This is where we are today...teams trying to find any way to make a dollar as their seats remain empty and coffers depleted. The WNBA recently implemented a policy allowing teams to make their uniform space available to advertisers. The Phoenix Mercury became the first team to take advantage of the new rule, signing a three year, more than $1 million deal with identity-theft company, LifeLock. Now I am not opposed to the billboard concept but you can't even tell who the team is...get out the magnifying glass, a small little Phoenix Mercury symbol is on the front there...somewhere.

By now, regular readers to The Huddle know that I am a big Mets fan. Lolita, Chris, Caroline & Matt are all aware that I do my best to stay calm and maintain a proper sense of decorum watching the Amazin's play. How many times have I said on this blog that baseball is a marathon, not a sprint? But the last few Met losses have left even little mild mannered me frustrated.

A few weeks back while watching the Lakers vs. Jazz in the playoffs, the announcer said that Carlos Boozer's days in Utah might be numbered because they're high on Paul Milsap. Immediately I thought... Hmmm... a frontline of Brook Lopez, Blake Griffin and Carlos Boozer would not be bad in New Jersey... Ok... the Griffin thing won't happen, but my Nets are in the mix to get Boozer... I'm pretty excited...

Yankees Manager Joe Girardi says Phil Hughes has "done nothing wrong" to be taken out of the rotation. Girardi adds the team had to move Chien Ming Wang back to start, especially after pitching so well since his return from the disabled list. He is not wrong but on the latter ONLY. Wang looks great: 2.25 ERA over 3 games, 8 IP, 2 ER on 9 H, 2 BB and 7 SO. Yet Phil Hughes has really come into his own and is gaining momentum. Why stop that by moving him into the bullpen?

The Jets held a ribbon-cutting ceremony dedicating their new flagship retail store in Midtown earlier this evening, and we were on hand for all the action.

Jets owner Woody Johnson was on hand, along with linemen Kris Jenkins and Nick Mangold -- meeting with fans, signing autographs, and perusing the merchandise.

But it was one shirt in particular that caught the attention of the Jets on hand.

I'll give you a hint...it features the only player on the roster who hasn't taken a snap in his pro career but is arugably the most marketable player on the team.

Check out the video below to see what the guys thought about that particular item and their further thoughts on this player's provocative photo spread in GQ Magazine.

Need something fun to do AND help a great cause? This Saturday, June 6th, from 10 am to 2 pm, Wantagh Martial Arts in Wantagh, Long Island is hosting its annual Kick-A-Thon to raise money for St. Jude's Research Hospital. Many of the schools students, kids to adults, will participate. EVERY cent raised goes to the charity that helps children and their families treat childhood illnesses.

PLUS, you DON'T have to be a member of the school to participate. If you can kick (even a little like me who will NEVER be confused for Jet Li) you can take part. Wantagh Martial Arts will have registration forms on site. You can also hand out water, count kicks or just encourage others.

For more information, call Wantagh Martial Arts at (516) 783-1489

Today, both the PIX Morning News and the PIX News At Ten told viewers about Colby Gage of Adams, Massachusetts. Last Friday Colby pitched a perfect 6 inning game, striking out all 18 batters. Lost in the obvious excitement in the achievement is the fact that the child's long term health could be at risk if his family and coaches are not more diligent in the future.

Now that Roger Federer has finally achieved the career Grand Slam with his win at the French Open, are we finally ready to call him the best ever?

Pete Sampras thinks so. He said as much after Federer won this morning and tied him with 14 career Grand Slam titles.

But I say, “not so fast, Pete.”

I hope the Mets get in tonight's game with the Phillies. Johan Santana is scheduled to start. The next 4 weeks or so could very well determine if the Amazin's will be a serious contender or if they'll be an also ran.

