Hate To Say I Told You So But ......

By Shari "7 Train" Forst
Posted Saturday, May 12, 2007

I don’t like to think all I do is complain about our boys in orange and blue, but I guess it can’t be avoided too much. I have been complaining about this team since the early 80s, and then again in the early to mid 90s so why stop now?

I was dead set against signing Moises Alou this season, nothing against his talent. He has the potential for hall of fame numbers. However why does he not have HOF numbers? That’s right, due to injury. I was also against signing a 40 year old player, knowing his injury – riddled past.

In Monday night’s game against the Marlins he crashed into the left field wall and needed to get stitches in his chin. Okay, no big deal, but then it was revealed that he needed an MRI on his shoulder which he appeared to injure on that same play.

According to mets.com : Alou said that the shoulder injury had nothing to do with hitting the wall, but that it simply flared up in the middle of the game. Then he was out most recently with a knee problem.

Oh well that’s a whole lot better.

He’s just experiencing old man-type flare ups. Look, I just turned 40 myself. Things creek and crack that never have before on my body, and I like to think I am in great shape! I work out every day, walk almost 2 miles a day with my 3 dogs, and with that said I wouldn’t pay me millions to play baseball at my age, either. Only Julio Franco is a freak of nature, nearing 49 years old and still an acitve player.

Alou was then quoted to say: "It was funny, I was just standing there. I don't know, maybe it was the way I turned. I feel OK now, but tomorrow, I don't know when the painkiller wears off how I'm going to feel."

Honestly it worries me that it “flared up” for no reason than if he had injured it on that play on Monday. Well that is just fabulous isn’t it? This is what it is with older players. Which brings me to my next topic; being that one of the elder statesmen of the team, El Duque, could not make Monday night’s start due to bursitis in his shoulder. This team is starting to sound like Century Village - a bunch of old men sitting around the pool complaining about pain flare ups and bursitis attacks.

What next? Gout?!

Then there is the issue of Chan Ho Park. I thought Park was awful in spring training, and was rightfully demoted to AAA. He stunk then and he stinks now. Of course we had to endure one of his putrid starts in place of El Duque on Monday night. Park looked Okay through the first two innings and I thought I may have been wrong about him. Then we come to the third inning where he completely implodes - not without help from back up 2nd baseman, Damion Easley. Easley replaced the 37 year old Valentin who suffered a tear in his knee. Incidentally, Easley is the same age as Valentin (they were born a month apart in 1969).

I can make the argument for Valentin getting the start at 2nd base this year because he earned the right after he surprised everyone last year. However, his injured knees were his downfall in his dismal season with the Dodgers. Two years later I expect this injury to be trouble. I don’t understand why they don’t give Ruben Gotay a look-see, or for that matter bring Anderson Hernandez back up.

I don’t want to jump all over Carlos Delgado so early, but to be on the Interstate average–wise by the first of May? Are you kidding me? Mike Jacobs is hitting .311, now it may be due to the fact that he became a new Dad during the spring but I never loved trading away Mike Jacobs. I didn’t balk about it too much because of 38 home runs and over 100 RBIs from Delgado but he is also in his mid-30s and it becomes harder to break out of these kinds of slumps.

The Mets have brought up some great young talent like Reyes and Wright, but you do have to wait for them to hit their stride like Reyes is now. Who would have thought he would have the type of season he did in 2006, and now in 2007? David Wright as well, I have faith that he will get it together at the plate, but he had a great 2005 & 2006. I think if they held on to Mike Jacobs they would be seeing the same thing and they would have 3 good young players on the Met infield for many years.

Good things come to those who wait, right?

I think Oliver Perez will evolve in a good way too. What the Mets' problem becomes is that willingness to wait for the young guys to hit their stride. They think the fans are impatient and want to win a Championship immediately.

Hey we have been waiting since 1986 - stop buying guys with 4 year contracts and hoping they produce for 2 of them.

I understand they had to do it with Pedro to creative some excitement attract the better players and make the Mets desireable. It just worries me now with El Duque, Alou, Valentin being unable to play now. That’s a third of the team you put out on the field.

I think they need to start thinking about the dividends a younger player will give them instead of buying guys 40 year old guys like Moises Alou for one season.