Baseball has been very turbulent in July and a lot of that has been thanks to teams going on streaks. As a team streaks, their position in their standings change and streaks are the reason why we had bizzaro baseball this year. The Mets' 10 game winning streak reshaped the NL East and made it into a legitimate three team race no matter who is looking at the division. Anyway there are a few current streaks that are causing noise right now.

Yankees 6 Game Winning Streak:
Growing up in Baltimore, I grew up hating the Yankees. So, to this day, I hate to see them do well. Their current winning streak has tightened up the AL East that got sloppy since the Rays' 7 game losing streak. With the Rays and the Red Sox tied at top, and the Yanks three out about to play a three game set in Boston, a sweep here, bringing the streak to 9 games, would cause a lot of shaking in that division.

Red Sox 3 Game Winning Streak:
Its a small streak, the only reason its listed here is to compare it to the Yankee's 6 game streak to show that the Yankees are not the only team in this weekend's match up.

Detroit 4 Game Winning Streak:
This streak has pushed out of below .500 territory and only 5.5 games out of first place. They play the White Sox tonight and if they can keep the streak alive through the series, they will be in a series position to take back the division. They can be a dangerous team and they might showing their stripes finally.

Minnesota 4 Game Losing Streak:
Before this streak started they were right up their with the Sox for the division title. Now their footing is starting to slip, and it couldn't be at a worse time with the Tigers starting to get hot. If the Tigers do damage against the Sox this weekend, then this is the time for the Twins to stop this streak.

Cardinals 4 game Losing Streak:
They would love to beat the Mets this weekend and stop this streak. It has knocked them out of the Wild Card and has made the division harder to reach, especially with the Cubs faltering as of late. There is still a lot of time left in the season, but this losing streak is starting to close their window to the postseason.

Brewers 8 Game Winning Streak:
By far the most important streak in baseball right now. This streak has taken the Brew Crew to the top of the Wild Card standings by beating the number one Cards there and now has them within a one game striking distance of the NL Central top spot. They play Houston now, the worst team in the NL Central, which means this streak can easily continue to build momentum.

I misspoke last week when I said the Mets were about to start two important series, one against the Phillies, the next against the Cards, because I didn't look at the schedule past the Cardinals. After the Cards, they have a three game set with the Marlins, and then a day off. So they have nine straight games of playing good teams that all have legitimate shots of making the playoffs.

The Mets had to handle the most dangerous, and the most wanted of these three teams yesterday, as they completed their series with the Phillies. Tuesday night was terrible anyway you cut it. It reminded me of that game against the Dbacks earlier this year where Santana went 7 innings, no runs, and 10 strikeouts, only to see his game get destroyed by Smith and Wagner in the 8th and 9th inning. The type of loss the Mets had Tuesday night, is the type that could linger, that could affect play the next night, would this be the fate of the 2008 Mets?

No! The Mets fought back and fought back Wednesday night and beat the game thanks Reyes and thanks to a better feeling Wagner who locked down his 25th save of the year. Yesterday the Mets were in a pitching duel but they were able to get out 3 runs and once again, Wagner came out and shut down the opposing team on the way to his 100th save as a New York Met. The incredible thing about about the 3 runs in yesterday's game was that they call came when the Mets had 2 outs. Getting runners home with 2 outs has been tough for them this year, and yesterday they were able to do it in a game that really mattered.

The Mets bounced back from adversity once again and now have to prepare themselves a series with a tough team in the Cardinals who are on a four game losing streak thanks to the Brewers and want to get back the Wild Card spot back. Things in the Central are tight right now with the Cubs in first, the Brew Crew one game out and the Cards only four games out. Can the Mets play Spoiler? Things are closer in the East with the Mets out in front, but Philly is only one game out and the Marlins are right behind them only two games out. July baseball is actually exciting this year.

