Sorry cheese steaks, there will not be a repeat of last season's incredibly lucky NL East Title (by the way, you of all fans should know that Titles and Philadelphia just don't go together).
Lets face facts; the Mets were a better team then the sillies last year and have gotten better this year. It all revolves around Pitching...and the Mets simply have more of it. It would be hard to argue that adding two time Cy Young award winner Johan Santana doesn't significantly improve a team. He is a hard throwing lefty who has been dominant in the offense crazy American League. Coming to the NL and facing only seven real hitters a night (forget about the 8th and 9th spots), and on some teams even less then that, should be an easy task for Santana.
Add to this the fact that most NL batters haven't faced Johan. Also he will be pitching half his games at Pitcher friendly Shea Stadium. He will provide the Mets with another "stopper" in addition to Pedro (who was just getting back from an injury during the Mets collapse ). He will prevent another big slide like the one you guys needed last year to take the division. I look for Santana to put up 15-20 wins and quite possibly another Cy Young.
Pedro is back! Our second #1 Pitcher appears to have fully healed from his injury. He is rested and has been very sharp during the Spring. With Santana taking some pressure off, I look for some where around 15 wins from Pedro as well.
Our #3 guy, John Maine would be a 2 on a lot of staffs. He has been very sharp this spring and now has some critical MLB experience to go with that young, strong arm...double-digit wins here as well. Also, Maine and Santana have a history of chewing up lots of innings keeping the bull pen fresh.
Oliver Perez in clearly one of the top # 4's in the league and will play a big role.
I must admit # 5 is a concern. Neither El Duqee or Mike Pelfrey have impressed. If one doesn't step up quickly, the Mets will need to adjust somehow.
The bullpen once again looks to be solid. Feliciano has been very impressive as has Aaron Heilman. Billy the mouth Wagner still has enough to once again be an effective closer.
The Mets are solid on defense and offensively while they might not have a ton of fire power, should have enough. They have great team speed, if Reyes plays his game and stops trying to be Babe Ruth, he and Luis Castillo should be excellent table setters. With Wright, Delgado and Beltran, there should be sufficient offense to win plenty behind that pitching staff. The Mets figure to be a team that will win a lot of 2-1...3-2 type games.
Lastly, the Mets have a different attitude. This is a team determined to erase the memory of last season. By all accounts the guys are taking their jobs much more seriously this year. It is a squad with renewed focus and purpose. THE NY METS WILL BE NL EAST CHAMPS IN 2008!
