Turnpike Series

Show Down In Flushing, Phillies vs. Mets For Three

The Turnpike Series resumes tonight as the Philadelphia Phillies face off with the New York Mets at Citi Field. The Phillies come into the series with a three game lead in the division so they only need one win remain two games ahead in the standings. The Mets come in with an injury plagued roster but they have managed to hold their own in the division race.

Both team's will have their aces on the mound as Johan Santana is slated to pitch the opener for New York and Cole Hamels is penciled in a the game two starter. Look for a heated series again where the lead will change and the momentum will shift throughout the series.

The key to this series will be pitching. While Santana and Hamels will be expected to be solid, the performances of J.A. Happ, Jamie Moyer, Mike Pelfrey, and Tim Redding will be critical for their team's success. A big key for Philadelphia will be the bat of Jimmy Rollins. J-Roll has had a tough time of it so far in 2009 and needs a big series like this to launch his season. Will this be the catalyst for Rollins? On the Mets side, their key will be the set up role. With J.J. Putz on the disabled list, they hope that their supporting cast of Bobby Parnell and Pedro Feliciano can safely protect a lead and get the ball to K-Rod in the ninth.

Expect a fun action packed series and be sure to check out MyTeamRivals.com's sites covering the series including Phightin' Phils Phorum,  Mr Mets Daily, and The Curse of Billy Penn.

Why the Mets will win the East...

As we are all painfully aware, the past two seasons have ended in heartbreaking fashion for the New York Mets. September has been a nightmare month  for fans and players alike as the club has spiraled out of control on consecutive seasons crushing hopes of World Series runs.

When that happens you need to change the culture and, to an extent, Omar Minaya and the Mets have done that. The center piece of the teams monumental melt downs, namely the bullpen, has been revamped. Gone are players whose names make Met fans shutter with anxiety---Scott Schoenweiss and Aaron Heilman. In are new, fresh faces like Francisco Rodriguez and J.J. Putz. Also, closer Billy Wagner has very likely played his final game as a Met.

Fixing the bullpen alone may in fact be enough to get the Mets over the hump; remember, they have missed out on the division title by a tantalizing one game the past two seasons. The new regime in the pen probably would have been enough last season since the Mets blew an astounding 28 games in which they led after the sixth inning! Cut that in half, still only mediocre, and the Mets run away with the division and the city of brotherly love is still looking for their first Championship since Ronald Reagan was in office.

I feel the new faces and arms in the pen alone put the Mets over the top. Look at this team and realize, they are pretty good. The Mets likely starting lineup, as of this moment;

Jose Reyes

Luis Castillo

David Wright

Carlos Beltran

Carlos Delgado

Ryan Church

Danny Murphy

Brian Schneider

Really not that bad. The Mets have speed at the top with Reyes and Castillo. If Reyes can just understand his role is to get on base and distract opposing pitchers with his blinding speed, the big guys behind him will get plenty of fastballs and chances for RBI's.

The Mets have power with Wright, Beltran and Delgado. Though in fairness, I am not certain which Carlos Delgado to expect. He was brutal in the first half last season and MVP like in the second.

The bottom of the lineup with Church, Murphy and Schneider is sufficient and possibly better since I think Danny Murphy has loads of potential.

As for starting pitching, we are still searching for a bona fide #4---whether it turns out to be Derek Lowe, Oliver Perez or Randy Wolf, that will be addressed. The Mets have, in Johan Santana, one of baseball's premier ace's. At two and three, guys like Mike Pelfrey and John Maine compare favorably to most NL teams, and rookie Jon Niece, the probably fifth starter, has potential but we will have to see how he performs. However, very few teams have reliable fifth starters.

I like the Mets pitching. Santana, Pelfrey and Maine are all capable of winning 15 plus. The bullpen has been greatly improved and the Mets lineup is pretty potent. All in all, I really like the Mets chances of winning the division.

Lets go Mets!!!

