New York Mets

What was once thought to be a disaster situation for the New York Mets turned out to be a blessing in disguise.

The Mets played the entire first half of the season without center fielder Carlos Beltran, and not only managed to keep their heads above water, but have been one of the best teams in the National League.

SAN FRANCISCO—The Mets got Carlos Beltran back last night, but also got shut out by Tim Lincecum. Coupled with the Braves win over the Brewers, the Mets find themselves five games out of first place, and seemingly headed in the wrong direction.

Examining the Jose Reyes situation, it's eerily similar to last season's debacle. Last season, Reyes had some "hamstring discomfort," and was listed as day-to-day.

Coincidentally, on the West Coast in Los Angeles, Reyes attempted to play, tore his hamstring, and was never seen or heard from again.

Carlos Beltran had a mixed night in his return to action on Thursday against the San Francisco Giants, although the general consensus should be that there were more positives than negatives to take from his debut.

Beltran finished 1-for-4 with a putout, and while Mets fans will be happy to have him back in the lineup, he obviously isn't back to full strength yet.

His lone hit came in the third inning, before he was subsequently thrown out trying to swipe second, and it was also apparent that he needs time to gel with his teammates in the outfield.

After a three-day break for the all-star game, the Mets managed to put together no runs, but the storyline of Carlos Beltran ’s first game of the 2010 campaign overshadowed this Mets loss to the Giants.

Beltran finished 1-for-4 with a single and grounded out to in the ninth without hustling down the line, which was not a good sign.

Tim Lincecum pitched a six-hit shutout, using a great mix of change-ups and fastballs. The Mets couldn’t hit a lick off of him tonight.

Carlos Beltran is off the disabled list, and he'll be back in the heart of the New York Mets lineup Thursday night in San Francisco.

After 14 rehab games for the Single-A St. Lucie Mets, the five-time All-Star and three-time Gold Glover will provide a big boost to Jerry Manuel's team, both in the lineup and in hopefully in the field.

Here are three different scenarios for his return...the best, worse, and most likely scenarios.

The much anticipated return of Carlos Beltran is only a day away. The Mets, their fans, and their manager are hoping that he can contribute immediately.

Is that realistic?

Normally, I don't have a problem giving a definitive opinion to a Mets related question. This one isn't that easy though.

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The second half of the season is going to start tomorrow, so it's only fair to let the players know how they are doing right now.

SAN FRANCISCO—What the Mets wanted to do in the first half was hang around until they got Carlos Beltran back.

But unlike last season, the Mets didn't wait for their reinforcements to return, they treated them as a bonus. They did a good job of playing without their star center fielder, going 48-40, and being only one game behind of a playoff spot.

Tonight, almost exactly six months to the day of announcing knee surgery on January 16, Carlos Beltran returns to the Mets lineup, batting cleanup in center field.

Twitter is such an interesting place to spark ideas and have conversation. I was talking to Rob_Sports over there tonight when they mentioned an interesting scenario for when Luis Castillo returns.

@TylerFlushingBB I’d like to see Tejada get a chance to start full time with Castillo there to take over if he struggles.

https://twitter.com/rob_sports/status/18569163935

I have seen a lot of posts on Twitter this year about Jeff Francoeur—about how terrible he is and how he should never play another game. I always find a way to defend him, if possible. The main reason is that I don’t think the naysayers were saying that at the start of the season when he was on fire.

Originally, the plan was for Carlos Beltran to be in center field when he returned, with Francoeur and Angel Pagan alternating in right field.