when Joba pumps his fist or when Nick Swisher styles.

Cervelli's antics are about deception and what is and is not acceptable. The hidden ball trick works rarely, and is tried rarely. Imagine if you saw that every game. It would become extremely tiresome. Aren't we all professionals here?

What Cervelli does is akin to the hidden ball trick, and perhaps that's what offended Hernandez's sensibilities as a former MLB player. Try it once, okay. Try it again, and again, and it's like, are you kidding me with that? Leave it at the schoolyard. This isn't Little League.

More interleague nonsense coming up this week as the Tigers and Twins visit Citi Field. Meanwhile, the Mets lead the Wild Card standings, when just a couple of weeks ago they were on the fringes of the group. That's progress.

The cure for what ails you

Yes, we know the Mets hadn't won back-to-back road games in a year, and hadn't swept a three-game road series since September 2008, but it's still tough to get too excited over the beatdown the Amazins handed the Orioles this weekend at Camden Yards.

The Orioles are awful. Bad. Pathetic. They got absolutely demolished at home, and remember when tickets to games at Camden Yards were hard to come by? Those days are long gone. It seemed like there were 10,000-plus Mets fans on hand for each of the three games, making the Mets feel right at home (or at least like they were in Florida).

That said, there were lots of things to like besides the sweep itself:

Mike Pelfrey battled. He's been so dominant this season that it was great to see him win despite having less-than-perfect stuff. Then again, these were the Orioles and the Mets hit four home runs and piled up 18 hits of offensive support.

The long ball. The Mets hit seven homers in the series, including the four on Sunday. David Wright hit two bombs and now has 12 on the season. He is on fire now, and you'll note the strikeout rate has dropped considerably. Anyone complaining about him now?


Jason Bay woke up. Bay went 4-for-4 Sunday to break his o-fer string, hitting a homer and a double and scoring four times. Bay's average has been fine all season despite his struggles, and he's the kind of streaky hitter who could hit a dozen homers in a month and by the end of the season his power numbers are more or less in line with his career average. That's the hope, anyway.


Chris Carter + DH = juicy goodness. With Jeff Francouer hitting so well, Chris Carter wasn't getting a whole lot of at-bats, but Jerry Manuel did the right thing by making the Animal his DH for the interleague games, and Carter has responded. He homered twice in the Baltimore series and will continue to get DH at-bats in Cleveland and against the Yankees. The way he is playing it is almost a lock that he will homer at Yankee Stadium, and his home run trot will be completed in 6.2 seconds.


Takahashi rebounded. After two bad starts, the rumblings had begun about Hisanori Takahashi's future in the rotation, but he quieted those with a strong performance Saturday. Ultimately, it may not matter as John Maine -- if he can prove himself worthy and healthy -- is better suited as a starter, which will only help the bullpen if Takahashi indeed goes back there. But if Maine can't do that, then Takahashi will get more chances to show he belongs in the rotation.

On to Cleveland, which gives me a reason to post this:

Ike Davis just hits bombs

See? You can hit home runs at Citi Field.

Jose Reyes did. Barely. Angel Pagan almost did; another foot higher and it would have been a walk-off game-winner (alas, there are no cheapies at Citi).

And of course, Ike Davis did. But then again, Davis has the kind of power you can't teach, the kind of power that will launch bombs in any park, even the cavernous home of the Mets. He's already hit one onto the Shea Bridge, and Tuesday night's blast in the bottom of the 11th inning -- deep onto the Pepsi Porch -- gave the Mets a 2-1 walk-off victory over the Padres that extended the team's home winning streak to nine games and improved their home record to a gaudy 23-9.

Ron Darling almost called the shot on the telecast, noting moments before the homer that Davis took Padres reliever Edward Mujica deep to center field when the Mets were in San Diego a week ago. Davis had been 0-for-8 since his four-hit game Saturday, but he pulverized a changeup, allowing the Mets to celebrate the way so many teams have celebrated in Mets road losses this season.

