Coming into the season, the Mets starred at the toughest April schedule in Major League Baseball. So far the Mets have played four-three game series against all over .500 baseball team, expect for the Angels (and we know they are better than 78 wins a year ago). Below is where the Mets stood in each series thus far, with a prediction for tonights series with Arizona:
Washington Nationals: The Mets opened the regular season facing the predicted division winner. Though the Mets held a lead in each game of the series, they were swept in disappointing fashion. Opening day hurt the most. The Mets not only had a bullpen implosion of epic proportions, but they lost their closer of the present and the future, Bobby Parnell, to Tommy John surgery. The starting pitching was strong in series number one, but the offense was too spotty, and the bullpen too dirty.
Cincinnati Reds: On a cold, damp, and dreary Friday night, the Mets notched their first victory of the year. Timely hitting, combined with just enough offense, sprinkled on top with Jose Valverde's first save of the year, was just the right formula for the Mets to get in the W column. Game 2 against the struggling Reds was even sweeter. After the Dillon Gee blew his own 2-1 lead in the 6th inning, the Mets seemed doomed. The offense needed one major boost it had been lacking in the first four gamed. Up to the plate comes Ike Davis. The "back up" first baseman took one gigantic swing while pinch hitting in the 9th inning, resulting in a walk-off grand slam. Looking to sweep the Reds and get to .500 on the early season, the Mets offense disappeared yet again on Sunday, resulting in a 2-out-of-3 series win for the Mets.
Atlanta Braves: Every Mets fan knows playing in Atlanta is NEVER easy. The Mets come into play 40 games under .500 in Atlanta since 1997. What was the most impressive part of this series was not the Mets winning it, but the Mets winning it in Atlanta. The trend of strong starting pitching, plus a new look and refueled bullpen, thanks to Kyle Farnsworth and Carlos Torres, resulted in the Mets taking 2-of-3 from the division winners.
L.A. Angels-The Mets 9 game road trip continued in Los Angeles versus Mike Trout and the disappointing Angels. The Mets and Angels traded extra inning wins in the first two games, only to have a lopsided win in game three, against Mets ace Bartolo Colon. Colon just looked awful in his third game of the year, letting back-to-back-to-back home runs in the first inning. The Mets didn't capitalize on their chance to win three straight series, but they ended play Sunday night 5-7, after an 0-3 start. I'll take it.
Up next, the Mets face the lowly 4-10 Arizona Diamondbacks before returning home to face the Braves. A successful 9 game road trip will be 5-4, meaning the Mets should, can, and probably will take 2 of three from Arizona. While Wright, Granderson, and d'Arnaud have yet to make an impact offensively, the pitching, bullpen, and Juan Lagaras have not let down.
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