Before the Mets started their 10 game winning streak, there was talk about 8 games that would make or break their season. They had a four game set with the Cardinals and then a four game set with Philly. The Cards were leading the Wild Card at the time, and the Phils were leading the division at the time. A lot of wins in those 8 games would mean the Mets would start to gain ground and make their name thrown around in playoff conversation.
That is exactly what happened. The Mets first split the series with the Cards, which brought them within 4.5 games starting their series with the Phillies. The Mets dropped the first game, but then won their next three as they started the 10 game winning streak that would end with them tied for first placed in the National League East. The Mets now prepare themselves, tied for first, to enter a battle with Philly where they will fight to be on top in a crucial three game set. The Phils will be sending out their new pitcher, Blanton, to the mound in the first game against a hopefully correctly rested Johan Santana. Then Myers will battle Maine followed by a Moyer vs Perez game.
To make the next week more important, the Mets will then play against the Cards at home in a three game set. Depending on how the series with Philly goes, this game could be very important in the wild card hunt. As of right now, the Cards have it followed by the Brewers (one game out) and the Mets/Philles 3.5 games out (Marlins 4.0). The Brewers will take on the currently streaking cards starting today and wild card picture could look very different at the end of the week. If this was September, all eyes would be on the Mets this week because they would be trying to make the playoffs and potentially play spoiler at the same time. Its July, so anything can be reversed, but these games still spell importance out to the Mets.
Lets Go Mets! Take the East!

It really has been a crazy half. In the first half of baseball the Rays and the Dbacks were two of the hottest teams in baseball, the Yankees spent considerable time in the cellar of their division, the Mets were under .500 and in third or fourth place (when in third, not behind Philly and the Braves, but Philly and the Marlins), the Tigers played poorly, St. Louis was a surprise and the same can be said about the White Sox. As we wrapped up the first half, the Rays started to falter, the Yanks started to rise, the Mets started to streak, the Braves still stunk, the Tigers started to get hot, and the NL West decided to take a vacation.

So out of this mixed up, Bizzaro World Baseball (as Sports Illustrated called it in late May), what parts are true, and what parts are false? The Mets rise is for real, although I am biased, but it will be a race for the division until the end of the season (next weeks games with Philly should be a very exciting, nervous, anxious time for all of us). I like the Rays, I believe they will stay near it till the end, but by mid September the Red Sox will get the division. The Rays are young and they need sometime to build stamina for the long baseball season. When it comes to Detrioit, their recent turn around will continue because they are built to win. If the White Sox keep playing like they are, then this should be a big race down the stretch. I can't believe I am going to say this, but the Cards look good for the wild card, the Mets/Phillies/Marlins race will really need to heat up for two of those teams to make the wild card spot. With the NL West, thats just a shame. A couple of season ago, who ever wanted the West got it, and it looks like it will be the same thing this year. The Rockies and Padres have both been real disappointing this year. I know the Rockies made an impressive run at the end last year, but it will take a lot for that to happen this year. If they trade Fuentes, then its over, if they don't, its probably still over for them.

Lets see this second half of ball! Lets Go Mets!

The Mets have really turned it up the last 10 games as they have risen to a tie for first place and of course, getting all three major back page newspapers (Newsday, Daily News, New York Post) to all have the same headline on the back of "first and ten". There have been many stars over the streak, but I would like to focus on the hitting of the streak as many players have prevailed in many statistic categories. The five hitters that should be looked at are Reyes, Wright, Beltran, Delgado and Tatis, who all have played a role in this streak.

Reyes: 43 AB, 6 R, 15 H, HR, 5 RBI, 6 BB, 3 SB, .349 BA
Reyes has been the spark plug that is needed at the top of the lineup. He is getting on base by hitting and by walking. He is getting home, and he is just helping the Mets cause. That .349 BA is something too, especially when you consider that he went 0-5 in yesterday's win, so he really is hitting well.

Wright: 42 AB, 7 R, 10 H, 2 HR, 8 RBI, 5 BB, 3 SB, .238 BA
Wright is the only Mets star that has been struggling during this streak. Before last night, his numbers would look much different because he got a homerun, two hits, and 4 RBI in last night's game. That being said, he still came through in the clutch (Although previously 2-28 in the ninth inning this year before hitting that homer) and has demonstrated why he is a key part of this team. Even with his recent struggles to get on base, he still has 7 runs over the last 10 games, which means the guys behind him are producing.

Beltran: 42 AB, 10 R, 13 H, 3 HR, 10 RBI, 4 BB, 4 SB, .310 BA
This is the Beltran we have wanted all year. Not only has he been slugging, but he has been balanced. His power numbers are up, which is reflecting well in his run production. He also has been getting on base and running wisely with 4 stolen bases, and scoring 10 runs. If he plays like this the rest of the season, he can easily be the catalyst  needed in the cleanup spot in this lineup.

Delgado: 40 AB, 10 R, 16 H, 3 HR, 6 RBI, 6 BB, .400 BA
Last Friday, I wrote about Delgado starting  to hit his stride, and that has been evident over the last 10 games. He is slugging and getting on base and scoring runs. The only thing that surprises me is that he doesn't have more than 6 RBI's, because his batting average suggests that he would. He is scoring, and making his presence known.

