11
2011
You Can’t Handle The Truth
An article by 
For many, our first impression was one of openness and honesty. When Sandy Alderson was introduced as general manager he spoke of wanting to win, yet said there would be difficult times. He gave hope things would be different in the new regime.
There seemed to be an honesty about him absent from previous Mets management and the current ownership. You wanted to trust him.
While Alderson is on point, it is still not his team, and despite their stated intentions of giving him the resources, the Wilpons continue to play it close to the vest financially. This is a tentative time for the Mets because they still need to sell tickets and don’t want to risk alienating the on-the-fence fans by telling them the real team will appear in 2015, if not later.
Watching the Mets now is akin to going to the movies and getting two hours worth of previews before the feature. And, maybe not even getting the feature.
There are two types of fans. There is blind loyalty that will remain passionate for their team and support it regardless. Since 1962, there’s been more losing than winning, but the Mets continue to hold those fans as they are forever.
Their interest might turn to discouragement and frustration, but if they have the money they will find their way to Citi Field as they did Shea Stadium. They will listen on the radio and watch on TV. They will absorb every written word from the major media vehicles to the blogs. They will talk Mets to anybody who will listen, because, after all, they are Mets fans and that’s what they do.
The Mets know they have a core following. If they came out and said this will take time, more than we expected, that base will remain steadfast.
Then there is the fair weather variety, which come in various forms. They come out when it is convenient, or the weather is nice, or the team is winning, or they get free tickets, or that night’s Law and Order is a repeat, or the other team is the Yankees.
They know who Jose Reyes is and believe he is the Mets and the franchise can’t exist without him. They think the same of David Wright. They thought it of Dwight Gooden, Darryl Strawberry and Tom Seaver. Players come and go, but the team remains. Their fancy is caught by the shiny star, much like a child with a new toy.
The flexible fans weigh the cost of a Citi Field experience to that of a Broadway play, a trip to the beach, a night out in Manhattan, the movies, or any thing else that might attract their fickle dollar.
They are flexible because they bend to the prevailing wind. As the great movie line goes, they “can’t handle the truth.” If they knew the Mets were three or four years from serious contention, they would tell you to leave them a wake-up call. These fans aren’t interested in rebuilding and don’t care about Zack Wheeler and Matt Harvey being three years from Flushing. They don’t care about building because Reyes is the here and now.
The Mets care most about these fans, as do all sports teams, because they don’t yet have their money. The Mets know the loyal will pay; they are givens to be taken for granted. It’s the others, who haven’t yet laid out the cash, they are chasing.
Alderson can’t be honest with them because to do so is to tell them there’s no compelling reason to come to the park other than to buy into the dream of the future, which they won’t as they haven’t made an emotional investment. To do so would be to chase them away.
To these fans, the truth is poison.
About the Author: John Delcos
I am an active member of the BBWAA and have covered Major League Baseball in several capacities for over 20 years, including ten in New York working the Mets' and Yankees' beat. I covered the Baltimore Orioles for eight years and the Cleveland Indians before that. I currently serve as an editor and senior staff writer for Mets Merized Online. Follow me on Twitter @jdelcos.
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NL East Standings
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Braves | 42 | 30 | .583 | - |
| Phillies | 35 | 37 | .486 | 7.0 |
| Nationals | 34 | 36 | .486 | 7.0 |
| Mets | 27 | 40 | .403 | 12.5 |
| Marlins | 22 | 48 | .314 | 19.0 |
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I’d just like to point out… that Delcos used my favorite on screen movie character of all time
Colonel Nathan R. Jessup.
My handle is Jessep because I couldn’t dare rip him off.
But one of the things I always strive for in my blogs is the theory that “you can’t handle the truth”
Just a little insight into me haha
where do you eat your breakfast?
haha 300 yards from 4,000 Cubans who are trained to kill me!
sandy alderson doesn’t need to tell us the team will be years away from contention, his past offseason and this one is basically letting the fans know what’s gonna happen, is up to the fans if they go to the stadium or not to watch the crap he puts on the field. with that being said, fans are not blind, other than a few sabergoons and others who think sandy is some sort of semigod we the majority see what is really going on.. 7 straight losing seasons as a GM and counting, yet, the man seem not to be concern with adding 2 more to his record. is a shame articles about how sandy is doing good keep popping up, is amazing to say the least
I think it is somewhat unfair to paint some fans as “fair weather” who come out to the park only when the team is winning. And I understand the fans who are blindly loyal regardless of the team winning or losing. I think I basically fall into that category. I live in Braves territory but wear my Mets hat proudly. That includes 1992, 1993 and other very low seasons, such as 2002-2004. I am a proud Mets fan. Period. But that doesn’t mean I would pay huge sums of money to go to Citi Field (I live about 500 miles south of NY) if the product on the field is mediocre. I think a lot of fans fall into this hybrid category: loyal to the core but unwilling to waste money on an inferior team. Think about it. How much does it cost to go to a ballgame? For a family of 4 (I’m guesstimating because I don’t know the exact #’s): $10 to park, $200 min for 4 tickets, $50-75 in concessions: that’s about $300 for one game. How many blue collar folks can afford that? Personally, I cannot justify $300 to go to a game knowing the team is, at best, a 50% chance of winning.
