After the collapse of 2007, Omar Minaya set out to make several changes to help sure up the team. Most notable was the trade for JoAnn Santana from the Minnesota Twins in exchange for Carlos Gomez, Phillip Humber, Kevin Mulvey, and Deolis Guerra. Outfielder Ryan Church and catcher Brian Schneider were brought in from the Washington Nationals in exchange for Lastings Milledge. Also Luis Castillo was signed to a four year contract to play second base. Matt Wise was signed to add to the bullpen.

The Mets also subtracted some players. Tom Glavine signed with his former club in Atlanta. Guillermo Mota was traded to Milwaukee for catcher Johnny Estrada who was eventually released by the Mets. Paul Lo Duca also left as a free agent.

There was a lot of anticipation following the failure to get to the playoffs in ’07. Mets players and Mets management were saying all the right things, that they had learned a valuable lesson in 2007 and that things would be different. Carlos Beltran uncharacteristically claimed that the Mets were the team to beat and to make sure Jimmy Rollins new about it.

During spring training, concerns began early. Carlos Delgado was sent to New York for an MRI on his hip which also caused him to miss some games in 2007. More distressing was that during the first week of exhibition games, Ryan Church collided with Marlon Anderson in the outfield and missed several days with a concussion. Brian Schneider did not get to work with his new pitchers because he had to nurse a hamstring injury for much of the spring. Moises Alou suffered a hernia that required surgery and would force the left fielder out of action till early May. Eventually Alou would return for a hand full of games but then suffer from a calf injury that would force him out of action for the rest of the year.

We also learned that Orlando Hernandez’s foot was still a problem and would cause El-Duque to miss the entire season. Ramon Castro joined the hamstring club during the spring and he to would not be ready for the season.

So before the season even began, mumblings of Omar’s dealings with older players were threatening to derail the season.

But the season finally did begin in Florida on March 31st. The much anticipated start by Johan Santana went off without a hitch as the Mets cruised to a 7-2 win at Dolphins Stadium.

The next evening however proved to be depressing. Pedro Martinez pulled his right hamstring and had to leave the game. He would miss the next six weeks of the season.

The Mets finished April with a 13-12 record (14-12) overall. The Mets were struggling to be consistent. But there were some good signs. Although the Mets lost their final home opener in Shea Stadium history, the Mets won the next two defeating the Phillies in the opening series two games to one. The Mets also won the series in Philadelphia the following week. So early on, the Mets were playing the Phillies tough. Also the Mets did run off a five game winning streak in the middle of the month. Unfortunately the Mets lost the next five out of six. That was the story early on for the Mets. Much of the malaise from the 2007 season still appeared intact. The words we heard during spring training about a new attitude and determination were not being played out on the field. Never the less, the Mets were only a half game out behind the Marlins when the month ended.

May started with the first of three west coast swings. The Mets took two of three in Arizona but lost the series in Los Angeles. The final game in LA was a gem pitched by John Maine as the Mets drubbed the Dodgers 12-1. But again there was concern as the Mets struggled in the middle of May. At Shea Stadium the Mets lost three games in a four game series to the lowly Washington Nationals. The Mets then won a rain shortened two game set at Yankee Stadium before getting swept in a four game set by the Atlanta Braves at Turner Field. In the opening game of that series the Mets lost 6-1 to Tom Glavine. Mets fans everywhere cringed wondering why Tom couldn’t have pitched that way on the final day of the 2007 season. More importantly during the Atlanta series, Ryan Church suffered his second concussion in two months. Ryan’s condition was handled poorly by the Mets. He came back to soon and ultimately he would miss two months of the season.

At the end of May, the Mets found themselves at the .500 mark (27-27). Consistency was not part of the Mets game plan. A few wins in a row were always followed by an equal number of losses in a row. What was wrong?

Part of the problem early on was inconsistency within the starting ranks. John Maine who had a brilliant spring struggled in the early going. His pitch count was very high and often could not remain in the game much past the fifth inning. Mike Pelfrey and Oliver Perez also struggled and were not going deep into games. That trend began to expose a weak bullpen that would be a problem all season long.

A bright spot early on was Billy Wagner who converted any save handed to him in fine fashion. In the first couple of months Wagner never skipped a beat. He was as automatic as any closer in baseball.

