They're running to Connecticut! I love watching these Mets fans squirm here in New York City. Half the guys in the Bullpen at MLB.com are Mets fans. The doorman in the building of my full-time job is a Mets fan. Plenty of people I pass on the streets or share a subway car with are probably Mets fans. And almost all of them are sweating it out even as the weather in the city cools in mid-September. I love it.
After losing Game 7 of the 2006 NLCS, it seems Mets fans were on hard enough times. But then last summer came and the Amazin' Chokers blew a seven-game lead with 17 games remaining to the hated division rival Phillies.
Now, they might drop another division title to the Phillies. They were up 3.5 games with 17 contests remaining, but now remain a game behind the Phils with only 12 games left (13 for the Phils).
And what sucks for Mets fans is that Johan Santana was supposed to be the missing ingredient they needed to put them over the top. Instead, Santana has been merely spectacular, not dominant. Billy Wagner is out for the season, leaving an already shaky bullpen without its most reliable arm. John Maine is done for the year, Pedro is unpredictable and even the offense has been a mess. Fernando Tatis is out for the season with a separated shoulder and that is actually a disappointment for the Mets. Did any Mets fan think, coming into the season, that losing Fernando Tatis would be disappointing? Probably not, since he wasn't on the team entering the season.
Carlos Delgado, for all his NL MVP talk, is hitting just .271 with a .330 on-base percentage since his five-hit game on Aug. 21. Sure, he has nine homers and 20 RBIs in the 22 games played since then, but eight of those homers and 16 of those RBIs have come in just four (four!) of those games. That means he has one home run and four RBIs in 18 of his other 22 games. And that's supposed to be MVP-worthy?
Mets fans play the part of younger brother in their regional "rivalry" with the Yankees. Yanks fans, the older brothers, are so self-assured that the only teams they worry about are those in the Yanks' division. Mets fans constantly measure their accomplishments and circumstances against the Yanks and their fans. And many Mets fans, although caring very much about the Phils and Brewers right now, are loving that the Yankees are all but officially eliminated from the playoff race. This was supposed to be their year to reclaim a part of the New York baseball spotlight. Instead, they might be on the outside looking in when the calender turns a page, to October.
For me, a Dodgers fans, I love nothing more than to watch New York fans squirm. They deserve it for being so boisterous when their teams win, although it is worth noting that many Mets fans this season treat every win with some sort of caution. It's probably because they've been so disappointed the last two seasons that they almost expect another letdown this time. And they just might get it.
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