Mets Building A Giant Fence Made Of "If"

So did you hear all the latest Mets news? Mr. Met loaded up the first equipment truck heading to spring training in Port St. Lucie. I was so excited I loaded the video TWICE on our video board. Oops.

Meantime, Daniel Murphy has been working out with none other than 11 time Gold Glove first baseman Keith Hernandez. Hernandez made a point in his interview with SNY. "If you're first baseman is not a good fielder, he better hit 30 homers and knock in over 100 runs. No wonder Mex is working with the kid.

Last but not least, the team is lowering it's 16 foot high fence in center field to 8 feet. I guess GM Omar Minaya thinks this will settle the club's dearth of home runs at Citi Field in 2009. But again, the Mets try to diffuse the facts with a smokescreen.

Last season, you heard complaints that Citi Field was a disadvantage for the Mets because of the long distance shots you had to poke to get the ball out of the park. But let's take a look:

In 2008, the Mets hit 95 long balls at Shea Stadium. The opposition: 79
In 2009: the Mets only had 49 jacks in their first season at Citi Field. The other guys: 81! Ah, that's two MORE homers at the new place than the old.

So this idea that the "ballpark", the "dimensions" or the "fences" are a problem is just a bunch of BS. Yes, Citi Field is a tough park to go deep in. But not for the visiting squad.

The fact is that the Mets were ill prepared for the injuries that befell the team, and had no depth to help out. For WHATEVER reason, outside of Jason Bay, not 1 real offseason move that will make the team better. They're hoping that fans buy into the hype: IF Murphy develops, IF Johan, Reyes, Wright and K-Rod bounce back. IF Beltran comes back healthy-about May or June. The biggest IFS: "If Perez, Maine & Pelfrey develop." IF all these things happen, the Mets will be OK, right?

But that's a lot to ask for while the teams in your division are getting better. Even if everythinfg breaks right, the club is an 85-88 win team AT BEST. Outside of Jason Bay in left, the Mets addressed NONE of their major needs after pronising they would. Perhaps they're waiting for the end of spring training. Perhaps they know something we all don;t. One thing is for certain: If the Mets DON'T do well in 2010, they'll need to raise the fences again to KEEP FANS IN, never mind worrying about home runs.