LOS METS

A subject near and dear to my heart, so this might be a long one….

I don’t usually write off teams of mine this early in seasons. Heck, I went to Knicks games this year into January… which is about as painful as it gets. Yet, I find myself becoming increasingly impatient with this year’s version of the New York Mets. Plain and simple, they are a mess… and it’s kind of hard to pinpoint why. Let me start with what I know about the Mets.

Over the past several years, they have had very high expectations- World Series high- and have produced precisely bupkis. Not only that, they have choked two seasons in a row in excruciating fashion. They started by losing the NLCS to an inferior Cardinals teams (and yes, even though they went on to win the series, I think most people can agree that they were not the best team that year). This loss was crushing to fans and no doubt players alike. They lost it after one of the greatest catches in post season history electrified a stadium and a team to the point where no team should lose. They lost it after having the bases loaded in the bottom of the 9th in a spot where a base hit sends you to the world series. They lost it with their cleanup hitter never removing the bat from his shoulder and watching three straight strikes from a rookie pitcher fly by. Splendid!

So that was cool. The next season, as everyone knows, they bowed out like a cheap hooker in a game of “Don’t snort the cocaine off that dudes dick”. The infamous 7 1/2 game lead with 17 to play. Of course, the choking took place against the likes of The Marlins and the Nationals, among others. It was literally unwatchable, and looking back on it, I think much of my frustration with this year’s club stems from that awful September.

And… here we are. As I write this, the Mets stand in 4th place in the NL east, with a tidy, and incredibly mediocre 35-36 record. They are fresh off an embarrassingly public, and annoyingly drawn out firing of their manager. Their brand spankin’ new manager just uttered these words: “I told him next time he does that I’m going to get my blade out and cut him. I’m a gangster. You go gangster on me, I’m going to have to get you. You do that again, I’m going to cut you right on the field” (in reference to Jose Reyes… real gangster right there). And they just can’t seem to put more than 2 straight days together of playing well. Fans are questioning everyone from Omar Minaya right on down to the bat boy. Basically, things are looking good for the boys in Flushing!

So whaaat’s the deal with the razor blades slots in the bathroom? Are people actually shaving in there? And whaaaat’s the deal with Oprah? I mean, she’s fat, she’s thin, she’s fat, she’s thin… just pick a weight and go with it already! And ovaltine? I mean, the mug is round, the jar is round… shouldn’t it be called roundtine? OK sorry about that. But seriously, I find myself wondering- what is the bloody deal? Here are some thoughts:

1. They just aren’t that good. A popular theory among fellow shockeybrigade columnists, most notably, David. According to David, and some silly article somewhere, most World Series teams have at least 9 players with 12 win share or more. Meanwhile, this year’s club is destined to only have 6 (Reyes, Wright, Beltran, Santana, Maine, Church). Hmmm… only 6 players with 12 win shares!?! NOOOOO!!! OK, Let me offer a more tangible explanation. Luis Castillo is the starting second basemen. Moises Alou is a dinosaur, and he’s near extinction (I call him Denver Alou… then I sing the catchy tune- he’s my friend, and a whole lot more- every time he does something good- which is not often because he’s always injured). Fernando Tatis gets significant playing time. No. That is not a typo. And, no. That sentence was not written in 1999. And no. Unfortunately, steroids are not still legal. Oh, and Carlos Delgado often plays bingo with Denver on Saturday nights (I know what you’re thinking… A dinosaur playing bingo! Incredible!). They consistently count on pitching contributions from two guys who haven’t pitched in a year and are both coming off shoulder surgery (Pedro and Duaner Sanchez). I’m still waiting for the day when Pedro throws a pitch and his arm, ball still in hand, goes flying towards home plate (I wonder if the batter will still swing). Aaron Heilman. Trot Nixon. Claudio Vargas. I could go on.

2. They just need to get healthy. To be honest, this would certainly help. Although, every team could make this excuse. The main problem here is that Omar inexplicably went into the season absolutely having to get solid performances out of guys that just were not going to be able to stay healthy. Most notably - Pedro, Denver, El Duque.. and coming soon Luis Castillo. Just, not smart. So, these players, Jeremy Shockingly, did not stay healthy (throw in some Ryan Church, Angel Pagan) and the Mets find themselves smack dab in the middle of the Fernando Tatis era. Praise Allah!

3. There is a chemistry issue. People who would argue this would probably support the firing of Willie and would also point to such incidents as Billy Wagner calling out his teamates for not answering questions (while wearing a fuckin’ Patriots hat). I, however, say BULLOCKS! Chemistry, shmemistry. My feeling is, if you’re winning, you have good chemistry. The Mets are not winning, hence, things are a problem. It’s true that they have no leadership, and all 3 of their best offensive players are probably a little overrated (Reyes, Wright, Beltran), but this should still be a team better than .500, and a team that baseball prospectus had winning 90+ games prior to the season.

4. My Reality. To me, as I said, it’s really hard to pinpoint what the deal is with these Mets. Are they that much worse than the team from 2 years ago that could have easily won a championship? I don’t think so. True Delgado isn’t the same, and Lo Duca had a very good year that year, but I just don’t see that much of a difference (not to mention, this team throws out Johan Santana every fifth day). The thing with the Mets this year, and for much of the year last year (magnified in September) is that they just can’t seem to put things together at the same time to get it done. Reyes has a horrendous slump while Wright is hitting out of his mind. Wagner doesn’t give up a run while the Mets can’t win a game. Of course he starts blowing saves like a mad man when they need wins most. They hit a walk-off home run one day, then look flat the next. It is perplexing, and as I’ve mentioned, quite off-putting. I don’t think Willie had anything to do with this, except for the way he handled the pitching staff… which I think was mostly Rick Peterson’s fault, and am therefore very glad that he got the axe too. It wasn’t a Mets game unless the bullpen is emptied by the 6th inning. Hopefully that will change, and guys will have some gas left if important September games happen this season.

Do I think this near-.500 team is done and can’t make a run from only 5 1/2 back in the division? Obviously, no. Do I think they will do this and make the playoffs? To be honest… no. Do I think asking questions, then answering them myself is weird and annoying? Yes. Do I care? Clearly, no.

I don’t know what to make of the Mets, but I know I’d like to see some life injected into them. There’s a lot of baseball to be played, so I suppose we shall see what happens.

Hell at this point, I’d be happy if the manager didn’t shank the star shortstop in the middle of a game for smiling too damn much… Never can trust a man that doesn’t stop smiling.

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