The strained left forearm that sent closer Billy Wagner to the Disabled List and the recent uneven outings from several members of the Mets bullpen are not a great combination at the moment for the pitching staff. Yes, Wagner has blown 7 saves already this season, but take him out of the equation, and the progession to getting those final tough-to-get outs becomes that much tougher. Two things have to happen to ease the burden - the starting pitching has to go deeper into games on a consistent basis, and the Met offense has to wake up.

Tuesday night the Mets got a big win to snap a four-game losing streak. Mike Pelfrey went 6 2/3 innings to secure his 10th win, Pedro Feliciano picked up four huge outs, and Fernando Tatis continued his amazing run with two more homers. But the Mets were outhit by the anemic Padres 11-6, ended a 19 inning scoreless streak during the game, were fortunate to add some tack-on runs late in the game, and needed three relievers for the final three outs in the ninth. Nothing comes easy for this bunch.

What has come easier of late is a home-field advantage at Shea. The Mets are now 12-2 in their last 14 games at home and have outscored the opposition by more than 2-1 during this stretch. They're down to the final 50 games, 28 of which will be at Shea. The Mets - at 13 over .500 (33-20) - currently have the 6th best home record in all of baseball, and are second only to the Cubs in the National League. That has to continue down the stretch. The Mets played the first 50 at two under .500 (24-26) - the next 62 at a .565 clip (35-27) - the final 50 have to be played more at that pace if they're to have any shot at the post-season.

The next 20 games are crucial for the Mets. 13 of the 20 are at Shea. If you put aside the 3 with the Marlins this upcoming weekend, they play 5 against the Pirates, 4 with the Astros, 3 each versus the Nationals and Braves, and 2 more with the Padres. The home games, including Florida, are against teams with a combined .393 win percentage on the road. The Mets can't afford to slip up against inferior teams right now, especially when they have to make up ground in the N.L. East.

At the moment, it looks like the Mets are hesitant to call up Jon Niese to pitch aqgainst the Marlins on Saturday and that's a mistake. We've already seen Nick Evans, Eddie Kunz and Daniel Murphy, and Niese would be pitching on his day with two solid starts at Triple AAA New Orleans under his belt. Maybe they'll relent before the weekend, but it looks like somebody else will get the nod to take John Maine's spot in the rotation. Speaking of the call-ups, I really like Murphy and have since spring training. He carries himself well, has a quiet self-confidence about him, and has already shown he can really play. This spring, he always did something in every game he appeared in to make you notice him. He's made two outstanding catches in left field in just 3 games and he's still learning the ropes of being an outfielder. In 9 plate appearances, Murphy's had 2 hits and drawn 3 walks, and had a big RBI double in the 7th inning against San Diego Tuesday night. He's athletic and versatile and the type of kid you can't pigeonhole - he's just a player who knows the game and makes things happen

There were certainly some great Julys for a number of Mets. Pelfrey had four wins and walked just 3 batters in 40 innings while striking out 28. Tatis led all major leaguers with a .397 batting average during the month. He currently has an 11 game hitting streak during which he's smashed 4 homers and driven in 11 runs. Jose Reyes tied for the major league lead with 39 hits during July. David Wright led the majors with 26 runs scored. Oliver Perez also led the majors with a 1.38 ERA during the month - Perez also was 4th in the majors with a .197 batting average against. And Carlos Delgado resurrected himself during July, an amazing turnaround that saw him hit .357 with 9 HR and 24 RBI for the month. If those trends continue and carry over into August, the Mets will end up just fine.

Perhaps the key question to be posed to this Mets team is this - Can guys who have not historically played as much or as well as they're playing now - can they continue to play at the level that they're playing in the final 50 games? Should be an interesting ride. Stay tuned.

C U soon

Eddie C.