I want my son to love the game and if the Mets are not going to have a chance of winning, I’d rather spend 1/4 to 1/5 of what I’d pay to go to Citi Field on a minor league game instead. For folks who cannot afford season tickets but want fair value for their money why go to watch a team who only wins about 42% of their home games (2011 Mets, 34-47 for a .420 winning%)? I don’t call that “Fair Weather”. I call that a reasonable fan.
I agree with you 86. When I think of a fair weather fan, I think of people who only CARE about the team when they are winning.
For example, I know countless of people who are real Red Sox fans who suffered painfully for years, and then I know the fans that jumped on board around 1999 and adopted the “pain.”
Those are fair weather fans because if the Red Sox hit a dry spell for a 5 year period, they will hit the snooze and ask to be woken up when the team is relevant again.
from dwight gooden, someone who’s close to this org had this to say:
http://espn.go.com/blog/new-york/mets/post/_/id/36483/dr-k-on-jose-reyes-hes-a-goner
Doc really doesn’t have a lot to do with the org these days. They trot him out for special occasions, but its not like he’s a full time employee or anything.
you know, you’re amazing.. no matter who says anything you always find a way to basically put them down.. you’re levels of stupidity are reaching a new high.. whenever you see a post a link, look the other way then if you find any news someone else reporting no credible ok.. no need to be an as-shole about it…
“you know, you’re amazing” look at Alex 68 dishing out compliments!
Thank you for replying to Donal. Unfortunately, because your post does not meet the minimum standards in one or more of the following categories grammar, syntax, context, or civility, he is unable to continue this discussion with you..
If you wish to try again with a more refined answer, please feel free to do so, and he will respond to you appropriately at his earliest possible convenience.
Thank you,
Management
Is that like your Out of Office? You gotta show me how to do that.
No, it’s just something I’ve cut-n-pasted from a response I made to him earlier. Maybe there is a chrome extension or something I can get so it becomes more accessible.
One of the best posts I’ve read here at MMO. Thanks. It’s priceless.
(Alex, my response to Donal is for his post and has nothing to do with you. Pls recognize the humor.)
Alex68, your parents must be so proud. Intelect and personallity, you are the complete package.
Maybe they dont allow posting links here and that’s why they are mad at you? Some sites dont allow that and even ban you for it. Anyway thank’s, I found it interesting to read his thoughts. I’m a big Dr. K fan.
I think I’m one of the above-mentioned hybrid fans. For me, because I like Keith and Ron in the booth, and I have HD, watching from home can be a better experience than going to the park. For me, going to the park is surely not worth an extra $300, except for maybe once or twice a season.
I wouldn’t consider my self as anything but a true and loyal fan. I have been a fan since I was 9 and I will always be a Mets fan first and I can’t see that ever changing.
I live in Rochester, I rarely make it out to NYC. Mostly because of the cost of the whole trip, including the cost to going to a game. My family has been planning a trip to NYC and CityField for a couple of years, but money and scheduling has made it undoable. But I can’t even imagine trying to plan a trip this year, why waste the money (especially if Jose is not back)? But I can’t imagine our six tickets and $100 in beer and food mean that much to the team.
But what I do is, I watch almost every game possible. I schedule most my life around when the Mets are on TV. Other than Sundays (because I still play baseball) the game is always on at my house or I have the radio streaming on my computer at work. But once Sandy “punted” on last season, I found myself not caring if something came up that interfered with watching the game. I found myself flipping the channels to see if something else catches my attention.
I’m still a “true” fan to the end, but why should I waste my time watching this team if they aren’t trying to win? I don’t expect them to win next year, but to let your best player walk and not make any improvements to the roster and keeping the same problem players on (Pelf and Pagan) does not motivate me to watch.
If Sandy resigned Reyes and found a good SP, then even if the team only won 80 games, I’d still have a reason to watch. Right now the team isn’t exciting or fun. I’m I supposed to get excited because the Wall s are shorter and the uniforms are better?
I thought 09-10 was about shedding bad contracts…I thought those were the rebuilding years. to have to wait until 2014 and beyond hoping that our young pitchers in the low minors turn the team around is depressing.