June started out promising. After a win on Sunday the 1st to complete the home series against the Dodgers, the Mets flew to California for their second west coast trip. The Mets won the series in San Francisco and everyone was feeling positive as the Mets went to San Diego for four games. The Padres were the worst team in the National League, maybe a shade better than the Nationals.

The Mets lost the first three games by a score of 2-1, a major league record. No team had ever lost (or won) by those scores in three consecutive games in baseball history. While the Mets bats at times could score runs in bushels, it was growing clear that the offense could be very inconsistent. The Mets struggled throughout the season to score runs late in games and to cash in with runners in scoring position with two outs.

Things were looking good in the final game of the Padres series. The Mets finally got the bats going and led late in the game 6-4. But in the eighth inning, the bullpen led by Scott Schoeneweis and Duaner Sanchez began giving up hits and putting the lead in jeopardy. Not wanting to take a chance, manager Willie Randolph chose to bring in Billy Wagner for a four out save. With a run having already scored, Wagner gave up a three run home run to Tony Clark. The Padres won the game by a score of 8-6. Wagner who had been so good early on blew a huge game in San Deigo.

The Mets flew home with a record of 30-32, 7.5 games out of first place trailing the Phillies. The rumors had begun that maybe a change needed to be made. Perhaps Willie Randolph had lost his team. Nothing he could do was changing the outcome on the field. Carlos Delgado was struggling. The Mets were not scoring runs consistently and the bullpen was beginning to leak.

The Mets headed home. Willie Randolph had made some remarks that SNY TV was portraying him poorly and that because he was black he was being scrutinized more so than a white manager. This news infuriated Mets management. Willie apologized but his attempts at talking to the Mets brass went unanswered. There were many who thought Randolph’s days were numbered.

The Mets split a six game home stand against Arizona and Texas. Prior to the flight to Anaheim, Willie Randolph confronted Omar Minaya and asked point blank if he was going to be fired. Randolph did not want to fly to California for nothing. Omar assured Randolph everything was okay. The Mets opened their third west coast trip with a 9-6 win against the Angles. By midnight California time, Randolph was let go and the new Met manager was Jerry Manuel.

The Mets were crucified in the papers and on talk radio in the way Randolph was handled. That Monday, Omar flew to California to give Willie the news. Apparently all was not well as Omar suggested to Randolph back at Shea Stadium.

Jerry Manuel’s tenure as Mets manager began the next night in Anaheim. He was tested immediately on the first play of the game when Jose Reyes ran to first base on an infield hit but felt discomfort in his hamstring. After evaluating the situation, Manuel decided to take Reyes out of the game. Reyes began to argue with Manuel and fought to stay in the game. While walking to the dugout, Reyes threw his helmet down in disgust showing up his manager. Manuel won the battle though and later during the game Reyes apologized to the new manager and his teammates.

The controversy and distraction of Willie’s future was now settled. The Mets could now focus on just playing baseball.

The Mets won the series in Anaheim and then they won the series in Colorado. The Mets seemed to be more focused. Maybe Willie was more of a distraction than anyone realized.

The Mets returned home with their new manager to face the Seattle Mariners in inter-league play. With everyone excited about the new attitude and focus around the club, the Mets played lethargic against the Mariners, the worst team in the American League. After losing the series opener, the Mets were completely embarrassed in the second game losing 11-0. The Mets won the series finale with Seattle before a four game series with the Yankees.

Because of a rain out in May, the Mets were scheduled to play a day night two stadium doubleheader on Friday, June 27th. The first game would be the makeup at Yankees Stadium in the afternoon. The Mets trounced the Yankees by the score of 15-6. More importantly, struggling first baseman Carlos Delgado crushed two three run home runs and batted in a Mets record nine runs for one game. Combined with the two games against the Yankees played in May, the Mets had swept all three played at the Stadium. More importantly, Delgado began hitting again. This game marked the resurgence of Carlos Delgado, a resurgence that would help the Mets make a push toward the playoffs.

