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Since I'm bored, here's my breakdown of the Mets:
-Lineup: Luis Castillo playing well is absolutely key. If he can get on base and hit around .280 I'll be satisfied, him playing well and getting on base before the big hitters (which may or may not include Reyes) is huge. Not sure I totally agree with Manuel already handing the LF job fulltime to Daniel Murphy (although I think platooning him is counterproductive) because he said Tatis might platoon with Church and that might piss Church off.
-Rotation: Mike Francesa was going on and on about how many question marks the Mets rotation has and how only Santana can be considered a lock to win 15 games, Pelfrey is risky coming off his first full season, Perez can be inconsistent, Maine is coming off an injury, and they haven't identified a 5th starter yet. At the same time, he said the entire Yankees rotation is a lock for 15 wins each at minimum and they should all easily be able to make 30 starts each. Fuck off, Fatcessa.
-Bullpen: Everyone seems to think K-Rod is gonna bomb, but I dunno, I feel MUCH better about the bullpen. I doubt he will be as good as last year, but still a huge improvement. The Mets had a killer bullpen in 2006 and that offset their rotation (which on Opening Day included the likes of Steve Trachsel, Victor Zambrano, and Brian Bannister). If Duaner Sanchez can get back to the level of play he had in 2006 prior to his injury, they will have a nasty 7-8-9 combo.
-Bench: I'm actually more worried about the bench than any other phase of the team. Their 4th outfielder will be either Jeremy Reed or Cory Sullivan (lefties). Their reserve middle infielder is Alex Cora (lefty). Ramon Castro is a righty but the backup catcher so not a pinch-hit canidate. Fernando Tatis could be a righty off the bench, but on days he's starting that would mean another lefty on the bench. Lastly, they seem inclined to bring Marlon Anderson, yet ANOTHER lefty. If he could play like he did in 05-07, then great...but otherwise I kinda hope they eat his contract and bring along Angel Pagan, Bobby Kielty, or even Jose Valentin.
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