Good Morning Mets Fans!

A very good victory for the Mets last night on a lot of levels.

3 of 4 from the Dodgers is tremendous, but this easily could have been a four game sweep.

Johan Santana earned his 100th major league victory yesterday.

Ryan Church came back with a bang...a big bang.

Jose Reyes, "Mr. More Hips", is on a big time tear.

Final	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
L.A. Dodgers	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	6	1
N.Y. Mets «	1	0	5	0	0	0	0	0	x	6	10	0

W: J. Santana (7-3) L: H. Kuroda (2-5) HR: LA - None NYM - C. Beltran (6), R. Church (10)

Recap/Box · GameCenter

Johan Santana, the ace of the Met's pitching staff, won his 100th career game last night and did what ace's do--he dominated.

"It always feels good," Santana said of reaching a career milestone. "It's a great feeling, I feel I still have a ways to go, but it is definitely an honor to win 100 in this level and hopefully there are more to come. It's good to accomplish these kinds of milestones, but I know I still have a ways to go."

Santana went deep into the 8th and only allowed one run while striking out 6. He is now second in the NL in wins and is on pace for a 20+ win season.

When he left last night's game he got a rousing standing ovation from the Sea faithful.

"It's all about having fun," said Santana, who gave up a run in the first but frustrated the Dodgers the rest of the night. "You have to remember this is a game and you have to have fun."

"It's a great atmosphere right now," Santana added, "everything is going well. Everybody is feeling more comfortable, and that's where you want to be."

Helping Santana's cause was the return of rightfielder Ryan Church. NY Sports Dog loves this guy and is his sponsor on Baseball-Reference.com.

Church had one of his best games as a Met, going 3 for 4 with a single, double, and homerun.

"I expected to have my timing off a little bit," he said. "But I was just able to see the ball real well today and put some good swings and came away with some hits."

After the big night, Church said he felt almost back to normal after missing 11 games.

"I'd be lying if I said I was 100 percent, but I don't have any symptoms," he said. "The only thing for me right now is I'm just tired."

Ryan Church Batting Stats
Year	Team	G	AB	R	H	HR	RBI	BB	SO	SB	CS	OBP	SLG	AVG
2003	CLE	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	---	---	---
2004	MTL	30	63	6	11	1	6	7	16	0	0	.257	.238	.175
2005	WAS	102	268	41	77	9	42	24	70	3	2	.353	.466	.287
2006	WAS	71	196	22	54	10	35	26	60	6	1	.366	.526	.276
2007	WAS	144	470	57	128	15	70	49	107	3	2	.349	.464	.272
2008	NYM	47	169	35	54	10	34	17	40	1	1	.384	.556	.320
Total		394	1166	161	324	45	187	123	293	13	6	.353	.476	.278

Carlos Beltran continues with his strong offensive resurgence. The All-Star, Gold Glove, Silver Slugger struck the big blow of the night with a massive 2-run HR.

Beltran is now hitting .264 with 6 HRs and 34 RBIs, to go along with 36 walks and a 120 OPS+. He is hitting the ball to all fields with authority and looks like his timing is down....he is on everything and has that "Beltran Ultra-Hot Streak" look at the plate.

When Beltran is hot he can singlehandedly carry a team....folks, Beltran is hot. .314 with 3 HRs, 3 triples, 5 doubles and 19 RBIs in the last 28 days.

The other hot Met is Jose Reyes. The 24-year old whiz kid has now reached base in 32 consecutive games, and his numbers show it.

Here's a nice piece on Reyes in the NY Post.

2008 Season Stats
SPLITS	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	SB	CS	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS
Season	53	225	36	64	13	5	7	25	23	34	18	5	.284	.347	.480	.827
Career	649	2743	456	779	131	57	52	267	198	338	252	63	.284	.332	.430	.762
Last 7	7	30	10	11	3	0	3	4	5	6	3	0	.367	.457	.767	1.224
Projected	160	679	109	193	39	15	21	75	69	103	54	15	.284	.347	.480	.827

Reyes has been the catalyst during the Mets turnaround. Every time you look he is on base, stealing bases, driving opposing pitchers crazy, turning sensational double plays, and chattering up the dugout.

In my opinion Jose Reyes is the most unique talent in baseball. He is back to 2006 form and getting better. Just leave him along, get him a day of rest once a month or so, and let him go. He is an absolute joy to watch and a singular talent.

So all in all a great night--Santana dominated, Reyes hit, Beltran hit, Church hit, and the lineup was balanced and productive all the way through. Castillo scared us all the other day, but he appears to be injury free and ran well yesterday.

And this week we're out West, which means a little lost sleep for us east coasters with 10:15 EST starting times.

Pedro comes back on Tuesday, and all eyes will be on him and his increasingly balky body.

Ian O'Connor at the Bergen Record says it's time for Pedro to step up.

I will agree that having Pedro in the locker room and the dugout is important--he keeps everybody loose. He's a nice bookend to Johan Santana who shows a LOT of support to his teammates, both on the field and off. Santana is always pumping up his teammates, patting them on the back after a great defensive play, and is in the game. Most starting pitchers sit alone during the game, acting aloof and focused. Santana is quite the opposite, and I believe that has a positive impact on the whole team.

So enjoy your coffee folks and we'll see you tonight for Ollie Perez against the SF Giants!