After a 3-game sweep at the hands of NL East rivals and current division leaders Philadelphia Phillies over the July 4 weekend, it's time to call it. The season for the 2009 New York Mets is basically over.

Understand that unlike a lot of Met fans, I'm not the whining complaining blame & flame-throwing type. I don't fault any one person for the failure of the 2009 New York Mets. I don't beat drums about firing everyone in the front office, or demanding that they trade away part of "the core." I'm generally pretty optimistic when it comes to all things baseball. But I'm also realistic.

And the reality has finally set in for this team. It's not Jerry Manuel's fault. It's not Omar Minaya's fault. It's not Fred and Jeff Wilpon's fault.

It's the fault of overwhelming injuries to a multitude of players.

Injuries are the great unequalizer in sports. It's what makes fantasy sports such a tough game to win. You can draft the best players in any fantasy sports league, but if your #1, #2 and #3 picks go down for an extended period of time, you're going to have a very tough time of winning your fantasy league. Now translate that to REAL sports, and you've got a serious problem.

The 2009 New York Mets have lost a lot of players this season to injury. Some minor, many major. Oliver Perez was first to fall. To some, that's not a big deal. But then Carlos Delgado went down with a hip injury. Then Jose Reyes's calf and hamstring. Then JJ Putz with his elbow. Then the oft-injured starting pitcher John Maine and his shoulder.

But the biggest loss on top of all of the others that had already accumulated, was Carlos Beltran and the debilitating and painful bone bruise on his right knee.

There were periods of time in which the Mets were also without starters Ryan Church (RF), Brian Schneider (C), and backup utility man Alex Cora (SS/2B). There's a revolving door/platoon in LF once the Daniel Murphy outfield experiment ended. Fernando Tatis is not hitting at even close to the pace he was in 2008, and the backup players (Alex Cora, Gary Sheffield) are being worn down by playing nearly every day.

David Wright has become a very streaky and inconsistent hitter who has lost his power swing. Despite being the only major Met starter to remain healthy all season, he is going to have a career year in most strikeouts at his current pace, and his final BA could end up being .260 or .350, depending on what streak he ends the 2009 season on. But even assuming the best for David Wright, he's one player. Even Albert Pujols has a superior supporting cast surrounding him.

There are some Met fans who want to blame GM Omar Minaya for not providing a better set of backup players, forgetting that backup players are just that. Backups.

They're the guys who alternate in to give the others rest on a Sunday day game after a Saturday night game, and occasionally a couple of them can fill in for extended periods of time over the course of a season when needed. But when your backup players get hurt, and then you're calling up minor league players to fill-in for THEM before they are ready to produce at an MLB level a la Fernando (K-Mart) Martinez, Nick Evans, Argenis Reyes, etc. it's an unplanned recipe for disaster.

There are some Met fans who want to blame GM Omar Minaya for not having already traded for another offensive player, like an Aubrey Huff, Mark DeRosa or Matt Holliday. The three major problems with these concepts is that one player alone isn't going to turn the Mets around. The second is that despite the simplistic belief of many a baseball fan no matter which team they support, other GMs have to actually agree to the trades. The third is that Minaya has gone on record stating he wasn't willing to mortgage the future prospects of the franchise for short-term solutions. A very wise decision. However, the pill of potentially giving up on 2009 to have a shot at legitimately competing in 2010 and 2011 is proving to be a tough one to swallow.

The indisputable facts are this:

• Through 81 games, the halfway-point of a MLB season, the New York Mets have gone 39-42. They are 3 games under .500, and 4.5 games behind the Phillies.
  
• Last year, the 2008 Mets were 40-41 at the halfway point, 3 games behind the Phillies. They went 59-32 over the 2nd half of the season, which was still a game short of the NL wild card. And that's a team that didn't have nearly the number of injury problems that the 2009 team has endured.
  
• There are SEVEN teams currently ahead of them (Giants, Rockies, Brewers, Cubs, Marlins, Reds, Astros) in the wild card race, with Atlanta just a half-game behind the Mets in both the NL East and wild card race.The Mets are 5.5 games behind current wild card leading San Francisco Giants.
  
