On Tuesday night, the New York Mets shutout the Colorado Rockies by a score of 4-0 thanks to eight brilliant innings by Matt Harvey and some timely hitting. It was the team’s 10th shutout victory of the year and sixth at home.
With the win and a Washington Nationals loss, the Mets opened up a 2.5 game lead atop the NL East and for the first time in over seven years I’m going to say something I’ve longed to say for a long, long time.
The Mets Magic Number is 48!
Driving our success this season has been an incredible rotation packed with great young arms in Harvey, Syndergaard, deGrom and Niese, and a great closer in Jeurys Familia.
Lately, Mets starters have been on a remarkable stretch, allowing two runs or less in 13 of their last 16 games dating back to July 25. Their ERA over that span is 2.45, the best mark in baseball.
Overall for the season, the starting rotation ranks first with a 4.28 strikeout to walk rate, first with a 1.14 WHIP, and fourth with a 3.31 ERA.
Incredibly, Mets pitching did not permit a walk for a third-straight game and the 20th time this year. The 20 games without a walk by the pitching staff lead the major leagues and extended our franchise record.
All of that said, we all knew that pitching was going to be our strong suit this season, and it was our offense and defense that worried most of us. Those fears were justified at different points this season.
However, the additions of Juan Uribe, Kelly Johnson and Yoenis Cespedes, reignited a stagnant offense. And while they have yet to bust out with huge offensive numbers on their own, their impact awakened this team in many other intangible ways. I believe it served as wakeup calls for Murphy, Duda, Lagares, Cuddyer and Tejada.
So suddenly, here we are in mid August and the talk is now about winning the division and not the wild card, and the thought of that stirs emotions that had lied dormant for far too long.
The Mets are not only relevant again, but they are exciting and fun to watch. They are not only the talk of the town, but they have become a national phenomenon and a daily MLB storyline.
Our rotation strikes fear in our opponents, and suddenly… everybody is taking our team very, very seriously. No more jokes, no more punchlines, no more LOL Mets.
Best of all, is how professionally the team conducts itself. They are not in the media bragging or doing any silly dances or celebrations like that god awful carwash thing. Not at all. These Mets are serious and focused and play with one undivided determination to win.
So take it all in Mets fans and relish every moment. Try to put away any doubts and instead hold true to our mantra as first uttered by our beloved Tug McGraw… Ya Gotta Believe!
