By Joel Sherman
Back with Five-Thought Friday:
1. Of all the things that worry me about the Mets, right now – and that list could fill Shea Stadium – the one that concerns me most is that their confidence has vanished. And without that, it becomes more difficult to see how they survive this weekend. They are trying to say the right things about not giving up and giving 100 percent and believing in the group. But, in reality, they sound like zombies reading from scripts. It sounds like guys saying what they are supposed to say rather than truly believing it.
Now the Marlins stink and play sloppy and too often perform indifferently, and perhaps they will give away a game or two this weekend that will buttress the Mets’ spirit. But as play began this weekend, I did not think the Mets really believed in themselves. And this is an organization that should now that Ya Gotta Believe in yourself.
2. I will always honor Pedro Martinez’s competitiveness and pitching intellect. But I cannot fully honor his seven innings of three runs (two earned) against the Cardinals as a standout achievement. His stuff and, especially, his pace improved as the night went along. But I still wonder about that stuff against a really good-hitting team. St. Louis put out a lineup Thursday that looked like something the International League dragged in aside from Albert Pujols. The cleanup hitter was Ryan Ludwick. The No. 5 man was Scott Schumaker. And they were followed by New York rejects Miguel Cairo and Kelly Stinnett with the starting pitcher, Joel Pineiro, hitting eighth. Just keep in mind Met fans – if you actually want to feel worse – your team lost to that.
3. Hey, Jose Reyes, come home to us. It seems in each at-bat he is caught between guessing and sulking. Where did your electricity and confidence go?
4. There are a lot of elements of the Mike and The Mad Dog Show that I am not a fan of. But at a time like this, when there is a story in town that is as riveting as the Mets’ plummet, I always think the backpage of my paper, The Post, sets the breakfast agenda for sports in this town, and that Mike and the Mad Dog are like the modern-age office water cooler. We gather around after lunch, at 1 p.m., to hear the zeitgeist of the city when it comes to our teams. When there is a huge story in town, that first 20 minutes or so is the way we finish digesting yesterday and get ready for tonight.
5. Lastly, as if Met fans do not feel bad enough, their team fell out of first place on a night when Scott Kazmir held the Yankees to one run in six innings while allowing three hits, striking out 10 and walking none. For a last-place Tampa team, he went 2007 at 13-9 with a 3.48 ERA and 239 strikeouts. Meanwhile, the Mets were finished out 1-2-3 by the Cardinals by the final vestige of Generation K, Jason Isringhausen, who has 31 saves in 33 tries and an ERA of 2.39.