But the Mets in the nightcap at Shea could do nothing against Yankee pitching retread Sidney Ponson. After scoring 15 runs in the first game, the Mets scored none in the nightcap. And so it went for the Mets. Win a couple, lose a couple. Although the Mets were playing a much better brand of ball, not beating themselves, they still could not get going. At the end of the month of June, half way through the season, the Mets held a 40-42 record in third place trailing the Phillies by 3.5 games, closer than they had been just a month earlier because the Phillies were stuggling.

A disturbing trend was beginning to become too common. The Mets bullpen was having trouble holding leads. On June 12th with Johan Santana on the mound, the Mets led the Arizona Diamondbacks by a score of 4-0 after seven innings of play. Joe Smith gave up two runs in the eighth and Billy Wagner blew the save in the ninth. Aaron Heilman gave up the lead in the 10th and the Mets lost the game. On July 2nd in St. Louis, the Mets overcame a 4-0 deficit and took a 7-5 lead into the bottom of the eighth inning. The bullpen could not hold the lead once again. With the score tied in the bottom of the ninth, Carlos Muniz gave up a walk off homerun. It was becoming clear that the Mets bullpen was a major problem.

After splitting the series with St. Louis, the Mets headed to Philadelphia for the Fourth of July weekend. The Mets led early but once again blew the lead late and lost the opener. The Mets then did something they had not done for a couple of seasons. They rolled off a ten game winning streak. The Mets played like they had in 2006. They came back late in games, getting great pitching and from the bullpen too. In the Sunday game at Philadephia, the Mets blew a two run lead in the ninth but came back in extra innings to win. They went home and swept the home stand from San Francisco and Colorado. The streak was interrupted by the All Star break. At the break the Mets (51-44) had moved into second place a half game behind the Phillies.

After the ten game winning streak, the Mets faced the Phillies again at Shea Stadium. The Mets had not lost a series against the Phillies yet. On July 22nd, with Johan Santana pitching, the Mets led the Phillies 5-2 after eight innings. In the ninth, Jerry Manuel turned the game over to Duaner Sanchez because Billy Wagner was not available. Sanchez could not get anyone out. The Phillies scored six runs and stole the game from the Mets or should I say the Mets bullpen gift wrapped the game for the Phillies. Once again, a game the Mets should have won was lost.

To the Mets credit, they bounced back from the devastating loss and won the next two games from the Phillies. After the series ended the Mets were in first place leading the Phillies by one game.

The Mets finished out the month of July splitting the last six games. But the bullpen once again showed its inability to hold a lead. On July 28th, the Mets scored a run in the eighth inning at Florida to break a 2-2 tie. The bullpen was unable to hold the one run lead or keep the game close. The pen gave up five runs as the Marlins defeated the Mets 7-5. As the month of July ended the Mets found themselves trailing the Phillies by just a game.

The month of July was very good for the Mets and so was the month of August. But August did not start out well as the Mets got swept in a weekend series in Houston. The Mets followed that by coming home and winning the first four of six on a home stand versus San Diego and Florida. A seventh game, a makeup with the Pirates on a Monday afternoon became the next failure that helped define the major problem with the Mets this season.

After six innings of play on August 11th, the Mets held a comfortable 5-1 lead after six innings against the lowly Pirates. Entering the day, the Mets trailed the Phillies by two games. The bullpen took over in the 7th inning. Joe Smith, Pedro Feliciano, Aaron Heilman, and Scott Schoeneweis conspired to give up six runs in the final three innings. The Mets lost a game they should have won and fell to 2.5 games back. Another devastating loss authored by a bullpen incapable of getting a big out. And to make matters worse, close Billy Wagner was suffering from stiffness in his forearm. He was shut down and put on the disabled list. The Mets had no closer but were hopeful they could piece things together and wait for Wagner to return.

Following the horrendous loss to the Pirates, the Mets won the next ten out of eleven games including a six game winning streak on the road in Washington and Pittsburgh and a sweep of Atlanta at home. After the stretch ended, the Mets had climbed ahead of Philadelphia for the division lead by 2.5 games. The Phillies and the Mets kept going back and forth for the division lead. At that time, lots of Mets fans were thinking maybe this could be the Mets year. But the Mets finished the month of August going 4-4 over the final eight games. And during those final eight games of the month, two would be memorable in a very dubious way. Plus John Maine went on the DL on August 25th with a bone spur in his shoulder. He would not pitch again for the rest of the year.

