Padres 10, Mets 3 (59-67)

Well, if you're gonna get swept, you might as well get SWEPT. Boy, did things go downhill in a hurry. Sunday afternoon, the Mets had a chance to get right back in the thick of the wild card race. Here it is Thursday, and the Mets haven't had a sniff of a win since.

10-3. What an embarrassment. There was one good thing that came out of the past two games, at least. The Mets put David Wright into the three hole. So he's getting the experience hitting third. That'll help for next year. Wright went 0-for-2 Thursday afternoon, but he did walk twice. He is a great 2-strike hitter, just FYI.

Danny Garcia is a good little player. I don't think he should be a starter in the majors, but he is an excellent utility guy - he should definitely start next season at the Major League level.

I heard an excellent point on WFAN the other afternoon. Someone (I think it was Mike Francesa) made the point, what is the Mets training staff doing?!!? Why is it that everytime a Mets player gets hurt, he's out forever? It's a good point. And just the fact that Jose Reyes can't stay healthy is exhibit A. Cliff Floyd doesn't count because he couldn't stay healthy before he came to the Mets. Mike Piazza gets more fragile every year, but he's also getting old fast. But the point is well taken by me...do these people know what they're doing when it comes to treating injuries? Perhaps the Mets trainers are the same guys that scout Japanese shortstops. Just a thought.

OK...here it is...the big debut!! I urge you all to switch over to johnnyjets.blogspot.com for the first day of the Jets page (for real today). And keep coming back to the Mets site - we have lots more to come - post-season predictions, awards predictions, and more on the Mets!! Thanks for reading!

Padres 3, Mets 1 (59-65)

Due to my being on assignment for the Jets site, I did not see Tuesday night's Mets game. I didn't miss much.

I wonder if anyone even still reads this space, since NO ONE HAS E-MAILED ME YET FOR THIS WEEK'S MAILBAG!!! That's OK. I'll postpone it one more day if you have something urgent to say. Otherwise, we'll bag it for the week.

After my "on assignment" for the Jets (which will probably get posted for Thursday, so stay tuned for that), I took in a Huey Lewis and the News concert in Westbury, New York. It was awesome! The first time I saw him, and it was great - I'm going to try to go again. Just outstanding. He played all the songs you'd hope he'd play, and they were all great. So that's why I didn't watch the Mets. And also because they are frustrating, and not very good. Scott Kazmir is 1-0. With a 0.00 ERA. Victor Zambrano is hurt. But football season's a-comin', and I have now attended a Huey Lewis and the News concert.

OK - here are the details. johnnyjets.blogspot.com is up, and will be updated on a regular basis - I'll let you know when.

"The Bad Guys Won!" By Jeff Pearlman - the book on the '86 Mets, is coming out tomorrow, April 27, 2004. $24.95 (the book costs $38.95 in Canada, unfortunately for all my Canadian readers). HarperCollins is putting the book out. As soon as I read the book I'll post a review.

Mets are off today - they'll be in Los Angeles tomorrow night. Thanks for reading. Don't give up on the Mets - they're still almost better than the Yankees.

The Jets page is up. I will post a draft review someday soon.

Saturday, April 24, 2004 - A Day at the Races

(Sorry for the late posting.) As you all know, the Mets were overmatched by the Cubs this weekend. So let's take a break from the re-hashing for a day. I give you my Saturday, spent juggling three different sporting events - the NFL Draft, Major League Baseball, and a day at Aqueduct.

12:11pm - In the car on the way to the track (for a family bachelor party - for me), the draft gets underway. Paul Tagliabue starts with a tribute to Pat Tillman, then announces that the San Diego Chargers are on the clock.

12:57pm - Three minutes until post time. I stop by the bar and get the first three score updates from some fat dude in the sports bar. Eli Manning, Robert Gallery, Larry Fitzgerald. I'm a little surprised the Chargers didn't trade the pick. Giants are on the clock.

1:24pm - I'm already up $11 after one race. The draft is not on the bar TV anymore. This experiment is failing. I find the Yankees/Red Sox game, though. This is important for me because I have Kevin Brown in my AL-only fantasy league. The one out of five days I root for the Yankees, and they're down 1-0 in the first inning.

1:50pm - Second race of the day is a heartbreaker. My winner is taken off the board because he bumped a jockey off his horse. Money ripped right out of my hand. Kevin Brown is now down 2-0 in the third inning. My cousin Eddie arrives at the track, and gives me the draft update - Giants took Rivers. But no word of a trade.

2:16pm - The draft's back on a track television. Found out the Jets got Vilma. All right. Yankees are down 2-1. I'm down 18 bucks.

2:26pm - My cousin John tells me about the Giants trade. Now things make a little more sense out of Chargers camp.

3:14pm - I'm down $50 through six races. Miami's on the clock. Bernie Williams grounds into a double play with the bases loaded in the 7th. The game's tied at 2, so I guess Brown did all right. The Mets have been playing for an hour, and I have no idea how they're doing. No TV is turned to them.

3:20pm - First Mets score crosses on the Yankees game. Down 2-0 in the third against Kerry Wood. Of course.

3:34pm - Uncle John gave me a ticket before the sixth race as an early wedding gift. It turns out to be a winner - $15.40. I have to give half to Kathy, but I'm sure she'd be all right with me trying to turn it into more money in the seventh race. We're putting the money on "Country Judge", the 2 horse. Sox-Yanks tied at 2 in the ninth.

3:45pm - Late bet - 2 dollars to win on the five horse in the same race. Just a hunch.

4:00pm - Nothing on the five. But Country Judge comes through big time. Oh yeah, $34.60.

4:12pm - Here's a ballsy move at the track - some dude gets up in front of about 20 other guys, and changes the TV showing the NFL draft to boxing on NBC. Are you kidding me?!? Although I guess he probably had some sort of money involved on the boxing match. But boxing?! Geez. Yanks-Sox now in the 10th. The Mets, who knows? I might as well still be in Boston.

4:29pm - Another last second bet in the eighth race - I forgot that I was supposed to put money on the 5 in the 8th (because the wedding is on 5/8). Good thing my brother Matt and cousins Rich and Eddie were betting on the 5 - Chilly Rooster. Good thing I remembered. Chilly comes in as a $66.50 winner. I also picked Chilly Rooster with the 8 horse in a Double. So if the 8 horse wins the last race, I'm making big money on the way out the door.

4:58pm - Oh well. No good on the 8 horse. Time for dinner. Red Sox and Yankees are still going as we leave.

5:13pm - Back in the car, find out the Mets lost 3-0. Damn. I lost only $7.50 at the track. But huge assist to Uncle John for changing my losing ways into winning ways. Sox beat the Yanks 3-2 in 12.

11:28pm - After dinner and a few drinks, find out the Jets drafted Derrick Strait in the third round. That's awesome. I heard about that guy as a possible first rounder.

(Postscript - Mets lost 4-1 to the Cubs on Sunday. That's a sweep. Need to bounce back in L.A. Another tall order. I will post my next update on Tuesday, after the Monday off-day.)

By the way - stay tuned for a big Sunday article tomorrow chronicling my big day today.

I'll be spending the day at Aqueduct, following the progress of the Mets and Yankees/Red Sox, as well as the Jets' picks in the NFL Draft. Full report tomorrow.