Which of the 4 times?

1.88 ERA over 4 games through May 1st (his last start). He had no run support, but kept the team in games. His last start was 0 runs in 7 innings. His turn in the rotation was one of the few things to look forward to before he went down.

My point-he ALWAYS goes down.
A good pitcher but NEVER healthy. San diego would've kept him if he was ever gonna produce. He's damaged goods and has been for years. If I recall he was an Ivy Leaguer.

The terms "Mets" and "damaged goods" go hand in hand.

I hope there are plenty of nice sunny days out at Citifield this season and plenty of cold beer.

Did anyone know the season started today??? So silly.

TOKYO -- Ichiro Suzuki had four hits in his return to Japan, Dustin Ackley homered and then singled in the go-ahead run in the 11th inning, and the Seattle Mariners beat the Oakland Athletics 3-1 Wednesday night in baseball's season opener.

Felix Hernandez combined with two relievers on a six-hitter as Major League Baseball opened its season in Tokyo for the fourth time.

Seattle and Oakland complete their two-game series Thursday. The rest of the big league teams get going April 4, when the renamed Miami Marlins open their new ballpark against the World Series champion St. Louis Cardinals.

Ackley homered in the fourth off Brandon McCarthy, and Oakland's Kurt Suzuki doubled in a run in the bottom half. The score remained 1-1 until the 11th, when Brendan Ryan doubled against Andrew Carignan (0-1), Chone Figgins sacrificed and Ackley singled to center.
"I was able to put a good swing on that one," Ackley said of his 11th-inning hit. "Our team is off to a good start, and that's all that matters."
Jerry Blevins relieved, Ackley stole second and Ichiro singled for a two-run lead. Brandon League closed it out for the save.
Tom Wilhelmsen (1-0) got the win with two hitless innings.
Cuban defector Yoenis Cespedes, who signed a $36 million, four-year contract with Oakland, was 1 for 3 with a seventh-inning double and two strikeouts in his major league debut.

A capacity crowd of 44,227 at Tokyo Dome was a sea of flashing cameras every time Ichiro came to bat. He got a standing ovation when he took his position in right field in the final inning.
Ichiro dropped from leadoff to third in the batting order as he started his 12th big league season, singled in the first when be beat shortstop Cliff Pennington's throw after his grounder over the mound was deflected by McCarthy.
Ichiro singled on a grounder to shortstop in the fourth and singled to center in the sixth.
Hernandez, coming off a 14-14 season, allowed five hits in eight innings, struck out six and walked none, throwing 104 pitches.

McCarthy gave up one run and six hits in seven innings with three strikeouts and no walks.
While Oakland threatened repeatedly, the A's were 1 for 14 with runners in scoring position.

Game notes
It was 3:09 a.m. Pacific time when the game began. It was not televised live in the U.S. outside the markets of the teams involved, and was shown on a delayed basis by the MLB Network. ... Bartolo Colon starts Thursday the A's, opposed by Jason Vargas. ... The New York Mets and Chicago Cubs opened in Tokyo in 2000, followed by the New York Yankees and Tampa Bay (2004), and Boston and Oakland (2008). Seattle and Oakland had been scheduled to play at the Tokyo Dome in March 2003, but the series was scrapped because of the threat of war in Iraq. ... A pregame video presentation honored victims and survivors of the March 11, 2011, earthquake and tsunami. The video was narrated by Derek Jeter, Bobby Valentine and Cal Ripken Jr.

I remember watching some of that Yankee game before leaving for work that morning. Man, that was eight years ago??? Who knows where the time goes...

I don't remember any Tokyo games myself but the Valentine one in 2000 must have been news in NY.

I remember 2000....got up early to watch it.....it was School System Hampton's first Mets start.....they lost, and I questioned why I got up at 3:00 AM to watch it.

I'm used to seasons starting in other countries......the NHL has been opening with a couple of games in Europe for awhile.

I really dislike this gimmicky marketing stuff. It's a hallmark of the Selig era, and the accumulation of all these little things (opening in Japan, interleague play, the All-Star game awarding home field advantage in the playoffs, etc.) have made baseball less enjoyable for me, not more.

Gruesome, but probably accurate:

Ichiro is on pace for 648 hits.

I don't mind the season starting in Japan if it gets the season going a week sooner. I'm so happy that baseball is here!

SI says the Mets will finish in last place in the NL East. Think maybe they're right this time?
Anyway the season could be at least entertaining if the core hit (Wright/ Bay/ Duda/ Davis) and Santana strikes people out.

Here's a game everyone can play! Finish the following sentence:

If the Dodgers are worth $2B, then...

I'll start!

If the Dodgers are worth $2B, then IMWAN is worth $2.50!

Then Linda, you're going to LOVE this.

Don't get me wrong, I would like baseball to be popular all over the world. (England already has a baseball league, but it's semi-pro at best.) What I object to is Selig using real MLB games, games which count in the standings, as promotional stunts. Do exhibitions overseas instead, or stage the All-Star game there. Don't start the North American baseball season in Japan or the UK or Antarctica.

I agree. It bugs me when the NFL does this. Traveling from the US to the UK is a lot more complicated than flying from Seattle to Miami. At least with baseball, it's only one game out of 162 and it's done at the beginning of the season. I think what the NFL does is more disruptive for the season. Regardless, it's still a stunt. It has the feel of an exhibition game but, unfortunately, it isn't.

Hoping my M's win again tonight; they would be in sole possession of 1st place for a week! I don't have much faith in Jason Vargas, though.

Nothing as American and apple pie as having the first game of the baseball season in Japan. Maybe next year the first game can be in China and the following year in India. What the hell, let's outsource the game along with jobs.

Considering how the Japanese are rooting for Ichiro, you must wonder why your team is wearing road grays and batting in the top of the innings...