New York Mets

With things being a bit in flux in Queens, there are plenty of people that think some sort of roster shakeup may be on the cards.

Jerry Manuel has been quoted as saying he would like to see another reliever in his bullpen, but that would probably be at the expense of somebody on the bench.

With Alex Cora and Fernando Tatis being the virtual locks to stay, one would think that the two men who would have the highest likelihood to go in favor of a pitcher would be Jeremy Reed or Gary Sheffield.

It's time for the Mets to take very drastic measures in fixing their bullpen.  Get rid of it!  Keep JJ Putz and Fransisco Rodriguez and dump the rest.  Forget the righty, lefty match-ups and dump them all. 

Think I am crazy don't you? Just wait, it gets better.

Instead of five starters, the two backups in the minors that usually are called up, just have nine to ten starters on the team.  That way, you have eleven pitchers, nine of them starters and two of them closers. 

Just follow.

Today, we saw another example of a game that got away. I am not as upset at the fact that the Mets lost as I am about how they lost. I am going to place the blame on the shoulders of one of the youngsters who is supposed to be the new leader and spokesman for this team, and that is their third basemen, David Wright.

So much for it bending our way.

New York pitcher Johan Santana didn't pitch a gem, but he did well enough for a win.  He gave up two runs in the first, including Jorge Cantu's third homer in two games, but pitched shutout ball the next six innings after that.

But the bullpen (a.k.a. J.J. Putz) had different plans. Putz allowed a two-run single to Cody Ross to be the deciding factor as the Mets lost 4-3 Wednesday afternoon and lost the series to the Florida Marlins.

With all the talk of new stadiums and owners' greed in the New York area recently, a fast-growing problem is flying under the radar. I am talking about, of course, fans who can't catch.

When Fernando Tatis's home run went to the replay booth Wednesday afternoon, it marked the second time in a month that New York fans found themselves the victim of one of these butterfingered rooters.

For some reason, stadium designers love to give the fans the opportunity to reach out and possibly interfere with the ball.

In the spirit of full disclosure, I grew up as an aspiring broadcaster and a New York Mets enthusiast.  I suppose those two qualities went hand-in-hand given the Mets' radio crew in the '90s.

Gary Cohen was brought to WFAN as the heir apparent to Bob Murphy.  For comparison, think Vin Scully coming to the Dodgers to work with Red Barber or, more recently, Tom McCarthy coming to the Phillies to work with the late Harry Kalas.

But you don't fill a giant's shoes; you merely walk where he once ran.

I had such high hopes for Freddy Garcia. He won a championship and was such a workhorse throughout his career, until his injuries in 2006.

Tonight is a very important game for the Mets. They have won three of their last four games and they are looking to continue to build momentum.

Livan Hernandez, whose job is anything but secure, will take the hill for the Mets, while Ricky Nolasko will be taking the hill for the Fish. If Hernandez puts up a similar outing to his last one, many people will call for the promotion of Tim Redding, who has hit as high as 93 MPH with his fastball during his rehab assignment.

1. Zach Greinke, Royals Pitcher

Greinke is 4-0 with a 0.00 ERA. That's four starts and no earned runs given up yet.  Greinke is the most dominant pitcher in the majors right now but he plays for the Royals so not a lot of fans know about him or how good he is.

2. Chad Billingsley, Dodgers Pitcher