Seriously?

Playing out the string like this wouldn't be so bad except that since it's the 2009 Mets playing out the string, every loss has to be as excruciating as possible.

You can't even feel good with the Mets ahead 3-0, because you know that there's about a bazillion ways that they can blow the lead and the Nationals can come back to win the game. And that's exactly what happened. I watched the first few innings on TV, got tired, turned it off and then turned it on the radio. While I was busily dodging what have become some overly irritating radio commercials (Someone needs to shoot the Ad Director for the New York Lottery), I sort of lost track of the game. I heard something involving a Home Run, and I want to say it was by Ian Desmond, assuming that there's a guy on the Nationals named Ian Desmond, but I never quite bothered to pay attention to the score. Finally, I tuned in in an un-named late inning to hear Jeff Francoeur walk to load the bases. Then there was a double play, which is what the Mets do best when the bases are loaded. I knew, then, that it was the middle of the 8th. But, again, I hadn't bothered to pay attention to the score. Until the Bottom of the 8th, when the Mets did what the Mets do best in the field in a late close game, which is make errors and piss away the game.

I thought at some point that 70 wins would be a possibility for this team, but you know what? I'm really not so sure they can get there. I'm not even convinced 68 wins is possible for this team.

Get it Over With

The Mets last night reached that ignominious 90-loss plateau with yet another September Loss in Washington where they managed to get decent pitching, but didn't hit.

Unlike in previous years, this loss didn't cause mass panic or me to start screaming and ranting and tearing my hair out.

Greg from Faith and Fear brought this up yesterday, but even before reading his column, it wasn't lost on me that yesterday was the anniversary of the Last Game at Shea. One year later and I still consider it to be one of the most depressing days of my life, between the game and the finality of it all, knowing that the Stadium I'd spent 22 years worth of my Mets fan life in was no more. But Citi Field, it's OK. It can stay. The team, on the other hand, needs some work.

A comment on Greg's post sort of summed up my feelings rather well. Mets fans don't like this team, and right now, this team is the only memory we have in Citi Field, and so as an extension, Mets fans tend not to like Citi Field. Had most of the team stayed healthy, and the Mets remained in contention, and this season was playing itself out like the two years prior, well, not only would we be all having one more mass coronary, but we'd also be enjoying Citi Field. The place would be full and rocking at every game this weekend, just like it would have been at every game this month. It would have been the same horrendous, piercing, dramatic feeling that we'd gone through in the playoffs in '06, and down the stretch again in '07 and '08. Every game would feel like life or death. There would be plenty of tangible things to write about. And, though I went off on one particular rant last season where I said that it wasn't fun to watch the Mets, it would be fun. This year has made me realize that. I'd rather sit through 2008, a season that I called the longest ever, one that was maddening and miserable and at times no fun to watch, a dozen times than have to be subjected to this team, that looks pale and tired and uninspired and was finished by the end of June.

I don't think "Why?" even needs to be asked.

The Mets MVP for 2009

The Ballclub would like to announce its 2009 Mets Most Valuable Player. I am stealing this from a survey I read on I believe metsblog.com (and I apologize if I'm wrong and it's from another site), but the choice was without much debate. The Ballclub's 2009 MVP is none other than Danny Meyer, the man who brought Shake Shack, Blue Smoke and the scintillating El Verano Taqueria to Citi Field. Despite the fact that the team on the field often made me want to regurgitate what he'd fed me, Mr. Meyer made sure that the food was always of high-quality and substance. Congratulations, Mr. Meyer, on a job well done!

So Long, 518!

Tuesday night was the final game on the 15-game plan I purchased before the season, and, most likely, the final game in which I'd be occupying Section 518, Row 17, Seats 3 and 4, unless by some fluke I go to a random game and purchase those seats, or if the Mets decide to jerk me around and offer me the exact same seats next year. I'd prefer to sit a little lower down, thanks.

I managed to get to 14 of the 15 games on the plan, which is about what I'd figured, even the two day games. The Mets posted a 4-10 record in those 14 games, which, combined with the loss against the Yankees in June (the only non-plan game I've attended so far this season), leaves me with a sterling 4-11 record for 2009, which includes a personal losing streak that has now stretched to 8 games, has been by far and away the worst season's worth of games I've sat through, and based on the last game on Tuesday, shows no real end in sight.

