Golf Clap

It's the Mets' first two-game winning streak since they and I were in Philadelphia. Momentum ho!

With a weeklong westward journey whose manifest lists seven grueling tests of Methood ahead, one can only hope.

We don't get fooled again here, or at least we don't get turned around that fast. Jason held his applause Saturday night for a 2-1 win that was long on Glavine, short on hitting. I feel compelled to do the same, even though:

• The return of Oliver Perez was huge.

• The injection of Lastings Milledge is life-affirming.

• The everyday presence of Ruben Gotay (who will someday learn to make routine plays at second) appears stabilizing.

• The revivification of Jose Reyes as a daunting combination of power and hustle is underway.

• The genius of Billy Wagner is unquestionable.

I'd like to be excited. I really would. I don't build my summertime world around this team so I can be restrained about their success. But I also don't track their progress lightly enough to live too much in the moment. So two in a row over the Reds is lovely for two games. Now give me a third in a row over the pitching-laden Padres after a cross-country flight and we can uncurb a little more enthusiasm on the Mets' behalf.

Toughlove '07 — we do what we have to.

But some things I can express qualms-free happiness about, like the way people enjoy Faith and Fear. So here are a few hearty shoutouts from Friday and Saturday night at Shea…

• To JerseyJack for stopping by and showing off your SASSER uniform top. I assumed the “Jersey” was for where you were from. Maybe it's for what you were wearing.

• To Dan who has made the retired numbers his go-to garment and to Asher who had never seen the Mets lose prior to Friday night. Don't worry about it, young man; that defeat will only make the next win more sweet.

• To the H's of the Upper Deck who gave me a brief respite from the Norris Hopper Festival of Yo! Always happy to see Charlie, doubly happy to meet Sarah. Welcome back to Shea, madam.

• To Greg (no, not me), the first FAFIF shirt-wearer I've run into at Shea who turned out to be a total stranger except for reading us — which makes you not a stranger at all in our book. As I said Friday night, thanks for your support.