The Sky Is Falling in Metsland
In times of dire distress, it is important to find comfort; something to hold on to. The fans of New York’s National League team are no strangers to this. Living as co-residents with the most successful franchise in the history of North American sports. Taking the mantle from the departed Brooklyn Dodgers and the New York Baseball Giants. The New York Metropolitians have a franchise history bedazzled with magical highs and marred with catastrophic lows. For a fanbase that often has allegiances with the New York Knicks and Jets, they are no strangers to having their hearts broken.
Baseball is supposed to be different. This year is supposed to be different. Over the course of a 162-game season, fluctuations are supposed to level out. Talent is supposed to rise to the top. The wheat shall be separated from the chaff. For an organization that for many a lean year refused to spend comparable to the big-market team, they in fact are. Now with a $300 million payroll, two perennial MVP candidates, a bona fide thumper at first base, two now-former ace pitchers and Cy Young candidates, and maybe the best closer in baseball. They still find themselves playing .500 ball. Despite being buoyed in recent weeks by three new young arms who were called up, the rotation is in part.
When they hit, they can’t pitch; when they pitch, they can’t hit. When they get good starts, the bullpen blows the game. When the bullpen is on point, there are careless fielding errors. For a fanbase predisposed to thinking the worst. This team has done nothing to assuage these fears. Just two weeks ago, there was hope they could challenge for the division crown. Even as recently as this weekend, they were still in the driver's seat for the final wild card spot. A lead that has since evaporated to 1.5 games over the Cincinnati Reds and San Francisco Giants. The latter of which they hold the tiebreaker, the former of which they do not.
Since they do not have the tiebreaker over the Reds, this lead is effectively a game or less, cause if they finished tied, they are on the outside of the playoff picture. Coming off their magical playoff run to the NLCS last season, then signing Juan Soto, expectations were sky high. The hot start to the year did nothing to temper such feelings as they surged to over 20 games above .500, to which they are now only five up. If they, in fact, miss the playoffs, this is a collapse that will border on that of 2007 and 2008 for those who are old enough to have watched or have heard of it. For a team that routinely disappoints its fanbase, this would be a new low.
The only thing I have left to offer is to try to keep the hope. For a fanbase as predisposed to neurotic tendencies as the Mets faithful, this season has certainly been a doozy, to say the least. For all of the negativity, they are still the masters of their own fate. All they need to do is win, which is easier said than done. Unless they are actually eliminated, all of this fussing serves no purpose other than to try to process the emotions inherently relevant in sport. Once the season comes to its natural conclusion, we can fully analyze this core and current roster construction. Until then, all we can do is keep the faith.
