Nike rewarded the Phillies shortstop with his own custom-made sneakers. They are red, white and blue, and feature a Liberty Bell logo and, of course, the letters MVP.

"They definitely look nice," said Rollins, hoisting one of the shoes from a box yesterday. "Definitely hooked up."

The sneakers won't be for sale in stores, but that didn't stop Rollins from dreaming.

"I wish," he said with an impish grin. "We'd have to renegotiate."

Now, that would go over well, wouldn't it, as the Phillies wrestle over a contract with Ryan Howard? Good thing Rollins was just joshin'.

"It's still good," he said of his five-year, $40 million contract, which runs through 2010. "I'm happy with it."

Rollins created quite a buzz leading up to last year's MVP season. How could anyone forget his "we're the team to beat" boast? It's as if it became part of him, like his on-field flash and style. The bold remark became legendary when the Phillies beat out the New York Mets for the NL East title on the final day of the season.

Now, Rollins is talking again, putting the pressure squarely on the Mets.

"The pressure is back on them, if you ask me," he said. "They were, on paper, the best team in the division last year and were supposed to win, and didn't. So they're going to be out there trying to prove what happened last year was a fluke, that it's not going to happen again."

Mets centerfielder Carlos Beltran is confident it won't happen again. He already has declared the Mets the team to beat, punctuating his prediction with a reference to Rollins.

Two things came to Rollins' mind when he heard Beltran's remark.

"One, there are four other teams in our division who are going to make sure that doesn't happen," he said. "And, two, has anyone ever heard of plagiarism?"

That response elicited loud chuckles from a group of reporters that included four from New York, who, truth be told, didn't come to Camp Clearwater to see Rollins' new sneaks. They were here to get Rollins' latest prognostication.

One hundred wins?

"We can win 100," he said. "Look at what happened to us last year. With all the injuries and all the different pitchers and the uncertainties, we wound up winning 89 games.

"Offensively, we haven't lost anything. I think we've actually taken a step forward. Pitching-wise, with Brett [Myers] being back in the rotation and [Brad] Lidge back to being the closer he was, we can seal the deal."

So, are the Phillies still the team to beat?

"There isn't a team in this division or the National League that's better than us," Rollins said. "I'm not saying on paper we're the best team, but we can play with anybody, and that's the bottom line."

So?

"What was said last year still rings true," he said. "My mind isn't going to change. After 162 games, we'll be looking to win the next 11."

Rollins is surprised that his 2007 preseason boast resonated so long, but he realizes why it did.

Everything is bigger in New York.

"I thought it would be short - like me," said Rollins, who is generously listed as 5-foot-8. "Truthfully, I think the Mets made it happen. The challenge was to my team. The Mets took it upon themselves to take it personally. There are other teams in the NL East, three other teams besides the Mets and Philadelphia. I was saying we were going to beat everyone. I think they took it personally, and that's where it got legs."

Rollins' famous comment put some juice in the Phillies-Mets rivalry.

"We'll never be the Red Sox-Yankees, but the intensity is starting to pick up," he said. "I love it. You can come off a three-game losing streak and get to New York and it's like a brand new season because of the intensity. But if you lose three straight, it's like the rest of the season doesn't matter for the next week because you just lost all your pride in either Philadelphia or New York, depending on who wins or loses."

Rollins' comment did more than heat up the rivalry with the Mets. It added a little sparkle to his MVP candidacy. He dared to speak, then backed it up.

Does Rollins believe he would have won if he had not made - and lived up to - his big boast?

"Probably not," he said. "It wouldn't have taken away from my season, but just putting it out there like that and having the added pressure and being able to perform, it definitely helped a lot."

Perform? Rollins did that in 2007.

He set career highs in runs (139), hits (212), home runs (30), RBIs (94), triples (20), total bases (380), and extra-base hits (88). He played Gold Glove defense.

Entering his eighth season as a regular, the 29-year-old shortstop wants more.

"There's plenty of room for improvement," he said. "I still haven't scored 150 runs. I'd like to steal more bases, cut down on my errors, and get a little deeper in the playoffs."

Rollins recalled October's three-and-out against the Rockies.

"A lot deeper," he said. "How about as deep as you can get?"