• Since June 1, the team has went 11-21, which would only be slightly palatable had they not gone 9-12 in April. Even though the team went 19-9 in May, things started to slide when June came, and went to hell in a handbasket once Beltran went on the DL (5-9 since June 22), including series sweeps against the Yankees and Phillies.

The Mets have their next 6 at home going into the All-Star Break. 3 against the Dodgers, owners of the best record in baseball, and the Cincinnati Reds. Figure the Mets go 3-3 over that span, losing the series to the Dodgers, winning the series against the Reds.

After the All-Star break, the Mets go on the road for 4 against Atlanta, 3 against Washington, 3 against Houston. If this were truly the 2009 Mets with all their healthy starters in the lineup, it would not be absurd to expect them to win 8-9 of those 10 games.

But without those starting players in the lineup and the team's inability to score runs at a consistent pace, the more likely outcome of that 10-game roadtrip is 4-6.

The Mets will finish up July with a 4-game set at home against the Colorado Rockies, and a 4-game set that extends into August (1 game in July) against the dying Arizona Diamondbacks. Over those 5 games, I'll give the Mets a 3-2 record.

Taking into account all the series remaining in the month, that would bring the Mets to a July finish of 12-14, and a total record of 49-53 through 102 games played.

For the New York Mets to actually have a reasonable shot of winning the NL East or even the wildcard, they'd have to amass at least 88-90 wins by season's end at the bare minimum.

In a perfect world, you get back all your healthy players PLUS Billy Wagner in the bullpen by August 1, 2009. Maybe you already have some of then back already. But the Mets would then need to go around 39-14 over the rest of the season, and pray that other teams in the NL East encounter troubles of their own. While that's not impossible, it's certainly not very probable. Keep in mind that this is also assuming that the team doesn't suffer any additional injuries to major players.

Whether the Mets should be buyers, sellers, or neither at the end of July will ultimately be determined how the team plays their next 21 games. Will they still be in the race? Will they be completely out of it? Will they barely be hanging on? And can GM Omar Minaya afford to publicly wave the white flag at the risk of lost ticket sales and other revenues at Met home games in August and September, and depending on what moves he makes, 2010?

Only time will tell, but you can put this one in the books. The 2009 Mets will not make the postseason because they've gone too many games without their horses. By the time the cavalry comes back, it will be too late.

I really hope to be proven wrong, but this time, I highly doubt it.

Go Angels.

Every year, MLB begins their All-Star game balloting near the end of April, which is far too early. I advocate for voting only after June 1, as you simply cannot elect players to the All-Star game based on less than one month of baseball.

Ok, so the Mets only scored 2 runs off of Cincinnati, but today's season opener was all about the Mets pitching, and the template they need to follow for a great season.

Of course, it's easier said than done, and it's not going to work out for them every game, but ideally...

Starter goes 6 innings.
Sean Green or Pedro Feliciano in the 7th inning.
JJ Putz in the 8th inning.
Frankie Rodriguez in the 9th inning.

The other relievers (Brian Stokes, Bobby Parnell, Darren O'Day) will pitch on occasion, but moreso when the Mets don't have the lead, or the lead is substantial (ie: more than 4 runs).

In today's game against the Cincinnati Reds, it was Johan Santana for 5.2 IP. Sean Green for 1.1 IP. Putz for 1, K-Rod for 1.

And what's more, the Mets bullpen didn't even give up a hit.

It's easy to get excited if you're a Mets fan, because the bullpen delivered on every level you wanted them to today in a tight 1-run ballgame. For all of the offseason hype and talk we've heard about the bullpen upgrades, you still have to play the games in order for it to count. You know, actions not words?

Now about that offense.... In the immortal words of Harry Caray, "Hic! Pass me another one bartender!"
Ergh, I meant, "LET'S GET SOME RUNS!!!"

The MLB All-Star game is a little over a month away. Voting began on May 1, which is way too early to make All-Star picks, but as of June 10, with the latest results available, and the timing right, here are my votes and analysis for the 2008 All-Stars.

Keep in mind that there is still a lot of baseball left to be played between now and the end of the initial voting period which ends on July 2. Player performances can drastically change over that time period, so a ballot submitted then could look a lot different than one submitted on June 10.