On a night when Nationals phenom Stephen Strasburg won his debut -- striking out 14 Pirates -- Mike Pelfrey turned in a Johan-like performance, throwing nine innings and allowing just five hits with no walks and six strikeouts, the lone run coming in the first. Perhaps the most Johan-like thing about the gem was the fact that he got a no-decision, thanks to the Mets' continuing inability to do anything against Clayton Richard.

That is, until Reyes popped his second homer of the season on a ball that just made it over the orange line at the top of the wall. The hit was ruled a double on the field but overturned by video replay. Pagan's shot in the bottom of the 10th fell a foot or so short and ended up as a two-out triple (my reaction: "Damn you, Citi Field!"), but Jason Bay (0-for-5, three strikeouts) left Pagan stranded.

Pelfrey's work cannot be forgotten here. He has stepped up his game immensely this season and is pitching with incredible confidence and intelligence. Can we imagine Cliff Lee as the third starter on this team? I can.

I did get a chance to see Strasburg's first inning as a major leaguer on the MLB Network, and I have to say, the 99-mph fastball and the sharp-breaking curve had me thinking of one player: Doc Gooden. That's a name that serves as both compliment and cautionary tale, but I'm guessing that Strasburg has seen enough of "Chappelle's Show" to know that cocaine is a hell of a drug.

And unless he goes the way of Mark Prior and is undone by injury, the kid is going to have one hell of a career.

Big Pelf is no illusion

Mike Pelfrey is 8-1, has won his last four starts, and -- as Matt Cerrone points out on MetsBlog -- Pelfrey is 6-0 when he starts the day after a Mets loss. Which makes him as much of a stopper as Johan Santana.

Pelfrey went eight innings for the win Tuesday night against the Padres, allowing just four hits and two walks while striking out eight. In his last four wins, his ERA is a scant 1.27, the kind of production that prompted Ike Davis to compare his ability to that of the Cy Young Award-winning Santana.

Jerry Manuel said after the game that Pelfrey deserves to be in the same conversation as Josh Johnson and Ubaldo Jimenez. Throw in Matt Cain, Cole Hamels, Jaime Garcia, David Price -- Pelfrey can hang with all of them, and the days of the Mets having no clear No. 2 behind Santana are long gone.

My gut feeling when I hear the accolades is: SHUT UP! STOP TALKING! DON'T JINX HIM! But that just comes from years of disappointment mixed with a splash of superstition. But as much as Mets fans don't want to get too high on Pelfrey, it's becoming clear that his success is no illusion, but part of a natural progression that we've been fortunate to see develop.

Pelfrey got home runs from Davis and David Wright, and Jeff Francoeur continued his surge with two more hits; he's batting close to .500 since his sit-down with Manuel a few days ago. Jose Reyes went 0-for-5 and saw his hitting streak snapped, but it didn't matter.

Frankie Rodriguez came on for the ninth inning, after Pelfrey was removed having thrown 110 pitches. The three-run lead was likened by Gary Cohen and Rod Darling as a layup, but K-Rod made it interesting, allowing three hits and a run before striking out the final two batters.

Could Manuel have left Pelfrey in for the complete game? Sure, but K-Rod has said time and again that he needs to be active and prefers more work rather than less. And 110 pitches is getting pretty close to Pelfrey's limit, anyway. Save situations have been less than abundant, so no one should have an issue with Manuel going by the book. (Although I can predict Joe Benigno will voice a problem with it on Wednesday afternoon. Write it down. Wait, I just did.)

Never in our wildest dreams

Seriously. Forget about sweeping the Phillies at Citi Field. But shutting them out in all three games? Sure, the Phils are struggling at the plate, but zero runs in 27 innings? If I'd put $100 on the Mets to shut out the Phillies in three straight, I'd be richer than Tony Stark right now.