As we are all painfully aware, the past two seasons have ended in heartbreaking fashion for the New York Mets. September has been a nightmare month  for fans and players alike as the club has spiraled out of control on consecutive seasons crushing hopes of World Series runs.

When that happens you need to change the culture and, to an extent, Omar Minaya and the Mets have done that. The center piece of the teams monumental melt downs, namely the bullpen, has been revamped. Gone are players whose names make Met fans shutter with anxiety---Scott Schoenweiss and Aaron Heilman. In are new, fresh faces like Francisco Rodriguez and J.J. Putz. Also, closer Billy Wagner has very likely played his final game as a Met.

Fixing the bullpen alone may in fact be enough to get the Mets over the hump; remember, they have missed out on the division title by a tantalizing one game the past two seasons. The new regime in the pen probably would have been enough last season since the Mets blew an astounding 28 games in which they led after the sixth inning! Cut that in half, still only mediocre, and the Mets run away with the division and the city of brotherly love is still looking for their first Championship since Ronald Reagan was in office.

I feel the new faces and arms in the pen alone put the Mets over the top. Look at this team and realize, they are pretty good. The Mets likely starting lineup, as of this moment;

Jose Reyes

Luis Castillo

David Wright

Carlos Beltran

Carlos Delgado

Ryan Church

Danny Murphy

Brian Schneider

Really not that bad. The Mets have speed at the top with Reyes and Castillo. If Reyes can just understand his role is to get on base and distract opposing pitchers with his blinding speed, the big guys behind him will get plenty of fastballs and chances for RBI's.

The Mets have power with Wright, Beltran and Delgado. Though in fairness, I am not certain which Carlos Delgado to expect. He was brutal in the first half last season and MVP like in the second.

The bottom of the lineup with Church, Murphy and Schneider is sufficient and possibly better since I think Danny Murphy has loads of potential.

As for starting pitching, we are still searching for a bona fide #4---whether it turns out to be Derek Lowe, Oliver Perez or Randy Wolf, that will be addressed. The Mets have, in Johan Santana, one of baseball's premier ace's. At two and three, guys like Mike Pelfrey and John Maine compare favorably to most NL teams, and rookie Jon Niece, the probably fifth starter, has potential but we will have to see how he performs. However, very few teams have reliable fifth starters.

I like the Mets pitching. Santana, Pelfrey and Maine are all capable of winning 15 plus. The bullpen has been greatly improved and the Mets lineup is pretty potent. All in all, I really like the Mets chances of winning the division.

Lets go Mets!!!

Get Your Own Song!

 Sadly my job sometimes takes me to places like where I am tonight. I am about a mile from the sewer they call Shea Stadium sitting in my hotel bar with all New York Mets fans. I had to sit with 5 televisions of the game and watch them win. The only solace I had was my computer and the Phillies game where Brett Myers showed the ace that he can be shutting out the Nationals.

As bad as it was hearing the bartender scream every time the Mets did anything. Or the ribbing I was taking for the Mets being in first place. Or even the jabs at Philadelphia. Any of these things I could have handled. But when the game ended there was no preparing me for what I would hear.

Normally when the Mets or Yankees win, Frank Sinatra's New York, New York is the song of choice played at the stadium. Well, not tonight. Tonight these (you fill in the blank) played the Rocky Theme Song. I was down right angry but chose not to say anything in enemy territory.

Then I thought about it for a bit. For a city that claims superiority and how great they are, they have no spirit. No song that unites them. No soul. Therefore these rotten apples have stolen a Philadelphia song to celebrate a victory.

Only one word for these rotten apples. Pathetic! Play our song Mets fans. Enjoy it. The bottom line is it is our song, and the National League East is OUR division!

New Yorkers, in case you were confused the Rocky statue is in front on the PHILADELPHIA art museum!

For complete coverage of the Phillies and Mets, check out Phightin' Phils Phorum, Mr Mets Daily, and the Turnpike Series.

Phillies Back in First, Mets Falling Off

The New York Mets had their run. They played well above their ability and had a nice run and a few days in first place. It is over now as the Phillies, who were playing below themselves, have rebounded while the Mets have come back to earth.

