Rumblings in NY

This last week has seen the Mets go 6-1 on a road trip thru Washington and Pittsburgh, but not all is well in Mudville.

Yesterday afternoon we all have heard the news of what could be the torpedo that sinks the Mets season. Billy Wagner's elbow is swollen and he's been shut down indefinitely. The MRI Tuesday didn't reveal any damage it the elbow, but it's so swollen they may not get a good reading of the situation. For all the Billy Haters out there, you've been getting a small dose of what the bull-pen is like without him there closing games, and now you're going to get a much bigger dose of it. After watching another Sanchez meltdown Monday, nobody can have any faith in Duaner.

Also Monday we all have heard from the Horses mouth himself, that John is pitching hurt and has been for awhile. Every time he goes to the mound he has pain in his shoulder. They doubt it will get better this year but it isn't getting worse. Despite the pain he pitched well enough to keep the Mets in the game, but the pen gave up 5 runs in the loss to the Pirates. He pitched 5 innings and gave up no runs and only 2 hits. You could tell he was hurting because his velocity was only hitting 88-90 on his fastball. John also said that he's going to be limited to 5 innings no matter how many pitches he throws.

With the 6-1 road trip there are other issues of worry too. The offense is struggling to score runs and it can be laid at the feet of a few people. Carlos Delgado is back to his old ways, and Tatis and Beltran are struggling too. Delgado's average has fallen 20 points in just 2 weeks, and Beltran doesn't do much at the plate. Tatis is slumping and his average is down under .300, and Easley has grounded into 4 inning killing double plays in just 2 games [Sunday and Monday]. With the shaky pen and the uncertain return of Billy, the offense needs to score early and often. If the Mets are winning games by 3 or more runs going into the late innings, it makes it easier for the pen to no implode.

One group that can't be blamed for the Mets scoring troubles are the youngsters. Murphy continues to hit over .400, Evans is a doubles machine and gets better every game, and Argenis Reyes gets on base and to every ball hit anywhere near him. Where would the Mets be without the B-Mets carrying a large load the last Month? Third place? Second place? certainly not in 1st. They continue to prove they belong and deserve every compliment they get.

The starting pitching has been stellar even with John's bum shoulder. They are the best rotation in baseball now and always give the Mets a chance to win the games. But, the pitchers need runs too. They also need a pen they can rely on and someone to close the games out. Ayala pitched well in a tough spot last night and Maybe Heilman can keep his head on straight for the next few weeks and act as a de-facto closer. Until Billy returns things will be interesting and fans will continue to consider Rolaids a food group.