It's Time

Short post for you all today, not much to say at a time like this. The next four games will tell us a lot about the Mets. Ever since the Phillies sent our boys all topsy-turvy by sweeping them in early June, this Mets team just hasn't been right.

The hitting's there one game then the next it's gone. The pitching's generally solid but every now and then it pulls a clunker out of its hat.

But more than anything it's a seeming lack of passion. I don't know exactly what I would have liked to have seen out of this team the past few weeks -- tirades like Lo Duca's last week aren't it, not that I minded that too much -- but there's been something missing.

Speaking more generally, something that's been missing for the Mets all year is that dominant run where the team sets aside all comers. The kind of run like we had last June when we won 9 straight (or was it 10?).

Having won 5 of our last 6 games, we have the makings of such a run now, and starting today, we're putting it on the line against the second place Phillies.

This is a big series. The biggest so far this year. It just feels like we're at a critical juncture. It feels like this series could just set the terms for the rest of the season. A 2-2 split or a series loss and the dog fight that everyone's been talking about seems inescapable.

But think about a series sweep. Think about the statement that would make. Think about what the standings would look like afterward, one way or the other. Mets get swept and they trail the Phillies by a game. Mets sweep the Phillies and our lead on them balloons to 7 games. Game, set, match? No, not quite, but it would go a long way toward reestablishing the pecking order in the NL East.

You look at this team sometimes and it looks like they're going through the motions. They play like they know they're the best team in the division, and frankly, losing every game you play for two weeks and still maintaining a lead in the division can probably only feed that complacency.

But it's time to fucking bear down and do the damn thing. It's time to just win games. If the Mets can't get up for this series... I mean, if not now, when? If not against the "team to beat" Phillies, then who else?

It's time to set the tone. It's time to make a statement to the Phillies, to the league, to whoever else may be watching. It's just time.

- A.F.O.M.G.

(Image courtesy of philliesfanpage.com)