I said it and wrote it all off-season....the New York Mets aren't any better this year than they were last year. Of course, I didn't expect them to be any worse, but they've managed to be worse, and it's difficult to envision them turning this season around any time soon. This team has flaws and issues. Where shall we begin?

My main concern heading into the season was that the much improved bullpen would mean little if the starting pitchers couldn't hand a lead over to the bullpen. That has indeed been the case. Johan Santana is everything the Mets thought he'd be. However, the rest of the staff has question marks. John Maine is an off-season removed from arm surgery, and he has looked inconsistent to date. Mike Pelfrey is still under .500 for his career, and has just one good season under his belt. He has looked shaky so far (6.00 ERA). Oliver Perez is in the rotation because Omar Minaya wouldn't commit to another year on the offer made to Derek Lowe. Lowe is doing quite well in Atlanta, while Perez is starting to look more and more like the 2008 version of Dontrelle Willis. Fresh off a 3 year $36million dollar contract, the Mets are already considering a move to the bullpen for Perez. This signing could rival Luis Castillo's contract as the worst Minaya contract concoction. Perhaps Fred Wilpon should explore the money Minaya is costing him instead of Bernie Madoff. Livian Hernandez as the fifth starter is almost laughable. He's nothing more than a batting practice pitcher at this point in his career. There's a reason he's with his fourth team in four years. Over the past three seasons, ML hitters are hitting .321 against Hernandez. Bobby Parnell should have been given the chance to be the fifth starter, and perhaps he could have shined the way Mike Pelfrey did last season. And Tim Redding, currently rehabbing, is NOT the answer.

So, what else is wrong with the Mets? Well clearly the bullpen cost the Mets over the past two choke-filled seasons. But let's be honest. This is one of the worst clutch hitting teams ever assembled. If the offense came through on some occasions, they'd have overcome the bullpen woes. (It is easy to blame the bullpen over the past two seasons, but public enemy number one, Aaron Heilman is 2-0 and has an ERA of 0.82 with the Cubs. Scott Schoeneweis has given up 2 runs in 11 games this season with the D-Backs.) Last season with RISP and two outs, Carlos Beltran's average was .189, Ryan Church hit .219, and David Wright hit .247. This season, they've picked up where they left off. The Mets LOB numbers this season are not only embarrassing, but worse than last seasons. One of their best clutch hitters last season, Fernando Tatis (.392 with RISP) has been riding the pine.

So add up the Mets rotation woes, and their clutch hitting woes, and it is enough to see why the Mets stand at 10-13, but there's more to be concerned about. This team is playing with no intensity or urgency. After two season-ending collapses, it was paramount that the Mets started out strong this season. It hasn't happened. One of the team leaders, Carlos Beltran failed to slide...not once...but twice during crucial times in separate games. What kind of example is he setting for younger players, or even his tenured teammates for that matter? Charlie Manuel sat down his MVP Jimmy Rollins when he failed to hustle last season. If Jerry Manuel wanted to send a message to his team, Carlos Beltran should have been sitting the next day. When players like Reyes, Beltran, and Delgado returned from the joke that is the WBC, they, and not manager Jerry Manuel, decided when they would return to Spring Training games. It sounds as if the "inmates are running the asylum."

Speaking of a lack of spark or hustle, Jose Reyes has as many SB as Albert Pujols (4). After 23 games, shouldn't he have more than four stolen bases? If he has the green light, why does he have just four stolen bases? Where is the hustle? Wright, Reyes, and Church are on pace to hit 8 HR this season. Not only are the Mets not aggressive on the basepaths, but they're not aggressive at the plate either. This team excels in nothing right now.

While talented and emerging as a big time hitter, Daniel Murphy's defense has been atrocious. How long can the Mets continue to have their leftfielder playing as if he were wearing ice skates? Ryan Church and Gary Scheffield have also looked lost in the outfield. It's almost time to have Carlos Beltran pull a "Kelly Leek", and have him catch any ball he can get to.

Even Jerry Manuel's decisions so far have been questionable. His leading hitter, Carlos Beltran, was batting fifth while his number three and four hitters had been struggling. Surprisingly, Luis Castillo is hitting a robust .370 and his OBP is a healthy .433. Yet, instead of hitting in the two hole, he's hitting eighth, where his OBP is wasted. Does Manuel expect the pitcher to drive Castillo in? Not to mention, that Castillo is a slap hitter that has trouble driving men in from second base, which puts the pitcher in the position of having to drive home runs that Castillo can't. Against the Marlins Wednesday, with the bases loaded, and two outs in the ninth inning with the tying run on third base, Manuel dropped the ball by pinch hitting for Ramon Castro with Omir Santos. Castro was 2-4 in the game with a homer, while Santos was warming up Bobby Parnell in the bullpen and was cold, having not even swung a bat. Last season with RISP and two outs, Castro hit .412, yet Manuel decided to pinch hit with Santos...a rookie. The result: Santos popped out to end the game. Not only was the move controversial, but it has hurt the relationship with Castro and his manager. The move reeked of panic, and that is not a good thing for his players to see.

And though on a smaller scale, the new ballpark still doesn't quite have the "home field advantage" feel to it. There's virtually no Met memories in the new park. This stadium is more of a tribute to the Giants of Ebbetts Field, than the Mets of Shea Stadium. The fact that the team has started out slow, and has elicited many boos and much disgust by fans overpaying for tickets, makes CitiField feel even less like a home field. (And in a twist of irony, with the new Stadium having the Jackie Robinson Rotunda, the Mets have exactly one African American on their roster (Sheffield)).

Johan Santana aside, this team has no gamers. It's no coincidence that this team lost some "mojo" when quality clubhouse guys such as Cliff Floyd and Mike Cameron were let go. And he may have been a headache at times, but the Mets haven't had a fiery player since Paul LoDuca was given his walking papers. The current team is lackadasical and non-energetic.

So put it all together: A questionable rotation, poor clutch hitting, poor outfield defense, no intensity or sense or urgency, two season-ending chokes on their resume, poor managerial decisions, poor General Managerial decisions. Hmmm... sounds like a third place team to me.



Court Adjourned!