Looking Ahead to the Phillies

Written by Nikki DeMaio | 05 August 2010

"You gotta go out and win the games - the wins won't come to you." - Ron Darling

I'm glad a former Met gets that, because it seems as if this current group is not playing the crisp, clean baseball that is necessary at this point in the year.  I have no idea why it seems as if the Mets are not playing with the sense of urgency their fans feel so acutely, but there has been a subtle shift in the way the team is playing (and it's not good).  As the Mets head into Philadelphia for a critical weekend series, Darling's words keep replaying themselves in my head.  After a terrible showing in the rubber game against Atlanta on Wednesday, the Mets need to regroup and find their stride.  Despite the injuries to Ryan Howard, Shane Victorino, the Phillies have kept pace with the rest of the league and the wild card race... and I think it's time for that to come to an end.

This was the stretch of games we looked to at the beginning of the year that would make or break the Mets' season.  Even now, things look promising:  we're throwing Jon Niese, Johan Santana, and RA Dickey out against Joe Blanton, Cole Hamels, and Roy Halladay respectively.  The thing is, none of that will matter if the offense doesn't start stringing together hits and being productive with runners in scoring position.  Or if the defense can't hold itself together - that last game in Atlanta was a nightmare and had Keith Hernandez seething in the booth.  And I love that he was that frustrated with the team, because he sounded like a fan at that point and he's saying all the things we wish we could say to the guys making those errors.  If I want to watch 4 routine ground balls turn into errors in one game, I'll go see my town's Little League team play.

I'll be stranded without a computer for the next few days, so the chances of being able to update during this series are slim.  However, if the Mets can put together a complete ball game (pitching, defense, AND offense, not just one of the three) we have a chance to take two of three this weekend.  I want the Mets to pull through and stop thowing in the towel when there is still a third of the season to play.  Give us something to believe in again.