Between tonight and July 9th, the Mets play 28 games-24 against teams that are above .500 or made the postseason last year. There's 6 with the Phils and Yankees, and series with the Rays, Orioles, Brewers, Cardinals and Dodgers. Only a three game set with the Orioles-who play MUCH better at home in Baltimore-and a rain out makeup game in Pittsburgh give the Mets a supposed break.

My colleague Matt posed the question to you earlier this week: Is Roger Federer the best tennis player ever. Since I am not the biggest tennis fan, I am really not equipped to answer that. But it got me thinking... Is Phil Jackson the best basketball coach ever. He sits 2 wins away from his 10th NBA title. He's beaten a lot of great coaches along the way like Pat Riley and the late Chuck Daly. Where does his 9 (possibly 10) championships put him in history?

Ok, the Yankees ARE still in a first place tie BUT: just like the Mets have to win in September and make the playoffs, the Yankees have to show they can beat the better teams in the American League. Right now, their top nemesis is their archrival of the last century or so, the Boston Red Sox.

How clutch has Alex Cora been for the Mets? Let me just begin by telling you that I might be a bit bias on this subject. Alex is from my hometown, Caguas, PR. All of my relatives excluding my brother (his immediate family) and my family still live there. My brother and I always talk about how he and Alex played in the same Little League (Liga Gillette in Villa Nueva). Actually Alex was the "little brother"; Antonio (my bro) played with Joey (White Sox current bench coach). Disreagarding my love for a fellow Caguas native, no one can deny Alex's great play. It was most apparent to me when he went on the DL with his hurt thumb in May and the team scrambled to find someone to fill his and others' shoes. (Jose Reyes and Carlos Delgado were already out)

With Cora gone, the team was missing a true utility player and a decent bat who could fill voids. Since his return in June, he has been the all around man and coming through when needed. As I write this (the Mets/Phillies game tonight is not over yet), Cora has a .306 BA, 8 RBI, in 31 games...and counting. The single last night to bring in the go-ahead run in the 6th inning was clutch, as was the RBI single tonight plus the slide that did break up the double play in the 4th inning game (darn ump called Luis Castillo out--bad call!!!) I love Cora's style and and could tell he would be good for the team even during Spring Training. Listen to our interview from February. Cora is genuine, humble, a gentleman and a true player.

I protested the moves that brought Chien Ming Wang to the rotation and Phil Hughes to the bullpen. Wang is solid and I cannot deny his contribution to the Yankees since his arrival to the team...2006 and 2007 both 19 win seasons (awesome!) However, injuries have plagued Wang last season and this year (so far). I have always thought the Yanks were rushing him back...rushing him when they had Phil Hughes finally coming into his own. So when Hughes is finally pitching decently, we move the young starter to the bullpen (he has not even been able to continue his starting pitcher routine).

We found today's Quinnipiac University poll interesting but not all together surprising. Consider how huge the Yankees franchise is in NY, the Tri-state area and really the world! My father, an international track and field coach, travels around the globe. He says wherever he goes, he sees at least one person with a Yankees cap, even in places where people don't have shoes on their feet. Crazy!

The poll found the NY Yankees are the overwhelming favorite among New Jersey baseball fans. According to the poll, there are as many Yankee fans as there are Mets and Phillies fans combined! (I would assume if you did the same study on Long Island, the Mets might be the big winner)

My favorite stat ,though, is the fact that of those NJ fans who are "very interested" or "somewhat interested" in MLB, 58 % of those are men, 47 % are women. Yeah ladies!!! I have always known this...female fans are increasing in many sports. We are not just there to "go with our husbands" but we go to take in the ballgame and CAN talk sports intelligently with others. By the way, today's PIX sports crew...Producer Caroline Kovach and myself. SHE-RA!

http://www.quinnipiac.edu/x1299.xml?ReleaseID=1313

So after the Subway Series... A lot to chew on... Game one... A see-saw game that nobody should be proud of... If you're a Mets fan, the Castillo drop was brutal... As a Yankees fan, you'll take the win after being dusted by Boston, but why were the Yankees piling on A-Rod?? Celebrating a pop-up? Nice! They should congratulate Teixeira for doing what he was supposed to do. Hustling!! A lot of players would not have scored on that play. I will say this... Castillo was a man after the game, didn't duck the media and he made no excuses for his blunder. Kudos to him. LeBron James are ya listenin?

