Sorry Mutts

[En Passant]

http://www.nypost.com/seven/08262007...st_.htm?page=0

August 26, 2007 -- MEMO to Jimmy Rollins: The best team won.

Yes, it's still the dog days of August and the Mets have to travel to beautiful Philadelphia tomorrow, but the NL East race is over. Though the Yankees are fighting for their playoff souls, the Mets are merrily on their way to another October.

This really wasn't much of a race. Despite all the Mets problems, despite the fact they left the door wide open in the division, the Phillies and Braves have not been able to step through the portal.

So at 6:47 last night when Aaron Heilman got Luis Gonzalez to bounce into a 1-6-3 double play to give the Mets a 4-3 win over the Dodgers at sweaty Shea Stadium, the NL East race came to a close. Sure, there are magic numbers ahead and the official champagne clinching, but the Mets have no worries until October.

Even Carlos Delgado got into the act, banging a two-out, two-run-single in the fifth after Grady Little intentionally walked Jeff Conine to get to Delgado.

Though he's been frustrated by his season-long slump, Delgado said there was never any reason for him to start throwing bats or helmets, "and the fact you have a six-game lead helps," he said.

It sure does. The Mets know where they sit.

As soon as Delgado made his statement, the first baseman was reminded the Mets lead was 6 ½ games (the Braves and Phillies played last night).

"But who's counting," he said with a smile, later adding there is still a long way to go.

No there isn't. The Mets biggest challenge is to stay interested in the final five weeks of the season and to have the eye of the tiger when they get to the postseason.

Orlando Hernandez continued his magic and was brilliant for six innings before allowing back-to-back home runs in the seventh. The Mets are 9-0 in El Duque's last nine starts.

On this day the Mets didn't even have to use closer Billy Wagner, who has been used too much of late and told the team he needed a rest and to let Heilman finish the job.

Jose Reyes stole his 70th base after a leadoff single in the third, and David Wright knocked him in to put the Mets on top, 1-0. Reyes became only the second major leaguer since 2000 to notch 70 steals. Scott Podsednik stole 70 in 2004. At this rate, Reyes is likely to have the most steals since 1988 when Man of Steal Rickey Henderson swiped 93 bases for the Yankees.

Conine knocked in the Mets final run on a double to left that scored Wright in the seventh. Wright owns a ridiculous .790 on-base percentage over his last 19 plate appearances. The Mets simply have more weapons than anyone else in the East.

What the Mets were missing was a resolve to win at home. Tom Glavine, who was with the Braves when they used to be automatic division winners, noted that has changed. The Mets know they are good, even though they haven't always played like the best team.

The players will not admit that the race is over, but the Mets are confident in their abilities and have been from Day 1.

"We have the talent to win," Glavine said. "When you come off a year like we had last year and you have as much or more talent in the room the following year, you just look around and see a team that you think is a good team and a team that can win, regardless of what everybody else is doing or what other people think."

The Mets didn't think this would be a runaway like last year.

"We knew that our division was going to be tougher this year because the other two teams that we beat last year struggled, and you knew they were not going to do that again," Glavine said.

Wagner agreed.

"We just have to continue to play."

"We're in a great position," Glavine said. "All we have to do is take care of business and win our games and it doesn't matter what anybody else does."

Considering the talent disparity in the division, it never really mattered.

kevin.kernan@nypost.com

[Smell The Glove]

lol pwned