Jon Niese, Special Pitcher?

You know whose injury last year might have bummed me out more than any other? Jon Neise's.

When Carlos Delgado got hurt you still felt the Mets had enough pieces to contend.

When Jose Reyes got hurt you thought he'd be back in short order.

When Carlos Beltran got hurt it only confirmed what you already knew: the season was over.

Zoom past another 10 injuries or so to Niese. By the time Niese got injured, the season was in full tailspin mode. There was nothing to play for other than giving the kids a chance.

No kid in our system intrigues me more than Niese. I see that hard fastball-sweeping curve combination and I start dreaming big things. Ever since that first time I saw him pitch in 2008, I've had a good feeling about Niese. More than that... I haven't just thought he was going to be a good pitcher for the Mets, I've thought he was going to be a special pitcher, a guy who would become a presence in the league.

That's why, when he went down last season, it really bummed me out. He had a golden opportunity to get some starts under his belt at the Major League level in a zero-pressure environment, and all of a sudden it was gone.

All of which is to say, I took particular satisfaction in watching his dominant outing last night. I still think we're probably 2 years away from him reaching the "special pitcher" territory I've dreamed out for him. In the interim I expect him to have ups and downs, for him to dazzle one night and get rocked the next.

Developing pitchers requires patience. We're seeing that with Mike Pelfrey, who absolutely stunk two out of his first three seasons. As we're seeing with Pelfrey, that patience can pay off.

Hopefully we give Niese a chance to develop into the special player I expect him to be.

* * * * *

It goes without saying, but if we can't win one of these goddamn series in Baltimore or Cleveland the next few days, then maybe it just wasn't meant to be.

Have good weekends, everyone.

- A.F.O.M.G.