Good Morning Mets Fans!

The first place, 10-6 Mets, won their 5th game in a row yesterday and are now public enemy #1 in the city of Philadelphia. How sweet was it for Jose Reyes to stick it to the Philly mob with a decisive two-run homerun?

The day before, Jose Reyes was knocked out on a play at second and the Philly mob decided to give his injury a rousing ovation.

"It's really sad when humanity comes to the point where somebody getting hurt is fun to watch,"Billy Wagner said. "Nobody wants anybody to get hurt. I don't want Jimmy Rollins or Pat Burrell to get hurt. I want to compete against the best. That just tells you where our society is. This is about the only place I've seen that. Shoot, they booed Santa Claus. They've taken this to a whole new level, when you're cheering for somebody to get hurt."

Randolph had a similar reaction, wondering why Phillies' fans "love to hate; it's really sad." The manager decided the negative energy comes from the "weird culture we live in."

Just how much do Philly fans hate the Mets? A vicious brawl erupted in the 9th inning when the Philly mob realized their team was about to get beaten by the Mets for the 4th game in a row. Fans spilled onto the field as shocked ballplayers looked on. Billy Wagner had just retired Ryan Howard, who is having an awful series, when the fight went out of control. "Holy Moly, I don't think I've ever seen anything like that," the closer said. "I looked at [Carlos] Delgado and his eyes were like this."

But getting back to the baseball for a moment, let's talk about Ollie Perez. He had a very live arm yesterday and struck out 7 in only 5 2/3 innings pitched. On the flip side he also walked 5 batters. "They have a real good lineup, so you have to be careful with them," Perez said.

Still, he is now 2-0 with a sparkling 2.49 ERA. He has not allowed an earned run in 3 his of his 4 starts.

Regular Season													Season to Date
Date	Opponent	Score	Dec	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	K			W	L	SV	IP	ERA
Apr 19	@ PHI	W 4-2	W	5.2	4	0	0	0	5	7			2	0	0	21.2	2.49
Apr 13	MIL	L 7-9	-	4.1	8	6	6	1	3	4			1	0	0	16.0	3.38
Apr 8	PHI	L 2-5	-	5.2	3	0	0	0	3	2			1	0	0	11.2	0.00
Apr 2	@ FLA	W 13-0	W	6.0	5	0	0	0	1	8			1	0	0	6.0	0.00
Total				21.2	20	6	6	1	12	21			2	0	0	0	2.49

The other pitching hero of the game was Aaron Heilman. Summoned into the contest with the bases loaded and the game riding on how he performed, he struck out Geoff Jenkins and Jason Werth in one of the most tense and exciting situations the Mets have been all year. It was truly riveting stuff, especially given Heilman's struggles to this point. But Willie displayed confidence in him, and the results speak for themselves.

"You can't give up on a guy after a couple of bad outings," Randolph had said Friday, laughing off the suggestion that Heilman was pitching his way out of his setup job.

Around the Horn:

Newsday reports that Brian Schneider is day to day after he got hit in the hand in the 9th, but that the x-rays were negative.

John Delcos talks about Pelfrey's growing confidence.

The NY Times has a great rundown of yesterday's events.

Tonight, on ESPNs Sunday Night Game of the Week, the Big Pelf tries to complete the sweep.

Enjoy your coffee!

Good Morning Mets Fans! (hello first place)

Is there any doubt that Johan Santana is worth every penny? Last night, against the Mets main rival, Santana dominated the hard hitting Phillies en route to his second win of the year.

His amazing effort included 10 strikeouts and catapulted the Mets back to the top of the NL East. In his 4 starts as a Met, the lefthander has only walked 4 batters in 27 2/3 innings, while striking out 28. His WHIP is a stellar .867--this means he is allowing less than 8 baserunners per 9 innings pitched.

His ERA is a solid 3.25, but it could be, and should be, better. Part of that can be attributed to the bullpen. Aaron Heilman, who continues to struggle, allowed two inherited runners to score on a homerun by Philly pinch-hitter Greg Dobbs.

Still Santana is soaring. His athleticism, desire, focus, and control gives the Mets something they haven't had in a while--a #1 no-kidding, opponent fearing, stopper. Seaver, Gooden, Santana...it's a short list.

