“Wait until 2015.”
That’s been the phrase we’ve all heard for roughly the past five years as Mets fans. Well now it’s here and tomorrow, when the Mets get set to play their 100th game of the season against the San Diego Padres, they sit just two games back of the NL East leading Washington Nationals.
Meaningful baseball in August and September, isn’t that what we all wanted?
The New York Mets are finally in a pennant race again, and if it wasn’t for some key injuries, a below-average lineup, and the Mets inability to win on the road, we could have been seeing a “–” next to the “GB” column for the Mets in the standings.
However, that isn’t the case, and up until Saturday night’s game against the Dodgers, the Mets lineup looked absolutely hopeless… And then came the reinforcements.
It’s been a small sample size, but after two games played with the Mets, both Kelly Johnson and Juan Uribe have provided a much needed spark to this Mets lineup. It’s amazing what impact some new faces can do to a team.
In Saturday night’s drubbing of the Dodgers, both Johnson and Uribe made immediate contributions. Johnson started at second base, and went 2-for-6, including a mammoth of a home run to the Pepsi Porch. Uribe came in as a replacement later in the game and got a hit in his first at-bat, while also making a great defensive play in the 9th inning while playing third base.
Perhaps the biggest newcomer to the team however has been the addition of Michael Conforto, who the Mets (finally) called up this past Friday.
If there was fear of hurting this kid’s confidence by bringing him up too early, those fears have quickly been erased. Since making his debut on Friday night, Conforto has gone 4-for-9 with two doubles and three RBI. Not too shabby for a 22-year old who may just have one the prettiest swings in the Mets lineup.
It’s true that the emergence of just three guys may not make or break the remainder of a season, but let’s not forget that the Mets get their starting catcher back in Travis d’Arnaud later this week, and hopefully, their prized third baseman by September.
Couple that with the fact that Sandy Alderson claims that the Mets may not be done spending money on potentially another bat and a relief pitcher, and there’s a lot to look forward and be excited about in the coming months.
While a lot can happen in the final two months of this season, one thing that Mets fan can finally say they have is hope. They finally have a chance to see meaningful baseball games being played at Citi Field during the dog days of summer.
They finally don’t have to be sellers and sit back and watch as other teams better themselves in their push for the playoffs. Training camp for the Jets and Giants may just be days away, but in Queens it’s still baseball season.
That sure sounds a lot better than, “wait until next year.”
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