An infield pop-up, a strikeout and an easy flyball — Johan Santana looks good so far. The Mets are going to need to pitch like this every inning of every game to stay in this race.
No score as the Mets come to the plate in the bottom of the first.
They just announced the Mets lineup for opening day, and it is not a pretty one:
I know Cora and Matthews are supposed to be temporary fixes, but the fact that both are in the opening day lineup should dispel any optimism those of us rooting for this might have had. Cora is a career backup and Matthews — his lone good year in the big leagues came under the influence of performance-enhancing drugs. Throw in Jacobs, Barajas and Catillo, and you can see why I think this team will be lucky to compete for third.
Division prediction: Phillies, Braves, Marlins, Mets, National. And that is sad, indeed.
Dispatches this week offers the saga of Dwight Gooden: From tragedy to farce — a Met fan’s thoughts.
This team is snake-bitten. There is no other explanation. Last year, the team went without three of its big four; this year, it appears the Mets will start the season without their lead-off hitting shortstop and power-hitting, Gold Glove centerfielder. It doesn’t look promising, does it?
If this nugget from today’s NY Post piece on the Jason Bay signing is accurate, the contract actually looks pretty good.
Bay’s deal includes a full no-trade clause and an $8.5 million signing bonus, according to The Associated Press. He will make $6.5 million in salary this year and $16 million for each of the ensuing three seasons. His option would become guaranteed if he reaches 600 plate appearances in 2013 or 500 plate appearances in both the 2012 and ’13 seasons. The contract’s total value could reach $80 million.
I’m not crazy about full no-trades, but the vesting clause sets the bar high enough that this deal can only go to five years if Bay remains productive. If not, there is little chance that he will hit the plate appearance marks needed.
So we shall see.
At the moment, I’m cautiously optimistic.
Hank Kalet 