And We're Back!

Like the Mets, many were ready to write off the little site that could. They said it was dead and buried. Said it didn't have a chance.

The last time I wrote was April 15th. Since then I've just been completely buried at work, but things should lighten up some now, so expect regular content again next week.

But back to April 15th. It was a pretty depressing time. I'm not sure what the Mets' record was exactly, but suffice it to say my expectations for the year ahead were pretty dim.

Zoom forward to the present and, somehow, the Mets are the hottest team in baseball. In the span of 10 games they've catapulted themselves from worst to first.

It couldn't have come at a better time. Tomorrow, me and a bunch of guys are heading to Citizen's Bank Park for Lister's bachelor party.

For a while there it was looking like we would get completely shat on by Phillies fans. I could already hear the taunts about how bad the Mets were.

With the Mets playing good ball again, not only will the taunts require some modification, but the whole series takes on a whole new level of intrigue.

If the Mets can somehow keep this hot streak going through the weekend, it would really send a message. If Jon Niese can produce on the big stage, if Mike Pelfrey can out-duel Roy Halladay, if the Mets can play the kind of inspired ball we've seen the past 10 days... all of it would send a message that maybe, just maybe, this year is different from the ones that came before it, and that maybe, just maybe, this team is for real.

I hope it works out that way, but like many other Mets fans out there, I can't let go of my skepticism. This team has looked great recently, but I need a few good months in a row to compensate for the last three years. That's just the way it is.

For now though, I'm looking forward to an exciting weekend of baseball. The Mets are in first place and have a chance to send a message to the Phillies and everyone else following baseball this year. Here's hoping they rise to the occasion.

New Mets!

- A.F.O.M.G.

Seo Bad

To clarify, I'm not shirking my blogger duties this week out of disgust with the Mets (though I could certainly sympathize with any blogger who had reached that point).

No, it's just that I'm buried at work this week and probably next as well, so the post flow will probably be down some until the week after next. I'll try to post every chance I have (particularly on the weekends), but in the meantime, a few thoughts:

This team is terrible.

David Wright didn't hit his third home run until May 7 last year, which is actually much earlier than I expected, but is still way later than April 14. I wouldn't say he's looked great at the plate, but he definitely looks better hitting the ball than he did last year (as for his fielding...).

Since his promising debut, Jason Bay has really looked like shit. Part of that may be the direct result of him realizing the enormity of the error that was signing with us; whatever the reason we need him to snap out of it soon.

John Maine, ugh. Remember the Maine! More like "Remember the Maine?" these days; as in, remember when he could dial it up to 94-95? Remember when we used to say that John Maine missed bats? Watching him pitch these days, those sayings feel like forever ago.

I feel bad for Jerry Manuel. This team just doesn't have the talent to contend, and ultimately that's not his fault. I think it's probable they could be better than they're playing right now, but no matter how you slice it, they don't have the horses to contend at a serious level. The only question is how irrelevant they'll be this year?

And on that depressing note, I'm off.

- A.F.O.M.G.

Going Dark and Seeing the Light

When me and Little Miss Citi got to the ballpark last night, I'll be the first to admit that my energy level was low. Actually, saying I was low energy is charitable... I'd officially gone dark.

As anyone who read yesterday's post probably knows, I had started to go really negative on the Mets after the last two games.

Judging by attendance at last night's game, I wasn't the only one. I don't know how many fans were there exactly. They didn't play the "guess tonight's attendance" game, which was probably for the best. Looking at the box score, it seems the official count was 28,055, but I'm almost certain that's not true. 

How empty was it? See for yourself... Exhibit A (clicking the pictures enlarges them, which will really give you the full depth of the emptiness last night):

Exhibit B (more damning):

For many of the Mets "faithful", it seems the thrill is gone.

Heading into last night's tilt, I was among the legion skeptical fans. After all, they'd looked like complete and utter shit the past two games, and the storyline of ineptitude on days when Not Johan is pitching has gone viral.

And if that's how I felt, imagine the casual fan. Between those factors, the morning rain, and the evening chill (honestly, I almost asked the other guys at the urinals whether they'd ever considered pissing on their own hands for warmth), it's hardly any surprise attendance was so low.

But it's a shame because the Mets had a bit of a breakout game, the kind of win they needed where they hit balls hard, even managing to push four of them over the wall (a new record for the Mets at Citi Field... unsurprisingly).

In his first start of the season, Mike Not Johan actually looked pretty decent, albeit against the Nationals. He held the opposition to 2 runs over 6 innings, and we'll take that any day. From there, the bullpen did its part, with Hisanori Takahashi, Fernando Nieve, and Jenrry Mejia combining for three innings of scoreless relief.