On August 26th, the Mets traveled to Philadelphia to open an important two game series. The Mets held a half game lead on the Phillies. The Mets came out slugging and quieted down the crowd at Citizen’s Bank Park by taking a 7-0 lead into the 5th inning. But starter Pedro Martinez gave up four runs in the Phillies’ half of the 5th. Philadelphia kept chipping away and in the bottom of the ninth with two outs the Mets led by one run, 7-6. Luis Ayala was attempting to get the save because Billy Wagner was on the disabled list. He needed one more out. Unfortunately he didn’t get it right away. A single and a double tied the game. Aaron Heilman pitched three scoreless innings but the Mets offense could not budge from the seven runs they had scored earlier. In the bottom of the 13th, Scott Schoeneweis gave up the winning run. Here was another devastating loss that moved the Mets a half game behind the Phillies. The Mets bounced back the next night in a big way. With the score tied, Carlos Delgado and Brian Schneider provided late hits that gave the Mets the lead. This time they held on for the win. The Mets were back in first.

The following weekend, the Mets were in Florida. After winning the first game, Mike Pelfrey, who became a wonderful story this year as he deveolped into one of the league's finest pitchers, pitched well as he nursed a 3-0 lead. He gave up two runs in the sixth but got out of further trouble. But once again the bullpen could not protect the one run lead. A run in the 8th and a run in the 9th sealed the Mets fate once again. In this game Aaron Heilman walked in the winning run. And yet again, the Mets bounced back and won the series the next day. The Mets led the Phillies by one game when August came to an end.

As September began, all anyone could talk about was the September of a year ago. Could the Mets exorcise the demons and put to rest the collapse of 2007?

It started out well as the Mets swept a three game series in Milwaukee. Now it was the Brewers who were collapsing. But bad news in regards to Billy Wagner cast doubt on the Mets chances to make the post season. After attempting to throw from the mound, Billy had to shut it down. It turned out the closer would need Tommy John surgery. Wagner’s season and Mets career ended that abruptly. If the Mets were going to make the post season, it would have to be done by piecing the pen together. Considering the results from the pen this year, this would be no easy tasks for Jerry Manuel.

After the Milwaukee series, the Mets went home to face Philadelphia for the final time in 2008. The Mets had not lost a series all season against the Phillies. On Friday night, the Mets were shutout 3-0. Mike Pelfrey pitched well but Brett Myers pitched better as he shut out the Mets for eight innings. The Saturday game was rained out so a day/night doubleheader was scheduled for Sunday. The Mets looked lifeless in the first game losing 6-2. Once again Pedro Martinez brought no magic to the mound. He gave up all six runs and the Mets hitters could do nothing much against Jamie Moyer. But the Mets bounced back in the night game by a score of 6-3. Johan Santana pitched a fine 7.1 innings.

The Mets then swept the Washington Nationals at Shea but it wasn’t easy. Mets pitchers gave up 18 runs but Mets hitters knocked in 23. After the Nationals series the Mets led the Phillies, who struggled during the early part of September, by 3.5 games, 4 in the loss column. Also of note, the Brewers were continuing to struggle. The Mets were only a half game behind Milwaukee for the wild card. So with 17 games left to play, the Mets were in good shape. But there was that magic number again, seventeen.

The next ten games for the Mets would be against the two worst teams in the division, the Atlanta Braves and the Washington Nationals. The Braves came into Shea for a three game set. The Friday night game was rained out. The Mets then split a double header on Saturday. Once again the Mets took a lead deep into the game in the first game. Up 3-0 Santana started running out of gas in the eighth. Johan gave up two hits then was replaced by Scott Schoeneweis. Once again the maligned left hander could not get out of the inning. Schoeneweis gave up a hit to load the bases. Brian Stokes came in and lit the match that ignited the gasoline. Stokes gave up a bases loaded hit and a sacrifice fly and the Braves took a 3-2 lead that they would not relinquish.

Rookie left hander Jon Neise pitched brilliantly in the nightcap but the next day, the Mets bullpen did it again. With the Mets leading 4-2 in the ninth, Luis Ayala attempted to close the game. Ayala could not get anyone out. The pen gave up five runs and the Mets lost an important game by the score of 7-4. Shades of 2007 began to rear its ugly head. The Mets lead which was 3.5 games before the series started was down to a single game.

