Legit As Fuck

It is early into the season. Only four games have played so you really hate to make outlandish claims like someone is struggling, someone looks great based on sixteen at-bats, etc. However, some things are plain to see. You know a person's past and expect a certain something out of them.

Legit as fuck refers to the Mets offense. One through seven, this team has all good hitters. As much as I have been critical of Paul LoDuca and his placement in the lineup, he has done a good job at the plate and on the field. Though I still think Wright should be batting third however it needs to happen and Beltran batting second, LoDuca has done good things and you can tell he is a good baseball player. One important trait of a number two hitter is selflessness. Todd Zeile in his final tour with the Mets could care less about stats and put himself out there and made productive outs to help the team. I see LoDuca in that mold and have warmed up to him.

As for the rest of the offense, Beltran is stinging the ball and exhibiting a tremendous batting eye. Laying off on borderline pitches and swinging at good ones. He only has two hits, but is tied for the team lead team in runs scored and stolen bases, he is first in walks, and second in RBIs. We heard this about Carlos before he came to the Mets, but he can create without getting hits. He is making stuff happening and with the way he is swinging the bat, he will start piling up hits. He looks comfortable in the batter's box and his .143 average is not indicative of the way he truly looks.

David Wright is in MVP form looking absolutely nasty. Jose Reyes looks tremendous. So far he is working deeper into the count and showed some pop last night and he certainly looks like a better hitting laying off pitches out of the zone and attacking ones in the zone. Keith mentioned it last night, and when you take pitches early, like Piazza does, you will get a pitcher trying to push a meaty fastball down the middle for strike one to get ahead. If you are taking the first pitch a lot, you will see one of those pretty frequently and can hop on them and punish them every so often.

Though the Marlins lineup is weak, seeing Traschel do what he does best was a great thing to see. "The Human Rain Delay" has been a very, very consistent pitcher for the Mets over the years and has been a constant. He will give you innings and he will keep you in the game. It was encouraging to see him come out and serve up what he has been known for when he is healthy with the Mets. Seeing him anchor it down was huge. Again, weak team and one game, but it was vintage Traschel.

Legit as fuck does not refer to Jorge Julio and Anderson Hernandez. Julio has not had success since 2002. I'm not expecting much from him and Hernandez still looks lost. Yeah he got a hit and yeah he lined out the game before, but I'm sure I'd catch one every blue moon too. Kaz come of the DL and if he is healthy enough, should be starting his rehab assignment too and will get a last chance at things. That cannot be denied with how Hernandez's offense looks. The Mets big guns are not going to drive in 162 runs each and the Mets offense is good, but not good enough to carry Hernandez who does not just look like he is struggling, but looks lost. The scary part is, he struck out six times in sixteen at-bats and still has only seen 2.5 pitches per at-bat. When you are striking out a lot, you are typically going deeper in the count and seeing more pitches by the nature of the beast, but he is still not seeing many at all.

Overall, I like what I see. I am anxious to see Victor Zambrano for the first time and Brian Bannister again, because success hinges on them. If they cannot produce, the Mets have no shot with their current rotation configuration. A lot of things have to break right for the Mets rotation, but at some point things have to go smoothly, right?

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Minor Update:

• Norfolk is 0-2 after dropping their second game to the Durham Bulls, who incidentally might have a better meat of the order than their Major League squad. Jeremi Gonzalez did his best impersonation of Lima Time!™ and got roughed up in 5.1 innings giving up seven hits, five earned runs, and striking out one. Tim Lavinge, Pedro Feliciano, and Bartolome Fortunato combine for 3.2 innings of no walk, no hit ball to finish up the game. Lastings Milledge went 1 for 5 with a run scored and a strikeout, Keppinger was 0-1 with three walks, and Ray Navarrete was 1 for 4 with a homer and two RBIs.
  
• Akron beat Binghamton 2-1. Vincent Cordova took the loss in relief of Miguel Perez, who pitched a very good game, as he gave up four hits and two earned runs in 2.1 innings of relief. Carlos Gomez went 0 for 4 with a strikeout, Andy Wilson went 2 for 4, Brett Harper went 1 for 3 with a walk, and Jay Caligiuri went 2 for 2 with a solo homer and the B-Mets only run.
  
• St. Lucie beat Vero Beach 9-8 to take their record to 2-0. St. Lucie has yet to have a starting pitcher give up a run as Alay Soler went five innings, gave up four hits, three walks, and struck out five. Ambiorix Concepcion went 2 for 5 with two runs scored and struck out three times, Mike Carp went 1 for 4 with a homer, two RBIs, and a walk, Ajay Turay went 2 for 4 with two runs scored, a double, and one RBI, and Corey Coles went 3 for 4 with a run scored, a double, and an RBI.
  
• Greensboro downed Hagerstown 9-6. Fernando Martinez went 2 for 5, Hector Pellot went 0 for 4 with a strikeout, and Nick Evans went 2 for 4 with his second homer of the year and two RBIs. Brandon Nall lost the game in relief and gave up five runs in .1 innings.

Eric Gange is out for six to eight weeks and that Danys Baez deal is looking smarter and smarter by the day.

Jose Guillen fires some shots back at Pedro Martinez after getting hit by him for the sixth time in two years.

"You know what? If I get hit again, it's going to get real ugly if he's pitching. He thinks I was going out there with the bat? Why would I need a bat for a 150-pound guy when I'm 230?"

It's not Pedro you need to worry about. A 6'3", 240 pound guy name Carlos Delgado is why you need to carry a bat..

"Things happen," Martinez said after Thursday's game. "If it's going to have to happen again, then it's going to have to happen again. But I'm not trying to do it."

I love you Pedro, but I'm not buying it.

Wow, it seems like yesterday Yankee fans were trivializing the Mets opening day win because their Yankees won in more spectacular fashion and pounded the A's on their opening day. Three games later, the Yankees are still searching for another win.

God (..and Julio Franco) wanted Beltran to go out for his curtain call the other night.