Dog Days All Around

The Mets have taken it on the chin so often lately that it was almost shocking that they actually managed to win a game last night. Not that they made it easy on themselves. Fernando Tatis had the game-winner once again, but it almost wasn't. A 9th inning rally by the Padres fell one run short and the Mets finally won a game. And they did it without their closer, Billy Wagner.

Up and down relief pitcher Aaron Heilman was on a down cycle last night and tried his best to give the lead back to the Padres in the ninth but Jerry Manuel wouldn't let it happen. After giving up a run, a hit and a 3-run homer, Manuel had seen enough. He brought in Joe Smith and Scott Schoenweis to get one out apiece and the Mets hung on.

The Yankees didn't do nearly as well against a Texas team that seems like a Murderer's Row. Young phenom Josh Hamilton greeted Yanks starter Andy Pettite with a 2-run homer and it was all down hill from there. A rookie named Matt Harrison went 7 innings for the Rangers, while Ranger sluggers Chris Davis and David Murphy ensured the win despite some late-game heroics from another Yanks new guy, Richie Sexson, who banged a grand slam to deep centerfield in the 8th.

They don't call these the "dog days of August" for nothing. Major league players have all withstood the rigors of playing about 115 games and they're not that close to the end. Players start getting really tired. The weather is really hot, especially if you're playing in sun-baked Texas. And players start going down.

The Yankees have to hope Joba's shoulder is ok, because if it's not, they're in pretty bad shape overall, what with a 6 1/2 game deficit to the Rays and quite a few games on the road staring them right in the face. While all their trading deadline pickups are working out for them, Nady and now Sexson and Pudge Rodriguez, they never did get the pitcher they coveted, and now they may have lost another starter, maybe their best one.

And, of course, the Mets are going to have to tough it out without their closer. Billy Wagner has some forearm problems for which there was no forewarning. (Sorry). They surely missed him last night. No lead seems secure enough these days for the Mets as all their relievers seem worn out.

Manuel has had to abandon his plans for defining bullpen roles as one after another of them has failed him in big spots, Duaner Sanchez, Aaron Heilman, well, you get the idea. The Mets starting pitching will have to go deep into games for the next week anyway, or until Wagner returns. Hopefully, he'll be able to return.

The Mets seem to enjoy their position just short of the division lead. Much as Big Brown, that magnificent thoroughbred of Derby and Preakness fame, who won the Haskell Stakes Sunday, likes to just hover on the outside shoulder of whatever nag happens to take the lead, so the Mets seem to be just hanging around.

But will the Mets have anywhere near the finishing kick needed to outlast the Phillies or Marlins? I guess we’ll see, but they surely haven’t gone out of their way to improve their situation.

While the Yankees and other teams such as the Dodgers and Brewers made some moves, the Mets have stayed pat. One wonders whether Minaya is on a strong hold from the ownership, once again, much as Big Brown’s jockey practically strangled his mount in the Belmont.

It’ll be nice to get a reprieve from baseball for a while, as the Olympics will take center stage for a couple of weeks. The Games should also give us all a break from the baloney Bret Favre has been dishing out. Can there be a “dog days” of football’s exhibition season? If I read one more thing about the phony “quarterback battle” between Pennington, the clear starter and leader of the Jets, and second-year guy Clemens, I think I’ll be sick.

There is no joy from this corner of the world as this football season kicks off. I cringe at the piracy being foisted on Giants and Jets fans as the Maras and Woody’s of the world cry the blues as to the cost of building a new stadium, THEIR new stadium.

Oh well, at least the taxpayers of New Jersey will be getting a break. The stadium costs will be borne directly by the users. Although there is justice in that, I do hate to see football becoming only a rich man’s game. And, how near is the day when professional football becomes pay-per-view only?

It’s ironic that all this spending on stadiums is happening precisely at the juncture of what may become a very serious recession. And maybe a long-lived one. While I can see the Super Bowl Champion Giants surviving while the rest of the world goes to hell, it’s a little more difficult to say the same about that team with the ugly green uniforms.

Will the Jets be playing before a crowd of 25,000 a year from now? It’s possible. While I can see that a Giants season ticket could be considered an asset, the cost of which could later be transferred to a new owner, will Jets fans feel the same way about their ducats? How much risk will they be willing to assume? Isn’t it easier to just watch from home?

But enough doom and gloom. I guess these really are dog days. I should be looking forward to finally being able to watch Olympic weightlifting on TV, or, at the very least, on my PC. I love all the track and field events. Gymnastics can be interesting, and then there will be soccer and basketball. And, of course, the whole extravaganza of the opening ceremonies coming to us from Beijing.

But will anybody be able to breathe?