It all served as an exciting prelude to the highly anticipated return of your friend and mine, Jose Reyes, the Glass Man himself, this afternoon.

There will be time to appreciate Reyes later on today; I really hope he gets a huge ovation from the crowd, which hopefully will be a tick larger than it was last night.

But how about this as the greatest testament to how good the team looked yesterday -- as I left the ballpark last night, there was no thought of Reyes' return. It was all about the balls Smilin' Jeff and Rod Barajas hit over the wall in left field, the deliciousness that is Shake Shack, and the sweet, soulful sounds of Citi Jimi, back where he belongs.

The negative energy is passed, the optimism is returned. Now let's make it two in a row out there today.

- A.F.O.M.G.

Pitiful, Painful, Etc.

I mean, did the Mets even know there was a game yesterday?

In a pitiful, painful performance, the Mets might have actually mustered the 7 softest hits of all time last night. Think about it: was there a single moment of honest-to-goodness excitement all game?

I said it yesterday, sometimes you watch a team swing it and wonder how they ever score a run. Last night was one of those games. Six runs or not, Wednesday's game was one of those games too.

The good news is that I do expect the Mets' offense to score runs this season, particularly when Jose Reyes and Carlos Beltran are back. If you can bear it, allow yourself to think about how those two guys will change this lineup. I guess Reyes will be back soon enough (tomorrow from the sound of it), but Beltran, who knows?

Anyway, I suppose Jon Not Johan had a nice go of it last night, which was good to see. Little Miss Citi and I were pleased to coin a new nickname for Jeff Francouer, who will henceforth be referred to as "Smilin' Jeff" for his perpetual grin (although "Chips" will always be a favorite for him as well, courtesy of Y2K Godfather Sippy Momo).

And those were the highlights, folks -- 6 innings of 3-run ball from Jon Niese (probably as good an effort a Not Johan will throw all season, save a few exceptions along the way to generate false hope) and a new nickname for Frenchy.

But hope springs eternal this time of year, so we soldier on with whatever optimism we can muster. Or maybe that hope has nothing to do with the calendar and everything to do with the schedule, which has the lowly Nats coming to town for a three-game set. I keep reading about how these ain't your grandma's Nationals anymore, so maybe I should show more respect.

In the end, the Nationals may have nothing to do with it; we keep hitting like we've been the past two games, we're gonna be looking up at the Nats and everyone else in the division for a long time to come.

- A.F.O.M.G.

The Frightful Debut of 'Not Johan'... Redeemed! Partially!

Interesting thing happened to the Glass Man, and the Mets, last night.

It was the 7th inning, and the Mets were down 6-1. The situation seemed hopeless. Earlier in the week I'd set a goal of writing each day this week, so I began writing. The result was a thoroughly negative piece which you can find below. (Note: I made a few updates to the piece after Fernando Tatis' baserunning gaffe.)

After the Mets staged their rally and tied things up, I thought about deleting the post entirely and starting over, but nuts on that. The would-be post below is an interesting insight into the bruised psyche of this Mets fan.

In the end though, the Mets didn't succumb to the same negativity I gave in to. They lost the game all the same, but they looked resilient and they looked determined. We've had Mets teams the past few years who looked anything but those two qualities.

Anyway, it would have been nice to come away with a win, but the game last night was decidedly less discouraging than it might have been. Don't believe me? Keep reading...

"When it was over, Game 2 of the season proved every bit as dispiriting as we'd all feared it would.

John Maine, rocked. Every bit as "meh" as we'd dreaded. His newer, slower fastball is truly cause for concern. His trademark inefficiency (71 pitches through 3 innings, I believe it was) was a devastating reminder of everything frustrating about Maine, and everything frightful about our pitchers not named Johan Santana.

Maybe for simplicity's sake we'll start referring to the other four starters as "[First Name] Not Johan" or "Not Johan". We'll give it a try.

Jenrry Mejia, ugh. Not only is our present sunk, so too is our future. (OK, OK, I don't mean that; just let me wallow in my negativity.)

Sean Green, rocked. His new sidearm delivery, fooling nobody but perhaps Jerry Manuel, is a punch to the gut reminder of the glory years year of Chad Bradford.

Mike Jacobs, terrible. I mean, I'm not saying you bench him, but he shouldn't be batting clean up.

Fernando Tatis, idiot. If the Mets are going to win ballgames they MUST play smart baseball. That means not missing third base. That means not going into home standing up when you should slide. And it means not running yourself out of a bases loaded situation with your best hitter at the plate. 

