The Good, The Bad And The Ugly

The Mets got off to a good start winning opening day yesterday. Certainly the bottom line is to win the game and the Mets did that, so that is a great sign (as if they keep things going at this rate, they will finish 162-0—lol). Looking at individual aspects, I still think there were a lot of good signs, although not quite everything.

The Mets won 7-2 which means the offense and the defense, the hitting and the pitching, were going well. I was a bit concerned about the bottom of the order heading into the season. When Carlos Beltran led off the fourth inning with a double and that was followed by a walk to Delgado, the Mets had runners on first and second with Pagan, Church and Schneider due up. I was wondering if they would come through or if that would be the end of the threat. I was glad they came through as Pagan and Church both got hits to drive in runs. That was a good sign.

Although it is early and the Mets got runs relatively early in the game, I was hoping to see them jump over Florida in the first or second inning to make a statement, and that did not happen. Also, after the Mets put up a six spot in the fourth inning, they did not score again until the ninth, and that was just one run. So, it was good offense but there are still some things I would like to see click to know they are running on all Cylinders.

I did not see Wise pitch, who obviously did not have it today but Sosa was able to get out of the mini-jam. The pitcher, however, t hat everyone came to see, that everyone wants to talk about is Johan Santana. He was dominant as he went seven innings, gave up two runs, walked two and struck out eight. Those certainly are good numbers and he did look dominant. Still, I confess, I was looking for something more from him (maybe I am greedy).

First of all, Santana gave up the two runs ½ an inning after the Mets scored six. I hate that. When your team gives you a lead, the starting pitcher should be able to follow that up with a 1-2-3 inning the next time he goes out. I would have also felt better if in his first outing he only gave up one runs, or pitched shutout ball. Still, his numbers were impressive as he finished the day with a 2.57 ERA.

Overall, a good day for the Mets. It is a great feeling that after having an opening day win behind them, they still have Pedro Martinez going later today, in game two.

Let’s Go Mets!