Oliver Perez was magnificent...... Photo by Jim McIsaac - Getty	while Howard was not  Photo by  Jim McIsaac - Getty

Okay, I was wrong.  The Mets weren’t in trouble after all.  It didn’t matter that they lost a really tough on on Tuesday night, that Jerry Manuel hadn’t let Johan Santana finish the game, or that the Phils knocked three different relievers around to the tune of six runs.

Within a few hours of my Wednesday column of doom, the Mets would come back.  John Maine survived and Jose Reyes helped cement the win in Game 2.  And last night, Oliver Perez and Carlos Delgado did even better. 

But, best of all maybe was the way they did it in Game 3.  Phils starter Jamie Moyer had pretty much shut the Mets down while Oliver Perez had stymied the Phils even more spectacularly.  But with the score tied at 1 in the eighth, Perez got into some trouble, hitting Ryan Howard with a pitch to load the bases.  Stepping up to the plate was none other than Jayson Werth, who had slugged a huge homer off Perez in the 6^th to tie the game.

And who should Manuel call on to bail the Mets out of a jam?  None other than the unflappable Aaron Heilman, another of those up and down Mets relievers.  But Aaron was up to the task last night, blowing a couple of fast balls by the big slugger, followed by another that had a little too much of the plate and Werth drove it a long way once again.  

But this time, you could see that centerfielder Carlos Beltran had a bead on it, and the Phils threat was suddenly over.  Perhaps motivated by their near demise in the top of the eighth, the Mets struck gold in the bottom half.

Robinson Cancel, who is becoming a bigger cog in the Mets wheel, singled and moved to second on Reyes’s bunt.  After Phils reliever J.C. Romero snagged a broken-bat liner off the bat of Endy Chavez for the second out, he intentionally walked David Wright to load the bases for Carlos Delgado. 

So there it was, lefty on lefty, with the game on the line.  Carlos, who hadn’t had much luck against Romero in the past, nevertheless hung tough and managed to drive an outside pitcher’s pitch to the opposite field, scoring Cancel and Wright to spot the Mets to a 2-run lead.  The Mets intrepid cleanup hitter had done it again.

And, just as he did in Game 2, Billy Wagner came on in the 9^th to get two fly balls from Victorino and Feliz, and, after allowing a base hit, retired 2007 MVP Jimmy Rollins on a hard ground ball.  The Mets would end the day in first place in the National League East and solidify their lead in their head to head contests with the Phillies. 

It must be pointed out, though, that while Wagner was ultimately able to close out both Games 2 and 3 for the Mets, nobody knew that on Wednesday morning.  If I had known the Mets would have Wagner available for the rest of the Series, my outlook wouldn’t have been nearly so miserable.

To his credit, Jerry Manuel was gracious after the game, and did not harp on the fact that Mets fans were upset, or that every beat writer with a pen and a keyboard had been prophesying his team’s doom.  

He singled Oliver Perez out for his fine 12 K performance and talked about Delgado, not just for his prowess with the bat, but also for his leadership in the clubhouse.  Jerry was pleased that Carlos’s staggering success at the plate would only enhance his standing as a leader in the clubhouse.

Could that be the key to Delgado’s surge at the plate for Manuel, an acknowledgement of Delgado’s importance as a leader?  Is it possible that Willie didn’t appreciate his efforts, or wasn’t able to express his regard in the same way?  I guess we’ll never know unless some cable station does a reality show on an out-of-work baseball manager. 

It’s not that important now, of course.  For whatever reason, the Mets are doing much better than they had under Willie.  Whatever peccadilloes Willie had are irrelevant now.  The Mets can look forward to a brighter future, with better hitting for sure and more timely pitching as well. 

And, looking forward, the immediate future looks hard.  The Cardinals come to Shea with a better record than the Mets, followed by a series with the surprising Florida Marlins, who have been hovering around the top spot in the division all season long. 

The biggest question now is whether the Mets should pick up an outfielder.  Once again, Ryan Church is hurt and may be unavailable for some time.  Moises Alou is unavailable.  The Mets have been doing well by surrounding Beltran in left and right with Fernando Tatis, Marlon Anderson, Endy Chavez and a kid named Nick Evans.  But will they do as well in September and October as they are now?

While I think the Mets could stay pat and survive, it’s probably not the optimal solution.  I’d like to see them pick up Xavier Nady.  Xavier used to be the Mets rightfielder before he was unceremoniously traded away.  After the Mets lost Duaner Sanchez to injury in 2006, they picked up Roberto Hernandez from the Pirates and last night’s hero, Oliver Perez.

While Nady was once thought to be just a part-time player, Nady’s hitting .330 this year with runs and rbi numbers in the 50’s for the lowly Pirates.  I’d love to see him back again.  He was never a great fielder, but he’s one of those guys you feel comfortable with at the plate.  He’d look good in blue. 

I understand the Pirates are asking the world for him now.  Maybe they’d like Oliver Perez back in the black and gold.  That won’t happen.

But if the Mets can’t make a trade, I think they’ll be ok.  With or without another outfielder, they’re too tough to just fold under pressure.