* * * * *

Baseball's a funny game. Sometimes you watch a team and it's firing on all cylinders and guys are circling the bases left and right. Other times you watch the same team and wonder how it ever scores a run. Or maybe that's just the Mets.

Last night was one of those "column B" type games. The Mets looked punchless (not all Jacobs' fault by any means), and then when they finally started stringing something together they found a way to run themselves out of it.

(Perhaps the worst part of Tatis' gaffe was that it spoiled the first genuinely exciting/dramatic moment of the season. It would have been really cool if Wright had done something big in that spot.)

But more important than the hitting, which will have its "column A" games as well, was the underwhelming outing by Not Johan.

We have four Not Johans on this team. Three of them (Maine, Ollie, and Pelfrey) have successful seasons under their belts. One of them (Jon Niese) is a youngster with a certain degree of promise.

To have any chance of a playoff run this season, the Mets need two Not Johans to overachieve. In his first outing, John Not Johan was bad, and he was bad in all the ways we've come to expect from him.

So it goes. Try to remind yourself that it's just one start.

Not Johan was pretty uninspiring last night, but he'll be back out there again today. Hopefully there will be less cringing."

Reminder: it could have been a LOT worse.

- A.F.O.M.G.

The Subtle Joys of Baseball Season

Yesterday morning I woke, showered, and anxiously flipped on SNY.

As I watched the morning edition of SportsNite (which was revamped to include these annoying new blue boxes that cut off people's heads, take up too much of the screen, and generally obscure the view of what you're trying to watch) I scanned the Sports section of the Daily News.

By the time I was in the office I was on to the Post and New York Times. Then it was on to Metsblog, ESPN, and all the rest (I swear I got some work done, too).

I devoured it all hungrily. No detail was too small, no angle not worth reading about.

Of the many joys of baseball, for me, the routines of the season are just as great as the action on the field.

I love the breathless anticipation of looking at the backpages and reading the stories. It's been that way for me since I was a kid. I used to run down the hall of my parents' apartment, swing open the front door, scoop up the paper and plop down somewhere with the Sports section.

Today, most of the papers I read are digital, most days anyway, but the feverish anticipation is still the same.

And when I get to the ballpark many of the routines are still there as well. I still try to get my meal somewhere in the fourth inning. Back at Shea where the food options weren't quite so appetizing, it was always a hot dog and a soft pretzel. I still take a certain comfort in that order, but in this Citi Field world of Shake Shack, Blue Smoke, and all the rest, it's too tempting to mix things up.

Whether your tastes have evolved over the years or if you're still going with your tried and trues, chances are, if you're reading this site, that the best routine of all is the team itself and the sweet sounds and scenes at the ballpark.

Looking back on the first off-day of the season, though, I was struck by the subtle joys of baseball, and thankful that those are back, too.

- A.F.O.M.G.

New Mets!

New Citi Field! New cream colored jerseys! New David Wright!

Yes, there was a lot to take in at sun-soaked Citi Field yesterday. Me and Sip were back in the saddle again, hitting up the Mets' home opener alongside a few other friends. It was my sixth straight Opening Day (I took a break in college); Sip said it was his 15th straight (evidently he did not take a break in college).

I got to the ballpark early yesterday and had some time on my hands, so I took a lap of Citi Field to take in some of the upgrades to the exterior. Everything about the fanwalk and the banners that you've read on Metsblog is spot on -- they're very nice touches.

(Although one of them brought out the copy editor in me. See the plaque above? Look closely at the "Miracle Mets", specifically the close quotation marks -- they go the same way as the open quotation marks, like there are two open quotation marks rather than an open and a close. Can we please get this fixed? It looks sloppy.) 

I didn't have a chance to look in the Mets Hall of Fame, it was just too packed. I'll check it out this weekend; for now, the upgrades really began and ended with the Apple outside.

I remember when the Mets were touting the Jackie Robinson Rotunda. There was a lot of talk from Mets brass and commentators on SNY about how the giant blue 42 in the Rotunda would become a meeting ground for fans, and a regular place for a photo op.

I understand why they might have thought that, but the 42-as-destination never materialized as far as I could tell. Honestly, the 42 isn't prominent enough in the Rotunda and it doesn't have the same emotional resonance with fans that the Apple does (sad to say on some level, but that's the way it is).

The Apple, however, was an instant hit outside Citi Field yesterday, and everything they said the 42 would be. Fans gathered around it in droves, and it was a personal highlight for me as well. Just a really cool addition.