The game isn't worth talking about, since the 2009 Mets really aren't worth talking about anymore. The best you could say is that at least El Guapo and I weren't totally convinced that Nelson Figueroa's career was over after he left the mound. Surprisingly, he wasn't TERRIBLE!!! He acquitted himself quite well. His team just didn't hit. What a shock.

Citi Field was a bit more full than I would have expected on Tuesday. It was full enough that the line at Shake Shack was actually a line you'd have to wait on for a few minutes. El Guapo and I opted for Blue Smoke this time, where my recent experience with the Chipotle Chicken Wings left something to be desired. But I'm always willing to try something else, so this time I opted for the Pulled Pork Sandwich. This, much like the tacos from El Verano, was probably the highlight of the evening. This sandwich was so good that now I'm torn between whether or not to get this or tacos next season. What to do!? El Guapo agreed, though he'd had the pulled pork earlier in the season and said it was better that time. I guess all things are better earlier in the season, even the team.

Most of the regulars I'd come to know in section 518 during the season weren't there on Tuesday. I can't say I blame them. One gentleman, who usually came with his son, was usually driving in from somewhere on Long Island, and usually left early to beat traffic. Although, given the amount of people at these games of late, there's not too much traffic to beat. There was a group of rather obnoxious, fratty-looking folks at the other end of my row, each of them wearing T-shirts that read "I saw 25 losses at Citi Field and all I got was this lousy T-shirt,' and on the back, "SUCKER 09." They were cheering for the Mets, but it seemed to be in a mocking fashion, or at least that's what I took it to be. That sort of summed up the season. Sometime around the 4th inning, interspersed with the batters being announced in Spanish, Alex Anthony made a very brief statement thanking all the Weekday Plan holders for their support. Scant consolation, I have to say. A plan that I'd figured would hold a decent amount of promise, and guarantee my admission to some exciting late-season games didn't quite materialize that way, and, thusly, ended with a whimper, a 3-1 loss that was about as unexciting and uncompetitive as the 7 losses I'd seen prior to it.

I do have one more game to attend this season, the last game on October 4th. At least I know that my last game this season won't be quite as tense and cathartic as the last game of the season last year or two years ago. Or even three years ago. In fact, it might be so lethargic, I might fall asleep. Much like it appears the team has done. I talked with El Guapo briefly about tickets for 2010, and if I'd get the same plan. Amazingly, after all this, I guess I probably will. I suppose I have some amount of leverage to demand better seats, or, at least seats a little lower down and more centered, but as I said to him, the intrinsic enjoyment I get out of simply being at a Baseball game will always far outweigh the misery I endure having to watch such a lousy team.

I guess that's the only way you can look at it.

Sad Sack

The Braves did last night what they should have done tonight when I'll be one of the 60 or so people in attendance at Citi Field and score 4 runs in the 1st inning. It's happened at just about every other game I've been to this season. Hopefully I haven't incited Larry and his band of lesser men to do just that. But then, the Braves got cute and decided to score 4 more runs in the 2nd and then 3 more in the 3rd, making the game unwatchable from about the second I turned it on. After about 10 minutes, Ron and Keith were talking about Beer and Pretzels and how it's illegal in North Dakota to serve pretzels with beer (Ron, the Yale grad, knew why). That might have been more interesting than the game at that point, so I turned to the radio, where Howie and Wayne were talking about it being the 8th anniversary of a much more Proud and Inspirational night in Mets History.

Either way, I wasn't there, which I suppose was good. But, again, tonight I'll be there, for what will be the 15th and final game on the Weekday Plan. Time to say goodbye to my seats in 518 and goodbye to the fans that have sat with me at most of these games. Hopefully, the Mets will acknowledge this by not making total asses of themselves as they have in 10 of the 14 prior games I've been to this season.

Better Team

The Mets are done for 2009, and like most Mets fans, I've sort of turned my interest, at least on Sundays, to the NFL, where my team, the San Francisco 49ers, have been playing, well, like the Anti-Mets.

(Those of you new readers wondering why the hell a native New Yorker became a San Francisco 49ers fan can read here for an explanation)

Yesterday, the 49ers ran their record to 2-0 by running over their division rival Seahawks, quite literally. It was Frank Gore who stole the show after a lackluster performance Week 1 (a 20-16 victory over the Arizona Cardinals and Jesus himself, won primarily on the merits of the defense), breaking off Touchdown runs of 79 and 80 yards and finishing with a grand total of 207 rushing yards on the day. The Defense, for the 2nd straight week, posted a solid performance in the victory.

