Don't look now but the streaking New York Mets have not only climbed back into the National League East pennant race, but have forged a tie with the Philadelphia Phillies.
The slumping Phillies now have a three game set with the Mets starting Tuesday with first place on the line. Philadelphia has been fading fast as they have lost 20 of their last 34 games.
Their offense hasn't been much better during this time either and their late inning loss to the Florida Marlins Sunday night now puts a team with three MVP candidates on the ropes in the NL. This is a place the Phillies have been familiar with in the past, but with last season's heroics and this season's good start, the Phils were hoping their offense would slow down any slump.
Manager Charlie Manuel is left shaking his head and wondering if the team is trying to hard to win the division with so many games left, or just forgot to come back after the All-Star break.
For the Mets, it's been a tale of two teams.
Basically left for dead a month ago, they have found their winning ways and reeled off a 10 game winning streak and are 13-4 in the month of July.
One key contributor, Carlos Delgado, has found his stroke of late and is hitting .419 with 15 runs, four HRs and 12 RBI. And the table-setter, Jose Reyes is hitting like his old self with a .338 batting average, 11 runs and nine RBI.
Now the Mets just look to get healthy as Pedro Martinez is saying he is feeling great as he looks to return later in the week and Billy Wagner is day-to-day with a left shoulder injury.
The Mets seem to have control of their own destiny as their next nine games are all against teams with winning records. They have a three game series against the Phillies, then a three game set against the St. Louis Cardinals, and then three on the road against the Florida Marlins.
Philadelphia has a little easier schedule to end the month with a three game series at New York, three at home against the Atlanta Braves, and three at the Washington Nationals. Either way, this series should be huge for both teams.
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2 months ago
Did I miss something? Are there only 9 games left in the season? What does "The Mets seem to have control of their own destiny as their next nine games are all against teams with winning records" mean? Mets fans more than anyone should know that winning now means very little. The Mets control nothing. They are up and the Phillies are down over the last month or so. That's baseball, its a long long season, played out over 162 games and teams will get hot and cool down and get hot again. Yes these next 3 games will be fun and your next 9 will be interesting, but they will decide absolutely nothing. Frankyl, I think the Mets have peaked, you're getting more out of Delgado and Tatis then anyone could have expected and that will even out down the stretch. Pedro is a 5 inning pitcher who is once again hurt. Your pen is wildly inconsistent just like Oliver Perez. Maine and Pelfrey are going to be up and down and Santana is not the pitcher he was with the Twins, but you already knew that. Good luck the next 3 game or 9....I'm watching the next 63.
2 months ago
Great to hear from you David...frankly gaining momentum now means a lot more than you think. By playing tough teams and winning now could be the one thing the mets needs to show the Phillies they're not peaking or going away.
I know there are more than 9 games to go in the season but baby steps my man...you can turn the tides in a short period of time. Remember momentum is one of if not the biggest thing in sports which helps to gain confidence.
Obvioulsy you're not a Mets fan, I'm not either, just from your comments. Because if you were you would probably agree more with the article.
Thanks for the comment.
from 2 months ago
I think both of you are right from the standpoint that this is a big stretch for the Mets. If they can reel off another seven or eight wins and the Phillies struggle again, the Phillies will be back in the catch up mentality. But at the same time it seems as if the Phillies thrive when they have to come from behind and there's a ton of time left in the season.
The Mets could easily slump or suffer a critical injury and by September be six or seven or even more games out. So from that stand point David is right.
Plus like he said, Delgado is probably overachieving a little right, as is Tatis a lot. You never know with baseball, maybe they will continue being hot but law of averages has them coming down to earth.
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