Spring Means Nothing

I certainly hope it’s true that the spring means nothing. I know it means rain for me. And I probably haven’t nearly seen the end of it. Thank God for sump pumps and hoses and drains that still take more water than you’d think was possible. It’s meant rain for the Mets too unfortunately, and it just doesn’t look that promising right now. A Mets fan has to hope the sun is just around the corner.

Maybe it’s just that they’re always playing the Cardinals and the Marlins, who share the stadium down in nearby Jupiter, Roger Dean stadium. In case you’re wondering, Roger Dean is a local car dealer. I had been hoping he was a pirate or something, but alas, no. Both those teams are good though, if the games I’ve seen are any indicator. I have to think that. The alternative is too depressing.

Who knows, maybe today will be the start of a turnaround. Stranger things have happened. Murphy just made a horrible baserunning blunder and got hurt in the process. Maybe that will get Mike Jacobs on the team. At least he can hit the ball out of the park on a regular basis. I mean, if you’re going to hit for a low average, you may as well have some power. Dave Kingman would look good to me now.

Things could turn around too. Sean Green, who had been so bad as to be almost scary, just pitched two very solid innings. Of course they’re down by five so that really isn’t such a tremendous deal either. And here comes Kiko Calero into the game after watching Fernando Tatis have another totally inconsequential at-bat.

I don’t even know who started. The broadcast team is keeping it to themselves. It was probably Ollie though, judging by the score. Hmm, looks like Calero has a nice slider anyway, and he did do a nice job last year for the Marlins. (Somebody should tell these ladies in the stands behind home plate that they really should make an attempt to keep their knees together).

The guessing continues as to the composition of the bullpen. (Matt Holliday just hit his second homer of the day off Calero, about 420 feet to dead center, what a shot). The broadcast team seems to think it’ll be Francisco Rodriguez for sure and Pedro Feliciano for sure and everything else is up in the air. Fernando Nieve is out of options, I understand. I like Igarashi and Calero. Kelvim Escobar may return to form too. Then there is the kid with all the talent they’ll hold down, God knows why. (Yeah, I know why but I don’t agree).

Hope springs eternal for Jose Reyes, though, and I love his quote about feeling that he was Japanese, with all the pens and cameras following him around. Newly acquired Jason Bay just hit one out of the stadium. Wright still looks like Wright. Beltran is still out and probably won’t be returning for a little while yet. I refuse to speculate on him anymore. Angel Pagan is actually starting to look like not such a bad alternative to Beltran, not to mention Fernando Martinez, another young talent who won’t get called up until it’s too late to matter.

Mike Jacobs is up now and I’m hoping he hits another long one, just to make GM Omar Minaya a little crazier. Minaya’s supposed to make a decision by Friday on his final roster. It should be interesting. As a Mets fan, you have to hope the mid-season roster will look quite different from the one we are witnessing right now, barring a complete turnaround in their play once the season gets under way.

The Mets seem to be playing their cards for the future, no matter that their present may very well dictate the futures of the GM and manager Jerry Manuel. I just heard catcher Omir Santos will be starting the season in Buffalo, a fact that makes me sick. I just can’t get excited about Rod Barajas. In fact, I can’t make heads or tails on why they picked him up in the first place. He must think Barajas and Henry Blanco are an upgrade but you couldn’t convince most Mets fans of that.

I’ve defended Minaya for ages now, but I’m beginning to think I’ve been wrong about him. Not only is the present not too rosy, but the future doesn’t look that good either. Where are the pitching prospects other teams seem to have coming out their ears? Yeah, we have a first baseman in Ike Davis, a centerfielder in Fernando Martinez, and a pitcher in this Mejia(sp) who are supposed to be great (but not great enough to call up), but what about the pitching?

The starters inspire no confidence whatsoever, not even from this eternal optimist when it comes to the Mets. It’s as if God handed all the concentration and focus to Johan Santana, but withheld it totally from all the rest. Pelfrey, Maine, Perez…..what a mess! There has to be a short leash on these guys if they don’t turn it around pretty soon, especially for Perez and Maine. It’s beginning to look like the classic “addition by subtraction” situation.

K-Rod’s on the mound now, thank God. Only Sean Green’s done anything on the mound today. K-Rod just threw the nicest curve I’ve ever seen to record another strikeout. It looks as if the ninth inning will be secure, but it’s anybody’s guess how many times the Mets will arrive in that ninth inning with a lead.

Baseball’s a funny game though. Sometimes those teams appearing quite dead in March turn it immediately around once April rolls around. A Mets fan has to hope for that eventuality. I’m hoping Minaya will start showing some concern for his own immediate future. I’m hoping he gets a little less patient with players who have given him nothing in return.

Meanwhile, spring means nothing, spring means nothing…..