YESSSS!!!! I want to run around the room screaming for joy! R.A. Dickey was named one of the three finalists for the National League Cy Young Award along with Gio Gonzalez of the Nats and Clayton Kershaw of the Dodgers. 

If you have read any of my blog posts, you know I am a HUGE fan of Dickey, but wanting him to win this award and knowing he deserves it, is two different things. There is not a doubt in my mind that Dickey should be the NL Cy Young Award winner. 

STATS DON’T LIE– The 38 year old knuckeballer finished the season 20-6 (2nd in the NL in wins) and posted a 2.73 ERA (2nd in the NL) in a league leading 233.2 innings!! He served up 5 complete games this season, 3 of which were shutouts. He even recorded two 1-hitters (one of which should have a been a NO-HITTER…did I mention it was the day after Santana’s historic no-hitter!) Dickey finished the season with a league leading 230 strikeouts, too! He was named a 2012 All-Star (and should have started…) and was recently named MLB Player’s Choice NL Outstanding Pitcher. Oh, and let’s not forget that he did all of this INJURED!!! That’s right!

I really hope voting goes the right way and Dickey gets this because even if it comes down to him not wearing a Mets jersey by the start of the 2013 season, I still want him to be recognized for his spectacular season and career-long hard work. And if you don’t think he worked his butt off to get here, you should check out his book- Wherever I Wind Up: My Quest for Truth, Authenticity, and the Perfect Knuckleball. He truly is an inspiration. I was a fan before, but this book opened my eyes to how hard work and dedication can lead to success, even if the journey is bumpy and hard to get through. Things may not always be perfect, but they happen for a reason. 

Congrats R.A. Dickey on being a finalist! Your story is remarkable!New 

Congrats to all the finalists for all the awards and good luck!

The winners of the NL and AL Cy Young Award will be announced on NOVEMBER 14th!!

Matt Harvey was roughed up- giving up 5 runs on 8 hits in 5 innings against the San Diego Padres. Harvey couldn’t throw a breaking ball for a strike and most of the hits he gave up were extra-base hits. He struggled to find a rhythm and the strike zone all game. Harvey is a fierce competitor and you could see from his post-game interview that he was upset with himself. 

Harvey during his post-game interview.

But Harvey knows he needs to erase this one, keep working hard, and get ready for his next start.  Hopefully he uses this loss to motivate him and takes it out on Atlanta on Friday, which will be his debut at Citi Field. I’m sure Mets fans can’t wait to see the future of the organization first hand on the mound at home. 

Mets offense was definitely limited today. They’ve been struggling to get clutch hits. But Ronny Cedeño showed a little spark with a pinch-hit 2-run home run. (Check it out here…) That makes 8 pinch-hit home runs for the Mets this season. Obviously Valdie leads the pack with 5, followed by Scott Hairston with 2, and Cedeno joins them. 

BROOKLYN GETS A TREAT!– Fans at MCU Park were given a great treat this afternoon! Johan Santana made a rehab start for the Brooklyn Cyclones. I’m so upset I didn’t go to the game! But I’m happy he had a good outing! Santana threw 38 pitches allowing one hit and one walk with three strikeouts over three scoreless innings in the BK. He followed his three innings with further pitching in the bullpen to make it a 90 pitch outing.

Santana on his rehab start: “I feel good. My body had a chance to recover. I really needed that. I threw all my pitches and commanded my fastball.”

Can’t wait to get our ace back! 

BAXTER IN METS HISTORY– Mike Baxter drew five walks in last night’s game, setting the Mets’ record and tying the National League record for walks in a nine-inning game. Congrats Mike!

EDGIN TAKING CONTROL– After Frank Francisco was reactivated, Tim Byrdak was placed on the DL with shoulder soreness. With Byrdak going down, Josh Edgin will be taking on a larger role in the bullpen. It’s a lot to take on in your rookie season, but judging by his performance so far, Edgin seems like the real deal. I think he can handle it! 

OFF DAY– The Mets have an off day tomorrow before Jose Reyes and the Marlins come into town for a three game series on Tuesday. Can’t wait to listen to all the comparisons between Reyes and Tejada…NOT. Ugh, please! Don’t forget to check out the game at 7:10PM! 

The second half begins and the Mets get swept by the Braves- losing their prime second place position behind the Nats and their first series out the gate from break. They’re now 6.5 games back and already you can hear the so-called ‘whispers’ mounting. Just because we lost this series, does not mean the Mets are out of the race for the playoffs. Yes, I know we don’t exactly have a reputation for great second half play in the last few years, but as a Mets fan- YA GOTTA BELIEVE! 

