New York Mets

Sure, the Mets are out of it. Everyone has been injured. The manager is still a disaster, and there is still no obvious plan in place going forward. So what should we watch when we’re drawn in to watching baseball? What should we be rooting for?

Angel Pagan’s production has far exceeded expectations this season.  He’s batting .313 in 67 starts with 6 home runs and 28 RBI mostly hitting out of the lead off spot.  He’s played mostly solid defense in center field while filling in for one of the best center fielders in the game in Carlos Beltran.  He’s been one of the few bright spots on the team this season.

David Wright is starting his sixth year as a Met this week and has made it known that he would prefer to stay with the Mets for the rest of his career.

In this day and age of players only wanting to go where the money is and putting in no trade clauses in their contract, Wright is choosing loyalty to the team that he grew up loving and works hard for them 24/7/365.  The Mets have Wright under contract through 2012 and he has an option for the 2013 season.

The Mets are six-and-a-half games behind the Phillies (and of course also trail the Marlins and Braves) and are also six-and-a-half back in the wild-card race (and have seven teams ahead of them), so it may take a miracle or at least wishful thinking for them to make the playoffs.

But here are 10 reasons why the Mets should at least have some hope going into the second half of the season.

Hey, Mets fans! Guess what?

"Who's your daddy?"

Pedro Martinez is in the process of finalizing a one-year contract with the Mets most hated rival, the Philadelphia Phillies, in hopes that he can not only prove to all of Major League Baseball, but to the Mets, that he still has something left in that golden right arm. 

<!--[if gte mso 9]> Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE

He made it into the seventh inning last Thursday night with the no-hitter intact, and when he finally came off the mound in the same inning, the line score wasn’t nearly as strong as his performance indicated. Nonetheless, Tim Lincecum would garner his 10th win of the 2009 season.

The Mariners made a necessary move this week sending struggling pitcher Brandon Morrow down to AAA Tacoma after his disappointing start in the 6-4 loss to the Texas Rangers.

Ex-Nats Skipper Could Help Mets Get Back On Track

The Washington Nationals fired their manager, Manny Acta, today, opening the door for the NY Mets to bring their former third-base coach back into the fold.

Why would the Mets - who are struggling mightily to stay afloat - want to bring in a manager who had won only 26 games in the first half this season?

The MLB All-Star Game is one of the greatest games in sports. It is a time when both leagues put forth their best players and play to see who's better.

But most of all, it is a time to reflect on the first half of the season as well as look ahead to the second half.

In this "Great Debate", the top teams of the NL East have put forth their top writers to discuss what will happen in the second half of the season.

Mets top writer Richard Marsh and I have selected the participants.

For the Philadephia Phillies, we have Scott Eisenlohr and Cody Swartz.