Waiting on the World to Change: The Next Decade of Mets Baseball

Life's not fair. It's a lesson Mets fans know well, and one that each of us has probably learned the hard way a few times in our lives beyond baseball.

Depending to a degree on your definition, tonight marks the end of one decade and the beginning of another. It begs the question: What are my hopes for the next decade of Mets baseball?

There's a very easy answer on one level and a more complicated one on another. The very easy answer is that I hope it's better than the last. And the one before that, for that matter.

Sure, the 90's and the 00's gave us some Mets teams for the ages. Who didn't love the '99 team or the one from '06? Even if they both fell short and broke our hearts, the positive memories are with us forever.

So what to hope for in the decade ahead? Here's a quick list:

1. A championship for god's sake

Is it really so much to ask? The Yankees have won like a million in the past 15 years. Ditto the Red Sox and, FML, the Marlins.

Being good shouldn't be that hard for the Mets, given their resources and the market they play in. (A great example of the "market" incentive is Amar'e Stoudemire, who all of a sudden is getting a clothing line. That shit DOESN'T happen if he stays in Phoenix or signs anywhere else aside from the Lakers.)

2. No more collapses

Honestly, we've had our share. God, are you listening?

3. Stay what you are

I want the Mets to win, but I don't want us to sell our soul to do it. For whatever reason, I'll always have a soft spot for the Red Sox, but with their payroll at/approaching $175mm for 2011, they're now in the same league financially as the Yankees.

I never want the Mets to be in the same league financially as the Yankees (assuming they remain where they've been for the past decade). As absurd as it may sound to fans of the Pirates or who have you, the Mets with their pedestrian $130mm payroll are the "blue collar" team in New York. That's who we are, it's who we've always been, and it's who I hope we always will be.

4. D-Wright and the Glass Man go out as (championship-winning) Mets

These guys should be lifers. As crazy as it sounds, both David Wright and Jose Reyes will probably still be playing baseball in 2020. Of the two, Wright seems a surer bet; we don't call Reyes "Mr. Glass" for nothing, folks.

Now, it's possible (likely?) that Reyes doesn't make it to 2012 as a Met, but let me dream. Reyes and Wright are two of my all-time favorite Mets. They're the faces of the franchise (still), and it'd be nice to see the Nos. 5 and 7 hanging at Citi Field someday, side-by-side on the outfield wall as they were in the infield for all those years.

5. The Yankees go championship-less

Have the Yankees EVER gone a decade without winning a World Series? If only there was some sort of online aggregater of information that we could turn to at a time like this!

Well, if they HAVE had decades where they never won, they're few and far between, that's for sure. How 'bout the '10s join the list? That'd be nice.

* * * * *

The awful thing is that you really can't expect any of the items listed above to happen. But hey, a guy and a fan base can dream, right?

Am I missing anything here? Anything you're hoping for in the decade ahead? Curious as always for your thoughts.

Have a great time tonight, everybody. Here's to 2011, may it be better than 2010.

- A.F.O.M.G.