The Mets split a four game series with the Nationals in Washington, a team they should have beaten at least 3 out of 4. After losing the first two games of the series (one game by a 1-0 score), the Mets won the last two of the series then won the opening game in Atlanta where the Mets had not won a single game the entire season. Even though the Mets had won three in a row, their lead over the Phillies was down to a half game, one in the loss column.

The Braves rained on the Mets parade however, winning the final two games of the series at Turner Field. In the final game of the series, once again, the Mets took a lead into the late innings only to see the bullpen implode. Just as they had done a week earlier at Shea, the Braves scored runs late in the game. A four run eighth inning did the Mets in again. The Mets scored two in the ninth but fell one short.

When the Mets returned home, they found themselves 1.5 games behind the Phillies. The Mets still led in the wild card race by 1.5 games but you could feel the season begin to slip away.

The Mets split a four game series with the Cubs which concluded with an inspiring extra inning win when Carlos Beltran singled home the winning run. But while the Mets were splitting with the Cubs, the Brewers went on a winning streak. When the series ended with Chicago the Mets were now tied with Milwaukee with the wild card with three games left in the season.

The division title now seemed a long shot. The Mets would have to focus on the wild card. And just like the year before if the Mets were to get to the post season it would have to be through the Marlins. Florida won the first game while Milwaukee beat the Cubs. The Mets were now a game out of the playoffs. The next day, Johan Santana pitched a complete game masterpiece shutting out the Marlins 2-0 while Milwaukee lost a late afternoon game. On the final day of the season, both clubs were tied again. But things did not go the Mets way as they lost the final game ever at Shea Stadium. The Brewers won their game to win the wild card and the crowd sat and watched the Shea Stadium closing ceremonies in stunned disbelief. Two seasons in a row, the Mets lost a chance to go to the playoffs on the last day of the season.

Anyone with an ounce of sense and baseball savvy can quickly draw the conclusion that the Mets bullpen is what cost the club a post season berth. All week long following the Mets demise, talk show loud mouths insisted the Mets must considering moving either David Wright, Jose Reyes, or Carlos Beltran. I scratch my head sometimes wondering how it is some of these sports talk show hosts get paid to do their job. I understand that you could get a lot of talent back by trading one of these guys but doing so is a huge risk, one that could set the franchise back even further.

I know in the aftermath, it is hard to see something positive but the Mets are closer than you think. The problem with the Mets this year was the bullpen and production from the corner outfield positions, second base, and catcher. Newly rehired Omar Minaya has his work cut out for him. But to trade franchise players when they are close is a huge gamble and one that will cause the same sports loudmouths to scream even louder if it doesn’t work out.

Injuries also played a huge part in the Mets failure. Moise Alou, Orlando Hernandez, Pedro Martinez, Ryan Church, Brian Schneider, Ramon Castro, Billy Wagner, John Maine, and Luis Castillo all missed significant parts of the season. Fernando Tatis who should be considered for comeback player of the year separated his shoulder and was lost for the last week of the season. Injuries are a part of the game but the Mets had to endure more than their fair share. Consider that Jerry Manuel had to play rookie Nick Evans in left and journeyman Ramon Martinez at second base in the last most important game of the season. When you really stop and think about it, the Mets getting to the last day with a chance was really remarkable considering all the things that went wrong.

But there were postives. Johan Santana was worth every dollar the Mets paid for. He was the true ace of the staff. David Wright drove in over 100 runs for his fourth consecutive season, the first player in Mets history to do so. Beltran and Delgado also knocked in over 100 runs. While some are saying unthoughtfully to trade Jose Reyes, he turned in his most productive season so far. Mike Pelfrey figured out how to pitch in the Majors and should be a big pitcher for years to come in the Mets rotation. And players like Daniel Murphy, Nick Evans, and Jon Neise have shown the Mets farm is not as barren as some would have us believe.

Jerry Manuel has signed a new two year contract and he deserves to be back. There is much work to be done this off season. It should be a busy time for Omar Minaya and company but the future looks bright as the Mets move to Citi Field.