American League:
1B Current Leaders (as of June 9, 2008)
1. Kevin Youkilis (Boston)            926,758
2. Justin Morneau (Minnesota)     678,037
3. Jason Giambi (New York)        437,656
4. Carlos Pena (Tampa Bay)        296,769
5. Paul Konerko (Chicago)           270,410

My Pick: Justin Morneau (Minnesota)

Kevin Youkilis is practically neck-and-neck with Justin Morneau in stats across the board, so either one is a fine choice.

The Angels' Casey Kotchman should be getting more votes than he has, leading all AL 1B in BA (currently .307) and has been consistently good all season. The Tigers' Carlos Guillen is also a good pick, but he's since been moved out of 1B for the defensively-challenged Miguel Cabrera, who this year would be a terrible pick at any position.

Paul Konerko isn't remotely reasonable in that spot when he's been hitting under .220 practically the entire season, and doesn't have the power numbers that a Jason Giambi has to justify the votes. Carlos Pena is also a bad choice here, as he has more HRs than Konerko, but similar BA. Pena leads all AL 1B in strikeouts, and is also on the DL. A terrible choice.

2B Current Leaders (as of June 9, 2008)
1. Dustin Pedroia (Boston)          809,114
2. Ian Kinsler (Texas)                  512,894
3. Robinson Cano (New York)      512,045
4. Placido Polanco (Detroit)         333,336
5. Brian Roberts (Baltimore)        233,752

My Pick: Ian Kinsler (Texas)

Red Sox nation may be stuffing the ballots here, but these results are completely absurd. Kinsler has better stats than Pedroia across the board to the point that it's ridiculous to vote for anyone BUT Ian Kinsler at this point. Brian Roberts would be a better pick than Pedroia, but still not close to Kinsler.

Robinson Cano is having a terrible year and doesn't even belong in the top 5. This category is a joke if Kinsler doesn't win. There's not a single justifiable reason for anyone else to get it.

SS Current Leaders (as of June 9, 2008)
1. Derek Jeter (New York)            1,218,881
2. Michael Young (Texas)               533,582
3. Edgar Renteria (Detroit)              365,269
4. Julio Lugo (Boston)                     281,408
5. Orlando Cabrera (Chicago)          271,702

My Pick: Michael Young (Texas)

Derek Jeter is in this spot for two reasons. One, legacy at the position. Two, the All-Star game is in Yankee Stadium, so he's getting a LOT of hometown voting. But again, the fans are completely wrong and should be ashamed for voting this way.

This is a terrible pick when Michael Young's numbers trump Jeter's across the board in the same way Kinsler's stats obliterate the entire field at 2B.

The Rangers' middle infield is clearly getting short-changed in the voting because they're not a major market like New York or Boston, even though Young and Kinsler are the ONLY reasonable choices at these two positions.

3B Current Leaders (as of June 9, 2008)
1. Alex Rodriguez (New York)         1,109,916
2. Mike Lowell (Boston)                     584,563
3. Miguel Cabrera (Detroit)                 379,813
4. Joe Crede (Chicago)                      334,024
5. Scott Rolen (Toronto)                     204,472

My Pick: Alex Rodriguez (New York)

A-Rod's stint on the DL makes his stats this season seem on the weak side. What, ONLY 10 HRs? But he's still the best pick at the position.  Mike Lowell also spent time on the DL this season, but his stats don't compare to A-Rod's in the least.

Miguel Cabrera isn't at 3B anymore, and even if he were, doesn't have the stats to warrant the votes.

The only other slightly reasonable pick at 3B is Chicago's Joe Crede, who leads all AL 3B with 14 HR and has a very good .291 BA.

C Current Leaders (as of June 9, 2008)
1. Jason Varitek (Boston)               681,451
2. Joe Mauer (Minnesota)               630,372
3. Ivan Rodriguez (Detroit)               505,645
4. Jorge Posada (New York)            445,455
5. Victor Martinez (Cleveland)          321,063

My Pick: Dioner Navarro (Tampa Bay)

Based on stats, there are only two reasonable choices at what is a fairly weak field of catchers. Joe Mauer, and the Rays' Dioner Navarro, who despite a .349 BA leading all catchers, and has been hitting well over .300 all season, doesn't crack the top 5, which is ridiculous.

Varitek is a poor choice here, as he is every year. Red Sox Nation continues to try and flood the All-Star team with their players, even when very few of them should be involved.