Saturday... Nice bounceback win if you're a Mets fan. Who exactly is Fernando Nieve? Well he's the guy who shut down the Yankees over 6 and two thirds innings... Gary Sheffield's bat works even if his legs don't. He homered in the first 2 games of the series. Sheff will have an MRI on his knee this week.

Sunday, fireworks before the game... Francisco Rodriguez gettin' in Brian Bruney's grill. Bruney had criticized Rodriguez's post game celebrations, calling them tired and embarrassing... K-Rod said "Who is Brian Bruney?" They know each other now!! As for the game itself... The Yankees blew the Mets doors off... Winning 15-0... Hideki Matsui and Robinson Cano went deep... Derek Jeter was 4 for 4 with 2 RBI... Johan Santana allowed 9 runs in 3+ innings... Johan's velocity has come into question... After the game Santana said he has had some back issues recently... We worked both locker rooms... Check out the postgame in our video player. to the right...

For the past two days we’ve been treated to a weird feud between Mets closer Frankie Rodriguez and (injured) Yankee set-up man Brian Bruney.

For some reason, Bruney decided to talk smack about K-Rod’s celebrations while on the mound.

K-Rod’s antics are old news, which is why I was surprised Bruney decided to spout off when he did. What was it that put him over the edge?

Well, regardless of the reason for Bruney’s ire, it gave the media something to talk about and possibly added additional fuel to the fire for the fans.

And of course, the spat came to a head when the two clashed in the Yankee Stadium outfield before today's game. K-Rod had to be held back by teammates as he shoved a finger in Bruney's chest.

But is this really a dust-up worth endless hours of dissection on talk radio and the blog-o-sphere, or should we all just move on and focus on the game on the field?

What a PAINFUL last 4-5 days for the Mets. In order that I not throw up while typing this blog, all I can say is: If I'm the Mets, I don't play Luis Castillo as a starter at Citi Field EVER again. Put Cora or Valdez, even Murphy or Tatis at second base.. Somewhere, Orlando Hudson, the man we should have signed at a better deal, was smiling. You KNOW if the team misses the postseason by a game, Castillo will forever be cast as the reason why.

Meanwhile I'd suggest that the very injured team go to its medical staff for treatment, but seeing how the team has botched the health of several players the last year or so, I'd rather suggest they go to Canada or France for socialized care.

It's to the point now where you have to wonder what is going on! Is the team's medical and conditioning team up to the task of caring for high priced investments? You don't need Reyes, Delgado, Pagan and Perez for examples-timely as they are. Going back a few years, Mo Vaughn was healthy, Vlaimir Guerrero was not.

But in the here and now, the Mets have issues-and one of the biggest is NOT keeping guys healthy. Flying Ryan Church all over the place last year after his second concussion in 3 months in 2008 was dreadful. Perhaps the fact that Church wasn't able to play for long stretches and finally shelved last season is why Jerry Manuel doesn't seem to like him.

Now, we have John Maine, Gary Sheffield and Johan Santana. Thursday night, I find out that Maine is niow on the DL with shoulder fatigue. Where did this come from? Sheffield told reporters yesterday he was to have an MRI on his ailing knee. Today, the Mets told WFAN and us here at PIX that Gary will NOT have an MRI AND that Santana is healthy.

Why Santana? After yesterday's blowup against the Yankees, he admits to a sore back and blisters his last few starts, but he's fine. Huh? I know the Mets want to protect their players, but this stuff leaves you thinking that they are incompetent. GOD FORBID anything is wrong with Johan: If so, the season-divison, wild card, contention-is over. Remember how hush hush the club was with Pedro Martinez' various ailments? How'd that work out?

