April 7, 5:06 p.m.: Not the end of the world

With a bad start, you have to wonder if we’ve seen this movie before. Or, why I refuse to give into baseball dread.

By: Hank Kalet
   I’m trying to keep in mind that the season is just three days old, but three games and three losses are a lot to take for a season for which there were a lot of hopes.
   The Mets are 0-3. Aside from opening day — which ended with an ugly outing by closer Braden Looper — they have looked awful. Yes, Jose Reyes, David Wright and Carlos Beltran (the team’s future) have been hitting, and Pedro Martinez, after a shaky first, turned in a dominating five innings. But the bullpen has been terrible, Mike Cameron and Kris Benson are both hurt and Felix Heredia has a roster spot. Heredia should not be allowed to pitch for any team that considers itself big league.
   But 0-3 does not mean 0-162 or even 52-110. This team, which is in transition, will have its good stretches and bad stretches, and General Manager Omar Minaya is likely to make a couple of useful moves. I still think it will finish above .500 and probably win about 85 games. Baseball is a long season — not something anyone might know if all they did was listen to the sports talk shows or read the New York tabloids. Ugliness in April does not always mean a meaningless August or September.
   For now, though, I’m not having a good time.