Both Rodriguez and Varitek get votes based on how they performed 7 years ago, instead of in 2008. Jorge Posada spent a fair amount of time on the DL this season, and while he is hitting .311, hasn't played enough this year to matchup with Mauer and Navarro's stats.

DH Current Leaders (as of June 9, 2008)
1. David Ortiz (Boston)                   1,261,879
2. Hideki Matsui (New York)             672,267
3. Jim Thome (Chicago)                   403,881
4. Gary Sheffield (Detroit)                 192,557
5. Frank Catalanotto (Texas)             188,622

My Pick: Hideki Matsui (New York)

David Ortiz is a great pick except he's on the DL and may be done for the season. Gary Sheffield is also on the DL, but is not a good pick at all this year.

Jim Thome has very good power numbers but that's about all. He's hitting .212 and strikes out at a very high rate.

Matsui is hitting .323 with 6 HR, 29 RBIs and a 1-to-1 BB/K ratio. With Ortiz out of the mix, no one else should get a vote except for Hideki Matsui.

OF Current Leaders (as of June 9, 2008)
1. Manny Ramirez (Boston)              1,179,884
2. Josh Hamilton (Texas)                     922,220
3. Ichiro Suzuki (Seattle)                     696,176
4. Vladimir Guerrero (Los Angeles)       610,877
5. Bobby Abreu (New York)                 545,852
6. Magglio Ordonez (Detroit)               512,245
7. Johnny Damon (New York)              444,973
8. Melky Cabrera (New York)               439,893
9. Torii Hunter (Los Angeles)                421,694
10. Grady Sizemore (Cleveland)           410,465

My Picks: Josh Hamilton (Texas), (write-in) Carlos Quentin (Chicago), Manny Ramirez (Boston)

Josh Hamilton is having an amazing season so far, 17 HR, 69 RBIs (wow), and .315 BA. Clearly deserves the vote.

Carlos Quentin is an unfortunate victim of not being on the ballot, so he's not getting the votes. He'll definitely make the team thanks to the players' voting, but fans should be writing him in at a faster clip. If I could write-in Milton Bradley (Texas) as well, I would.

And Manny Ramirez is a fine choice this season based on his numbers.

There are a good number of options for the AL outfield. I have no quarrel with guys like Ichiro, Johnny Damon and Bobby Abreu making the top 10.

There are still people on the list though, who shouldn't be. Vladimir Guerrero is having a very mediocre season. Melky Cabrera is good, but is no All-Star. Torii Hunter isn't having the season that other better players are.

Pitching:
Fans of course, don't get to vote for pitchers in the All-Star game. But here are my 10 picks in case the players need some guidance. J 5 starters, 5 relievers, in no particular order. 

Starters:  Cliff Lee (Cleveland), Roy Halladay (Toronto), Ervin Santana, (Los Angeles), Scott Kazmir (Tampa Bay), Jose Contreras (Chicago).

Relievers:  Mariano Rivera (New York), Frankie Rodriguez (Los Angeles), Jonathan Papelbon (Boston), George Sherrill (Baltimore), Joakim Soria (Kansas City)

So, in conclusion, my AL ballot:
C: Dioner Navarro (Tampa Bay)
1B: Justin Morneau (Minnesota)
2B: Ian Kinsler (Texas)
SS: Michael Young (Texas)
3B: Alex Rodriguez (New York)
DH: Hideki Matsui (New York)
OF: Josh Hamilton (Texas), (write-in) Carlos Quentin (Chicago), Manny Ramirez (Boston)     

Overall, the fan voting is leading to some absolutely terrible choices so far at 2B, SS and C positions, picking 3 guys who don’t belong starting.

Onto the National League Ballot!!!

National League

1B Current Leaders (as of June 10, 2008)
1. Lance Berkman (Houston)            1,046,249
2. Derrick Lee (Chicago)                     771,516
3. Albert Pujols (St. Louis)                   700,777
4. Ryan Howard (Philadelphia)              368,012
5. Prince Fielder (Milwaukee)               317,039

My Pick: Lance Berkman (Houston)

Berkman is the best pick of them all by far, although I wouldn’t necessarily spit on someone for voting for Pujols, Lee, or San Diego’s Adrian Gonzalez.