At the moment, it seems the battered Mets need a new prescription: A medical team that has a clue, and an infrastructure less secretive than the White House.

Okay Mets and Mets fans, put the past behind you and move on. Focus on what's ahead because to stay in the hunt (NL East or Wild Card) you need to perform and bottom line...WIN!

We can't worry about what's happening to Johan Santana. He says he is healthy but could this be "the toe" of Pedro Martinez from some years back? I must admit I am skeptical right now. Johan admits he has been having some ailments (listen below) but insists he is fine. To be honest, he might just be tired of carrying this team on his back. Let him have his one bad game and move on. There's the theme.

Today, the Yankees got their first day off since May 28th. After 17 straight games I'm sure they needed it, especially after all the tension and stress of playing the Red Sox and Mets. But looking forward, will the Yankees have enough to rev them up to beat the lowly Nationals?

Phil Mickelson has always been a major fan favorite on the PGA Tour. His easygoing, regular guy personality, go for broke playing style and not so chiseled physique make him beloved among the galleries-Everyman in golf shoes.

We're less than 2 days away from the U.S. Open Championship at Bethpage. If there is ever a time and a place where Mickelson will look for and appreciate the support of fans, it's this weekend.-for a very special reason.

Last week my esteemed colleague Bobby wrote a rather timely blog about a critical stretch in the Mets season beginning June 9th against the Phillies.

Big Bad Bobby argued that the 28 games between June 9th and July 9th could go a long way in deciding the Mets season (quick correction: apparently there are 29 games in that span, not 28).

To recap, beginning June 9th, the Mets had/have series’ against the Phillies, Yankees, Orioles, Rays, Cardinals, Yankees again, Brewers, one game against the Pirates, the Phillies again and the Dodgers.

With the exception of the Orioles and the Pirates, all of those games are against teams with winning records – so Bobby was definitely justified in calling this a critical stretch.

Seeing how we’re one week (7 games) into said stretch, I thought now might be a good
time for a “Mets Critical Stretch Progress Report – ¼ of the Way Done” Edition.

Shame on you USGA for not breaking the rules out of respect for the fans who paid at least $100 to STAND and watch their favorite golfers. I know, I know...no refunds, no exceptions...but who would have expected a total washout today? With more rain coming, play will more than likely move into Monday. Regardless, the rest of the first round begins tomorrow at 7:30AM and the second round starts at 4PM. Let today's 42,000 plus ticket holders come for the first round and then usher them out. Major League Baseball stadiums do it all the time! Okay, so maybe some people will try to stay the entire time or maybe you'll have a few thousand overflow: who cares this one rare time?

Consider some fans won't be able to take off work again to come see the action and do you really think people will be able to stand more than 12 hours or so? Part of your restrictions include folding chairs and cell phones. I don't know anyone who can go more than 6 hours without their cell phones. Seriously though, what a shame the USGA treats their fans so poorly. The Yankees offered everyone at today's 5 1/2 rain delayed game FREE tickets to a future game, whether they stayed to watch (a loss to the Nationals incidently--UGH) or not. I know the Yanks have a longer season than the 3 or 4 days provided to the US Open; then offer something...a free round of golf...anything! Don't be so pretentious and cruel to the people who come out to watch and/or subscribe to cable or Direct TV to get their fix on the Golf Channel or the like. These are the folks who make ratings sour and advertisers come knocking...

**An amendment to the blog: if there is no golf on Monday or the ticket holder cannot come to the course, he or she will get half of the cost of the ticket. That's at least something...
One more addition: if less than 90 minutes of golf is played Saturday or Sunday, those folks can also attend on Monday.

**One last final comment:
So the Executive Director of the USGA says while he was pumping gas Thursday night and getting coffee this morning at a Dunkin Donuts, all he heard was angry chatter about how yesterday's ticket holders weren't getting compensated. so we owe the organization's change of heart to all of you who finally convinced David Fay that fans do count. And who said water cooler or in this case, "coffee coolata", talk isn't productive.

