Are the Mets for real already?

"Make a mistake, and we own you."---Kevin Kernan, New York Post, on the Mets, April 2015.

Two weeks into the 2018 season, and it does feel like 2015 all over again in Flushing. The Mets sit atop the NL East with a 10-1 (!) record after sweeping Miami on Wednesday night, having won 8 in a row since losing to St. Louis on Easter Sunday.

What helped the Mets out on Wednesday night was Miami manager Don Mattingly, erring on the side of caution, pulling his starter, Jarlin Garcia, after 6 innings and less than 80 pitches. It didn't matter that Garcia was 2/3 of the way to a no-hitter in his first major league start. Remember when the Dodgers' Ross Stripling was similarly pulled a couple of years back? Team owners are more paranoid than ever these days about the seeming fragility of young arms. Thus, Mattingly, Mets rookie skipper Mickey Calloway, and everyone else can't be concerned about milestones like no-hitters. The Mets learned this lesson the hard way six years ago when Johan Santana threw his lone no-no against St. Louis. Santana wasn't the same pitcher after that after throwing more than 130 pitches.

So Mattingly went to the bullpen sooner than he instinctively would've liked. The Mets pounced, breaking up the no-no with two out in the 7th, then scored 4 runs in the 8th en route to beating the Marlins, 4-1.

"Make a mistake, and we own you."

Four days earlier, in Washington, the Nationals flushed an early lead after third baseman Anthony Rendon was ejected for showing up plate umpire Marty Foster after a strikeout. It was all Mets after that. The very next night, on ESPN, the Nats ran themselves out of an inning after Yoenis Cespedes threw a runner out at second. Cespedes would later have the the game winning hit as the Mets won in 12 innings.

While the Mets are also protecting their pitchers, they're also making the most out of their bullpen without overusing their relievers. Ace closer Jeurys Familia was given the night off Wednesday, and ex-Marlin A. J. Ramos finished his former club. Calloway, remember, was the pitching coach under Terry Francona in Cleveland before this year. Another ex-Yankee, Dave Eiland, is the current Met pitching coach. So far, so good.

Calloway is also making use of having his pitchers hit 8th instead of 9th, an idea that started in St. Louis not that long ago, as memory serves, especially considering most of the starters can rake. This allows the 9th place hitter, Amed Rosario, to be a table-setter if he happens to lead off an inning.

It may not last all the way to the fall. The injury curse has reared its ugly head yet again, as catcher Travis d'Arnaud may be gone for the season after tearing a UCL ligament in his elbow. Tomas Nido was called up from Class AA Binghamton and got his first game action Wednesday when Kevin Plawecki, who'd been platooning with d'Arnaud, was hit on the hand by a pitch in the pivotal 8th inning. If Plawecki has to be put on the DL, then the Mets would have to make an extra move to put veteran backup Jose Lobaton, who came over from Washington as a free agent, on the 40 man roster.

Still, in his first 11 games, Calloway has found a way to make all the pieces fit. Contrast that with another rookie manager in the division, Washington's Dave Martinez, whose team sits 4 1/2 games behind the Mets, with a rematch looming in Flushing next week. Martinez has made his share of mistakes, which is especially galling considering most experts picked the Nationals to repeat as division champions. We've already documented the follies of Philadelphia's Gabe Kapler, whose offense woke up after getting schooled by the Mets last week.

Tomorrow, the Mets return home, and will play Milwaukee before the Nationals come in with revenge on their minds. Bear in mind, the Mets haven't played Atlanta yet, and the Braves, another surprise in the early going, are 3 1/2 back. The message, though, has been sent to the rest of the league.

"Make a mistake, and we own you."