Inside the stadium, let the record show that the fans' skepticism was out in full force. Players were booed as the rosters were read before the game (Oliver Perez and the entire training staff in particular). The first in-game groans were registered on the fourth pitch of the season as Johan fell behind in the count 3-1.

But then Johan settled down, producing a solid, if unspectacular, 6 innings of 1-run ball. The key moment came in the bottom of the first, however, when Wright hit a 2-run bomb to the right field corner. Maybe it was just a fleeting moment, but somehow it felt like that home run exorcised many of the demons left over from the dreadful 2009 season.

(Said a smiling Jeff Francouer after the game: "Everybody gave David crap saying he couldn't hit home runs last year now he goes oppo. We started laughing when he came in [the dugout], he's like 'Everybody wants me to pull it, now I hit one in the oppo.' I said, 'Hey, I don't really give a crap, it counts the same." Chips!)

After that home run the Mets were pretty much in command the rest of the game, allowing us, as fans, to enjoy the unseasonable early April warmth. It was a truly beautiful day at Citi Field, the kind of day that's made for baseball.

No matter what your expectations of this team (and judging from the conversations I had with fans around the stadium yesterday, the expectations are low), it's great to have baseball back. It's great being able to go to the ballpark on a beautiful day, sit in the sun, drink a cold beer, and take in a ballgame. Especially when the Mets play as well as they did yesterday.

Now if only we can make it through this off day and get on to Game 2. Early in the season, the next game can never come fast enough.

- A.F.O.M.G.

To Mediocrity, and Beyond!

No use sugarcoating it: there's a lot of pessimism surrounding the Metsies this year.

Let's face it, 2009 was about as depressing a season as you could ever possibly have. The team came in with a ton of hype and heady expectations and produced a 70-win season that was as depressing and unbearable as any since the early part of the last decade.

The situation called for drastic action. Surely the Mets would go on a spending spree like the Yankees did after missing the playoffs in 2008. We had to have Jon Lester, Jason Bay/Matt Holliday, and Joel Pineiro or Randy Wolf. Anything less would be a failure.

All offseason the fans waited for deliverance via free agency or a trade that would land a marquee name. In the end we had to live with adding only one necessary piece, Jason Bay. It was an important stride but not enough to mask all of the team's deficiencies.

* * * * *

So where do we go from here? What do we possibly have to hope for?

The truth is, I actually think there's a good amount to hope for in 2010, it just depends on your perspective.

If you're somebody who defines success solely as a season where you make the playoffs, this season probably won't satisfy you (moreover, you should probably start following the other team in town).

But if you're somebody who can take the long view, somebody who can appreciate a team on the up and up, this season might end up being our most satisfying since 2005.

It's a line I've been repeating a lot lately, but if the Mets can have the kind of season where they keep things interesting from start to finish, giving you reason to believe one day and ripping your heart out the next, and produce an 80-84 win season (preferably 83 or 84 wins; better to be on the right side of .500), well, I'll take that.

I'll take that because I honestly don't believe the pitching is anywhere near good enough to ask for much more.

I'll take that because 80-84 wins would be a substantial improvement over last year's 70.

But most of all I'll take that because there's a light at the end of the tunnel. With youngsters like Ike Davis, Fernando Martinez, and Josh Thole knocking on the door, and with Jenrry Mejia having already knocked it down, it's clear that the future of this club doesn't belong to guys named Carlos anymore.

A new crop of stars will have to help David Wright and Jose Reyes win a championship; some of them will come from without (and that will be a big part of next offseason), but thankfully we have reason to hope that some of them will actually come from within, too.

In the course of an 80-84 win season, I expect we'll hear plenty of boos for Oliver Perez, Luis Castillo (sorry, Little Miss Citi), and at least one of our new Japanese relievers (probably both). But we'll also have a chance to break in our youngsters and have reason to be excited about our future.

And that's fitting. As I sit here on the verge of another Opening Day with Sip, I realize this season, our present, is as much about the future as anything else. With Bay in the lineup and healthy years from some of our established stars, we figure to be pretty mediocre this year (mediocre is a BIG step up from dreadful, which we were last year).

But this year isn't only about 2010, it's about 2011, 2012 and all the rest from there. You've gotta start somewhere. For a team that looked awful in 2009, 2010 should be a heck of a lot better, with the best yet to come in 2011 and beyond.

So chin up, Mets fans. We probably won't dominate this year, it's probably overstating it to say the excitement is back in Queens, but it's probably not an overstatement that this year hope will return. For a diehard fan like me, some seasons, hope is enough. 

And with that, I'm off to Citi Field. Let's go Mets!

- A.F.O.M.G.