The Phillies took a half game lead today as the Mets lost two out of three games to the Florida Marlins. The Phillies have won their first two games against the Nationals and need a win tomorrow to get a full game lead in the standings.

Let's go Phillies!

Showdown at the Bank

The New York Mets invade Philadelphia four a four game series this weekend against the Phillies. The rivalry has not picked up like it did last year but expect that to change this weekend. I am confident that the Phillies will win 3 out of 4 as they have the better pitching and hitting.

The team to beat will put the rotten apples out of the pennant race and force them to be sellers at the trade deadline. Maybe they can trade Jose Reyes for a few high school prospects. Oh, he isn't even worth that!

On a personal note I can not wait to go to the game on Monday and watch little Pedro take another Philadelphia style beat down. I was there last August when he got hit so bad he went on the disabled list. I doubt he was hurt, the gutless wonder was embarrassed and didn't want to play anymore.

Time for the Mets to take a beating like England did after we signed the Declaration of Independence just down the road from the Bank.

 

For complete coverage of the Phillies and Mets check out Phightin' Phils Phorum, Mr Mets Daily and The Turnpike Series .

 

Phillies On Top, Mets Not So Much

The Phillies new MVP Aaron Heilman did it again for the Phillies helping sink his Mets against the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Phillies will need to send him bonuses for his great performances.

On an even better note look below!

East	W	L	Pct	GB
Philadelphia Phillies	32	24	.571	--
Florida Marlins	30	23	.566	0.5
Atlanta Braves	29	26	.527	2.5
New York Mets	26	27	.491	4.5
Washington Nationals	24	32	.429	8.0

The first place Philadelphia Phillies overtook the Florida Marlins last night and now look to win 95 to 100 games. This is a well balanced Phillies team that leads the National League in bullpen ERA, most innings pitched by their starting pitching, a solid bench, and the best lineup in all of baseball that has scored 60 runs in the last 5 games.

Sorry rotten apple fans, the flights to the Dominican Republic will be coming early this year for your team.

Better watch out, the Nationals are on your tails!

4 1/2 games. Sorry, we do not blow leads like this like your Mets did last year!

First Place Phillies Take Over Division

The Phillies are a slow starting team. This year, they took the worst time of their year and made it victorious as they took sole possession of first place today. With their bullpen being one of the best in the game, starting pitching being consistent, and the line up just waking up, this could be the start of a run that eliminates the competition early. The Mets are all fighting with each other (see Billy Wagners recent comments below) and looking like a team that has no heart, no belief in themselves, and on the verge of implosion.

Sorry New Yorkers, it is back to the drawing board for you.

Rivalry Takes a Turn

The Philadelphia Phillies won the last home opener at Shea stadium and extended a nine game winning streak. The Mets were able to halt the streak the next night and start one of their own. The Mets now own a three game winning streak against the Phillies as Johan Santana and David Wright teamed up to beat the Phillies last night. Santana was simply dominant pitching 7 innings and striking out 10. Wright had 4 hits and missed hitting for the cycle by only a homerun.

The series continues today on Fox. How long will the Mets streak go? Could they turn the table and also win nine in a row?

Sillies fans will be "bitchin bout the pitchin" as Mets win Division

Lets face it cheese steak fans...Baseball is all about Pitching. From the one through five spot, the Mets have far more quality:

2008 Division Champ New York Mets:                                        Cheese steaks:

Johan Santana                                                                         Brett Myers

Pedro Martinez (currently on vacation)                                      Cole Hammels

Oliver Perez                                                                             Kyle Kendrick

John Maine                                                                              Jamie Moyer

Mike Pelfrey                                                                             Anna Benson

Sorry to break it to you, but with that staff Philly, you will probably need to score eight runs a night to win the Division (kind of like you did today). Problem is, it is very difficult to do so consistently.

The New York Mets superior pitching will carry them. Deal with it.