Is it time to shut down Jenrry Mejia? Or maybe the question is, why haven’t the Mets yet shut down Jenrry Mejia?

Mejia started over again in Washington.

Yesterday’s double header split was a small, concentrated example of how the Mets have teased us over the last few years.

They blew out the Washington Nationals, a preseason favorite to win the NL East, 11-0, in what was nearly a perfectly played game, then lost the nightcap 2-1 in typically frustrating fashion.

Spring Training is always the time of year when every team feels they have a chance.  Fans of each team concentrate on their strengths, and say, “hey, maybe this is our year.”  As a Mets fan, I begin to get those thoughts once again, and then think, “Naaah.”  It would probably take a miracle that would make the ’69 Mets look like the surest bet in the history of sports.

OK, maybe that’s hyperbole – but it certainly feels that way.  That’s not to say there aren’t positives to look forward to this year.

Watching the progression of Matt Harvey and Zack Wheeler is something to genuinely get excited about.  Finding out if Travis d’Arnaud is truly the catcher of the future is worth watching.  And of course, we can always wait for the next nutty statement by Fred Wilpon.

Don’t forget this year’s promotions, which include “Bark in the Park” and something called “Stitch N Pitch.”  There ARE some cool bobbleheads being offered this year, though.

As for their on-field performance, it’s easy to be pessimistic, but with the Yankees aging, maybe they can begin to win back New York with their youth movement, even if they don’t win the division.

If nothing else, we can all rest easy knowing that Jenrry Mejia is who he says he is.  That’s not a surprise – if you were to make up a name, would you choose “Jenrry?”

And baseball is closer than you think.  The Mets will play the Nationals this Saturday, and it will be televised on the MLB Network.  That’s definitely something to look forward to.

In today’s edition of “Would You …?” I present the preposterous proposition of trading Ruben Tejada to the Detroit Tigers for righthanded starter Rick Porcello.

It’s preposterous, of course, because there’s no way

Braves 6 Mets 2

On the bright side, the Mets won’t have to play the Braves again in 2012, and will never again have to face Chipper Jones.

Don’t look now, but the Mets have won 4 in a row.  How’d they do it?  By beating up on teams that are even less competent than they are.  They swept the hapless Marlins in a series that Mets’ radio announcer Josh Lewin described as “schadenfreude theater.”  It was nice to see another team implode for a change.  Then they won the first game of the series against the Pirates, a team that has echoed the Mets’ pattern of getting off to a hot start, only to collapse in the second half.  Ike Davis hit 2 home runs in the game to raise his tally to 30 for the season.  Who woulda thunk it (to coin a phrase)?

To the Blogs:

• Metsblog likes the improvement Jenrry Mejia showed last night, but makes some suggestions on how he can improve further.
• Bleacher Report thinks the Mets may be putting too much pressure on Matt Harvey and Zack Wheeler.
• Rising Apple thinks the Mets should keep David Wright.
• Real Dirty thinks the Mets should trade David Wright.
• The Post quotes a team source as saying there is “zero” chance the Mets release Jason Bay this offseason.
• Daily Stache has identified a bright spot this season for the Mets!

For more bright spots, keep reading Mets Today.

Mets 6 Pirates 2

FOUR IN A ROW!!!!

Brewers 9 Mets 6

From this game, it was hard to tell which team was still in the playoff race.