I don't normally blog this from home (I like my personal, off the clock, non-compensated time, if you know what I mean), but I was so enthused by the news that I had to pass it along. The USGA has decided to honor Thursday US Open ticket holders by allowing those folks to catch any action that might be played on Monday. With a high chance of rain tomorrow, there is a STRONG possibility the Open will extend into a 5th day and you Thursday fans might get to see a final round no less. Way to go fans! Your vocal protest created such a publicity nightmare that the USGA was forced to oblige! Here is more:

"David Fay, executive director of the USGA, acknowledged that the USGA was affected by the angry response from fans after the round was washed out Thursday after 3 hours, 16 minutes. "I'm a New Yorker, so I would have been surprised if they didn't express their opinion," he said, adding that he overheard very negative comments when he was pumping gas Thursday night and when he went to Dunkin' Donuts Friday morning. "There is no solution that's perfect," Fay said. " Courtesy: Newsday (thanks to my friend Mark Herrmann who is there reporting)

The rains have been a huge story this weekend at the U.S. Open at Bethpage. The thousands of fans who came out to the course had to wade through the water most of the tournament. Surely they had questions as to where to go or when play would resume. That’s where the volunteers come in. I talked to some of the folks who helped keep Bethpage up and running.

Not sure how many of you made it out to the US Open during the past week, either for a practice round or during the real thing. But if you did, maybe you could help me out….what’s the appeal of attending a tournament in person??

I was out at Bethpage this week on Friday and Saturday, and boy are my legs tired! Seriously…it was exhausting. Attending a golf tournament is a lot of work for VERY little reward.

You have to keep moving if you want to see something other than the same shot over and over again (i.e., staking out a single hole and just sitting there all day), and if you choose to move around the course, you end up walking a mile in order to see just a few shots!

And forget about following your favorite player. Unless you love Jean Francois-Lucquin or Johan Edfors (both of whom are real players, I didn’t make them up….and they made the cut, too), you’re NOT going to enjoy following Tiger and Phil.

That's what 300 or so grown men and women do every Monday night at Riverside Park, on the West Side.

Reyes, Delgado, Maine, Perez...now add Carlos Beltran to the list of frontline Mets on the DL. His bruised knee is getting worse due to wear and tear. Amazingly, the team is still only 2 games out of first place. The struggling Phillies have lost 6 in a row, but the Mets have only gained two games in that stretch with their undermanned.lineup and overworked bullpen.

Memo to Omar Minaya: PLEASE DO SOMETHING!! This team has no middle infield help after sending Valdez to the minors. The bullpen is in tatters. Pat Misch (ERA Under 3 Overall in the minors) and Elmer Dessens (11 Saves For last place Buffalo) hardly scare you. Cora's already playing hurt. Sheffield can't play every day.

This idea that they can hold on till all the guys are back is ridiculous. Delgado is aging. You NEVER know how the pitchers will respond after an injury. Reyes has a history of leg troubles. Do we have to hope Billy Wagner will be back before September if Putz can't go? By the way, the Mets are 4-8 in that big stretch of 29 games we told you about last week. Entering tonight, Albert Pujols has more homers than the Mets starting lineup.

Lolita JUST told me that the Mets will recover, and that they WILL be the ones catching the Phillies this year. She also said that the Tooth Fairy, Easter Bunny and Santa Claus visit her place more than once a year. I'd like to say I hope she's right. Let me check for the pot of gold next to the rainbow behind my desk first.

If it had been any other time, I might have blasted Phil Mickelson for yet another disappointment at a U.S. Open. Not today. I was tempted to for a while, but thought better of it.

Lefty had his chances. He'd made up 6 strokes Sunday and Monday before grabbing a share of the lead with that awesome eagle at 13. Right then, I thought, "Lord, he's got it!!" But sadly, his putter failed him at 15 and 17-bogeys both.