Last 4 Games (Season Game Log)													Season to Date
Date	Opponent	Score	Dec	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	K			W	L	SV	IP	ERA
Apr 18	@ PHI	W 6-4	W	7.0	4	3	3	1	0	10			2	2	0	27.2	3.25
Apr 12	MIL	L 3-5	L	6.2	6	5	4	3	2	7			1	2	0	20.2	3.05
Apr 6	@ ATL	L 1-3	L	7.0	7	1	1	0	0	3			1	1	0	14.0	1.93
Mar 31	@ FLA	W 7-2	W	7.0	3	2	2	1	2	8			1	0	0	7.0	2.57
Total				27.2	20	11	10	5	4	28			2	2	0	0	3.25

Pitching
Last 3 years	G	GS	W	L				IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	K	ERA	WHIP	BAA
2006	34	34	19	6				233.2	186	79	72	24	47	245	2.77	1.00	.216
2007	33	33	15	13				219.0	183	88	81	33	52	235	3.33	1.07	.225
2008	4	4	2	2				27.2	20	11	10	5	4	28	3.25	0.87	.196
Career	255	179	95	46				1336.1	1088	511	478	149	368	1409	3.22	1.09	.220

Billy Wagner continued his perfect season last night with his 3rd save of the year in a ballpark that has been less than friendly to the Mets outspoken closer. Perhaps the most encouraging signs about Wagner this year is his efficiency. He is getting it done with a minimum of pitches, throwing only 69 pitches in his 6 appearances in 2008, 49 for strikes.

Last 6 Games (Season Game Log)													Season to Date
Date	Opponent	Score	Dec	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	K			W	L	SV	IP	ERA
Apr 18	@ PHI	W 6-4	SV	1.0	0	0	0	0	0	0			0	0	3	6.0	0.00
Apr 17	WAS	W 3-2	-	1.0	0	0	0	0	0	1			0	0	2	5.0	0.00
Apr 16	WAS	W 5-2	SV	1.0	0	0	0	0	0	1			0	0	2	4.0	0.00
Apr 11	MIL	W 4-2	SV	1.0	0	0	0	0	0	0			0	0	1	3.0	0.00
Apr 10	PHI	W 4-3	-	1.0	0	0	0	0	1	2			0	0	0	2.0	0.00
Apr 2	@ FLA	W 13-0	-	1.0	0	0	0	0	0	1			0	0	0	1.0	0.00
Total				6.0	0	0	0	0	1	5			0	0	3	0	0.00

In a game where several key players came up big, David Wright was the undisputed offensive star, stroking 4 hits and drawing a walk to reach base safely in all 5 plate appearances. Wright seemed totally locked in on Philies ace Cole Hamels, and seemed to frustrate the lanky lefty with each at bat. DW is now leading the NL in RBIs with 17 and is well on his way to a monster season.

I keep wondering what Wright's true ceiling is, and judging by the way he has looked out of the gate this year, he still has a ways to climb....500 HRs? 600 HRs? 3,500 hits? He is 25 years old and has 149 doubles, averaging over 40 a season.

To put that in perspective the major league record for doubles is held by Tris Speaker with 792. If DW can average 42 doubles a year for the next 15 years he will own the record. Possible? Yes. Probable? Who knows. It just goes to illustrate the point of how good a player the Mets have here.

All-time Top 10 in Doubles:

Rank	Player (age)	Doubles	Bats
1.	Tris Speaker+*	792	L
2.	Pete Rose#	746	B
3.	Stan Musial+*	725	L
4.	Ty Cobb+*	724	L
5.	Craig Biggio (42)	668	R
6.	George Brett+*	665	L
7.	Nap Lajoie+	657	R
8.	Carl Yastrzemski+*	646	L
9.	Honus Wagner+	640	R
10.	Hank Aaron+	624	R

How about Ryan Church in the 2 hole! 3 more runs scored last night, 2 more hits, another walk. Memo to Willie: You HAVE your #2 hitter (and his name doesn't rhyme with Bastillo).

Jose Reyes gave us all a scare last night when his head collided violently with Eric Bruntlett's knee. Reyes, who appeared dazed and confused for several minutes, gamely stayed in the contest and scored one pitch later on David Wright's triple.

Jose Reyes = Gamer.

OK Mets fans, enjoy your coffee! Ollie against Moyer today in what should be a great one.