Hello there, everyone.  Welcome back to the blog.  The baseball season started about two weeks ago, and I must admit that the blog's coverage has been a little...spritzy.  But can you blame us?  The teams this guy predicted to make the World Series have a lusty 9-17 record combined.

But this is the NY Sport Blog, and darn it we're gonna cover NY's teams.  Well, only the Mets actually.  Who wants to hear about the magic and wonder of the oh-so-perfect Yankees?  If you want princess-like beauty, go to a museum.  If you want the bruising, 20-inning playing, circus where guys named Frank Catalanotto can hit cleanup....I think you've found a home.

We'll keep track of all the marvelous chaos that is the New York Mets throughout this season.  Starting with this, volume 1.  Enjoy!

ALL ROADS LEAD TO IKE 
The Mets' season couldn't have started more wonderfully.  Considering it was early April, Opening Day at Citi Field had remarkably beautiful weather.  The sold out crowd was ready to forget the awful memories of 2009 (and 2008...and 2007...) and turn the page to a new season.  David Wright homered in his first at-bat, Johan Santana was brilliant, and the Amazins disposed of the Marlins with ease.

Even since that beautiful Opening Day, the first two weeks of the 2010 season have reeked of past failures.  Starters John Maine and Oliver Perez haven't pulled a rabbit out of their hats to find success yet.  Wright has 3 homers (a torrid pace compared to last year) but has his average lagging in the mid-.200's.  Prized free agent Jason Bay's bat has been about as gentle as Jason Mraz's voice. 

It's been a pretty simple formula to the Mets' mediocrity thus far: lose every series, but never get swept.  Florida, Washington (ugh) Colorado, and St. Louis have all taken 2 out of 3 games from the Mets so far.  Mercifully, the Phillies have dropped 3 of their last 4 to keep the division out of laughing distance.  The Mets sit at 3.5 games back, which is rather good news considering how rocky things have gone so far.

How rocky, you ask?  Well, the Mets have already initiated what I like to call the "Ike Davis plea."  Davis is a highly-touted prospect that was expected to contribute significantly by the 2011 season.  If he was lights-out in the minor leagues, maybe mid-2010 was a possibility.  But 2010 has gone so un-smooth for the Mets so far, Davis' performance became almost irrelevant to his arrival to the major leagues.

Mike Jacobs has played like a drunk elephant at first base.  Daniel Murphy doesn't seem close to returning from injury (and he's not exactly Ryan Howard when he's healthy.)  Tatis, Cora, and other Mets role players haven't been significant contributors since Y2K was a threat.  With such a dearth at this valuable position, the New York lineup has a glaring need for some bop.  They seldom hit for power and don't score enough to win as a result. 

But let's get to the real reason Ike Davis is a big leaguer.  The Mets officially drew 41,245 fans to Citi Field for Opening Day.  Sold out, not an empty seat in sight, loud.  Everything you'd want in a ballpark.  The second home game drew a fantastic 39,000.  The losing has gone on and on and the attendance has gone lower and lower.  In yesterday's game against the popular Chicago Cubs, less that 28,000 came out to the ballpark.  The Mets skated by last year because it was the inaugural season for the ballpark.  In year two, the novelty has worn off a bit and the people want results.  They want to see dingers.  They want to see wins.

The Mets were hoping against hope that their Opening Day lineup (and eventually Reyes/Beltran) would keep the team afloat as Davis honed his skills in the minors.  Two weeks and a 5-8 record later, the Ike Davis plea has already been set in motion.  If the team is playing poorly at the start, you might as well draw some fans for the young kid's first days as a major leaguer.  All roads have led to Ike.  So far, the Mets are 1-0 in the Davis era.  Hopefully more of the same will come.

Because Lord knows that only 28,000 people coming to the ballpark won't cut it in the season's opening month.