We as Mets fans obviously live and die with every pitch. And it's very much appreciated. However, some of the things I've been hearing lately are just downright outlandish. I could write (or Wright if you really wanna be Mets based with the lingo) a friggin novel on this but I'll try to keep this brief since people's attention spans are as short as Jerry Manuel's patience with bullpen personnel.

1) Carlos Beltran- I notice that fans are putting the blame on his return to the lineup to the current slump we are in. Let's face it though, the ENTIRE offense is in a slump. Even before the dreaded west-coast swing, we had a 6 game homestand against the Reds and Braves and went 2-4. The only games we won were two Santana 3-0 shutouts he pitched. In the four losses the Mets scored a combined 9 runs with 6 of them coming in one game. I read things about how Beltran doesn't care or he brings the entire team's clubhouse down...which is absolutely ludicrous. How was he doing in 2006-2008 when he totaled 101 HR and 340 RBI? All fans want to remember him for was that strike 3 looking at Adam Wainwright. Yes it's heartbreaking...but looking back at it: would you really expect a ROOKIE pitcher to throw that SICK curve on an 0-2 count with the bases loaded, 2 outs IN A GAME 7??? That took serious guts. That NLCS by the way he hit 3HR, 4RBI and batted .296/.387 OBP
He isn't batting well whatsoever right now, it's plain as black and white. But why does someone like him get lashed at, when there is a player whom everyone seems to have a crush on who historically cannot light a candle to Beltran...

2) Jeff Francoeur- Okay, it's an upgrade to a player who barely plays anymore (Ryan Church). He has 11 HRs on the season and 7 of which have either tied or given the Mets the lead. He comes to play everyday. He played on a broken hand even though the Mets were WAY out of contention last year. He's got a cannon at RF. Grit. Determination. Clutch. Except he's really not. He's one of those players in which you see he'll do some great things every now and then because he's streaky. Remember how hot he started in April? That's a distant memory now. He is 15 for 89 since July 1st. Granted, the 3 HRs he has in that time span have been timely- and I'm even venturing to bet that people will thank him for winning Tuesday's game because he pinch-ran. His ability to get runners in scoring position to score is an absolute joke. His splits: .212 BA/.303 OBP/.313 SLG/.616 OPS. You compare that to Jason Bay who gets the ire of Mets' fans as well and he's Ruthian in comparison: .271 BA/.338 OBP/.448 SLG/.826 SLG. And yes, those aren't great numbers for someone you're giving the big bucks too- but you're also asking Bay to protect guys like Francoeur and Barajas/Blanco/Thole in the lineup (prior to injury). And he's not batting behind Pujols unlike that Matt Holliday guy (more on him another time).

And so on.