An MMO Fan Shot by James “Master of Papas” Davison
I’ll admit to being a lurker on these boards for awhile. The thing that brings me back to this site, again and again, is the civil and intelligent discourse that takes place here. So in the vein of “Fan Shots”, I offer this short take on the Mets’ current situation to act as my introduction into the community.
There’s a good team brewing here—one that has the potential to see postseason play for the first time in a long time. We’re no longer talking about 5 holes that need to be filled. Instead, we’re parsing the specifics about a couple of positions at most. And isn’t that great?
We’re all not sold as Wilmer Flores as our starting shortstop. We’re certainly not sold on a defensive combination of Daniel Murphy and Flores up the middle. In a vacuum, devoid of the payroll constraints handed down to the organization from Fred and Jeff Wilpon, Troy Tulowitzki would have a first class ticket here with his name on it. Unfortunately, that is not the reality in which we live. So we’re forced to speculate upon other teams’ thus far failed experiments. Gregorius, Miller, Bogaerts. Put their value up against Flores’ and there isn’t a whole lot of difference outside of hype and the allure of something new.
Cuddyer isn’t an everyday outfielder. Duda isn’t an everyday first baseman. But used in the right way, each of them has quite a bit of value to a properly managed ballclub. Granderson strikes out too much and Wright will probably never be the player he once was. If they could reach 80% of their potential, however, we’d cheer them and appreciate them as the players they currently are.
Our pitching is enviable. How many teams are going into Spring Training with 5 starting spots for 8 guys? Not many. Harvey is our Gooden. Wheeler is our Darling. Niese, Colon, Gee, Montero, Syndergaard, Matz…the depth is incredible. And our bullpen is quickly evolving into one of the best in the game. Take note of the Royals’ run this year. We’ve got the power arms that can carry us into October. Mejia, despite his histrionics, has the ‘cojones’ to walk to the mound in the 9th. Familia, Black, Parnell and Edgin complete a formidable bridge.
In the annals of Mets’ history, Terry Collins’ name will never sit alongside Hodges, Johnson or even Valentine, for that matter. Sometimes a team’s talent overrides a manager’s best intentions. But for a wicked 12-6 curveball, Willie Randolph might still be at the helm of our squad. Fate was not on our side that year, nor at Willie’s.
In my humblest of opinions, we are but one big offensive player away from challenging the league for ultimate supremacy. There was no talk of WAR or pitch framing when Carter was brought here. What he brought was a bat and leadership. Hernandez didn’t worry himself with his spray charts and an ineffectual batting coach. He saw the ball, hit the ball and knew when he needed to do it. The Mets don’t have that player right now. The closest thing we have is Daniel Murphy, and half of our fans are ready to run him out on a rail because he’s going to make $9 million dollars and isn’t Roberto Alomar at his peak defensively.
We are in for a very exciting season my friends, even if another move isn’t made. Of course there will certainly be a couple, both to appease the fan base and give a challenged strategical manager some options, but the days of buying a new squad are behind us. It is time to appreciate the team that is ours. It is time to start taking care of business.
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This Fan Shot was contributed by MMO reader James Davison. Have something you want to say about the Mets? Share your opinions with over 25,000 Met fans who read this site daily. Send your Fan Shot to [email protected]. Or ask us about becoming a regular contributor.