Ryan Howard doesn’t deserve to be on the All-Star team with a .214 BA. Prince Fielder isn’t putting up the numbers that other more worthy candidates are.

2B Current Leaders (as of June 10, 2008)
1. Chase Utley (Philadelphia)     1,284,961
2. Mark DeRosa (Chicago)            589,637
3. Kazuo Matsui (Houston)            523,335
4. Dan Uggla (Florida)                   366,848
5. Orlando Hudson (Arizona)          333,998

My Pick: Chase Utley (Philadelphia)

Up until recently, no one was even remotely close to being a reasonable option OTHER than Chase Utley.

Florida’s Dan Uggla has experienced an offensive surge which is still short of Utley’s numbers, but would make a good option as a backup. DeRosa is a good hitter but doesn’t have the power of Utley or Uggla.

SS Current Leaders (as of June 10, 2008)
1. Miguel Tejada (Houston)             726,835
2. Hanley Ramirez (Florida)             607,528
3. Ryan Theriot (Chicago)                583,433
4. Jose Reyes (New York)               498,007
5. Jimmy Rollins (Philadelphia)         442,885

My Pick: Hanley Ramirez (Florida)

Up until he went on the DL in early May, Rafael Furcal of the Los Angeles Dodgers was having an All-Star caliber start to his season. Alas, he’s been out for over a month now and there’s no definitive timetable on when he’ll return.

With the current field of shortstops, it’s really a 2-man race and the fans have it right for once. Miguel Tejada and Hanley Ramirez are the best options. Jose Reyes has improved greatly from his slow April, but he’s still not as good a choice as Ramirez or Tejada.

I give the edge to Hanley because of the power numbers (14 HRs compared to Tejada’s 7), but don’t find Tejada to be a bad pick since he’s been hitting hover .300 most of the season.

Ryan Theriot and Jimmy Rollins are good choices, but not the best. Atlanta’s Yuniel Escobar is at the same level.

3B (Current Leaders (as of June 10, 2008)
1. Chipper Jones (Atlanta)            1,110,171
2. Aramis Ramirez (Chicago)           726,973
3. David Wright (New York)              655,105
4. Ty Wigginton (Houston)                359,989
5. Mark Reynolds (Arizona)              292,702 

My Pick: Chipper Jones (Atlanta)

Open and shut. Chipper Jones is hitting .420 on June 10 and leads all NL 3B with 15 HRs. Any other vote is retarded. Seriously. And I HATE Chipper Jones.

C (Current Leaders (as of June 10, 2008)
1. Geovany Soto (Chicago)          969,853
2. Brian McCann (Atlanta)           578,276
3. Yadier Molina (St. Louis)         458,084
4. J.R. Towles (Houston)             367,248
5. Russell Martin (Los Angeles)   350,694 

My Pick: Brian McCann (Atlanta)

Brian McCann and Geovany Soto are the top 2 in the voting, and either one would be a good choice at starting catcher. Currently McCann has the better numbers, but they’re so close, either one would be fine.

Yadier Molina is hitting .295, but older brother Bengie Molina is hitting .333 with better overall numbers. Bengie isn’t in the top 5 votegetters.

J.R. Towles might be the most ridiculous pick ever, with a .145 BA. Embarrassing.

Russell Martin is hitting very well but doesn’t have the power numbers of Soto or McCann. He still should be higher in the voting than Molina or Towles.
 

OF (Current Leaders (as of June 9, 2008)
1. Alfonso Soriano (Chicago)               1,088,866
2. Kosuke Fukudome (Chicago)             918,262
3. Ken Griffey Jr. (Cincinnati)                 775,759
4. Carlos Lee (Houston)                         587,027
5. Carlos Beltran (New York)                  518,838
6. Ryan Braun (Milwaukee)                     514,913
7. Matt Holliday (Colorado)                     507,628
8. Hunter Pence (Houston)                     500,857
9. Pat Burrell (Philadelphia)                    487,131
10. Rick Ankiel (St. Louis)                     478,136

My Picks: Ryan Braun (Milwaukee), Alfonso Soriano (Chicago), Ryan Ludwick (St. Louis)

This is an interesting result that the fans have put together. Kosuke Fukudome has become a fan favorite of the Cubs and had a very good start to the season but has cooled off considerably. He’s probably good enough to be a reserve OF, but in no way should be a starter.

