Ladies and Gentlemen, your 2011 Dissapoint-Mets!

Ouch.

Ouch ouch ouch ouch ouch.

4 games that played out exactly the same way. The Mets play decently at first, scratch out a few early runs, make what seems to be the most of decent-but-not-spectacular starting pitching and capitalize offensively, then the wheels come off. Defensive mistakes cost the Mets outs and lead to big innings for the bad guys. "Turbo" Troy Tulowitski hits home runs in each game. The Mets mount offensive comebacks but fall just short. Of course, the home outfield looking like they've never had to run down a fly ball certainly didn't help things.

The way the Mets played during this homestand reminded me of how they played during the final weeks of 2008 and 2009. Wimpy, coasting, unable to overcome adversity. I suppose it's better to get these kinds of games out of the way early than to collapse at the end of the season, but geez. I don't know what to look for in this next series. I'm operating under the assumption that the Braves are a better team than the Rockies, although the Rockies are off to a hot start and certainly looked like they were playing to win each game against the Mets. Then again, maybe that's just because the Mets looked like the visiting team. The Rockies certainly didn't have any trouble hitting home runs, reading fly outs or making game-saving infield plays at Citi Field.

We're only 13 games in, and every team goes through bad stretches, but this team needs to sharpen up in order to be worth watching. As I type this, I see Jordan Zimmerman and the Washington Nationals embroiled in a pitchers duel with Cliff Lee and the Phillies. The Nationals, who are far inferior on paper, are playing hard and making a legitimate effort to win the series. Terry Collins is right when he says that the Mets are a talented team, but right now they aren't playing any better than their record implies. I don't know if the team isn't trying hard enough or is trying too hard and choking, but I'm tired of it. From the looks of things, Terry is tired of it too. At least this weekend, the Mets won't look lost in their own ballpark.