Everyday Outfield

The Mets have now played their first 13 games of the 2008 season with the same three starting outfielders: Pagan, Beltran and Church have started every game. The Mets have never before gone so long into a season without varying their starting outfield. Most seasons, the Mets vary their starting outfield before the 5th game of the year: in only 13 of the seasons 46 seasons in Mets history have the Mets gone past the fourth game of the year before making a change in the starting outfield. The Mets' average for the first game a change is made to the starting outfield is 3.7 and the median is 3. Before the current season, the only times the Mets have gone past their ninth game of the year without a variation in their starting outfield have been 1970, when they changed for the first time in the 10th game of the year (Jones, Agee and Swoboda finally give way when Shamsky starts instead of Swoboda in right) and last season, 2007, when Alou, Beltran and Green started the first 10 games but Endy Chavez started for Alou in left in game 11.