Ken Griffey Jr. is a nostalgia pick but doesn’t have the numbers to warrant being here.

Carlos Beltran is a ridiculous choice unless you’re voting for the best defensive CF of the bunch. Otherwise, he has no business on the team having the nothing season he’s having.

Matt Holliday would probably be one of my picks if not for him being on the DL.

Carlos Lee’s BA isn’t good enough to warrant so many votes, although Astros fans are clearly voting in big numbers when guys like J.R. Towles, Kazuo Matsui and Carlos Lee are garnering as many votes as they’ve gotten.

A lot of absurd people in the top 10 here, as opposed to the AL’s top 10, which are mostly good picks.

Pitchers:
5 starters and 5 relievers, in no particular order.

Starters: Edinson Volquez (Cincinnati), Tim Lincecum (San Francisco), Brandon Webb (Arizona), Ben Sheets (Milwaukee), Ryan Dempster (Chicago).

Relievers: Billy Wagner (New York), Brad Lidge (Philadelphia), Kerry Wood (Chicago), Matt Capps (Pittsburgh), Brandon Lyon (Arizona).

So, in conclusion, my NL ballot:
C: Brian McCann (Atlanta)
1B: Lance Berkman (Houston)
2B: Chase Utley (Philadelphia)
SS: Hanley Ramirez (Florida)
3B: Chipper Jones (Atlanta)
OF: Ryan Braun (Milwaukee), Alfonso Soriano (Chicago), Ryan Ludwick (St. Louis) 

Overall, the fans have put together much better picks for the NL starters except in the Outfield, with only Alfonso Soriano being deserving of starting in the current top 3 votegetters.

Current Stats.
In 14 games started, 5-4 W-L, 4.98 ERA, 63 K, 48 BB, 13 HR given up in 72.1 IP.

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Great starts:
April 2 vs Florida (Mets won 13-0. 6 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 8 K) Perez gets the win.
May 18 vs Yankees (Mets won 11-2. 7.2 IP, 2 ER, 3 H, 2 BB, 4 K) Perez gets the win.
June 13 vs Texas (Mets won 7-1. 7 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 1 HR, 3 BB, 8 K) Perez gets the win.

Good starts:
April 8 vs Philadelphia (Mets lost 5-2. 5.2 IP, 0 ER, 3 H, 3 BB, 2 K) No decision.
April 19 vs Philadelphia (Mets won 4-2. 5.2 IP, 0 ER, 4 H, 5 BB, 7 K) Perez gets the win.
May 11 vs Cincinnati (Mets won 8-3. 6 IP, 3 H, 3 ER, 4 BB, 8 K) Perez gets the win.
June 7 vs San Diego (Mets lost 2-1. 5.1 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 1 HR, 2 BB, 5 K) No decision.

Bad starts:
April 19 vs Brewers (Mets lost 9-7. 4.1 IP, 8 H, 6 ER, 1 HR, 3 BB, 4 K) No decision.
April 24 vs Washington (Mets lost 10-5. 5.2 IP, 6 H, 5 ER, 4 BB, 3 K) Perez gets the loss.
May 5 vs Dodgers (Mets lost 5-1. 6 IP, 6 H, 5 ER, 3 HR, 2 BB, 3 K) Perez gets the loss.
May 23 vs Colorado (Mets lost 6-5. 5 IP, 6 H, 4 ER, 1 HR, 8 BB, 2 K) No decision.
May 28 vs Florida (Mets won 7-6. 6 IP, 4 H, 5 ER, 3 HR, 4 BB, 7 K) No decision.

Atrocious starts:
April 30 vs Pittsburgh (Mets lost 13-1. 1.2 IP, 2 H, 2 ER (7 R), 5 BB, 2 K). Perez gets the loss and the Billy Wagner verbal thrashing.
June 2 vs Giants. (Result TBD. 0.1 IP, 5 H, 6 ER, 2 HR, 2 BB, 0 K) Perez gets the loss and lunatic Met fans demand he be released, then complain about Willie Randolph, just cause.

----------------
Things to keep in mind before blowing one's top...