Unlike the Mets, the 49ers have not been expected to make much of a fuss in the NFC West this season. But the NFL is really weird and strange things have happened. The 49ers have clearly shown that they have enough talent to make some waves this season, and shouldn't be taken lightly. There's always a team, every season in the NFL that sneaks up on you. I don't think they're a Super Bowl team, and hell, they may not even be a playoff team this season. But they'll create some havoc this season. You can count on that.

The Good Ol' Days

Step into the Wayback Machine, my friends, to a happier time and place in Mets History, just three short years ago tonight. El Guapo and I were there, in UR1 for the festivities on a magical night, never to be forgotten, no matter how bad things get.

This Zapruder-like video is how things looked from where I was sitting on that night, September 18th, 2006. Josh Willingham hit it, Cliff Floyd caught it, and a stamp of validation was placed on a memorable season that will last forever.

Kid's Not Allright

There are articles popping up all over the place saying it, and a few of them probably state the case far better than I ever could. But in a September where trashing the Mets has been in vogue, I think the player that's becoming most trashed right now is Daniel Murphy. Whatever it is, however he was hyped to us before the season and whatever our expectations for him were, he just doesn't have it.

That's not to say that he'll never have it. Who knows. He's only 23 and players can develop over time. But he hasn't displayed anything close to the polish he showed when he first came up. His quick start quickly faded into a series of mediocre at-bats that produced mostly outs, or the occasional single. The power never showed up. He was dropped from the #2 hole in the order. He couldn't field his position, and was moved to 1st Base, where he's proven himself at best, adequate. His Batting Average appeared to be stuck at .248 for about 3 months. Only when the season had already spiraled out of control did he appear to find himself, somewhat, at the plate, raising his average to a barely respectable .260. This wasn't the same hitter we saw late last season, who was taking pitches, working counts and driving the ball the other way with some authority. This is a guy who, at best, is a bench player pushed into an everyday role. He's had his good games, and he's certainly had his moments, but for the most part, you're going to get a guy who at his absolute best is going to hit about .260 with a smattering of 2Bs and HRs, and in this offensively-challenged Mets lineup, that's just not going to cut it from a 1st Baseman, or a Left Fielder, which is a position that I'm quite sure he's not going to play again.

I'm not trying to dump on Murphy, and I'm sure nobody is. We all like him and want him to do well. But to this point in the season, he's fallen woefully short of his expectations, and it's all come to a head after last night's game (a mirror image of another train wreck moment the Mets have had this season) when Murphy's continued defensive failures just threw everyone over the collective edge.

Can you imagine how people would be reacting if last night's game meant something?

Idiots, Idiots, Idiots

Though we're all by now aware that the Mets were eliminated from any chance of postseason contention on Sunday night (not that there was much of a chance anyway, but when you're alive, there's always some faint degree of hope), the Mets still had to go out and play their 18 remaining games on the schedule. 18, being 1 more than that 17-game crucible that has submarined their past two seasons to the point where I referred to it not simply as a game, but "Idiot Time," last year. Unfortunately, Idiot Time seems to have spread over the entire season this year, so now, the real Idiot time is sort of like a coronation of Idiocy.

It started with a bang last night in a game where, by all rights, the Mets should have been no-hit by Tommy Hanson. If there was any justice for him (and don't think this is me somehow actually sticking up for a Braves player, it's more a comment on the state of the Mets), those 2 hits from Murphy would have been errors or he just wouldn't have gotten them, and the other 2 Met hits, however they came about, would have been errors or walks or whatever as well. It happened once earlier this season, when AJ Burnett took a No-Hitter into the 5th inning, that part of me started to root for the Mets to get no-hit. Again, it's not because I want to see this guy throw a no-hitter, or because I'm all of a sudden against the Mets, it's because this is what the Mets deserve. The more embarrassing this gets, the more likely it becomes that the major changes that need to happen will happen.

In the words of Jerry Manuel, "A-Ha-Ha-Ha-Ha-Ha-Ha!"

The Shot Heard by No One

Had this been a meaningful game, I probably would have torn away from my obligations on the hideous rock we know as Staten Island and found my way to a TV at 4pm once the game began.

Had this been a meaningful game, I might have sat down immediately after the game's conclusion and written about how this was the kind of game that embodied the spirit of the Mets, and what a great, championship-quality win it was, and lauded David Wright for his heroics.