Your first reaction is to think about a lack of mental toughness, choking or just plain bad luck. But then the realization hits that considering all he's been through, it was an amazing day anyway. We wrote here the other day about Mickelson's wife Amy, who will start breast cancer treatment July 1st. Phil's been flying back ad forth setting up medical appointments for his wife, taking care of his kids, and oh yeah, playing St. Jude's and getting ONE practice round at Bethpage last week.

Now that the tourney is over, the Mickelsons will get away before Amy begins treatment. Much was made today about Phil's record 5th U.S. Open runner up. I'm sure he's not thinking about that now. Instead, Amy has to win her fight with cancer-and if more ladies are saved because of the Mickelsons' public battle, that's worth more than a U.S. Open win any day.

Look I am an optimist but not naive. However, Mets fans should not give up on their team just because 3/4 of their core, clutch players are now on the DL, including Carlos Beltran put on the 15 day disabled list today. Look at where they are with their thrift store team and guys like Tim Redding and Livan Hernandez pitching to win and Omir Santos and Alex Cora showing they can play (A LOT) and score runs.

With the Phillies off, the Mets are now 1 1/2 game out of first in the NL East. Yes...the Phils have helped them out by losing at home, but the Mets have proven they can challenge teams in their division (and maybe even win if they don't beat themselves up). They did tonight against St. Louis and say what you will about the National League, the Mets are still in the hunt. Thank goodness, the Mets are finally using Brian Stokes. I am not saying he is money all the time, but he has been in the bullpen and ready to go. Why exhaust others?

Most Mets fans tell me that it's hard to get excited because they have been disappointed so many times. I guess it is easier to NOT expect them to do anything, but secretly, I know you think they can...because their your team...and they must! I am here to tell you it's okay to think that way, but your secret is safe with me.

Omar Minaya.. Are you out there?? Help!! I'm sure Jerry Manuel is saying that right now.. The Mets sit just 2 1/2 games out of First Place in the NL East.. But that's fool's gold as Pat Riley used to say.. The Phillies' June swoon is a major part of why the Mets are so close.

We're just about 2 days away from another round of Yankees-Mets, this one at Citi Bailout Field beginning on Friday night. ESPN has moved Sunday's finale from 1 pm to 8 pm for the sake of a larger audience. My question: Will ANYBODY actually be watching?

I spoke with Mets GM Omar Minaya immediately following his meeting with Jerry Manuel. While the bullpen sessions for John Maine and Oliver Perez were productive, both guys need at least one more minor league start before joining the team. Hear from Omar himself...

Ok, that title is a little misleading. Here’s what REALLY happened.

So I was at the US Open Friday afternoon, and in my scramble to catch a shuttle to the LIRR station, I leapt on a bus about to leave the course and grabbed the last remaining open seat.

Desperately trying to catch my breath, as I am hopelessly out of shape, I didn’t immediately realize the 6’10” individual sitting in the seat directly to my right. We’re talking like three inches apart, shoulder to shoulder.

Anyway, as the guy in the seat on the OTHER side of me was offering to buy the unopened Gatorade popping out of my bag, other riders in our immediate vicinity correctly identified the enormous guy as….Knicks Assistant Coach Herb Williams!

(By the way, I gave away that Gatorade for free. I took it from the media lunch room just before leaving...I can’t resist free stuff).

The Knicks and Nets were both very busy on draft night. And they should have been. Both teams need a lot of work. The Knicks won 32 games last year and the Nets were just 2 games better. Both have shrewd GM's looking to get back into the playoffs. First let's run down what both teams did. Then I'll get into why.

It’s one of the big questions hovering over the Yankees these days…who should get the 5th starter’s spot -- Chien Ming Wang or Phil Hughes?

After watching most of CMW’s recent starts…and thereby most of Phil Hughes’ extended relief appearances…I believe I have the answer, and it’s an unconventional one.

Until Wang proves himself capable of throwing a reliable (and competitive) six innings, the Yankees should make the #5 spot a two-headed monster.