Oliver Perez in 2007:
15-10 with a 3.53 ERA. 79 BB, 174 K in 177 IP. .229 BAA

It's not like he wasn't erratic last season either, but the overall numbers from 2007 were pretty good.

It's the truly atrocious starts which give one reason to be angry, because as has been pointed out, he's going to overwork the bullpen when he can't get past the 1st inning of a game.

The team IS going to lose games, and I think anyone expecting the next 110 games to be automatic wins is off their rocker. As long as they win SERIES, this team is in good shape.

I really wanted to watch the Mets-Marlins game today, but I could not.
I really wanted to watch the Northwestern-Michigan game today, but I could not.
Neither of them were on TV in Southern California.

So I settled this morning for the NHL season opener from Hockeytown UK! That's right, the Anaheim Ducks and Los Angeles Kings played at the O2 arena in London, England to open the regular season. The Kings won 4-1 in the debut of Kings 19-year old rookie goaltender Jonathan Bernier who was very impressive in goal. The defending Stanley Cup champion Anaheim Ducks, without retired Teemu Selanne and probably-retired-but-he-can't-decide Scott Niedermayer, didn't look all that together, but it's reallllly early in the season, and tomorrow is another day. Another day in which the teams will play in the O2 arena, this time with the Ducks on "home ice."

How do they create "home ice" in London? Well, it's based on graphics, and the production you would get at the local arena. For example, when the Kings scored a goal, you got to hear Randy Newman's "I Love L.A." Tomorrow when the Ducks score a goal, you will hear the huge foghorn and maybe even the Pennywise theme song during the intros.

But enough about hockey, for now.

Oh yeah, Northwestern made things interesting in the game against Michigan, leading 16-7 going into the half, but then the Wildcats couldn't score again, ultimately losing 28-16.

And then, baseball.

The great news is that the Mets won. John Maine pitched the game of his fucking life, taking a no-hitter into the 8th inning before having it broken up by an infield squibber down the third-base line. It was the only hit of the game for the Marlins. Meanwhile, the Mets brutalized the opposition 13-0 on 19 hits.

And still no Mets pitcher has ever thrown a no-no in franchise history. So many come close, but none have succeeded.

So then, the FOX affiliate in L.A. showed us the Cubs vs Reds gamea. Now, I am a Cubs fan, I am very happy to see them in the postseason. But this game had absolutely zero bearing on anything in the postseason. The Cubs have already won their division, they're just playing to play. The Reds, LOL. So I'm screaming a tirade of profanity and anger at my TV, wondering why they aren't showing the Phillies-Nationals game, a game with HUGE playoff implications. After maybe a half-inning, someone at FOX must have realized that they should switch to a game that actually matters, and they went to Philadelphia.

After about 4-5 innings of that game, they then switched us over to the Milwaukee Brewers vs San Diego Padres game, which I could at least understand, even if I wasn't happy about it. After all, San Diego is in the playoff picture, they're on the West Coast, and they're fighting for a playoff spot as well. Plus it was a pretty good game.

The Brewers, down 3-2 in the 9th inning with 2 out and a man on 2nd, had to face all-time saves leader and future HOFer Trevor Hoffman. In perhaps a nice twist of irony, Hoffman was facing Tony Gwynn Jr. If the Padres won the game, they were guaranteed the wild card and no one could take it from them.

Gwynn Jr. tripled down the rightfield line to tie the game 3-3. They game went into extra innings, and the Brewers ultimately won the game 4-3 in 11 innings.

And in the most important news of the day, the Washington Nationals beat the Philadelphia Phillies 4-2, which put the Mets and Phillies in a tie for first place of the NL East with identical records of 88-73.

It all comes down to Sunday, and someone is going to choke, even if it goes to Monday.

If the Mets win and the Phillies lose, the Mets win the NL East.
If the Mets lose and the Phillies win, the Phillies win the NL East.
If both teams win OR both teams lose, there will be a one-game tiebreaker played on Monday between the two teams in Philadelphia. Considering the ass-whupping that the Phils have put on the Metropolitans over the course of the 2006 regular season, this is an extremely undesirable outcome. But at least the Mets will have a chance. Plus they do play better on the road.

One thing is for certain, Sunday is going to be super-dramatic. And fuck FOX for putting NFL games on instead of MAJOR baseball games with dire consequences.