12
2011
A Tale Of Two Seasons: Mets Best and Worst Moments Of 2011
An article by 
It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us. ~ Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities
Ah, what a season 2011 was… The moments played out just as that Charles Dickens play in it’s duality. Let me take you on a journey that will count down the Top 5 Best and Worst Moments of the 2011 season. They say a picture is worth a thousand words, but in this case it’s more like ten-thousand. Enjoy our review of the 2011 season, Metsmerized Style!
Best Moment #5
The Mets beat the Phillies 2-1 in a 14 inning nail-biter at Citizens Bank Park. But the best moment of the night came in the middle of the game when the crowd began to chant ‘USA – USA” as news broke that President Obama announced that terrorist Osama Bin Laden had been killed by Navy Seals.
Worst Moment # 5
Mets players wanted to wear the hats of first responders when they played the Cubs on the 10th anniversary of the September 11 attacks during a nationally televised game on ESPN. But Major League Baseball said “no way” much to the shock and dismay of New Yorkers and Americans everywhere.
Best Moment #4
Jason Isringhausen pitches a scoreless tenth inning to preserve a Mets 5-4 win over the Padres. In doing so, Izzy becomes the 23rd closer in baseball history to record 300 saves, joining John Franco and Billy Wagner as the only men to do it in a Mets uniform. Wrestling with the decision to retire rather than return after missing two seasons, Izzy came to Mets spring training camp for an audition and was signed the next day. After the Mets traded K-Rod in July, Isringhausen became the team’s closer and the most reliable arm in the bullpen.
Worst Moment #4
Originally slated to re-join the rotation in late June or early July, Johan Santana’s return kept being pushed back until there was no more season left for the Mets. Santana never threw one pitch for the Mets in 2011 and now the team heads into this offseason with the same exact question as the last offseason – can the Mets count on a healthy return from Johan Santana?
Best Moment #3
Carlos Beltran hit a career-high three home runs – all two-run shots – in a 9-5 win over the Rockies. The six RBIs matched a career high for the Mets rightfielder who was finally healthy and having a great season. Beltran became the eighth Mets player to hit three home runs in one game – the last player to do it was Jose Reyes who hit three homers against the Philadelphia Phillies on Aug. 15, 2006. ”I have never seen a day like that before,” Mets manager Terry Collins said.
Worst Moment #3
With the Mets in the thick of the Wild Card race and at the high water mark of their season, Carlos Beltran was traded to the San Francisco Giants for pitching prospect Zack Wheeler. After a 5-12 start, Beltran led the team to a 50-39 run that saw the team vault from 13 games back in the Wild Card to leap past seven teams and pull within six games back with two months to go. The Beltran-less Mets would go 22-32 the rest of the way and finish in fourth place, 25 games behind the Phillies.
Best Moment #2
Chris Capuano pitched the game of his life – a complete game, two hit shutout, striking out 13 and facing only one over the minimum as the Mets beat the Atlanta Braves 6-0. Cappy had a perfect game until a broken bat single by Dan Uggla in the fifth inning. It was considered by most as the best pitched game in the major leagues in 2011. For Capuano it was his first complete game since 2006.
Worst Moment #2
Ike Davis collides with David Wright while trying to catch an infield popup in front of the pitching mound at Citi Field. What was initially thought to be a mild calf sprain turned into an ankle bruise that would wipe out the rest of the season for the Mets first baseman. Davis was on the verge of tremendous sophomore campaign batting.302 with seven home runs and 25 RBIs in 36 games at the time of his injury.
Best Moment #1
After bunting for a single in his final at-bat of an amazing 2011 season, Jose Reyes becomes the first Batting Champion in Mets franchise history. The hit lifted Reyes’ average to .337 which was too much to overcome for Ryan Braun who finished five percentage points behind with a .332 average. It was a remarkable season for Reyes who also led the National League in most at-bats per strikeout (13.1) as well as multi-hit games and sharing the league lead in triples.
Worst Moment #1
The Mets’ financial uncertainty hovered over this season like a black cloud. Any potential move that might have helped the team gain more wins in the standings, was shelved for less costlier moves for reclamation projects and players returning from injuries. The only significant trades that the team made were not done with winning in mind, but only to dump salary and lower payroll. Unfortunately, the skies are still overcast as the team heads into the offseason. GM Sandy Alderson has already confirmed that payroll will be cut 25% and be around $100-110 million dollars in 2012. Some sources say it may not even top $100 million.
* * * * *
In compiling this list there were some obvious moments that didn’t make the cut but were worthy of Honorable Mentions.
– Justin Turner, who was a nice surprise this season, became the first Met to win the NL Rookie of the Month award.
