I’ve been gone for a little while, has anything gone on? What a tumultous first week for the pastime. We’ve already had a bench clearing incident with a suspension, the untimely passing of three baseball figures, and a slew of very interesting ballgames. Oh, by the way, the biggest city in the world just happens to be opening two new ballparks this week. Let me get my head wrapped around all of this quick:

First, my beloved Metropolitans. They’re only 3-4 and very easily could have been 5-2 or 2-5 with a couple of bounces either way. They’ve been ragged in the field and sluggish at times at the plate. Johan Santana has an ERA under 1.00 and 20 strikeouts in 12 2/3 innings and is only 1-1. Outside of Santana and a good start by Livan Hernandez, the rest of the rotation has been shaky, at best. And, if you listen to NY sports talk radio and fans who attended the first game at Citi Field, it might be the worst stadium in the history of ballparks or the best. However, we’re all forgetting one pertinent fact: we’ve only played seven games. All of the situations mentioned above have time to adjust themselves or be corrected. For all of us who’ve been pounded the last two Septembers, any stumble is a red flag. But let’s get a grip and stop treating each game like game 7 of the World Series or week 16 of the NFL and realize that there are 154 games left.

I haven’t been to Citi Field as yet, but I am looking forward to going. From all accounts it is a strikingly beautiful ballpark. But to listen to NY sports radio it is filled with obstructed views, long concession lines, poor exits, not enough of a Mets presence with too much of a nod to the Dodgers. We figured all this out in 1 game. Again people it’s the FIRST game. Everything we heard or saw about Citi Field occured when the building was empty. Now that we’ll have action on a daily basis, they’ll be plenty of time to iron out the kinks. Oh yeah, by the way, the previous stadium was a DUMP. Our dump, but a dump nonetheless. Let’s take a second to stop being typical New Yorkers and give the Mets a chance to fix whatever needs to be fixed.

Condolences to the families of Nick Adenhart, Harry Kalas, and Mark Fidrich all gone far too soon.