Shhhhhh

Sosa Shushes Cubbie Bats

This is the way it has to happen both in the absence of Pedro (and for the time being El Duque) and in the absence of any big name free agents inked over the winter.

Unknown pitchers have to rise from the scrap heap of starting pitchers and thrill us all.

Jorge Sosa, whose Spring Training ERA was more bloated than Fat Mo Vaughn's midsection, has stepped up his domination from Triple-A to the Majors, pitching seven-plus innings of one-hit ball after a massive rain delay to earn his third win in three starts for the Mets.

"He's been unbelievable." Paul Lo Duca gushed afterwards.

Joe Smith came on in the eighth and allowed the only Cub to score. And after a flawless start (what was it 16 outings without allowing a run?) Mr Smith is starting to look vaguely Mr Human but not to worry. You get the feeling about these Mets that as one cog disappears another takes its place.

The Damion Easley Homer Experience, another unexpected source of endless fun and excitement, hit a two-run homer in the fourth to give the Mets all the runs they could possibly need even though they went on to make it an 8-1 laughter in the end and take the second of three games against the miserable little Cubs.


Sosa departs, promising more good times to come

*****



Meanwhile one has to wonder about the rigidity of an organisation that stifles individuality in its players to the point that "further action" is hinted at to deal with Lastings "Gangsta" Milledge's rap song that apparently offends Mets bigwigs because its lyrics are sprinkled with sexually explicit words and uses the word "nigga" like it was the new dollar bill.

But c'mon.

L Millz fancies himself a gangsta rapper. He isn't going to pen little sonnets of love or bang away on an accoustic guitar singing Bob Dylan covers, is he?

Sure, that would make people feel more comfortable but he isn't enciting riots or calling for Jihad. Not yet anyway. Let's save the indignation for something serious.

I mean, its rap music for crissakes. What lyrics are he supposed to use? Sometthing nicked off some gospel choir? Words like "ho" and "nigga" are pretty much the standard currency of rap music lyrics.

Please ome down from this holy place of politically correct versimilitudinous indignation. All of you.

I know, I know. Plenty have it in for Lastings already. He's got a little too much flash and closet creepiness for the buttoned down Mets organisation. If he hadn't drooped so badly last season in his stint for the Mets he'd have been a red-hot commodity in the winter trading season and would likely be somebody else's headache by now.

But if he's got a bad attitude on the field, i.e., doesn't hustle, doesn't work hard to improve, or if he's getting busted off the field for shooting fellow gangsta rappers in drive-bys or is holding up banks or starting his own uprisings, go ahead and castigate him.

But this silly business about rap lyrics, christ. You might as well just put it in his contract that he's not allowed to write or perform rap songs to begin with. Or yeah, feel free to perform rap songs, just make sure they're lilly white and have plenty of references to your love for jesus.

Be real. Either cut out his tongue or leave the poor bastid alone.

And please stop with the self-righteousness about lyrics. Wasn't one Imus-style immolation enough?