[Update: Actually, the D-Train is to pitch on Saturday, but how about this for those whining about Pedro not pitching vs. the Phillies on short rest: he left the game vs. the Marlins after seven, down 2-1. Mets lose after Marlins score even more. Who's surprised? Not I. As to Bush's mea culpa, I said it was "something." Obviously, that shouldn't be taken too mean TOO much.]
David Letterman's writers slipped up last night -- in the Top 10 list, the tickets to the Expos was listed as a perk to getting (like Paul Shafer did) on a Canadian walk of fame. Meanwhile, Jennifer Aniston looked hot -- love those legs. And, she is a fun guest while having some real talent, both comedy and drama. [Challenging Lisa Kudow in the movie front with Matthew Perry a distant, but respectable, third (due to return in a serious drama this fall, following up his good guest appearances on West Wing ... the other three get work, but clearly have less talent.] The only problem is that she is a bit too perfect (approaching "plastic" territory) ... the tan, hair, and so forth. Still, can't go wrong in that outfit. Legs are a great asset, while also being more polite to look at than some others.
Talking about baseball, a bit more on the Mets. First, ultimately, the Benson trade had four benefits: release of some salary, disposal of bad girl Anna Benson, obtaining potential future starter (one start and injury so far) John Maine, and potential useful starter/arm with added playoff cache El Duque (the other benefits were reliever Jorge Julio -- traded for Orlando Hernandez -- and bitch material, always useful for Mets fans). And, probably about in that order, though three and four might be (should? well, let's see) reversed. El Duque also supplies a pal for Soler, another Cuban émigré, who might be said to be "the new El Duque."
At least, he had a good start last night vs. the Phillies, a no decision brought upon with help of an error and run given up by the bullpen. No matter -- the Mets have a penchant of late to come from behind wins. The value of doing so against the Phillies (and Braves, as they did at least once) is especially useful, since they too have a habit of doing this. It is actually a major resource, helpful especially given the Phillies/Braves have more questionable pens than the Mets, who really did not lose too much with the disposal of Julio (a bit overly criticized really, but still a bit rough). The run total, admittedly still not totally consistent (as shown by a recent forgettable road trip), especially helps given the Mets questionable back-end rotation arms.
A problem hopefully less now with the two Cuban arms. Who knows -- Soler is new and the league has not truly seen him, while El Duque has been up and down the last few years. Still, the Mets need lightening in the bottle from someone for at least a chunk of the season, which was shown in late 1999 when Kenny Rogers (dare not speak his name in connection to playoffs) served such a purpose. Anyway, the two wins Monday/Tuesday should put to rest complaints that Pedro should have pitched today on short rest. Yes, Florida is coming up, but again today's game is basically gravy. It is hard to sweep. Finally, the Marlins have won three straight (9-3 vs. Maddux and the Cubs yesterday), and the D-train is pitching on Friday.
[Update: Apparently, D. is pitching Sat. Hold to my opinion.]
So, enough about that already. The Marlins have a potential to be like the Expos of the past -- a pesky team that has their moments, including in root canal games vs. the Mets. This is suggested by the number of runs they have in the few wins they actually have. A few of the losses are a result not of poor run support, but questionable bullpen. Thus, the Mets have potential to target them in that respect. Still, you never know. And, keeping Pedro fully rested is surely a useful enterprise. Now, if Jeremy Gonzalez had to pitch in that 16th inning marathon or the Mets lost one or two of the first games vs. the Phillies (five game back now, three at the start of the series), things would be different. Instead, the Mets won with questionable arms. Ends up the best of all worlds.*
Meanwhile, a nod to the Yanks. Normal Yanks/Red Sox affair -- hitting won the day, another poor outing by the Randy "heck we still won" Johnson -- surely, that is why the team spent around 16M. You know, so some ugly guy can give up around five runs a game and pitch an average of five innings. The fact that the Yanks still, with all their recent problems, managed to win two of three vs. the Red Sox bodes well for them. Clearly, the Red Sox are still all bat and attitude (2003 was a fluke -- last year suggested as much). Oh, and two good starters, great closer, and hittable relievers. Yawn. The Blue Jays, the real Canadian baseball team, meanwhile are two games back. They spent some money in the off season, but it remains to be seen if they are nothing more than their usual respectable third place selves.
Personally, being tired of the Sox, that would be a bit annoying. Anyway, how about those Tigers? Grrr.
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* The Mets did lose, but the starter was fine -- the team didn't score after tying it early, and the Phillies scored two in the seventh, giving the guy a no decision.