Unfortunately, things haven't worked out that way for the Mets, who we'd figured would have been right there with the Phillies throughout the season, making this weekend's series one of those breathless affairs that I would have spent an entire weekend writing about (such as I did last season). Instead, the Phillies have spent most of the season manhandling the Mets to the tune of a 5-9 record to this point of the season, with the common theme being the Phillies basically exerting their will on a depleted Mets team by game's end.

Essentially, the current standing of both teams at the current time makes it somewhat difficult for me to get too high and mighty about the way this afternoon's game turned out.

But there are a few things for us Mets fans to hang our hats on:

It's always nice to kick the Phillies in the nuts, especially after they seem to be the ones who usually do it to us this time of the season. It's really their time of the year, September. We're usually fading into oblivion, or, in the case of this season, already there. But perhaps the shoe is now on the other foot. It's now the Big, Bad Phillies who are the Alpha Dog, and the Mets who are the Laughable Losers just trying to make some noise.

For the Phillies, well, now you know how it feels to have a bullshit bullpen that you can't rely on. This is one of those things that can snowball. Think about how the Mets played out last September. The Bullpen was pressing because of the pressure of the situation. The offense was pressing because they felt like they had to somehow constantly score enough runs to offset the deficient Bullpen. And it began to repeat itself constantly, one end or the other. Sometimes both. The end result wasn't pretty. Of course, this is all hearsay, and the 2009 Phillies aren't the 2008 Mets. They've had their crucible and proved themselves worthy, far beyond anything the Mets have accomplished. And they're really rolling unchallenged towards another playoff appearance. But, still, you can't help but feel just a little bit nervous about the way the Bullpen has performed, to the tune of 16 blown saves by 2 separate closers this season, and to the tune of blowing a 5-run lead against a team that never scores any runs.

In a completely lost season for the Mets, it's good to see that David Wright, who has performed, at best, uneven this season, come through with a pair of HRs in the 8th and 9th innings, innings which he's had a hard time with over the past year or two. And these weren't meaningless HRs, these were runs that counted, to draw the Mets close and then put them over the top.

I didn't get home until close to 6:30pm today and I didn't put the game on until about 7. I'd actually forgotten it was on. But I chimed in just in time to see Tatis reach on a single that snuck past Ryan Howard. Wright's second HR came on the next pitch. And, I have to say, for the first time in weeks, I exulted while watching the Mets. I took some smug satisfaction in making all those Maroon-faced dopes shut up. The Mets could go out and lose both games of tomorrow's Game and Game, and it wouldn't matter. Today's game has to be one of the more gratifying moments in a mostly miserable season.

Unseen

The announced attendance for last night's game was 37,312, which I can immediately tell you is total bullshit because having sat through last night's game, I'm pretty sure there were about 9-10,000 people in the ballpark, tops. Absolute tops.

What we witnessed fortunately went by moderately quick.

Even the lure of Free Hot Dogs wasn't bringing people out on this night. Nope. I went with a colleague of mine (not the infamously insane screaming colleague, a different colleague) and he was absolutely dumbfounded when we got to our seats, looked around, and saw that nobody was there. There were so few people at this game that even the line at Shake Shack was manageable. After much internal debate, I did decide to go to El Verano Taqueria for my pregame meal, and for the first time, I felt somewhat let down. The food was just fine, however the taco shells appeared to be somewhat stale. Not so that it ruined the experience, mind you, but enough to notice. I suppose we can only hope that the quality of the food is not going to begin to mimic the quality of the team. I still have 2 games left to go to this season.

The game was a blur. Much like most of the games I've attended this season. I seem to have an "Every other year" thing, where one year, every game I go to is great and the Mets win a lot, and then the next year, everything sucks. It's been like that for about 6 years now, and this year is, quite obviously, a down year. I've been to 14 games and the Mets are 4-10, including 7 losses in a row. This is unfathomable to me. I've had bad seasons (7-11 in 2005, 8-11 in 2007), but none have matched this year as far as abject suckitude. It seems like every game, the Mets are down 2-0 or 4-0 before they even come to bat, and usually it gets to about 6-0 before the Mets are cognisant that there's a game going on and maybe they should think about playing. Of course, that's what happened last night. Dan Uggla, who, like most of the Marlins I'm just totally sick of, beat out a bad throw from Wright on what could have been an inning ending DP in the first, instead of a scoreless inning, a run is in and we continue, and, as if on cue, Cody Ross hit a 3-run HR, and that was the game right there. Everyone wants to blame the Stadium, it seems, but it's not the stadium. It's the team. When you look defeated, you will be defeated, over and over again.

