#15 - New York Mets - Say, Hey, Where's the Pitching?

Pedro Martinez may have an imperial daddy, but right now the Mets would desperately take this wayward son, but for his health. Last year, Pedro's rotator cuff ouchie may have cost the Mets a trip to the World Series, and after surgery, the earliest that he will return is around the All-Star Break. Such is the danger with damaged goods, as good as they may be (if only the Mets made him take an MRI...).

It's been a rough year for Pedro with his injury and with the death of his "little friend." But at least we know that Pedro still has friends to talk with: his tulips and daffodils. Yes, Pedro is quite the gardener, and he talks to his plants on a regular basis. He used to have petunias, but he had to brush them back after they talked smack to him.

The Mets will sorely miss Pedro, as their starting staff is thinner than Nicole Richie. Their offense will once again be impressive, but the lack of pitching could prove fatal to the Shea faithful. It's probably unrealistic to expect the Mets to have the National League's best record, and absent a trade or a rookie coming up big, they'll miss the playoffs. Here's what to expect from the Mets in 2007.

Biggest reason for hope: The offense scores 900 runs, and they win a lot of 9-7 bludgeonfests. Here's your projected Mets 2007 lineup:
Jose Reyes, SS - .300, 126 RS, 19 HR, 64 SB in 2006
Paul LoDuca, C - Capable #2, struck out only 38 times in '06
Carlos Delgado, 1B - did you know he has 407 career homers?
Carlos Beltran, CF - 41 HR, 116 RBI, Gold Glove in '06
David Wright, 3B - .311, 26 HR, 116 RBI, charming smile in '06
Moises Alou, LF - older than God, but still hit .301 with 22 homers in '06
Shawn Green, RF - the greatest Jewish outfielder of our time
Jose Valentin, 2B - 18 HR, .490 slugging in '06

Oh my, that's good. So the Mets are set, right? Well, that's assuming that the pitching holds up...

Biggest potential nightmare: The staff can't prevent opponents from scoring 10 runs a game. Let's look at the rotation shall we? Absent Pedro, we start with Tom Glavine, who'll be 41 by opening day. Following that, it's El Duque, who missed the 2006 playoffs and is 37 (wink, wink). After that it's ... hmm... well, I'm not sure. John Maine? Promising-but-untested Mike Pelfrey? Oliver Perez? (Mets fans shudder). Chan Ho Park? (fans shaking increasingly) Aaron Sele? (cardiac episode!). There's a reason that Wille Randolph got carpal tunnel syndrome from repeated motions to the bullpen last year, and Randolph runs the risk of burning out his bullpen early if the patchwork rotation comes apart.

Player to watch: Reyes. As great as Wright is, Reyes may be the most exciting player in MLB today. He still needs to learn to take more pitches, but his combination of average, power, speed, and defense are a joy to watch. Have I mentioned he's only 23?

Why do we still have to watch this player?: Guillermo Mota. After seeing his career fizzle over the past few seasons, Mota enjoyed a renaissance when he was dealt to the Mets before the trading deadline and was a key member of their bullpen in the playoffs after the loss of Duaner Sanchez. How did he do it? Hard work, a dominating fastball, and an anabolic infusion. Yep, steroids. Mota is suspended for the first 50 games of the 2007 season, but his steroid-infused arm got a 2-year, $5 million contract from the Mets five weeks after the suspension was announced. So, if you're looking for a message to pass onto the children, it's that crime does pay, or that it's OK to use steroids as long as you don't hit homers.

Telling Statistic: Maine, Perez, Park and Sele combined to go 24-31 in 2006. Three of these pitchers could constitute 60% of the Mets 2007 starting rotation.

Interesting fact signifying nothing: Julio Franco is the only active MLB player who was born in the 1950's. He will be 49 in August. He is older than over half of the members of the Mets 1986 World Championship team. He's the oldest player ever to hit a home run and a to hit a grand slam. He stole six bases last season. He's so old that Willie Randolph told Franco to act his age, at which point he died. Seriously, I marvel at what he's done. Franco plans on playing until he's 50. I just hope to have some feeling in all of my extremities by then.

Projected record & finish: 84-78, 2nd place, NL East

Prediction that won’t come true but should: Short on arms, the Mets sign Mr. Met to fill out their rotation. Mr. Met immediately becomes the player with the second-biggest head in baseball, behind only Barry Bonds.