Well, I'd like to tell y'all that I was sitting on my coach last night, saw Ayala come into the came and said to myself, "Aha! NOW we're cooking with gas!" Unfortunately, instead, I sighed and said to myself, "Exactly HOW badly hurt is Wagner?" Two outs, nobody on, down a run, Philly...no sweat, it's the Mets.
It isn't a loss that makes you cry; it isn't a loss that depresses you. It isn't even a sign of a collapse, as some have suggested. (I actually view it as an incredible choke job on Philadelphia's part that they aren't up seven games by now!) All you can do is shrug. The bottom line is this: our lineup is pretty good. Our starting rotation is great, especially when you factor in that Mike Pelfrey has been our best pitcher of late. Our bullpen, as I have stated elsewhere, couldn't hold a five-run ninth inning lead against the Hawaiian Little League team. It is our Achille's Heel, and what can you do?
We didn't think Ayala was the savior. We didn't think he would replace Wagner. We hoped he might replace Heilman as the pitcher we boo most frequently. So far, in that particular category, he's been a disappointment. Now he finally seems to be on track...maybe by this time next year, we'll actually like Heilman again...hey, you never know...
But that's just my opinion...
LGT
