By Shannon Shark
Posted Monday, May 11, 2009

And just like that, the Mets have a lead and it's Johan Santana's turn to pitch.

This new park is going to be our friend. I can't help but compare it to the disaster in the Bronx, and I keep telling my Yankee friends that you can't defend against a fly ball carrying.

Young Jon Niese benefited from the new place. He gave up a few rockets, including one in front of the 415 sign. Stop to think about it, you don't see many 415 signs and when you do they usually aren't attached to a giant fence.

So Niese's mistake was an out. When Phil Hughes makes the same mistake it's a three-run homer, but that's the Yankees' problem.

Watching the games on SNY, you hear Ron Darling talk about how pitchers will use the park to their advantage. Ronnie says you can be more aggressive in a big park because the mistakes won't kill you. They didn't kill Niese, the way they might have had the game been in Philly, Baltimore or Yankee Stadium, so now Niese comes away with some confidence. You know that feeling you had on Ollie Day? You won't have it on Niese day this week.

Smartly the Mets are built offensively for this park too. There really aren't one dimensional slugger types, and I won't mind if David Wright hits .330 with "only" 20 home runs a year (by the way you jerks can stop booing him.) Carlos Beltran is the MVP of the first six weeks and I don't need 40 homers from him either. In 2010 our new first baseman Dan Murphy can not-hit for power all he wants, just keep getting those gappers. Of course we can't forget Jose Reyes, even if the myth of the walk-steal-steal-sac fly run is as much a legend as the Loch Ness monster is....and even Boois Boostillo is half way useful now.

Citi Field has been good to us. The tacos are tasty, the shakes are sure, and if they can figure out a way to fix the obstructed views we'll really have something.

Last week's Monday column was about how the team needed an edge. This was not a bad week at all. See ya next Monday!