Enigmatic Mets starter Oliver Perez made a start Sunday at KeySpan Park for the Brooklyn Cyclones as part of his rehab from a knee injury. It was his third rehab appearance since going on the DL May 8th.

Perez pitched well against the Class A competition; allowing only two hits in five innings. He walked one and struck out six. The Cyclones won the game, 13-3, and Perez earned the win.

Prior to the game the Mets said they wanted Ollie to approach 100 pitches before considering bringing him back to the Bigs. Perez tossed 72 Sunday afternoon.

This is embarrassing. The Yankees come into Citi Field and sweep the Mets. The embarrassing part is not losing to the Yankees although I don't like losing to those guys and the previously erratic Chien Ming Wang. The embarrassing part is that the Mets keep fielding this team of back-ups and the General Manager does nothing. The Mets couldn't have used Mark DeRosa, could they? They wouldn't need 13 homers and 50 RBI from a guy who can play a few positions. Nah... Its me, I'm crazy... Time is ticking.. You can't keep hoping the Phillies will continue to stink it up so you can stay close. They've won 2 in a row while the Mets have lost 3 in a row. Omar... Let's Go!!

I was thrilled a few hours ago to see Ponzi schemer Bernard Madoff sentenced to 150 years for his heinous crimes. To many, the sentence seems too short. There was no solace today for those bilked of their life savings and/or company assets. Today's sentencing did not bring joy, but rather a torrent of anger and resentment at such an evil and depraved man.

It also got me considering something that readers of "The Huddle" know I've written about before. Just how much did Madoff affect the 2009 New York Mets?

So Carlos Beltran is seeing a specialist in Colorado as we speak...a "microfracture expert" to check that right knee. Mets doctors have diagnosed the injury as a bone bruise that has doubled in size in a month. The Mets front office is like...don't worry, it's fine; it's just a second opinion. REALLY?! I don't think so and here's why.

Beltran has always been a work horse and hates being off the field. He is far from lazy and far from motivated to get back. Jose Cruz Sr., who managed him in Houston (my pseudo uncle), has told me that Beltran will always give 100% and even play when he shouldn't. For him to not even touch dirt, and search for answers (and I think he already knows what they are), worries me and should worry you. This is the time! If we find out Beltran won't be making it back in two weeks, trade, trade, trade!! I would rather lose some young talent and at least TRY to do something this season, then do nothing. It is not lost on anyone, that the Mets were dealt a terrible hand, but even good poker players, put all their chips in and risk big! No more bluffing, let's do this already, if not for the sake of my relationships with multiple Mets fans/friends. My husband gets depressed after every loss; he won't even eat! SHOCK! Producer Bobby STOPS talking and that's unheard of! My father in law will pick up the hammer again and threaten to destroy all TVs in his home. For the sake of all of us...Mets please do something NOW! I still think they can be in it but need a pick me up and fast!!!

P.S. My prediction for those 29 games is looking terrible...Matt E., you have me on this one.

I wish I could take credit for this statement but it was Gary Cohen on tonight's SNY broadcast of the Mets/Brewers game. Boy it's true! I was oh so hopeful with the David Wright two-run homerun, then things came crashing down. Okay, let's see Johan Santana has 4 earned runs by the 5th inning...Fernando Martinez in center field and got burned again, Dan Warthen gets thrown out of the game (arguing balls and strikes)...where was the Manager? You're pitching coach doing the fighting?! Then there were the faces resting on the dugout rail tonight as if the season is over.

Does it have to be? Why do I feel like the only one who thinks the Mets can turn things around? It won't be easy! Even with the expected return of Carlos Beltran and Jose Reyes, the Mets need something. I want a trade and am willing to give up some young guys for it. There is a different perspective though: start from scratch. Get rid of everyone even a David Wright (NOT happening) or a Johan Santana and rebuild the team? Are we there...Really?! Thoughts...