I'm Home

After 26 total hours of driving, nearly 1,300 miles in total, a touch of sunburn, lots of good food and more beer than I care to remember, I'm back. The week away with the wife, kids and friends was quite nice, but I missed our boys. Lot's of stuff went down while I was away, losses, wins and injuries. Of course, being so far away, the only lifeline I had to the Mets was ESPN, for all the good it did me. Apparently, the only sports news of interest was that Tiger Woods was going to be paired with Lefty in the first round of the PGA, and the Yankees and Red Sox were going to play 5 games in 4 days for the first time in decades. These were the two main stories on ESPN News. Ugh.

I did see the Jets trade for Lee Suggs, only to have the trade voided by a failed physical (perhaps the Mets could use the same doctors going forward?). How would you like to be Derrick Strait right now? The Isles signed Sean Hill for the defense, good pickup there. Still no progress on signing Rick DiPietro, and apparently, according to Larry Brooks in the Post, Charles Wang will handle the negotiations, not GM Garth Snow. But wait, Wang is on vacation, so he will have 2 weeks before the start of camp to get a deal done. Curioser and curioser. Of course, Larry hates the Isles, and could be twisting things to make the team look bad, not that they need all that much help.

On to the Mets. I left last Saturday, and the Mets won both Saturday and Sunday, prepping for a 4 game set in Philly. Which wound up being awful for a few reasons. The first of course was losing 3 of 4, and getting pounded. Pedro goes down with a calf injury as the Mets fell 13-0. Tuesday wasn't much better, as El Duque got shelled 11-4. Wednesday saw Glavine pitch for what could be the last time this season and lose 3-0. Thursday the boys woke up and won 7-2 behind Maine and the Carlos'.

The Yanks and Red Sox were getting ready to do something no other teams have ever done, play 5 games in 4 days.

This past weekend saw a sweep of the Rockies, which was tempered by the news on Glavine. Saturday saw the ceremony to honor the 1986 Champions. Alas, I missed it, getting home too late. I did see some recaps on the news, nice "ECW" bent having the guys come in through the stands. Straw, who was dead to me, is now alive, having appeared. Let's see how long he remains in the good graces.

Meanwhile, the Yanks and Sox were playing 5 games in 4 days.

At least I got to see most of yesterday. The Carlos' were at it again, and El Duque rebounded nicely, 6 shutout innings, and one stolen base! The pen held, Aaron Heilman continuing his resurgence. Wagner with another save, leading the NL now.

News flash, the Yanks and Red Sox played 5 games in 4 days. (Yes, I am annoyed). The Sox are now done, the Yanks will win the AL East. Can we all just move along now? Thanks.

So where do the Mets stand? Well, down two starting pitchers, one left fielder, and still in first place by 14 games. The Magic Number is 26. Maine continues to impress, Trax is still a surprise, Duque still has his off days. Bannister or Perez could see some time, as may Pelfrey. This team needs a healthy Pedro if Glavine is out (I know, not exactly a shock to anyone). What looked to be a good shot at the WS is looking bleaker. We shall see.


It's good to be back.