Some Random Mets Thoughts On An Off-Day

Added by Eddie Utley on June 21, 2012.

Johan Santana

Someone grab a TV Guide and let me know if it’s sweeps season yet.

How can anyone explain what is going on with the 2012 New York Mets? Sweep, sweep, sweep followed by a sweep. The losses were not brutal but the Mets stomped the Rays and beat down the Orioles and got great pitching in both series’. R.A. Dickey even went back-to-back on one hitters. Mets manager, Terry Collins, was even toying with the idea of using Dickey on 3-days rest for the rest of the season, which could be a good idea. This year, Dickey has found that “it” factor while the Mets get such up and down results from some of the other starting pitchers. Just do that and keep Johan Santana on his regular rotation while the young guys move around.

With the Yankees coming in, I don’t know what to expect. In the last series between the two clubs, the Mets got swept away. The games were close except the one Santana pitched. He never seems to pitch well against the Yanks as a Met so I expected it.

Speaking of Santana, it seems like everyone wants to blame the no hitter for two bad performances that followed. They acted like his arm would fall off from doing what he’s paid to do, pitch. After the no hitter he had six days of rest and then five more after his next start.

Anyone who knows anything about pitching will tell you that too much rest can yield very bad results for some pitchers. It makes them too strong for lack of a better word. Curveballs don’t curve as much, sliders don’t slide as much. Everyone needs to let the guy do what he does. The surgery was two years ago, not yesterday.

So, in a month where everyone thought the Mets had to go .500, they’re doing just about that. If the Washington Nationals didn’t have that little win streak, the Mets might be back in first place, or close to it, in the NL East.

I hope Sandy Alderson is ready to make moves if needed. A right handed bat would be nice, but where do you put them with the youngsters showing they belong on the roster? Daniel Murphy already has to be looking over his shoulder with Jordany Valdespin starting to hit. Lucas Duda and Ike Davis are supposed to provide the pop, and the former is starting to, so maybe they don’t need a bat as badly as they did last month, but it might help.

Jason Bay could have been that right handed bat if he hit. Hopefully he realizes he has a slider speed bat and changes his approach if he ever comes back. With a 2^nd concussion, his season might be over and who knows if he will have PCS and might have to be out even longer. If Bay got hot, the Mets might have been able to dump him, but now he’s an even bigger albatross than before.

Subway Series 2012 Part 2. Not sold out. You can still get good seats including field box seats for $94. Kind of sad that they matched the ticket price with yesterday’s weather. These tickets used to be sold before the season even started. I hope someday the Mets get back to relevance but I just don’t know if it’s going to be under Sandy Alderson and his lieutenants unless they pull off a big feat like the 2000 Mets or 2006 Cardinals.

I was listening to Craig Carton complaining about the ticket issue on WFAN this morning, saying he’s a Mets fan. I get tired of hearing him identify himself as a Mets fan. He’s not. No self respecting Mets fan would cheer for the Yankees. Someone direct him here and let him know I’m calling him out.

All out of Mets thoughts for now. Stay tuned.