New York Mets

Good teams often have a certain attitude about them, a brashness that often borders on cockiness. That is why I enjoyed New York Mets third baseman David Wright's recent proclamation that the Mets are going to win the World Series.

According to the New York Post, shortstop Jose Reyes also got in the spirit shortly after Wright's bold prediction. According to Kevin Kernan, "Reyes said over in the minor league clubhouse that there is "no doubt" the Mets can make it to the World Series and win it all."

Well, first I would like to congratulate Omar Minaya on his job as general manager.  He has somehow made Washington a more desirable place to play then New York. 

As the 2009 baseball season ended, Mets fans knew that they had seen the worst; surely players would swarm to play in New York.  I hoped, like many others, that the Mets could get a decent second or third starting pitcher to bring some sort of solidarity to the starting pitching staff.

Well, that didn't happen.  But what happened?  We signed an old, star hitter instead...sound familiar? 

Many Mets fans fall into a more doom-and-gloom mindset than a positive one.

Whether that’s because of persistent disappointment, a “younger brother” mentality associated with the Yankees, the attitude of talk radio hosts, or something else, Mets fans tend to approach the team waiting for the other shoe to drop and the team to fail.

As the self-proclaimed Optimistic Mets Fan, I tend not to take this approach anyway, but I’ve found that this rule is not true across the board.

Much has been said about David Wright's home run total in 2009.

Mets fans everywhere are wondering if Wright will have a bounce-back season in 2010 power-wise, getting his total back up to the thirties that we're used to.

Well, the Mets are trying to help (or so they think).

Last season was gutrenching, not just for me, but for Mets fans everywhere. This off-season, I expected some sort of shinning light or hope and all I found was a lame excuse for why the sun didn't shine. Time and time again, I always tell myself that "oh, the Mets will be fine this year, you gotta believe!" but other times I start to wonder what happened to the 2006 Mets I loved so much.

I was very high on Jason Bay last year. I figured he would drive in a ton of runs with Jacoby Ellsbury and Dustin Pedroia at the top of Boston’s lineup.

He did not disappoint with 36 HRs and 119 RBI despite missing 11 games.

He’s moved on to the Mets this year, and he still figures to have plenty of opportunities hitting behind the likes of Jose Reyes and David Wright.

Bay has reached 100-plus RBI in four of his last five years, with nearly four of those years coming in Pittsburgh, so I don’t see him having a problem reaching that figure.

Mets Gaining Reputation As Not-So- Lovable Losers

Murphy's Law: Anything than can go wrong, will.

When I search "New York Mets" these days on the internet, I see a whopping increase in stories outlining the inexplicable ineptitude of New York's second best baseball club.

I also see a glut of blogs and websites dedicated to lamenting on the travels and travails of this comically dysfunctional organization. It's unreal the amount of effort that is going into these things. 

As usual, many pitchers finished the 2009 season with injuries. Injuries, particularly with pitchers, make fantasy owners question whether they should avoid the player at all costs or whether he represents a good "buy low" candidate.

Here is a recap of pitchers coming off injury, and whether they are worth the risk fantasy-wise or not for the 2010 season. We’re giving the Green Light to players not expected to be negatively impacted by their most recent injury woes.

Green Light

It’s been a roller coaster ride for Jason Bay and fantasy owners over the past few years.  In 2007, it seemed like his days as a stud fantasy outfielder were over (.247, 21 HR, 84 RBI), but a year and a half spent in Boston has clearly reinvigorated his value.

You don’t have to look further than his 2009 campaign for proof:

531 At Bats
.267 Batting Average (142 Hits)
36 Home Runs
119 RBI
103 Runs
13 Stolen Bases
.384 On Base Percentage
.537 Slugging Percentage
.318 Batting Average on Balls in Play

Today we are completing our quick tour of the NL East with our favorite team: the New York Metropolitans!  2009 was a tough year for the Mets as they were beset by a plague of injuries and ended up finishing fourth in the NL East ahead of only the lowly Nationals.