Then, there was the Hot Dogs. I should start by mentioning that, for the first time, I went to a game at Citi Field and there were concession stands in the Promenade Level that were closed. It was like those Halcyon Days back at Shea when the stands way out in the Upper Deck were almost always closed. But I digress. Given that the vendors at best could have expected 20,000 people at the game last night (no way in hell were 40,000 going to show up for a dopey free Hot Dog) and probably got about half that, why, then, when I went down to a concession stand in the 7th inning, was I told that I would have to wait 10 minutes for a Hot Dog? And there wasn't particularly a large amount of people around waiting for one. Fortunately, I went to another concession stand that had plenty of Hot Dogs. Only this team could hold a Free Hot Dog promotion, get a tiny crowd, and still only be marginally prepared for it. Hell, I would have just kept the coupon for the Free Hot Dog and used it at the next game had it not said "ONLY VALID SEPTEMBER 9."

I shouldn't complain, really. That Free Hot Dog was probably the high point of the game.

Great Idea!

I've been hearing Howie Rose talk about it on the radio ever since last weekend, but the Mets have been running all sorts of goofy promotions to try to drum up some kind of interest as the Mets play out the string. There have apparently been seat upgrades, and giveaways and players signing autographs, but the crowds have remained sparse (though, since most of the tickets were already sold, they're not announced as sparse, but that's a different story).

Last night, the folks at SNY had the brilliant idea to do a "Silent Sixth Inning," which I didn't watch, but I heard people making fun of on WFAN afterwards. I suppose they can do whatever the hell they want to try to generate some interest. Whether they were in the race or not, I would have been listening on the radio, where they know better than to do a "silent" anything.

But tonight, the Mets have it right. Tonight is Free Hot Dog night at Citi Field. It's not unlimited, unfortunately, but everyone coming in will get a coupon for a Free Hot Dog. Now, we're talking! And, how fortuitous that this should fall on the day of a game I happen to have tickets for. This should come in handy after I've had my tacos before the game (assuming I have tacos before the game), and I get that little strike of hunger around the 7th or 8th inning.

Tabloid Junk(ie)

Friday, I wrote a bit about all the press that has recently come out killing the Mets for the way this season has played out. Much of it was truthful. Almost all of it was justified. The Mets organization shouldn't necessarily be killed for their poor injury luck, but they can be killed for not having a proper contingency plan, and they certainly can be killed for continuing to feed into the "Win Now and Sacrifice the Future" philosophy of their General Manager.

Then, I heard the stories creeping out about how Citi Field was falling apart. Apparently, all this noise has been coming from my favorite paper of them all, the New York Post. It's no secret that I feel the Post thinks way too highly of themselves, and also seems all too happy to take a dig at the Mets whenever possible (Perhaps because the Post's #1 rival, the Daily News, is in bed with the Mets). But it seems like the Post is almost going out of their way now to turn that knife and needle the Mets, and their fans, some more. It's taken what had been a series of valid arguments about the team and basically making it complete overkill.

It started with this article on Sunday about how Citi Field has leaks and mold. As with any new building, these things happen. Someone mentioned it on WFAN and the host basically poo-poohed it, saying, "All right, can't we just leave the Mets alone?" He's right. The Mets and their fans have suffered enough indignities this year. Never mind the fact that the article is mildly misinformed, since public funds weren't put directly towards the Stadium, they were put towards infrastructure. Basically, the public funds went towards renovating the Subway and LIRR stations. It's a bit more cut and dry than, say, the deal the Yankees got for their stadium, something that has been swept under the rug and forgotten.

But the Post can't keep their mouths shut. That same day, a piece from Mike Vaccaro appeared, echoing the first story. It's a complete puff piece, no doubt, attempting to squash every issue plaguing the Mets into 4 paragraphs. Here's the link. I assure you it's not worth reading.

Yesterday, there was even more Met-bashing. This time, they've taken to the streets and tried to get some fan reaction. I wonder how hard they had to search to get these quotes. You know, assuming these quotes came from real people.

But with the story losing juice, mainly because most people just don't seem to care about it all that much, or because as with any new facility, there will be some problems at first, and it's not as though these issues aren't easily fixable with a call to a good plumber, the Post had to find another issue to pick on. So, today, it's back to the problematic medical staff.

But it's not all bad. At least Carlos Beltran is coming back. Even though he should be sitting out to preserve the final two seasons on that posh $117 million contract...

Several Depressing Truths

My insane co-worker keeps asking me what the Mets record has been since the All-Star break. He's convinced that they are truly the worst team ever. That may not be true, but given the way things have gone, it's not too farfetched. A 12-14 July that appeared barely respectable gave way to a 10-19 August that really felt a lot worse. I would have banked on the Mets having been about 3-26 in August the way things have gone. Every series goes the same way. Lose the first game, Lose the 2nd game despite hanging tough and then when everyone expects the Mets to get creamed in the 3rd game, they get a good pitching performance and win. And that's the way it's gone for the last month.

But there are far greater issues with the team that are slowly creeping out of the woodwork. You've started to see a number of different articles talking about where the team is now, and what direction they can go in. Some of my fellow bloggers have touched on it themselves, but the sad reality of the future of the Mets is starting to rise to the forefront as this miserable season winds down.

This article talks about how the Mets, whose Minor League system is starved for talent, overpaid for one of their draft picks while sacrificing another.

An article from Philly.com that seems on the surface to be rather sympathetic to the Mets plight really smacks of smugness.

This Article on Deadspin starts out with the image of that sad doofus that we saw so often in 2007 and only gets worse from there as it details everything that's gone wrong (WARNING—May cause you to throw objects or cry).

Jayson Stark at ESPN doesn't offer us any solace either.

We can only hope that Erin Arvedlund, author of the Bernie Madoff book that suggests the Wilpons will have to sell the team, is somehow prophetic. David Howard called her out on Fox Business last week, but she seems to stick by her word. Given the way the Mets have operated over the past year, I for some reason feel more inclined to believe Arvedlund. I don't think it's right or fair what happened to the Wilpons as far as Madoff is concerned, but they've proven themselves only marginally capable of running this team for a few years now. Selling, and giving the team some new blood at the top, might be for the best.

But, as the NBC article warns us, we should be careful what we wish for. The high bidder for the Mets could very well be Cablevision and James Dolan...

Late edit...Jason from Faith and Fear sums the season up in what is by far and away the most ingenious summation I've seen...MetsSloppily!

Honey, I Shrunk the 3rd Baseman

In a year that's been ridiculous enough for the Mets, it seemed somewhat fitting that the team's plan to protect David Wright in his return to the lineup would be to stick him in a bizarre, ill-fitting, double-padded helmet that makes him appear as though he were from another planet, in addition to being the butt of all jokes from his own, and the opposing team.

It's good to have Wright back in the lineup, oversized helmet or not, though. It's not going to change the fortunes of the season (and can't even solve the mystery that is Mike Pelfrey, but that's another story for another blog), but at least we have something to hang our (oversized) hats on. Maybe this will become Vogue, given Wright's status.

Probably not, though.

Thole or Not Thole

Whatever he is, he's not Brian Schneider and his .174 batting average, which instantly makes him OK with me.

It's now September and with the rosters expanding to 40, we can hopefully see a host of new faces around the team that might actually prove themselves worthwhile to the future of the Mets (whatever that future may hold), as opposed to retreads, has-beens and never-weres that we've been staring at for months now. I don't know who the Mets plan to call up to the Majors, but we can only hope that it'll mean less Schneider, less Tatis, less Anderson Hernandez, less Sheffield, less horrible pitchers.

Basically, now should be the time for the Mets to take stock of what they've got and see how much retooling needs to be done. I've said in the past that the 2009 Mets were built to win now, only now was 2006. I've also said that '06 was probably the fluke and '07 and '08 were the norm. We know that, when healthy, the Mets are a good team that is more than likely only good enough to fall just a little bit short. When every major contributor to the team manages to get injured, that's bad luck. The poor finishes of '07 and '08 weren't bad luck. That was the team proving what it was. And now, bit by bit, that team is starting to get broken up. Wagner was the first to go, and he'll probably be followed by Delgado. After that, we shall see. In their place, guys like Josh Thole and perhaps a Wilmer Flores or Jenry Mejia. I don't know what the plans are for this final month of the season. But my guess is we'll be seeing plenty of new faces at Citi Field.