Defeat the Empire

When Kaz Ishii outduels Jake Peavy, you know it's something special. Or, it should be. Peavy is an All-Star who won the ERA crown in the National League last year; Ishii shouldn't be in the Mets rotation. Peavy entered the game with 8 wins; Ishii with 8 losses. It had the mark of disaster.

It was anything but.

The Mets completed the sweep today, and won their fourth straight, with a 12-0 win over the Padres. Ishii went six shutout innings, pitching his way out of numerous james, and collected just his third victory against 8 losses. Pavy got bombed, giving up 7 runs in 5+ innings, raising his ERA by .39 and falling to 8-4. Peavy hadn't given up seven earned runs in a start since July 4, 2003.

So what's next? The Los Angeles Dodgers, who should be an easy target for the red-hot Mets. The Dodgers did beat the Phillies twice this week, but have gone a pitiful 31-50 since starting 12-2. The Mets will send their best three starters, Victor Zambrano, Pedro Martinez, and Kris Benson to the hill this weekend, and another sweep should be the goal.

After this, it's off to Coors Field to face the lowly Rockies. It's not impossible that the Mets could be only two or three games out of the wild card when they head to Houston for what's shaping up to be a huge 4-game set with the Astros.

The AL East

Boston remained a half-game ahead of the Yankees last night, as both teams pulled home victories. Boston has to play the juggernaut White Sox in the upcoming series, but the Yankees also get a good team, the Los Angeles Angels. Tonight's schedule:

Red Sox (Clement, 10-3, 4.21) @ White Sox (Buehrle, 11-3, 2.58)

Yankees (Johnson, 10-6, 4.23) @ Angels (Colon, 11-6, 3.64)

I hate to say it, but come 1:00 AM, the Yanks will be back in first place.