Funny how Ryan Howard brushed off Philly's ineptitude against R.A. Dickey by noting how rare it was to face a knuckleballer (let along two in less than a week), before saying they would bounce back against "a real pitcher." Well, they didn't fare too well against Hisanori Takahashi, and then when they had a chance to face Mike Pelfrey -- who doesn't rely on deception as much as Takahashi -- they still came up way, way short.

The series was as odd as it was enjoyable. Seeing Mets pitchers continue to throw with confidence and authority and control was glorious. Watching the awakening of Jose Reyes -- another huge clutch hit for a two-run double Thursday night sealed the sweep -- has been awesome. Almost expecting the team to come through with runners in scoring position? That's going to take some getting used to.

But how bad were the Phillies? They looked disinterested. Flat isn't the word. They showed no fight, no heart, no grit -- all things that are supposed to be hallmarks of baseball in the city of Brotherly Love. It was the Mets who showed some guts, who ran down balls in the outfield (nice catch by Angel Pagan Thursday), who stole bases and pitched out of jams.

It goes to show that what really matters isn't perception, but results. When the Phillies are winning, they are full of piss and vinegar and that's old-time baseball. When the Mets were losing, they had no heart.

The Phillies had a hole in their collective chest in this series. Maybe it's a temporary condition. The fact is the Mets took them to the woodshed in this series and made it look easy.

Now we'll see if the Mets can carry the momentum on the road, where they need to show improvement. In the meantime, it looks like there is a true home-field advantage at Citi Field, which will justify its design and dimensions. I really don't care if David Wright can't hit more than a handful of home runs there, if it means more wins for the home team.

And yeah, that's an Asia video at the top. Best. Band. Ever.

It's OK to be happy about the Mets

Are Mets fans -- who if they are as old as I am can remember when the team was truly a National League doormat -- so damaged by the previous four seasons that they cannot simply enjoy when the team is doing well?

The team is above .500 at 10-9. They have won four straight, sweeping the hated Braves, and have taken six of the first seven games of a 10-game homestand that fans and media alike characterized as critical, not only for the team's hopes of playoff contention, but to the employment of Omar Minaya and Jerry Manuel.

So now that they are pitching well -- starters and relievers alike -- and starting to break out of the team-wide batting slump, you would think Mets fans would be thrilled. The season isn't over in April after all! We're watching good baseball again!

Instead, I've read and heard plenty of comments like, "Well, at least we can beat the bad teams," or, "the Cubs suck," or, "the Braves gave us those games."

The Cubs, by the way, went on to sweep the Brewers. The Braves, if you recall, were touted by many as a wild card contender and division sleeper thanks to their pitching. Maybe the Mets did get a break by catching both clubs at the right time. But so what?

You play whoever is in front of you, and a win's a win. And don't you think the Mets have gone through enough that they deserve a few breaks at this point? Rain-shortened win? I'll take it!

Just as it's too soon to start ordering 'World Champions' hats, it's also way too soon to scoreboard watch, or wonder where the Mets are in the standings, or put Manuel on the hot seat.

Mike Pelfrey is one of the top pitchers in baseball right now. Enjoy it.

Jonathan Niese looks like he's going to be a good one. Enjoy it.

Ike Davis looks like the real deal. Enjoy it.

Jason Bay is starting to hit again. Enjoy it.

Jose Reyes is back. Enjoy it!

The bullpen is pitching extremely well. Enjoy it!

Oliver Perez hasn't been nearly as awful as last season. Enjoy it!

An old-fashioned doubleheader later today -- not a day/night, separate admission deal -- with Ollie and Johan going for the Mets. Enjoy that!

It's a long season. Plenty of baseball left. More ups and downs are coming. David Wright is streaky and he will bounce back. Hopefully, so will John Maine. So have fun while you can!

You didn't expect us to panic, now, did you?

There were 150 games left in the regular season, but you'd have thought it was late July the way many pundits, fans and hysterics were acting when the Mets returned home with a 4-8 record.

The Mets were doomed. "You are what your record says you are," as Bill Parcells liked to say, and the Mets were simply one of the worst teams in baseball. Left for dead. Written off. No hope.

