May 1st is upon us...and it's been a while since my last post. The first 30 days of a long season behind us and I can't help but wonder if this one is any different than the last. Last April we found ourselves in almost an identical position. Aprils end last year brought us a change of the guard at second base; the first dip into reserve arms after an injury to a starter; a record to be content; and a lead in the NL East. Fast forward to 2007 and some things are eerily similar...
Today we send El Duque (no surprise) and Valentin to the DL, causing up to double dip into New Orleans. Everyone seems so fragile and fingers are crossed Alou will be fine after his awkward run in with the chicken wire in left field this evening. The Mets record is nothing to frown about, yet those who have been tuning in every night know some of those losses should have been W's and some of those losses were not pretty. It's been a ho-hum April for me and I look forward to this team breaking out as summer approaches.
April brought my first home opener (and the following two games of the Phillies series) which was an unforgettable thing for a lifelong Mets fan. It also brought some of the coldest hours I've endured watching a ball game. The "breeze" at Shea in early April is relentless. This spring also brought the continued growth of Jose Reyes. He has sealed the deal as being the most exciting kid to grace baseball in years. And April proved to be a picture perfect month for John Maine and Joe Smith.
Those who are happy to see the calendar flip include Delgado & Wright. It's particularly frustrating to watch Wright through this slump. Mets fans haven't experienced a real "down time" from this kid and he is without a doubt putting incredible amounts of pressure on himself to break out of it. As fans we expect so much out of these kids, but I can only hope the boo birds calm down. He's working hard to come through this and we have to have faith in this kid. It's heart breaking to know how much effort he's giving, yet still his frustrations are coming out in every way; throwing his helmet, kicking the dirt, sitting in the dugout after the game. One can only hope it's May flowers for our corner infielders.
April has treated us well enough. We're fighting for the top spot in the East, our arms have hushed the naysayers, Endy is being Endy, and our outfielders have been swinging some hot bats. Things could be worse...we could be in the Bronx.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment