2.5

Guess what the number 2.5 pertains too.

A) Willie Randolph's IQ
B) How many 39 year old retreads the Mets sign per week
C) How many games off the Wild Card lead the Mets are
D) How many times a day Jeff Wilpon thanks god for being a lucky sperm
E) How many Crispy Kreme Doughnuts you can eat before you puke
F) How many times a day a Met fan contemplates ending it all
G) How many times a day a Cub fan contemplates ending it all
H) How many times a day I've contemplated taking a bat to Kaz Ishii's knee
I) How many minutes of thought I put in into making this post

It was a late night so this is all I have. It's sorry, yes I know. The Astros have come down to earth and Roy Oswalt has looked very hittable of late and their offense has decided to take some time off and the entire NL East has closed the gap and the Astros now share the Wild Card lead. The Mets are now in charge of their own destiny and have an opportunity to play the Marlins, Nationals, and Phillies and give themselves a chance to actually win this thing. I know there are many people that are skeptical and Darryl Hamilton still will not consider the Mets true contenders though he inexplicably says the Cubs are sleepers to steal the Wild Card. The Mets get no respect from anyone, including their own fans, and they have a chance to prove everyone wrong and they can do it without depending on anyone else. The Astros are flawed and ultimately think the Wild Card will come out of the NL East and the Mets are undoubtedly in it. As flawed as the Mets are, every team in front of them vying for the Wild Card is just as flawed.

* * *

The White Sox may be eyeing up Eddie Guardado.

Despite all the talk about the Sox trying to get a deal done with Cincinnati for outfielder Ken Griffey Jr., it could just be the ultimate smoke screen for something else in the works.

Seattle closer Eddie Guardado reportedly has cleared waivers, and according to a source in the Mariners organization, is being mentioned in a potential trade with the Sox.

Alex Gordon is playing hardball.

Royals first-round pick Alex Gordon said Wednesday that he has registered for classes at the University of Nebraska and doesn’t expect to play minor-league baseball this season.

If Gordon, the No. 2 overall pick in June’s draft, attends class starting Monday, the Royals lose his rights, and he goes back into the 2006 draft pool. He is eligible to play one more season for the Cornhuskers.

“I don’t think I will,” Gordon, a third baseman, said by phone from Lincoln, Neb. “But I’m enrolled in classes.”

He said a Major League contract is very important and the Royals are not prepared to offer one.

With Beltran and Miguel Cairo stealing bases, the Mets upped their National League-leading total to 116. They have a big lead on Houston (99) and Philadelphia (79), the second and third best stealers.

Mets fans have been guilty of booing a bit to much, but last night's standing ovation for Carlos Beltran was classy.

"It was great," said Beltran, talking about the crowd reaction. "I really appreciated it."

Beltran went 1 for 2 with two walks and a stolen base. His hit was a bunt single and you get the feeling that his game is more small ball than he has really played this year. Hopefully he relaxes and just plays his game for the rest of the year and do what he does best.

Par for the course.

"I got the foul tip off the hand below where the glove was," he said. "It hurt pretty bad when I did it and I got back in the dugout and kept trying to push some of the swelling out. I felt it and said to our trainer Mike Herbst, 'I think I broke something.' You feel that sort of twinge of pain. I came out in the seventh and we took some pictures here."

Mike Jacobs was flown in from Maine to be the backup catcher while Piazza is recovering and I hope the Mets get him one start to see how he looks.

I found a manager who may be worse than Willie.

McClendon may not have done his proper homework before the game. If he had, he would have noticed that Wright entered the game 5-for-6 with 11 RBI when he came up after an intentional walk.

Rule 33a: Do not intentionally walk a batter to get to a team's best hitter unless you are trying to get fired.

I'm not sure how many years Lloyd has left on his contract, but I think he is trying to get the Pirates to give him a paid vacation.

Doug Mientkiewicz (bruised lower back) was scheduled to begin his rehab assignment last night for the Gulf Coast League Mets, but was scratched because of the flu. He is eligible to come off the disabled list tomorrow.

Sweep? I'm feeling it and Zambrano needs to deliver. The Pirates offense looks horrifying and that lineup is dreadful.

Glavine moved into 30th place with his 271st career win and I predict he will hit 300. The guy has looked pretty good this year and finally decided to help himself out by using his curveball more often. When you get older, you need to adjust and Roger Clemens added Mr. Splitty and Pedro relies more on his nasty off speed pitch. Glavine has a few more years after that and has a real shot at this.

Aaron Heilman deserves to be applauded for coming in the eighth inning with runners on second and third with no one out and allowing no one to score en route to a six out save. He is now 2-0 in relief with a 3.35 ERA, a 10.71 K/9, and a 1.21 WHIP. With the rotation full for the foreseeable future, he has probably pitched himself into a relief role. I still think he has the makings of a closer with that nasty off-speed pitch.

