Could Mets steal ArmChairGm's Headlines with this Article?
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by user Wrightreyesfuture
Mets 2007 Schedule will test their 2006 Divisional Championship By Mike Metsy and Ethan Kwassman (with schedule preview)
The Mets will be tested early & often in 2007 on whether or not they will be able to win their second straight NL East Division Title next season. Last season, the Mets ended with the National League's best record at (97-65), and cruised to their first division title in 18 years, ending up 11 games up over the Philadelphia Phillies. The Mets would end up falling short one game of making their first World Series appearance in 6 years, after losing Game 7 3-1 to the World-Champion St. Louis Cardinals @ Shea. Well, It is has been announced (above) that the Mets and Cardinals will square off on April 1, 2007 in Busch Stadium II to open up the 2007 Season. The game time will be @ 8:00 p.m., nationally televised on ESPN and also on local SNY.
Of course, baseball has to make one team feel bad. The Cardinals will be hoisting up their division, pennant, and world series winning-banners while their players receiving their banners prior to the game with all the Mets to see it. The 2007 Schedule was reportedly being made up before the NLCS began, but was released last week. So, I guess the first three games will show what the 2007 Mets are made up real early! The Mets will host the Philadelphia Phillies on April 9, and hoist their NL East Division banner then. At least the Mets get to make one team feel bad! The Mets road trip starts tough against St. Louis, and then to Turner Field to face Atlanta and possibly Tom Glavine. The Braves had an awful season in 2006 finishing 6 games under .500 and alot of issues. The Mets look to continue their really recent dominance playing in Turner Field.
In 2007, the Mets play all the playoff teams from 2006. For the first time, they will face at least one team from each division in the American League in the same season. They face the Yankees and AL-champion Detroit Tigers on the road in June. They host the Yankees in May, and the Twins and A's in June. The A's will play @ Shea for the first time since the 1973 World Series. The Mets also play an interlude series against the team they swept in the 2006 NLDS, the Los Angeles Dodgers while everyone is playing inter-league baseball.
KEY STRETCHES FOR THE METS IN 2007
First road trip in St. Louis/Atlanta from 04/01/07-04/08/07: The Mets won the season series against these two teams in 2006. However, the Cardinals are the world champs, and the Braves can be the god-awful Braves from last season or the same old Braves from 2005 and before they made the Mets look like a minor league team from 2005 and before.
First home stand vs. Philadelphia/Washington from 04/09/07-04/15/07: The Mets played well at home last season, only losing 4 series at Shea. They destroyed Washington all season @ Shea, and played well versus Philly. With no Soriano in Washington's lineup, and Ryan Howard coming to town, could the Mets take 4 of their first 6 home games?
West coast trip in Arizona, San Francisco from 05/03/07-05/09/07: The Mets always crush the ball in 100 degrees weather in Bank One Ballpark, and the Mets will either be visiting a Giants team with/or without Barry Bonds. It will still be interesting as LF Moises Alou returns to face old foes.
9 game homestand vs. Milwaukee, Chicago Cubs, Yankees from 05/11/07-05/20/07: The Mets always seem to have some trouble with the Brewers whether in Milwaukee or Shea. The revamped high-spending Cubs lineup and starting rotation comes to New York to play a four-game series against a very good Mets team. The Yankees make their annual visit to Shea for a three-game weekend series. The series was split in 6 games in 06'.
Divisional roadtrip @ Atlanta, Florida from 05/22/07-05/27/07: It may just be a regular six-game roadtrip against two teams in the Mets division who finished with the same record last year, but it was these games the Mets won be May, which gave them less games to win in September to wrap up the title. Could the Mets win 5 of these 6 games?
9 game homestand vs. San Francisco, Arizona, and Philadelphia before interleague play from 05/29/07-06/07/07: A Bonds or Bondsless Giants will conclude their series before June at Shea, as will the D-Backs (Snakes, as Somers says). The Mets host the Phillies after having swept them in their opening homestand, before interleague play really begins.
9 game road trip @ Detroit Tigers, LA Dodgers, Yankees from 06/09/07-06/17/07: The Mets start interleague play with a bang, playing in Comerica America (If you don't know what that is, that is where the Yankees got eliminated in the 2006 ALDS). The Mets will play the Dodgers where the Dodgers themselves got eliminated in 2006 NLDS, and then play at Yankee Stadium where the Mets lost 2 of 3 last year including that ridiculous 4-0 Billy Wagner blown-save game. The Mets will use the DH in Detroit and New York.