There are now 148 games left in the season, and all of a sudden, it's a brand-new day.

The 6-8 Mets have won two in a row! Mike Pelfrey is awesome! Ike Davis is here! No more Mike Jacobs! Jose Reyes looks like his old self again! The Phillies and Braves are only 8-5!

The two wins over the Cubs (who are not playing well and must be giving Lou Piniella one doozy of an ulcer) certainly feel like a turning point, although perhaps the true pivot of the season was the 20-inning victory over the Cardinals -- not because it was won with dramatic flair, but because the team never said 'die.'

Currently, three (count 'em) starting pitchers are giving fans confidence in Santana, Pelfrey and Niese, and while John Maine is still struggling to right his own ship, even Ollie Perez has an air of, "You know what? I'm putting it all together" about him these days.

But the thing that gives the Mets and their fans the biggest jolt is Jose Reyes. We caught our first real glimpse of the old Jose Tuesday night, as he tripled in two runs and finished with four of the team's nine hits. And when he rose up from the cloud of dust after his triple, clapping his hands and pointing to the dugout, you thought, "Yes... he's finally back."

Imagine this team with a healthy Carlos Beltran. Then again, maybe it's best not to think about that.

Beltran visited Dr. Steadman in Colorado and while he was "making progress," he still can't run. Will Carroll initially tweeted that there was "no progress," and later SI's Jon Heyman clarified the situation somewhat by saying Dr. Steadman told Beltran he couldn't run until the bone bruises, or "hot spots," had healed.

What's most frustrating for me is how this situation opens the door for fans to become doctors and speculate as to how long Beltran will be out, why he didn't just have microfracture surgery last summer, and whether he really did have the surgery and it's all a cover-up.

To me, greater and more educated medical minds than I (and most of us) assessed the situation and did what was done. All we can do as fans is stop speculating and just get used to life without Beltran, and let Angel Pagan play that role for the foreseeable future.

And if that means Pagan batting third to "lengthen the lineup," then why not? Three switch-hitters followed by Wright, Bay and then either Francoeur or Davis depending on the pitcher, and then the catcher? If the starting pitching keeps it up, that lineup ain't that bad.

Eight games left in the homestand. Too early to panic, too early to think our problems are solved. Nothing to do but sit back and enjoy the games. What a concept.

Can you smell what Big Pelf is cookin'?

See what happens when your starter throws a shutout? Piece of cake!

We've talked a lot about the potential of Mike Pelfrey, and maybe, just maybe, this is the season when he makes the leap. Pelfrey threw seven innings of scoreless baseball Thursday against the Rockies, allowing five hits while walking no one in a 5-0 Mets victory.

It snapped the Mets' four-game losing streak as the team heads to St. Louis for three games before returning home to Citi Field for a 10-game homestand.

While Pelfrey has never been a dominant strikeout pitcher, he struck out six and was in control throughout. Pelfrey has the size and stuff to be a commanding presence on the mound, and the final step will be to develop the attitude to go along with it. The Mets certainly can use it.

Jorge De la Rosa was all over the place and this game could have been a lot more lopsided had the Mets not imploded on the base paths in the third inning. Reyes signaled to Castillo that he was going to try and steal third, but decided not to when De la Rosa started paying attention to him. Though Reyes didn't go, Castillo did, with his head down, and got caught in a rundown. Reyes exacerbated the mistake by trying to steal third, and failing. So much for two on and no outs.

Oh, by the way, David Wright was at the plate. He struck out. Sometime aggression will cost you.

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Stay classy, Phillies fans.

A Philly fan from New Jersey (now that's a winning combination) was arrested at Citizen's Bank Park for intentionally vomiting on an 11-year-old girl, who as at the game with her older sister and father.

Did I mention the father was an off-duty police captain? That's a bad life choice.

Seems there was a lot of foul language and spitting involved before Sir Stupid decided to stick his fingers down his throat and vomit on the victims.

Really? In Philadelphia? I'm shocked.