It's a mystery wrapped in an enigma

Wrapped inside a big pile of stinking shit. As I type this, the Mets find themselves down 8-0 to the Pirates. Oliver Perez obviously had no interest in pitching this afternoon, so he chose not to. His final line on the day was 1.2 innings pitched, 7 runs, 2 earned, at least 5 walks. Apparently Luis Castillo made an error so Perez decided it just wasn't worth trying anymore. He actually gave up 2 runs before his first hit, which is always a good sign.

Now less than a month into the season it is too easy to overreact and panic about the team's performance. It was a little cold, a little blustery, and the game was delayed nearly an hour at the start because of a water-main break. Pitchers are creatures of habit and throwing that little wrench into their routine is sometimes enough to ruin the entire game. That being said, the offense is entirely out of sync. Even with a better than expected start to the season from Ryan Church, the Mets find themselves struggling to score runs and put together the big innings that powered them to the 2006 NL East title.

Part of the problem is the continuing struggles of Carlos Delgado, who except for the occasional flash of brilliance looks to be far down the back slope of his career. It has been suggested in some circles that without a fearful presence behind him, Carlos Beltran is struggling to get good pitches to hit. Jose Reyes' mysterious struggles at the plate seem to have carried over from last year, despite going 3 for 3 last night with 3 walks. You like your leadoff batter to get on base 6 times, but you also expect them to score a lot more runs when a player as dynamic as Reyes is on base that often.

Is it possible that the team's struggles could be traced to the absence of two oft-injured stars? Pedro Martinez is nearly a decade removed from being the most dominating pitcher in baseball. Still, his array of off speed pitches that he can throw for strikes nearly at will is more than enough to keep most lineups off balance, especially in the National League. What the Mets miss even more is his presence in the clubhouse. Never shy when faced with dozens of microphones, Pedro has always been on the front lines in deflecting the criticism from the fans and the media away from his teammates. With him on the disabled list, a greater burden falls on the shoulders of less savvy men such as Delgado and Beltran.

In addition Moises Alou was a gigantic presence in the lineup last season...when healthy. His range was far more than the advertised step and a dive. He often took two or three steps before the dive. That being said, he still pounded the ball all over the field with his pee hands and was a major force in protecting the middle of a lineup bereft of right-handed power.

So the question hangs, is it too early to panic? Reyes will probably come around because he is too young and too good not to. David Wright is just going to continue to improve. Beltran will probably hit around .270 with around 30 home runs and around 100 RBI because he does that EVERY YEAR!. Johan Santana will give up his fair share of home runs but will still win tons of games, assuming the bullpen can hold onto the leads. Billy Wagner has looked better than he has in a few years, and Duaner Sanchez is working his way back into the dominating 8th inning role he provided in 2006. The rest of the lineup is filled with question marks. Is Delgado done? Can Castillo play through his knee pain? Will Ryan Church be able to continue hitting left-handed pitching? Will Moises Alou EVER be healthy? Can Oliver Perez and John Maine find any semblance of consistency? Where the fuck did Brian Schneider put his hands to get a staph infection in his fucking THUMB? Will anyone in the bullpen pitch well outside of Sanchez and Wagner? How many of these questions do I have to ask in a row before I decide that maybe this year is not truly the year of the Mets?