Mid-season thoughts, a week late

I haven’t written about the Mets in a bit, but I wanted to weigh in a bit as we head move deeper into the second half.

  1. The Mets are not quite as good as their record. They’ve benefited to a degree from a week division and a weaker league. That said, the only NL team that can really prevent them from getting to the World Series, as I see it, is the Cardinals. The Cards are still the class of the league and would have a near-identical record to the Mets had Pujols not missed some time.
  2. The Mets need another starting pitcher. I want to see what Mike Pelfrey can do with another start or two, but even if he looks like he’s ready, the team needs another arm to a) give Pedro and Glavine some extra rest and b) ensure that the team does not have to rely on El Duque for big innings and c) keep the extra wear and tear off the bullpen. Likely suspects, according to the papers, include Livan Hernandez, Dontrelle Willis (not likely), Greg Maddux (bad fit), Jason Schmidt (not likely). Hernandez, because he eats innings and could come cheap, might be the best fit and the most likely arrival in Shea.
  3. Aaron Heilman must regain his form from last year and early this year. This needs no explanation.
  4. The lineup is the best in the NL, with the possible exception of the Cards, and is as good as most AL lineups — especially if Cliff Floyd finds his stroke (two dingers and five RBIs today).
  5. Jose Valentin has to continue to play solid second base. He has looked good both with the bat and with the glove, stabilizing the infield and the lineup after the early season disaster that was Kaz Matsui.
  6. Avoid injuries. The team has had some nicks and bruises and some bigger injuries to date — the entire outfield has missed some time, Jose Reyes (the team’s sparkplug) is sitting with an injured finger and Pedro has missed a start and will miss a second with a bruised hip and food poisoning. But the team has avoided the big injuries that have plagued their crosstown rivals. If Reyes, Wright or Beltran — or any of their starting pitchers — go down for extended time, the current 12-game lead could disappear quickly.

It’s been fun so far, but there is a lot of baseball left. October is still a long way off.

    South Brunswick Post, The Cranbury Press

    Email me at grassroots at comcast dot net.
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    Author: hankkalet

    Hank Kalet is a poet and freelance journalist. He is the economic needs reporter for NJ Spotlight, teaches journalism at Rutgers University and writing at Middlesex County College and Brookdale Community College. He writes a semi-monthly column for the Progressive Populist. He is a lifelong fan of the New York Mets and New York Knicks, drinks too much coffee and attends as many Bruce Springsteen concerts as his meager finances will allow. He lives in South Brunswick with his wife Annie.

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