And you can’t tell me that signing Reyes means we blow our chances to win long term. Losing the 2nd best player at his position is not the way to build a winner.
Sorry, John, but your reliance on old stereotypes (re: fans) begs for some dispute. This hard-core fan was alienated when the Mets jacked up ticket prices 20% BEFORE the last year at Shea Stadium. This hard core fan and his buddy were then alienated by the Mets by being tossed out of Sunday plan partial season tix and offered a “Sunday Plan” with 10 Sundays (No Yankees) and 5 weekday games of THEIR choice. This hard core fan was alienated by the Wilpons trying to make the new ballpark look like and feel like the home of the Brooklyn Dodgers. This hard core fan was alienated by the Mets by a ball park where the wealthy have their own restaurants. But mostly, this hardcore fan has been alienated by the management of this team finding new ways to prove that either they are naive or inept or both. So this hardcore fan has cut down on his trips to Citi Field in favor of travelling to Philly, DC, Baltimore, Pittsburgh and this year, Miami. With these prices, the “hard core” fan will no longer show up just because the Mets open the gates. With their anti customer policies, the Mets no longer deserve in game patronage. I’ve rooted for the Mets since I was 11 years old in 1962. I thought I couldn’t detest anybody any more the M. Donald Grant. Fred and Jeff Wilpon and Saul Katz have passed M. Donald by a mile.
Why is it that some Met fans think that the only good fan is one who goes to the games at Citi Field? I am 59 years old and grew up in Queens living 15 minutes from Shea. I saw Jim Bunning dump a perfect game on us in 1964. I sat for a Sunday double header that lasted over 9 hours. I had tia ticket the night Seaver was almost perfect but gave it to my brother and instead saw every pitch that night on TV. I had season tix in the mid 1980′s. I left NYC in the 90′s for upstate NY which limited my attendance to a few games per season and then left NY for the weather and moved to Arizona. I watch almost every game unless there is no broadcast be it via satellite or cable TV.
I live and die from April to October on what MY TEAM IS DOING DAILY. From the day that our season is over I count the days til spring training starts….
I have traveled up to Phoenix when the Mets are playing the Diamondbacks and to San Diego when they are playing the Padres.
I watch with my Dad (in spirit) most nights and this team is a part of me. I am addicted to this team and have enjoyed the Kodak moments that they have provided for me in the past 49 years.
I am sure that there are many fans out there who are just as devoted be they season tix holders or not. We were the “New Breed” in the early 1960′s and while we may have aged a bit our love for this.team never does.
There is nothing better then the truth and this posting was terrific. For those of us here since the beginning or the newer loyal Met fans…we know that the next couple of years may well be lean ones. what we want to see is sound moves made by the Alderson regime to rebuild this club with a nucleus that will keep the team strong for many years. For me, we do that with pitching. strong middle defense, clutch hitting and perhaps the strongest ingredient, CHARACTER!
The organization needs to bring in good people from top to bottom!
the truth is that the COUPONS no longer care (if they ever did) about mets fans nor the pride of the organization. reyes and wright are players any team would love to build around.and there is no one out there equal to them. we have them already but the COUPONS are dying for them to leave and that tells mets fans all they need to know. mets fans, wake up and smell the coffee. the COUPONS are just trying to create a low debt to income ratio to sell the team. fine. but in the meantime we must face the fact that if we lose reyes, we will lose wright and the harveys, familias and others we have in the farm system will see that being a lifetime met will not pay off for them and will come to the big leagues, showcase their talents and first chance they get, they will highttail it out of here for an organization that will treat them like they appreciate them and want to keep them. the best analogy to the current state of the mets is cancer. the mets are going to lose the best non pitcher ever to come out of their farm system and after they lose reyes they will lose wright. after that, what player in his right mind will want to stay with them ? what for ? as soon as they become good, the coupons will just lose them to free agency or trade them away for cheaper players. it’s really looking like i will have to stop wearing my mets jerseys, shirts and hats. i will seriously throw them all away. i am saddened and sickened by the disgusting lack of any effort to keep this team together.been a fan for 40 years and may not make it to 41. no joy in mudville tonight,…
i am tired of seeing the typical “non news” posts on mmo and on mets.com or lame articles glorifying old mets heroes while NOTHING is being done to try and create a winner now. but we should be suckers and buy bricks ?!!! oh yeah,.. lets line the pockets of the despicable COUPONS as they break our hearts by buying some confounded bricks at a park featuring a team that management is purposefully ALLOWING to deteriorate !!! how stupid could they think we are ? i have passion but i am not a fool. COUPONS, u will do without my beer money and hot dog money. and don’t count on me supporting your sponsors either (on line either). u have until reyes signs. i hope alot more fans realize it’s just not worth it and do the same.