Up, Up and Away!

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The Mets started their 2009 season today, away from Citi Field, in the heart of Cincinnati in what appeared to be a wet and damp ball park. The game was postponed 10 minutes but they managed to get it going and from the looks of it, the New York Mets don't plan on turning back. With a performance today by Daniel Murphy (that made Omar Minaya seem prophetic) the Mets can start looking down on the Phillies since they are already one game up in the division. You can never be too many games ahead and that we all learned the hard way.

Instead of getting hard core analytical on you, I figure we just take the pros and cons and move towards tomorrow...

The Pros

• Johan Santana reminded us why we gave him the $137 millon contract. If you missed his handshakes before the game in the dugout then it is worth checking out, (he had a different one with every person). He looked vibrant and excited and seems to be an established leader within the organization. Yes, he did give up 4 walks but we'll blame that on the weather. His 7 strikeouts lead the majors and he already has a W because of...

• The Bullpen: 3 new acquisitions helped bridge the gap that we so badly needed last year. Sean Green pitched 1 and 1/3 innings and got us to the 8th, where J.J. Putz lived past his last name (first and last time I ever use that pun, I promise) and pitched a scoreless inning, although he seemed to struggle when it came to finding that pitch that would put away the batter. Franky Rodriguez was "as advertised" and reminded us what a save actually is. 1-2-3 Good Night.

• Daniel Murphy: How appropriate that he is in this section because that is exactly where he belongs. The Pros. He solidified his spot in the batting order with 2 RBI's and his 3rd career home run today and although he makes us shvitz when he runs to a ball in the outfield - he'll be quite all-right. He gets a great jump on balls in front of him and he'll get the hang of the ones that go over his head. His patience at the plate and stats in the books tells us that he'll be in the pros for years to come.
  

• Jerry Manuel: People might tend to overlook or forget about a particular point in this game but it is worth mentioning. Santana was 5 & 2/3's (99 pitches) into the game and was known to have trouble with Edwin Encarnacion. At that time, Manuel did not mind pulling his ace from the game and had the presence of mind to actually do so. You get a shout out, Gangsta.

The Cons

• RISP: When it came to runners in scoring position, the Mets were an abysmall 1/12. We will not have Santana on the mound every day so 2 runs will not always cut it. We need to produce, especially if given the opportunity.

• K-Rod's Victory Dance: Yo, buddy, chill. No need to fake the stroke every time you close the door. On second thought, if you ARE effectively closing the game out, you can do anything and everything you please. Except, of course, take a late night taxi ride.

Get ready, Big Pelf, you're up next.

Here is SNY.tv’s Post Game Extra, featuring clips and quotes, as well as analysis from Ron, Keith and Gary, from today’s win over the Reds:



Johan's Handshake Parade: