It was the spring of 2014 and I was in my second semester of college.
Out of high school I had chosen to go to my local community college because I was unsure of what I wanted to study, and didn’t feel I was prepared to live far away from home.
I think I made the right decision. A lot of my friends went away to school and ended up transferring back home after one or two semesters.
Regardless, it gave me an opportunity to focus on my classes, work part time as a barista, and save up some money for when I did transfer to a four-year school.
Around this time, I first started taking journalism classes. I always knew I liked writing, but hadn’t really delved into the world of journalism.
I always knew that I wanted to be involved in the media aspect of sports, and that rang true especially after I threw my arm out pitching in high school and I realized I was probably not going to be a professional athlete.
I’ve loved the Mets since I was 6-years-old and my earliest memories of surfing the web were going on Mets.com and analyzing the 40-man roster.
As I got older, I became a disciple of MetsBlog. I really craved being up to date on all the rumors circulating and getting to know the team on a deeper level, but at a certain point, the quality started to slip. The icing on the cake for me was when they used a picture of Seth Smith in an article about then-prospect Dominic Smith and didn’t correct it until the backlash in the comments became overwhelming.
I had heard about sites like MetsMerized, so I decided to turn to them to get my Mets fix. What I really enjoyed was that team matters weren’t sugarcoated. It was an unbiased source of team coverage and was far more in depth than what I was used to at the time.
I saw when perusing the site that there was a tab that said “Write for us!” On a whim, and with not even a writing sample to my name, I emailed Joe DeCaro, the site administrator, and told him I was a college student who loved the site and wanted to contribute. I wrote up a quick recap of Johan Santana’s no-hitter from a year prior and sent it in. I didn’t think I’d ever hear back, but I took the chance.
A few days later, Joe emailed me back.
“Hey Rob, thanks for expressing your interest in MMO!” Joe said. “We have an opening on our recap team. Any interest there?”
Of course I hopped on the opportunity. Joe got me acclimated with the site and set up a profile for me, and in addition to recaps, encouraged me to write pieces on topics I was curious about.
Fittingly, my first piece was on Johan Santana signing with the Baltimore Orioles. I saw the news on Twitter and decided to write up a quick piece on it. Joe told me that my instinct to write a piece on it was a huge deal and told me how happy he was to have me aboard the team.
It was the first of many compliments from Joe, who through my six years at the site, never failed to tell me how much he admired not just my writing style, but how well I meshed with the team.
I did recaps for a couple seasons and would write articles here and there before I eventually got bumped up to a senior writer. I now had the control and the trust to post articles whenever I desired. It was a freedom that meant so much to me and one I took advantage of often as I rose through the ranks.
Ultimately, I transferred to the State University of New York at New Paltz in 2015 right in the midst of the Mets first playoff run in several years, and I really got a taste of what it was like to cover a good team for the first time.
As I took more journalism classes, I was able to refine my writing style and learned more about what it took to be a writer, to properly format articles and how to not just jot words down, but to set them up in a way conducive to the reader.
In the spring of 2017, I was now working as a copy editor for my school’s newspaper, The Oracle. I felt with working on campus, reporting, fact-checking and editing, I would be a good fit for MetsMerized’s editorial team.
I called Joe up, made my case, and he deliberated with the other editors. We caught up a couple days later and he offered me the position and explained the role and its expectations. I was told to sleep on it and to call him when I made a decision.
I joined the editorial team mentally the moment he offered me the job. I called him the next day and told him.
It’s a position I’ve held since, and an experience I wouldn’t have traded for the world.
For all the interviews with players I’ve been able to conduct, the columns calling out the Mets’ brain trust, the freedom to post off beat stories and everything in between, it was an experience for the ages.
However, all good things must come to an end.
I called Joe on Tuesday night, and for the first time ever, I was nervous to talk to him. I told him with a shaky voice that it was time for me to step down from my role as editor.
Sometimes, life outside the screen requires your attention. The last two years since I’ve graduated from school have been transitional ones and as I now approach 25-years-old, there are things on my career bucket list that need tending to.
Joe, of course, was nothing but understanding and supportive, and I’m happy to still stay on and do cameo articles from time to time, but at the end of the month, my role with the site will be slowed down.
It’s a bittersweet moment, but I am eternally grateful for the platform I had to show my words to the world, the coworkers who have influenced me and the ones that I’ve been able to influence, and the great friends I’ve made along the way.
And to the readers, thanks for reading along with me over the years. For all the kind words and even the not so kind ones, I’ve savored my job here every moment. Thanks for backing my articles or challenging them and helping me improve every step of the way.
My love for the Mets and this site is everlasting. So thank you. Much love, stay safe and LFGM.
