Congratulations to the New York Mets on their 4,000th win in franchise history. And a nice job by their PR department on the above graphic, although I would have had one player to represent each decade of their history. Perhaps two-time All Star second baseman Ron Hunt to represent the 1960’s or even the original Mr. Met, Ed Kranepool.
4,000 wins is certainly a milestone, but hardly evidence of a legacy of championship caliber baseball, in fact it says the Mets have been mediocre if nothing else, averaging just 76 wins per season – exactly what the team is on pace for right now.
Of the four original expansion teams, the Mets are the last one to reach the 4K win total.
However, you have to give credit where it’s due and tip your hat to the way the Amazins’ won that 4,000th game and that they did it against one of their most bitter rivals. Pounding out eight runs on 18 hits against the Braves while watching Jacob deGrom shut them out for seven innings while striking out 11 of them and walking none, was almost as good as it gets. A dozen more wins like this and the Mets could actually start printing those post season tickets beginning at $200 for the nose-bleeds.
It’s been 28 years since this team last won a World Series and you have to wonder just how much longer will we have to wait until we see another one of those. Especially with the Wilpons running the show now.
The Mets are on one of their current two-week-long spurts where they’ll win 2-3 more games than they lose. After a miserable 1-6 road trip, they’ve now won three in a row and four of their last five. You can always tell when the Mets are doing good because you’ll see Terry Collins beating his chest on the post games.
On a rare night where the Mets got timely hitting and great starting pitching all in the same game, it will be interesting to see if those two roads continue to run in parallel – and for how long. I want to see the Mets come all the way back from 11 games under .500 to end the month with an even record or better. Mostly because I want to see how Sandy Alderson will handle the trade deadline.
For two weeks, Sandy’s been saying he was waiting to see how the Mets play the last three weeks in July before deciding if he’s a buyer or seller. If the Mets continue at this current pace, I’m curious to see what the reality of the situation will bring. Better players or better excuses?
With Curtis Granderson now entrenched in the leadoff spot, does Sandy go after a big bat to patrol left field and hit cleanup? After all, he says he has plenty of money to add a key mid-season acquisition. Really? Prove it.
I’ve seen what Sandy could do when he’s slashing payroll and selling off any major league piece that establishes any value. What I haven’t seen and what I’m most curious about is what he can do when he has a team that’s chasing a playoff spot. I want to see if he’s as willing to add to the major league roster as he is to dismantle one. This will be a good test. So keep on winning Mets, and keep on beating your chest, Terry.
Because inquiring minds want to know.