Tatis: 35 AB, 8 R, 15 H, 4 HR, 11 RBI, SB, .429 BA
The best offense producer is Tatis. Who would have thought that at the start of the season, but it is true. He is slugging the ball right now, getting the Mets back it games. He is getting those runners across the plate and getting himself across the plate as well. Lets hope he can keep this up as well.

Delgado struggled last year and if you look at his stats as a whole from this year, it looks like he is struggling again. However, when his numbers are split, one can see that he is starting to pick up the pace. In his first 52 games this year (up to June 1st), he had 193 AB, 25 R, 44 H, 7 2B, 8 HR, 25 RBI which all broke down to a .228 BA and a .307 OBP. His career numbers are a .279 BA and a .383 OBP. So looking at that, he was doing terrible.
Since then, he has turned things around. Since June 1st:
    38 G, 144 AB, 24 R, 39 H, 11 2B, 8 HR, 25 RBI, .271 BA, .350 OBP
Those numbers are more like where Delgado should be. In those 38 games, he had as many RBI's and HR as he did in his first 52 games this year. July has been even better for Delgado:
    10 G, 39 AB, 10 R, 15 H, 5 2B, 2 HR, 5 RBI, .385, .457 OBP
So far in July, his averages are up. On the whole since June, his power numbers and run production are slightly down (mostly due to his 9 RBI game at the end of June). I am not saying that Delgado is going to keep going and have MVP type numbers but if he can keep up the pace he is on since June 1st, he will be a huge help for the Mets current playoff push.
Keep hitting man, keep hitting.

With Castillo down on the DL, the Mets called up Argenis Reyes from the minors to help take over some playing time for the injury plagued team. Who is Argenis and why does his name sound familiar? Reyes is 25 years old and is in his first season with the Mets organization, his previous five have been with the Indians, and this past week he made his major league debut. He should sound familiar because of Spring Training this year. He had a very good spring hitting .433 in 30 AB including 4 runs, 13 hits, a double, a triple, a homerun, and 5 RBI. So far with the Mets this season, he has had 13 AB with 4 hits, 3 runs, an RBI and .308 Batting average.

When you look at his stats from the past several years in the minors, you know that he is a fast player. In his 300 AB in New Orleans this year, he has 13 stolen bases. The previous four years (04, 05, 06, and 07) he has had at least 24 stolen bases or more. Hes not Jose Reyes or Carlos Gomez fast, but if he is stealing like that, it means that he is either above average fast, or he has good base running instincts, and either is fine. Here are his 08 and 07 minor league stat lines:
    08: 300 AB, 38 R, 87 H, 11 2B, 3B, 22 RBI, 13 SB, .290 BA, .353 OBP
    07: 467 AB, 65 R, 136 H, 21 2B, 4 3B, 3 HR, 32 RBI, 27 SB, .278 BA
His numbers look good. He doesn't have a lot of power, but he is also young. How he develops will be interesting in the sense that I feel he has been a bit under the radar. Also, the Mets are hoping that their first round pick of Reese Havens pans out second base, and he has been doing well in Brooklyn. The way this team goes through second basemen, having a surplus of them might be a nice change of pace. Lets Go Mets!

There are so many good things that come out of a 6 game winning streak besides the best thing which is winning six games in a row. One thing the Mets proved over the last six games is their ability to win without their starting outfield. At the start of the season, the outfield was supposed to be Alou, Beltran and Church (Hey, the ABC outfield), with Beltran hopefully having his 2006 numbers, Alou helping against with left handed pitching, and what ever we would get out of Church would be fine.
Thanks to injuries, the Mets had to send out Pagan, Beltran and Church. Pagan and Church were then big surprises. Pagan was hitting the ball really well, and Church was starting to look like the slugger on the team. Over the course of the season, the Mets had to start playing Chavez on a regular basis with Tatis, Evans, Anderson, Aguila and a new acquisition of Nixon due to injuries of Pagan and Church.
Church has been coming and going, Pagan might finally be on his way out, and Alou's near future with the Mets looks dark with surgery looming. To add to the problems, Nixon goes down on the DL.
So, what looked from the start to be a mighty outfield has been recently anchored with Beltran in center and then a mix of Tatis, Chavez, Aquila and Evans around him. On paper that would look like a huge hole in this lineup, especially when the loss of Castillo is added in the mix, but the Mets have been winning. Out of all of them, the most surprising has been Tatis. I remeber watching Tatis a few years ago with the Orioles when he was a back up to the back up at third base. Now he has 4 hits this season that have won games for the Mets. Lets hope our mix and match outfield can extend this winning streak through the next series with the struggling Rockies and through the All Star Break.

