What is it with Pedro and Florida and leg injuries?  Two years ago, he slipped on a wet spot in the locker room when the umps sent him in to change his undershirt, the leg strain probably causing subtle mechanical alterations which led to his arm woes.  Now this--WTF?  And you’ll forgive me if, Sunshine State dateline notwithstanding, I’m not expecting El Duque to again refill his cup at the Fountain of Youth.

Ugg(la).

I’m trying to take it one game at a time, too, but I can’t stop thinking of how much of a difference one more win at any point in the 2007 season would have made last September 30…

Hope you’re feeling better!!

I’m taking the idiotic ranting approach to last night’s game.  OK, when Dirty Sanchez got injured in 2006, I said - there goes the season.  Of course everyone told me I was crazy - he is a middle reliever for petes sake! Then the next night, the Mets lost in walk-off fashion.  AGAINST THE MARLINS.  Leaving a bad taste in my mouth till basically Game 7 of the NLCS.  Of course, things would have been different, no Oh Pea, no Duque, no anyone, since Pedro was also injured.  As for last year - MG, what did I keep saying.  As CMG says above - any one win here or there would have made a HUGE difference on Sept 30 last year.  But when I brought that up, you know not winning games against the Marlins or Nats in July will mean no room for error in Sept.  Did anyone listen to me?  NOOOO (except for you, of course)

Now I am saying this - the bottom of the line up sucks ass.  Ryan Church is dead to me.  Pedro, I love him, but it’s time to face facts.  He has done NOTHING for this team when we’ve needed him.  I know, it sucks being old, it sucks being injured, but he doesn’t get hurt in 2006, we go to the World Series.  Surprise!  he’s out most of 2007.  What happens?  He comes back in September when the rest of the team mailed it in.  His signing did wonders for the legitimacy of the Mets and did good for fan morale, but what has Pedro done for us lately?  Get injured.  Nuff said.  Good thing we have Phil Humber!  Oh wait.  Good thing we have Duque!  Oh Wait.  Johan, Pea, Maine and pray for rain I guess.

Here’s where not having the benefit of years and years helps me: the whole Pedro thing. I mean, god knows I love Pedro, and his accomplishments are legend. But it’s like last year, when I was wringing my hands over the pitching rotation, and What Will We Do In The Playoffs, TBF is all, “We have a secret weapon for the playoffs! Pedro!” and i’m going, “I know I know basically nothing about this stuff but how can you put all your eggs into that basket?”
I have also been saying that the surgery was a godsend for him because it forced him to recondition and he wouldn’t be in such good shape without it. But - he got hurt IN FLORIDA! PITCHING IN WARM WEATHER! WHICH HE’S BEEN DOING FOR TWO MONTHS! WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN WHEN HE GOES NORTH????

Wait, didn’t I say I was going to practice moderation?

I don’t trust Pedro to tell people about how he’s really feeling, I don’t trust him to accurately gauge his own abilities. I don’t trust him to pitch through injury or know if it’s the kind of thing he can pitch through or if he’s so fragile he has to stop at the slightest owie. Call me a newbie, call me a traitor, call me blasphemous. I stand by this statement.

And if we don’t start hitting it won’t matter how much money we spent on Santana. But so help me if he gets made into a scapegoat. None of this is his fault.

Pedro has had a great career. But we need to be realistic and come to grips that he is a #4 starter. He only started the second game out of deference. Santana, Maine and Perez are all better. The 2 back-end spots are still a concern (why didn’t we jump on Patterson when the Nationals released him???) though but our top 3 still march on!

I wouldn’t consider you a traitor for what you said.  You know me, and I’m a lot worse at gauging theie so-called “health” (BPP, anyone?) In any case, back in 2006 - remember a little game against the Red Sox at Fenway?  He didn’t “feel” like pitching and gave up a bunch of runs to his former team and got the hell out of dodge.  I used to know another pitcher like that - named Al Leiter.  Ask TBF b/c I think Leiter was before your time.  Whenever he didn’t feel like pitching or would p’d off at the umps, he’s start kicking the dirt, throwing the ball over to first and basically take forver. 

I know what you mean about Pedro not gauging his own health - my take on it is that he is still an egomaniac.  You can’t tell Pedro Martinez he is not the ace of the staff - why do you think he and Schilling never got along (although Schill is just as bad, ego-wise)?  You can’t tell him - you are the #4 starter on the staff.  Why do you think SW (Stupid Willie) did the lefty/righty thing?  He still disrespects young guys and won’t willingly give the ball to John Maine who, btw, was the staff’s ace last year.

I’m trying not to flip out two days into the season - really!  It’s just you have the benefit of not knowing Pedro all that well.  I do, unfortunately, and I am sad to say he has NEVER come through for this team when we needed him to.  NEVER.  CMG will remember the Wild Card race in September 2005.  Pedro lost his sh*t and was never the same after that.  remember, he missed his last start of the season too so he could get a head start on his offseason.  WTF?  Whatever.

No, I saw Al pitch, back in 2004, and then in 05. I know Al because he came onstage with Bruce and then told Backstreets that Bruce was really a Mets fan and not a Yankees fan, but history has already blown that one out of the water.

The Red Sox seem to home-grow egomaniacs. Beckett? Papelbon?

I don’t think you’re flipping out. But do I think it’s time people stop drinking the Pedro Kool-Aid. One of the few Mets fans in my office said the same thing this morning, he’s a #4 starter. It’s the last year in New York. Why doesn’t Willie have the balls to just say, “Start pitching like you’re Pedro Martinez, or you’re #4.”

Oh, wait, don’t answer that. Willie is BPP #001.

That ok, the game gave me a migraine........