There are a lot of negatives that I can sit here and list out, but we need to look at the positives. The Mets have been able to keep up with everyone in the NL East division with a pretty much home-grown team this season. Johan Santana has come back from shoulder surgery, went out on the mound almost every 5th day, and given us everything he’s been working on, including the FIRST NO-HITTER IN METS HISTORY. That’s more than anyone could have hoped for at the start of the season. R.A. Dickey came out of nowhere with this spectacular season of pitching and has even been mentioned as an NL Cy Young Award candidate. They’ve had some rough starts as of late, but that doesn’t negate what they’ve done or what they can do as the season goes on. David Wright has been scorching hot since the season began and even though we can’t expect him to carry the team, his offense and defense really have led this team and his career to a possible MVP season. Ruben Tejada has become one of my favorite players on the team. Have you seen his defense this season? Daniel Murphy, Jordany Valdespin, Jon Niese, Dillon Gee, Kirk Nieuwenhuis…I can sit here and name almost the entire team, because everyone has stepped their game up to get us where we are. The passion and fight I’ve seen from the team this season makes me proud to say I’m a Met fan.

This series was NOT a sign that we are finished this season. We need to work even harder to show everyone we are not done yet. It’s ONLY 3 games into the second half, so let’s calm down critics!

FIRED UP! – Did anyone check out the game yesterday? It was worth watching them lose just to see pitching coach Dan Warthen get thrown out of the game because of two missed calls (and several questionable calls throughout the series) in the 5th inning against Santana. I was so pumped watching Warthen yell at the umpire! He definitely had reason after those two terrible calls, but I have NEVER seen him get so mad! He looks so mild tempered, haha! Terry Collins and David Wright both had to get in between him and the umpire. Sometimes it’s good to see coaches show such emotion!

OFF DAY– After a tough series, the Mets have an off day today. They’ll be back on the field tomorrow taking on the first place Nationals at Nationals Park with Jon Niese on the mound at 7:05 PM. Let’s Go Mets! (Let’s see those #LGM on Twitter!)

P.S.– Jason Bay is inching closer and closer to a return! Here’s to hoping he can get something together for us once he comes back!

The game started with a power outage at Turner Field in the second, but it wasn’t much better once the lights came back on. Chris Young only lasted three innings and dug the team into a five run hole, so a comeback was difficult to muster for the Mets last night. They were able to make it a one run game in the fourth inning, but it wasn’t enough. Chipper Jones (ugh, 0f course!!) pounded a home run in the sixth inning off Josh Edgin and another insurance run from the Braves proved to be too much for the Mets to overcome. Edgin was making his Major League debut as the Mets continue to search for help in the pen.

Young seemed a little stiff last night. It was obvious he didn’t have his best stuff. He kept stretching his arm and shoulder and struggled with command. The Mets depend on good starting pitching to win, so Young’s tough start wasn’t exactly a recipe for success. With the injuries to Gee and Santana, there is a lot more pressure on the starting pitchers and the team as a whole. We are not a power hitting team. That’s obvious to anyone, so when you go down five runs- it’s hard to battle back. The Mets put up a good fight, but we’re now back 5.5 games. Every game counts, so we’ll have to fight even harder if we want to stay in the playoff race.

ARE YOU KIDDING ME!!! — Did you see Ruben Tejada‘s crazy good play in the 4th off Prado’s grounder?? Well if you didn’t, you need to check it out here. Not only did he make the stop, but he turned ON HIS KNEES and fired to first for the out. My jaw-dropped. He is being consistent and developing his skills beyond my expectations to say the least. You keep it going Tejada! I am so impressed as I’m sure every Met fan is!

DICKEY TAKES THE MOUND TONIGHT– R.A. Dickey looks for his 13th win of the season this afternoon! NL Cy Young candidate in the making right there! Dickey and the Mets take on Tommy Hanson and the Braves at 4:05 PM on FOX.

Mets look to Chris Young for a strong start to their second half.

Chris Young gets the call to start against the Braves tonight at 7:35 PM as the Mets begin their second half against a NL rival. With Gee to undergo surgery today and Santana with his ankle injury (nothing serious…I hope), Young is asked to start us off on a good note and get a win. This is an important game because it could set the tone for the rest of the season. We’re in the race. We could do this. It’s so close, yet so far. Consistency will get us where we need to be. The Mets are a half game behind the Braves and 4.5 behind the first place Nats. There is no room for error! Watch the game tonight to see how the Mets start off the beginning of their second half.

Alderson says… The Mets will be looking to add help in the bullpen or a right handed bat to jump start offense especially against left-handed pitchers, which we have struggled against all season. Even though Jason Bay will be returning from the disabled list soon, Alderson recently commented that we need to work on our weaknesses. I’m glad he’s saying the right things, but Mets fans want action! Hopefully, his actions will speak louder than his words following the trade deadline.

R.A. Dickey is about to appear on “Late Show with David Letterman” following his shutout inning in the All-Star Game last night. (He definitely should have been starting! He earned it! But he represented the Mets well- even in relief) Can you believe it? I doubt Dickey can even believe it! I’m so excited to see him show his corky personality off the  field. Of course everyone is going to love him because EVERYONE LOVES DICKEY!!!

HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE!! The National League pounded the American League last night 8-0. So essentially the Mets just gained home field advantage in the World Series? Oh, if only that could happen! (My life’s dream!!)

#REALLY?! – Did you see the players tweeting during the game from the MLB Social Media Room? I thought that was such a great addition to the game. Social media really connects the players to their fans. It was a great idea for the MLB to become a part of that world especially during a game that has such a diverse fan-base. Matt Kemp became the first player to tweet during a game and was followed by others such as Stephen Strasburg and R.A. Dickey.

SOUR NOTE: Dillion Gee is slated to have possible season ending surgery after a blood clot was found in his arm. It is reported that he could resume throwing 6-8 weeks following the surgery, but the Mets don’t want to push him to return. What does this mean for the Mets as the trade deadline approaches? They will probably have to get into the difficult task of finding another starting pitcher. It’s such a setback! The bullpen was a major concern, but now we have more problems! I don’t know what Sandy Alderson is going to do before the trade deadline, but I hope whatever it is can fix the team up enough to keep us in the race for the playoffs.

I really had no desire to blog about that terrible loss Sunday because it just gets me angry. It was my birthday yesterday (my 21st birthday–woohoo!!), so who wants to be upset on their birthday? HAHA There were missed opportunities to score and it looked like they didn’t come to play. On the bright side, Wright made two awesome defensive plays- one of which he made over the railing in foul territory! (*cough* MVP *cough*) Take a look! But everyone has to shake it off and relax this All-Star weekend because once it’s over, it’s back to business and working their butts off to make a real run at the playoffs.

AGAIN?!– Prince Fielder won his second Home Run Derby title last night, winning a title in both leagues!

REALLY?!!– Of course, the Mets get the short end of the stick this year. Statistically, both David Wright and R.A. Dickey should be starting this All-Star Game, but that’s not happening. Tony LaRussa went with Cain to start for the NL instead of Dickey. Even though he’s disappointed, Dickey handled himself with his normal professionalism and said he respected the decision. I, however, am not a pitcher for a MLB team and do not have to be professional in front of the media so I will say what every Mets fan is thinking– WHATTTT THE HECKKKK?! (well, that’s the nice version)  The two players are still very excited about tonight’s game. Check out this video from mets.com of David and R.A. on their ASG experiences. You can’t help but love these guys! I can’t wait for Wright and Dickey to show everyone exactly what they missed out on in the second half of the season.

Don’t forget to tune in to see Wright, Dickey and all the All-Stars in the 2012 All-Star Game tonight at 7:30 EST on FOX.

GET WELL SOON!! Dillon Gee has been hospitalized for a blood clot in his arm. Let’s all send him well wishes and a speedy recovery! Get better soon Gee! Hopefully, we’ll see you back on the mound soon enough.

This time last year, the Mets were 42-42 and 10.5 games back of first place. The Phillies were in first place with a 53-32 record. This year, things are different. The Mets are 44-37 and 3.5 games behind the first place Nats. The Phillies, on the other hand, have a 36-46 record and are 12 games back of first place. I’m not saying this is indicative of the standings come September, but these facts put a smile on my face and on the faces of every Mets fan out there. For me, this game was overall one of the best played of the season.The Mets had everything going for them tonight. Niese allowed only one run off three hits over eight innings. The overpowering offense and stellar defense was led by Daniel Murphy, Ruben Tejada, and David Wright. Murphy was a home-run shy of a cycle and snatched a liner from the air in the second. I loved seeing the excitement and energy from Murph after pounding a triple in the first inning off Worley. Tejada made a great leaping catch and continues with his solid hitting. He has been a pleasant surprise this season with strong defense and good hitting. Wright made a strong diving stop on a Shane Victorino grounder in the fifth inning. He was then greeted with “M-V-P!” chants by the large crowd at Citi Field after his three run homer in the sixth inning. His 10th home run of the season gave Wright yet another franchise record with his ninth consecutive season hitting at least 10 home runs. He also passes Howard Johnson for third place on the all-time list. The Mets organization better think long and hard before they make any decisions regarding Wright. He is the face of this team and is having an incredible season.

Check out these highlights of  Wright’s blast  and Murphy’s four RBI game (Video links from mets.com)

Things are looking good right now, but as a long-time Met fan- I hope it can last. Ya gotta believe though, right? Consistency is key!

Surprising?–I don’t think so!: R.A. Dickey was named National League Pitcher of the Month for his amazing pitching in June. He is having a dominant season and his stats for the month of June are phenomenal. He threw back-to-back no hitters, posted a 0.93 ERA, and went 5-0. Congrats Dickey! You truly deserve it! Keep it up!