A FEW BRIEF THOUGHTS ON THE 4-0 N.Y. METS
1. Holy shit.
2. 31-3?!
3. How much fun was it to see Chipper lose that pop up in the wind during the Mets' 6-run 8th inning?
4. I've cleared it with Mrs. Mike: I'm going to ask Jose Reyes to marry me. She's cool with the arrangement. She'll remain my wife in the conjugal sense, plus she's on for all family-related events. But otherwise, it's Jose.
Reyes is leading the Mets with 7 runs scored after 4 games. He's also leading them with 7 RBIs. He's tied for first in the league in the second category, and trails only the amazing Hanley Ramirez in the first.
(Ramirez is great, by the way. If Reyes is the NL's best shortstop, then Ramirez is 2nd, and trails by very little. Plus, Hanley is younger than Jose. I'm a Met fan, but I'm honest when it comes to baseball: Ramirez may be just as good as Reyes. If there's any way the Mets can get this guy in the coming years and put him at second base, I may have to change my pants during games.)
5. Tom Glavine's ERA is 1.50.
6. Tom Glavine has the worst ERA on the entire Met pitching staff.
7. Oliver!
8. After 4 games of gaudy & astounding beatdowns, who has the best OPS on the Mets? Just who'd you'd expect: Carlos Beltran, doing it quietly, as always. Plus, he's played great defense.
9. Speaking of which, Met gloves have been basically flawless. Even though 'Stache isn't hitting, his defense at second (as indicated by 9 double plays so far) has been perfect.
10. I know it's only 4 games. I know errorless ball, and .311 team batting averages, and injury-free seasons, and perfection from the bullpen, and historically poor glovework by the opposition don't last for 162 games. I know.
But teams can lose 1/3 of their games and still end the season with the best record . . . by a large margin. The Mets have a few trouble spots on the horizon, and we knew that. But they have a lot of strengths too: guys who put bat to ball, good team speed, fine team defense, solid fundamentals (there is a good side to older players), pitchers committed to throwing strikes, and a few young, dominant players in Beltran, Reyes & Wright.
They may end up getting nailed by injuries, or one of the other teams could win all their close games, get hot, and win 95 games. But it seems more likely that the Mets'll win the 90 or so games we expected, and win the division by a handful of games.
They're off to a good start. It's a long season, and there'll be downs. But for the time being, these guys have been fun to watch. Let's go for 5-0.
2. 31-3?!
3. How much fun was it to see Chipper lose that pop up in the wind during the Mets' 6-run 8th inning?
4. I've cleared it with Mrs. Mike: I'm going to ask Jose Reyes to marry me. She's cool with the arrangement. She'll remain my wife in the conjugal sense, plus she's on for all family-related events. But otherwise, it's Jose.
Reyes is leading the Mets with 7 runs scored after 4 games. He's also leading them with 7 RBIs. He's tied for first in the league in the second category, and trails only the amazing Hanley Ramirez in the first.
(Ramirez is great, by the way. If Reyes is the NL's best shortstop, then Ramirez is 2nd, and trails by very little. Plus, Hanley is younger than Jose. I'm a Met fan, but I'm honest when it comes to baseball: Ramirez may be just as good as Reyes. If there's any way the Mets can get this guy in the coming years and put him at second base, I may have to change my pants during games.)
5. Tom Glavine's ERA is 1.50.
6. Tom Glavine has the worst ERA on the entire Met pitching staff.
7. Oliver!
8. After 4 games of gaudy & astounding beatdowns, who has the best OPS on the Mets? Just who'd you'd expect: Carlos Beltran, doing it quietly, as always. Plus, he's played great defense.
9. Speaking of which, Met gloves have been basically flawless. Even though 'Stache isn't hitting, his defense at second (as indicated by 9 double plays so far) has been perfect.
10. I know it's only 4 games. I know errorless ball, and .311 team batting averages, and injury-free seasons, and perfection from the bullpen, and historically poor glovework by the opposition don't last for 162 games. I know.
But teams can lose 1/3 of their games and still end the season with the best record . . . by a large margin. The Mets have a few trouble spots on the horizon, and we knew that. But they have a lot of strengths too: guys who put bat to ball, good team speed, fine team defense, solid fundamentals (there is a good side to older players), pitchers committed to throwing strikes, and a few young, dominant players in Beltran, Reyes & Wright.
They may end up getting nailed by injuries, or one of the other teams could win all their close games, get hot, and win 95 games. But it seems more likely that the Mets'll win the 90 or so games we expected, and win the division by a handful of games.
They're off to a good start. It's a long season, and there'll be downs. But for the time being, these guys have been fun to watch. Let's go for 5-0.
Labels: 31-3, Leather and Porn Staches, Polygamy, The Beltranator
posted by Mike at 7:39 AM
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