The Mets will be sending Santana, Perez, Maine, and Pedro to the mound during this four game set that can swing the momentum for either team in the NL East this weekend. The worst situation is the Mets drop to 8.5 games out of first place, and 5 games under five hundred, and the best situation has the Mets 3 games above .500 and a half a game behind the Phillies. The Marlins, currently 2.5 out of first, will be watching this series closely as well.
Over his last five games, Santana record, 0-4, is real disappointing. However, when you look at his numbers, the situation is much different. During that stretch, with 32 innings of work, Santana has walked 12, struck out 32, and has posted an ERA of 2.53. He is a second half of the year pitcher, and that time of the year is now here. Hopefully he can repeat his earlier outing against the Phillies this year where he allowed 3 runs over 4 hits, walked none, and struck out 10 on his way to victory.
Perez's last five have been great compared to his season so far. He has a 2-1 record, 30.1 innings pitched, walked 9 and struck out 26 on his way to an ERA of 3.56. Hopefully he can dig back into that ability he displayed in his last outing where he confused the Yankees and was hitting 94 mph with his fastball. He is 0-1 in two games against Philly this year, despite having an ERA of 0.00. He has allowed 7 hits, 8 walks and has struck out 9 during those two games.
Maine has been struggling as of late. In his last 6 games, he is 3-2 over 34 IP, walked 12 and struck out 26. During that time his ERA has been 4.24. He had a good outing against Philly this yeah, but got the ND. He had 6 innings, one R, 5 BB and one K. Hopefully he can come back to form.
The Mets pitching for the first three games can easily be reliable or can easily be destroyed....like everything else this season. Lets Go Mets! Beat the Phillies!

The Braves have sent down Francoer to AA to find his swing. On the season he is batting .234 with a .121 over the last 18 games. He is one of those players that it is easy to forget his age. I have completely forgotten that he is only 24 years old. The word that is flying around suggests that he will probably stay in AA till the allstar break. This is a story to check up upon later to see how he is doing.

The big news day on MLB Trade Rumors is that the Brewers might include Matt Laporta (7th overall pick last year) with Alcides Escobar. There aren't many trade packages right now that could be better for the Indians, who also looked at the Brewers' Taylor Green. I much rather see Sabathia go to the Brewers if he has to be moved rather than another suitor like Philadelphia. Sports Illustrated reported last week that the Rays could also be suitors down the line. As long as its not Philly, I am happy. Philly is looking at Bedard as well and I feel that Sabathia is more likely to be moved than Bedard.

The Baltimore Sun reported today that the Orioles are interested in acquiring Eckstein from the Jays. Shortstop is currently one of their weakest positions right now and if this happens, that would be great for the Orioles.

Recently, I attended a Myrtle Beach @ Frederick Keys game with the camp that I work at, and it was another great game, this time because of the cheering. Cheering at games is always fun and memorable when it gets creative (just remeber any college games you have ever attended, and you will know what I mean). Our section started to do the Maryland Soccer cheer, which is when ever the goalie moves his foot, the fans shoot if it was his left or right. This time, it was done to the third base coach, who caught on to what we were doing by the end of the inning and started to hop into the dugout.
Besides the cheering I did get to see a few prospects that are highly touted. The first was the lead off hitter for the Pelicans, Gorkys Hernandez. Hernandez is a future star of the hated Atlanta Braves and guys, he is the real deal. He had an amazing game at the plate ripping a two hits at the start of the game on pretty much the first pitches he saw. He also tracked down a deep deep fly ball to center, leaped and fell basically back down midway up the warning track. He is hitting over .300 in high A ball and should be moved to AA soon. (Hernandez and Jair Jurrjens were traded from Detroit to Atlanta for Edgar Rentaria).
On the Keys side, two hopeful future stars for the Orioles were playing. They were Billy Rowell and Pedro Beato. Rowell's play at the plate has been shaky so far this season, but he is young (I believe he is either 20 years old or below) and his defense is good. I saw Beato pitch in Aberdeen two years ago. On a whole I know he has gotten better, but this was a rough game for him.
It's always interesting to see the players that you read about over the internet and here mentioned in top prospect lists. Its just part of the charm of minor league ball.