10 game homestand vs. Minnesota Twins, Oakland Athletics, St. Louis from 06/18/07-06/28/07: The Mets continue interleague play by playing on Kwass's birthday June 18th versus the AL Central Winning Minnesota Twins, and then host the AL West winning Oakland A's before they return to NL play against the world-champion St. Louis Cardinals in a four-game set. Clearly the toughest homestand of the season for the Mets, the Mets would like to improve on a poor 5-10 record against the AL last year, and the Cardinals return to Shea after getting swept in the three-game set during the season, but winning 2 of 3 @ Shea in the NLCS.
Pre All-Star Break
10 game road-trip @ Philadelphia, Colorado, Houston from 06/29/07-07/08/07: Fresh off their four-game set vs. St. Louis, the Mets head to the road once again and play 10 straight games in beanbox stadiums in Citizens Bank Ballpark, Coors Field, and Minute Maid Park. The Mets should tear the cover off the ball and going to the bullpen quite a bit in Philly, and Coors, and should hear the usual boos for CF Carlos Beltran in Houston. Beltran should avoid the fence in Minute Maid, and SS #7 Jose Reyes should be due for a breakout road trip like he always does before the all-star break. The date 7-7-7 (July 7, 2007) will also be reached during this trip, and JOSE JOSE JOSE #7 should hear the calling from the baseball gods and leg out 7 triples in this 10-game stretch. You think Citizens Bank One Ballpark, and CitiField will confuse people in 2009?
Post All-Star Break
4 game homestand vs. Cincinnati Reds, 7 game road trip in San Diego, Los Angeles from 07/12/07-07/22/07: After 4 or more Mets players started in the all-star game and Closer Adam Wainwright blows the game for the NL in the ninth (circa Trevor Hoffman), the Mets host the high-flying Reds @ Shea for a four-game set before Mets fans stay up late 7 nights in a row to watch the Mets battle against the two-top NL West teams from last year, the Padres and Dodgers. The Mets will either face Ex-Met HOF Catcher Mike Piazza as a Padre, or Dodger.
7-game road trip @ Milawkee, Chicago from 07/31/07 to 08/05/07: The Mets head into the dog days of summer playing at 2 ballparks that shouldn't be tough to win in, but always seem to give the Mets problems in Miller Park and Wrigley Field. The Brewers always play good versus the Amazins', and the Cubs are a good team on paper.
6-game homestand vs. San Diego, Los Angeles Dodgers from 08/21/07 to 08/26/07: The Mets play the Padres and Dodgers in the same swing again. Every year the Mets play 10 games against one NL team, and what a surprise, this year it happens to be the Dodgers! The Mets conclude the 10-game season series against the boys from Hollywood during this homestand. If the Mets win between 4 and 8 games against the Dodgers during the season, it could make or break their season.
10-game road trip @ Philadelphia, Cincinnati, and Atlanta from 08/27/07 to 09/05/07: What a surprise, the Mets play Atlanta on the first day of September! This 10-game road trip will be the Mets most important trip of the season as they play at two beanboxes in Citizens Bank and Great America, with a Turner Field apperance in-between.
9-game homestand vs. Houston, Atlanta, and Philadelphia from 09/07/07 to 09/16/07: Not the toughest homestand of the season, but definitely the most meaningful and important homestand @ Shea, as the Mets will be playing three teams in the wildcard race, looking to clinch and/or lower their magic number for clinching their second straight NL East Division Title.
6-game final homestand vs. Washington, Florida from 09/24/07 to 09/30/07: After playing their final 6 games on the road @ the Nats, and Marlins in a seven-game swing, the Mets get ready for their 2007 NLDS home-opener on Tuesday, October 1st @ Shea by ending their 2007 regular season @ Shea vs. the fourth and fifth place team in the NL East, the Nats and Marlins.
DON'T YOU WISH APRIL 1st WAS TOMORROW! LETS GO METS!
ALSO CHECK OUT www.freewebs.com/ksnonline/ from the former www.ksn-network.blogspot.com for more NEW YORK SPORTS STORIES and COOL STUFF!
