The other N.Y. team carries on calmly
LARRY MILLSON
BASEBALL REPORTER
NEW YORK -- While turmoil surrounds the recently eliminated New York Yankees and their embattled manager, Joe Torre, who might soon be replaced, the New York Mets are going about their business as usual in relative calm.
The Mets, no strangers to strife -- three managers and three general managers since 2002 -- will open the National League Championship Series tomorrow at Shea Stadium against the St. Louis Cardinals.
The Cardinals staggered their way through the latter part of the season and even lost a game to the San Diego Padres in their NL Division Series, which they wrapped up Sunday.
While Yankees owner George Steinbrenner is furious enough at Torre to possibly fire him after his team's playoff elimination at the hands of the Detroit Tigers on Saturday, the Mets so far have been able to deal with their problems, sweeping to the NLCS with a three-game breeze against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
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The Mets' problems involve two of their top starting pitchers, not their owner's ego.
New York shrugged off the Dodgers despite the loss of ace Pedro Martinez (shoulder) and his apparent successor for October, Orlando (El Duque) Hernandez to a calf injury.
El Duque's injury came a day before the opener of the NLDS and the Mets were forced to go with John Maine as their opening-game starter.
The sweep of the Dodgers -- the NL West is a good argument for soccer-style relegation -- allows the Mets to set up what is left of their rotation the way they want.
That means that Tom Glavine, 40, will start the opening game and, well, that isn't bad.
Glavine has 290 career regular-season victories, 15 of them this season despite some arm problems in August. He'll work the outside of the plate like a maestro, throwing changeup after changeup. Jeff Weaver is expected to start the opener for the Cardinals. He has good stuff but has the pitching smarts of a fungo bat.
The Cardinals, meanwhile, needed their best starter, Chris Carpenter, to put away the Padres on Sunday and he won't be available until Saturday's third game, which would also make him available on regular rest if a seventh game is needed.
"You never see me cry about what we don't have," Mets manager Willie Randolph said as his injury toll mounted.
Using a patchwork rotation, Randolph relied on his bullpen. Starting pitchers set the tone in a baseball game, but a couple of the Mets' starters hardly had a chance to get settled in before they were replaced.
Maine lasted 41/3 innings in the first game before Randolph went to the bullpen. Glavine went six in the second game, more normal and, under modern standards, a six-inning outing can qualify a pitcher for a quality start and a tip of the cap to a cheering crowd.
Steve Trachsel started the third game and went 31/3 innings -- and anyone who has watched him work knows he could make that seem as long as a complete game.So that meant Randolph had a busy bullpen. Guillermo Mota had two-inning stints in the first and third games, Pedro Feliciano, Aaron Heilman and Billy Wagner were used in each of the three games. The Mets manager used nine of his 12 pitchers.
In the three games, Mets starters pitched a total of 132/3 innings and the relievers pitched 131/3. That's what you call an equal opportunity pitching staff.
After Glavine, New York's NLCS rotation is expected to be Maine, Trachsel and Oliver Perez.
The Cardinals likely will counter with Weaver, Jeff Suppan, Carpenter and Jason Marquis.
