The 2009 Mets have taught many lessons about life, loss, and challenging minor leaguers to fights while shirtless. But now I ask you to think of something utterly ridiculous...
Think of all the positives for the fans to take away from this insane roller coaster year. Be honest, Mets fans: ever since 2006, we have taken stuff for granted. That year, as magical and memorable as it may have been, made us a bit spoiled. The next few years, we expected to win each and every game, because the 2006 team seemed to accomplish that feat. All choke jobs and meltdowns aside, nothing less than a deep playoff run was expected in 2007, 2008, and, at one point, 2009.
But now something crazy has happened. After failures in '07 and '08, The team is currently in 4th place in their 5-team division. The Mets lost seemingly all of the all-stars in their lineup, and now field a hybrid-like team composed of current mediocre players and mediocre players from 2002.
Seems like a nightmare, right? But look what's happened this year. Are there any, I mean ANY, Met games taken as a 'given?' Are there any victories assured? Instead of demanding victory for 162 games and getting all pissy when it doesn't happen, I think 2009 has taught the Mets fan to take a certain joy from each and every win. In the last couple of years, fans have booed Carlos Delgado for a slow start to the season. They grilled Willie Randolph for not making every single correct move. They wished a slow and graphic demise upon Aaron Heilman.
Now, the fans at Citi appreciate a sacrifice bunt by Daniel Murphy. They will take notice if Cory Sullivan hits the cut-off man. And Aaron Heilman has probably saved months of his life by getting the hell out of New York. The point is, the fans can no longer go by the mindset of "We better win this game because this team is nothing compared to us and after this win we are one game closer to the title." Now it's "Ok, let's get our hits in bunches at timely spots and get those big outs when we need them, and maybe we can take this one." It may be more stress and more heartache, but tell any Mets fan at this time in '06 that they won a game a certain night, you may get a shrug of a shoulder; a nod of the head. Tell them they won in '09, you may get two or three follow-up questions about how they managed to do it. Instead of the acknowledgment of the obvious, it's the excitement for hope.
Maybe the Mets' cavalry of hitters will be back soon and they will have one monster stretch to get back on top. And if they do, I hope this new 2009 mindset could have some staying power. As the Mets know all too well from the past two years, each and every win counts. If the Mets' stars make them a potential powerhouse down the stretch, don't forget this hybrid team of mediocrity that kept them afloat in the dog days. And don't forget how good each individual win made you feel as true fans.
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As a crappy player and general fan of baseball, that's one of the best mindsets someone can take when approaching the game. People in Philly are starting to lose that (not all, mind you... at least the ones who endured the early 2000s) but you bring up a good point. Even when things are their worst, baseball can always find a way to cheer you up... Of course, it can always go the other way, too.
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