Shea Goodbye: 75 to go

I'm not going to be able to post after every game, so I won't bother trying. But when I can, I'll continue the Shea Stadium countdown.

What we're left with after this weekend is a deflating loss to the Brewers -- a deflating series, losing two out of three after an uplifting two out of three taken from the Phillies. Winning Friday's game was nice, running the winning streak to three games, but losing Jose Reyes with a tight hamstring -- and then missing him for Saturday's and Sunday's games -- certainly hurt. It's too early, and the Mets have been too inconsistent, to say that Reyes' absence cost them in the two remaining games, particularly when Johan Santana gave up a couple of home runs Saturday and Oliver Perez and Jorge Sosa could not retain the lead the Mets had built after three innings on Sunday.

I don't mind Prince Fielder or even Rickie Weeks beating you with long balls, but Gabe Kapler? Gabe Kapler?? The guy was a Class A manager in 2007, and he's the slugging face of the Brewers' two wins in this series? Championship teams don't let that happen.

The Nationals are in town on Tuesday, providing another chance to win a series from the bottom half of the National League. Though Washington just snapped its nine-game losing streak. My plan this week is to go to Wednesday's game, then hit Thursday's Astros-Phillies matinee. There are a couple of other options both days, including some minor league matchups with first pitch schedule for noon or earlier. So many choices.