Minor update:

• Norfolk lost to Toledo 8-0. Shingo Takatsu took the loss in his first appearance as a Met and gave up a one run on a homer in two innings of work. Heath Bell continues to get his work in multiple inninng performances and went three innings of two hit, two walk ball and gave up one earned run. Blake McGinley gave up five runs in 1.2 innings and gave up seven hits, three of which were homeruns, and struck out one. Anderson Hernandez was batting leadoff and went 1 for 4. In fact, Brian Daubach, Prentice Redman, and Ron Callloway all went 1 for 4 and Eric Valent went 1 for 3 with a walk. Joe Heiptas went 2 for 3 on night to raise his average to .276 in twelve games at AAA.
  
• The B-Mets beat Portland 4-0 and Yusmeiro Petit bested top prospect Anibal Sanchez. Sanchez gave up three earned runs in 6.1 innings and gave up eight hits and five walks to drop his record to 3-3 and his ERA was raised to 2.31. Yusmeiro Petit was pissed that Jonathan Mayo left him off his top 50 prospect list and was just nasty. He went eight innings and struck out twelve while giving up no walks, no runs, and allowed a measly three hits to up his record to 9-3 and lower his ERA to 2.91. Just chew on that line for a second. Mike Jacobs' hitting streak was extended to twenty-two games by going 1 for 3 with two walks and an RBI, Lastings Milledge went 1 for 5, and Wayne Lydon went 2 for 3 with two runs scored and a two walks.
  
• It was not a good day to be a pitcher as St. Lucie beat Palm Beach 14-10. Andy Wilson had a monster night and hit his 26th homer of the year and went 3 for 4 with two runs scored, six RBIs, and a walk. Dante Brinkely went 2 for 3 with three runs scored, one RBI, and one walk, Grant Psomas went 1 for 3 with a run scored, an RBI, and two walks, Aaron Hathaway went 1 for 4 with an RBI, and Wilson Batista went 2 for 4 with three runs scored and a walk. Miguel Pinango took the loss and went five innings giving up eight hits, four earned runs, one homer, one walk, and struck out four.
  
• Hagerstown beat Hickory 3-2. Carlos Gomez went 3 for 6 with a run scored and was gunned down on the bases for the 21st time this year. Ambiorix Concepcion went 3 for 5, Corey Coles went 2 for 4 with a walk, and Matthew Fisher went 3 for 5 and hit his first homerun on the year. Kevin Mannix started the game and threw five innings of shut-out ball only to leave with a no decision. Edgar Alfonzo picked up the win in relief and is 1-1 on the year.
  
• Brooklyn beat New Jersey 9-1. Joseph Holden went 3 for 5 with two runs scored, a double, and two RBIs, Nick Evans went 2 for 4 with two runs scored, his third homer, and two RBIs, Drew Butera went 1 for 3 with a run scored, a walk, and his first stolen base, Jesus Gamero went 4 for 5 with a run scored and an RBI, and Gregory Gonzalez went 3 for 4 with one run scored and two doubles. Jeffrey Landing continues to pitch impressively for the Cyclones and went 6.1 innings giving up five hits, two walks, one earned run, and struck out four. He is now 4-5 with a 2.61 ERA.
  
• Continuing with the B-Mets trend of losing both ends of double header, Kingsport dropped two to Johnson City. In game one, the K-Mets lost 5-3. Sean McGraw went 2 for 3 with run scored and Jusef Frias took the loss and went three innings and gave up five hits, four earned runs, two walks, and struck out two. In game two, Kingsport lost 8-7. David Wabick went 2 for 3 with a run scored, an RBI, and a walk, Paris Austin went 2 for 3 with a run scored, two RBIs, and a walk, Anthony Manuel went 2 for 3 with a run scored, two RBIs, and a walk, and Tony Piazza went 2 for 4 with an RBI. Alexis Beras took the loss in relief and went one inning and gave up two earned runs.
  
• The GCL Mets beat the GCL Nationals 9-3. Daniel Cummins continues to swing a hot bat and went 3 for 5 with two runs scored and an RBI. Jonathon Niese picked up the victory and went five innings giving up seven hits, three earned runs, two walks, and walked five.

My wooden bat baseball season is over and my team finished 7-12. I hit .320/.358/.380 for a weak .738 OPS but got off to slow start. In the first six games, I hit a horrible .125/.125/.188. After the rust was shook off and I adjusted to playing at a time no human being should be awake on Sundays, I hit .412/.459/.471, scored eight runs and stole six bases in the next ten games. My ISoP was still horrible, but I'll take what I can get.