New York Mets

Now that Oliver Perez has been airbrushed out of the Mets team picture (no record of him even existing can be found anymore), the Mets can’t seem to lose. In fact, the last game they lost was when the erratic lefty made his last start a week ago Saturday.

Seven games and three series sweeps later, the Mets have shot to first place. The combination of quality starting pitching, timely (and a lot of) hitting and the season-long success of their bullpen, along with aggressive base running, have turned the team around.

It remains a heated debate. If Billy Wagner had stayed healthy in 2008, are the Mets the team winning the division, winning the World Series, and spending the next four months bashing their division rivals?

While it is all speculation and hypothetical, there is valid evidence to support that had Billy Wagner kept his arm intact, the Mets would have proceeded to win the NL East. That aspect of the question remains plausible.

The Mets defeated the Pittsburgh Pirates by the score of 8-4 at Citifield today, and they completed their three game obliteration of the Pirates, outscoring the feeble opponents by a 25-8 margin.

The win was the Mets’ seventh straight, and they are just red hot right now.

Eight men in the starting lineup had at least one hit, and leading the way with two hits a piece was Jose Reyes, Luis Castillo, and Omir Santos. Castillo, Beltran, and Santos also led the way with two RBIs each.

A lot has been made of the Mets struggles on the mound early in 2009. It's true, they have had some inconsistencies from any pitcher not named Johan.

But they have the best bullpen ERA in the National League, and the second best batting average in the NL coming into action on Sunday. So while they might be having troubles in the rotation, the lineup is certainly picking up the slack.

What I find intriguing about the Mets' lineup is that even if a superstar like Jose Reyes is slumping, another member of the roster will step up and perform.

Going into their game against the Pittsburgh Pirates today, the Mets have won five straight, and spirits are high for the fan nation in Queens. I have decided that now would be an excellent time to take a look at the Mets starting lineup on an individual basis and evaluate each player’s performance with a grade and an explanation.

1) Jose Reyes

Grade: B-

Tonight, Jonathon Niese gets the chance that he has been longing for ever since he was sent down to Triple A in the spring. He will get the chance to show the Mets what he’s got when he faces the Pittsburgh Pirates at Citifield tonight, and he could make Oliver Perez’s trip to the disabled list last a bit longer.

The Mets have an incredible lineup full of speedsters and sluggers, and in two cases, namely David Wright and Carlos Beltran, they have both speed and power as evidenced by both of them being members of the 30/30 club. 

Jerry Manuel does little to change the lineup on any given day other than the pitcher and the catcher in the event of a day game following a night game. 

It has been reported that Oliver Perez is headed to the New York Mets bullpen.

According to Manager Jerry Manuel, he experienced the same thing with two starters when he was manager of the Chicago White Sox—James Baldwin and Jon Garland.

I guess what Jerry means is that those two pitchers had the unique ability to hit the sweet spot of the bat very solidly with their thrown baseball, while mixing in a few free passes to the tune of one per inning. Ollie is very good at that.

Huh? What? Really? According to David Lennon of New York Newsday (click here for the post) the Mets have pulled Oliver Perez from the rotation. There really shouldn’t be a surprise there, despite the amount of money he’s being paid. He’s currently sporting a rotund 9.97 ERA and 2.26 WHIP over his first five starts, numbers that are simply unacceptable.

Some say happiness is a state of mind. As a rabid sports fan, I have to disagree. To me, happiness is your team's place in the standings.

Now that the Phillies and Red Sox have won the last two World Series, the title for most tortured fan base is up for grabs!

While fans in Cincinnati, Kansas City, Pittsburgh, and Washington can all make compelling arguments, the lack of expectations, poorly attended games and the "football first" mentality of these cities disqualifies them from the race for most miserable.