– On June 28, Jason Bay and Carlos Beltran both hit grand slams in a 14-3 rout of the Detroit Tigers. It was only the second time in Mets history that they slugged two grand slams in the same game.
– There were a couple of brilliant starts by R.A. Dickey and even Ronny Paulino ignited a sweet comeback against the Yankees during the Subway Series.
– Of course another memorable moment came very early in the campaign when the Mets finally cut bait with Oliver Perez and Luis Castillo.
So these are the moments I will take away from the 2011 season, what are some of yours?
Graphics designed by Kelly, Capsules written by Joe D.
About the Author: Kelly Horn
MMO's graphic/web designer, the former Met Carlos Beltran's biggest fan, and one of the few but proud Oklahoma Mets Fans
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Beltran planting one on the Shea Bridge.
Duda making a mockery of Petco Park with a blast to right field.
Oh, ya, Keith buying a hot dog on the Pepsi Porch.
If me or Kelly had recalled that, it may have sneaked it’s way into our top five. Thanks for mentioning it.
Glad to help.
Pagan’s walkoff with GKR broadcasting in the Pepsi Porch.
nice
what about the krod trade?!?!? the mets bullpen became ATROCIUOS after he was traded for crap… also, worst moments, the mets lost on sept 11th, that hurt even more because new yorkers could’ve had something to cheer for as a mets fans, and once again, captain unclutch folded…
agree on the other moments pretty much, but i wouldn’t had put santana there, we knew the season was all but over after the beltran trade
Awesome job Kelly!
How about David Einhorn not buying into team.
so, is that for the best or worst catagory?
The where were you when Osama Bin Laden was killed will definitely be a moment I will never forget.
Nice post Kelly H.
MNJ, Where were you?!? Lol.. Probably home, laying in bed watching the game as most of us were! right?
Yes I was home but what stands out about it is I was here at MMO chatting in the shoutbox as the story broke.
Beltran getting traded a worst moment? Come on! Having him on the team wouldn’t have mattered. Maybe a couple more wins but nothing that really would have changed the season. The pitching still would have been horrible and thats what really lost the season for the Mets. Getting a top prospect (now the Mets top prospect) is much more important than winning a couple of meaningless games with a guy who wouldn’t be with the team next year in any case. I loved the Wheeler for Beltran deal and anyone who knows baseball knows it was a good deal. If Wheeler turns out to even be a middle of the road starter in a couple years it will still be looked back on as a good deal.
IF…. what IF he doesn’t then what?!?!? sandy gets a pass… as usual..
If Wheeler is a bust, then we move on to Familia, Harvey, Mejia, Fulmer, McHugh, etc etc
Any player can bust.
you judge a deal at the time, and if you get someone rated very high on all the prospect lists, then you did good. What happens down the road has a lot of variables. It has nothing to do with giving the Gm a “pass”.
Remember the Yankee pitching prospect that got into a fight and messed up his arm, never to be heard from again. Mets have had those kids also from Pulsipher and Wilson.
Of course any prospect can bust. Everyone knows that. It’s a numbers game and all you need is to develop a couple of guys every year once you get the whole thing rolling.
The problem with the free agent model is that your taking the high ceiling HS kid out of the equation by drafting college players to get up here as quickly as possible and even when they do the Pedro’s, Wagner’s and Delgado’s are already gone so all your doing is replacing former All Stars with medium level talent younger players.
Counting on just one prospect to come through for you at every position is unrealistic.
It’s the 1st and 2nd round selections and IFA’s that pan out the best but you need more of them. For every Tejada, Reyes, Davis, Wright, Harvey, Familia you also have a Fern, Havens, Mejia, Pena, Holt and Carson.
Fifth round and later picks should be used on the biggest boom bust types you can find, not safe medium talent upside guys. Those can be filled in with type B free agents, non tenders or a rule 5 or a hold the fort type guy.
Plan to get extra picks. Get a backup catcher that can be a type B free agent, let him go and get an extra first round selection and pay that kid to be a real solution five years down the road so you can someday climb out of the free agent trap.
Hold onto your picks and draft with the intent of getting the best possible production, even if the busts are more frequent the booms will be too and their the one’s that make all the difference.
Alex is just pissed because Omar could never pull off a deal like that.Omar’s best deals were salary dumps.His best prospect deal was Ambriorex Burgos. He led the league in felonies.
Good thing La Polcia “locked up” Burgos before Omar did.
jose diaz,
are you part of the second guessers!?!? omar’s best deals were salary dump?? sandy has done one trade and all of the sudden THAT deal is better than anything omar did?!? wow.. just wow.. yet ppl here wonder how come ppl don’t give alderson more time.
He doesn’t get a pass, he gets a pat on the back trading Beltran for Wheeler was a no brainer (for those with a brain of course)
Beltran is my favorite player so him being traded off my favorite team was a WORST sports moment for me.
We have spent so many draft choices on guys who we then traded for salary relief and got nothing out of it for the field, and we’ve spent so many draft choices on guys who retired, leaving nothing behind after they left and that combined with drafting poorly and developing our prospects even worse is what causes this talent chasm in our system year after year.
That’s the reason we have to go out and “see who we can get for 13 spots on the 40 man roster every year.”
To me Ike Davis going down for the year is the single most devastating moment for the Mets this year.
And no injury affected the outcome of the Mets season as much as Ike’s.
To me, the first responders Cap Flap was much ado about nothing and more symbolic than anything else. But Ike out for the year? No comparison, sorry. Ike’s injury completely devastated the chances to compete and sent a ripple effect wave throughout the rest of the year. If Ike stays healthy not only was he our top run producer outside Beltran but he was on his way to a 30+ HR, .280+ AVG, 90+ RBI season and who knows? Maybe Beltran stays with the team longer because they are in contention longer.
Ike out for the year is hand’s down the single worst moment for the Mets this year in my opinion.
oops my mistake Kelly sorry,
I misread the list and thought First Responders was first. Okay yes – The Picard suit or Ike out for the year could be one or two, either or.
Ike, that I agree with. changed the whole complexion of the season. And I know you don’t care for him, but Wright was actually having a good start until he broke his back (and apparently played with it for quite a while, tanking his output). So losing them both for a long stretch together doubly bad.
If those 2 (seemingly fluke) injuries had not happened, and they had one some more games int eh middle (and showed to be actual contenders mid-season), then quite possibly they would have added some pitching. But, they got hurt, so we will never know.
Wright actually had a really bad start. Ice cold. He had a couple good games just when we found out about the broken back.
then he came back, was hot for about a week, then got cold as ice, then got hot for another week, then……. ended up batting 255 for the year.. but hey, the bean ball in 2009 and the back issues of april are to blame.. right?
If not for the back problems, Wright probably would have hit near .300 with 20-25 HR. Not great, but not bad considering his lousy start.
Injuries and “bad luck” are always the default setting for “the core” with every lost season, except of course for Wright.
Everything is always Wright’s fault, we already know that.
well, when things were going well, wright was a godsend, a leader, the almighty one, the chosen one, etc.. but when they go bad, ppl wanna look the other way??? double standard much?
Best moment: Trading a free agent to a team that would miss the playoffs for what is now a player recently published as our #1 prospect.
Worst moment: Home opener with the clip from Family Guy playing over post game wrap up. “It’s Opening Day here’s the first pitch… and the season’s over.”
Worst moment was funny, but too true
I loved the KRod deal more because I think he’s a bum, and I enjoy watching fans who wanted him to be cut the day he punched his “relative” in the clubhouse then defending him merely because he was traded by Alderson. But, at the end of the day the Beltran deal did more for the future of this franchise than anything else.
jesseP, who was that guy the mets were getting for him?? you wrote an article about some bum alderson might get? ahh yes, mcclendon!!!! but alderson didn’t get him instead got 2 scrubs! funny, as of right now, if krod is back on the team, guess who’s the best bullpen guy we have?? shut the hell up!!!
LOL!
So your best moment was seeing the front office dismantle the team and trade their best player in the middle of a postseason run???
How sad. This is a Moneyballer ladies and gents. His biggest Mets highlight was cutting the team’s MVP. Of all the other great moments of the season, this was his best. Wow.
That is an absolute disgrace. I didn’t notice that before.
I thought Reyes was the best player this year?
So now anyone that disagrees with “the core” is a moneyballer? That’s genius.
I do love your optimism but this team was never in the middle of a post season run, the team played .500 for about 3 days.
This was a great move for the future of a team that has done nothing but failed for far too long. Future means something to me, if I want to have the win now at all cost I’ll take the subway to the Bronx. There’s always room on a bandwagon.
Chris Capuano’s great pitching performance was “The Best.” I saw every pitch and what a thrill to watch. The baseball Gods were smiling on Chris that night. It is etched in my memory as one of the best Mets moments in my life. I slept great that night. Thanks Chris.
Best has to be Beltrans three HR game. Best all around CF we ever had.
beltran has been the best cf the mets have ever had, power,speed,defense,and he glides like a gazelle.PERFECT!
Best game for me was the comeback against The Yanks and Rivera and the extra inning win on Bay’s hit
The worst moment was when that Brave slid into Daniel Murphy, causing a very scary minute for all who watched and ending that wonderful season for Murphy. To top it off, Reyes sprained his hamstring earlier in the game and was placed back on the DL. That game really ended the season