Mets FAQ - April 2008

The Mets are just one month into their 2008 campaign... but it feels like last season never ended.

We've seen a lot from the Metropolitans so far in this young season.  Quite honestly, it's been the wackiest month I can remember... and that includes last September.  We've had enough ups and downs to last an entire season, yet the Mets have played roughly fifteen percent of their schedule.  Let's take a look at some of the biggest stories of April, if only to see how insignificant most of them truly were.

So did Rick Astley really win the 8th Inning Sing-A-Long Contest?
You may recall that on Opening Day, the biggest story around Shea wasn't the final season of Major League Baseball's biggest dump.  Nor was it the latest collapse of the Mets' bullpen.  Instead, the thing everyone was talking about the next day.  Yes, Shea Stadium was indeed Rick-rolled.  And, as one of the 56,000 freezing cold fans who stayed to watch the Mets blow yet another game, I loved hearing "Never Gonna Give You Up".  Hey, what can I say?  I'm a closet Rick Astley fan.  Anyway, most Mets fans are so serious that they can't take a joke (more on this later) and so the whole thing died right there.

Seemingly, so too did the contest.  I wasn't sure who won the thing in the end, so I searched the Web.  Apparently, nobody else does either.  Last I heard, they were down to three - "Movin' Out" (really?), "I'm A Believer" (ugh), and "Sweet Caroline" (NOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!).  Surely, the Shea faithful waits with baited breath to see which one of these "wins".

How's that Lastings Milledge trade working out so far?
Actually, it's been pretty good for both teams.  Milledge got off to a great start for Washington, but has cooled down since.  Brian Schneider hasn't been awful offensively, and he's been a good influence on the Mets' pitching staff.  (However, even he can't keep the bullpen from imploding.)  But the star of the deal has been Ryan Church.  Church has unquestionably been the Mets' MVP of April.  As the only Met who has consistently hit throughout this young season, he has to stand out as the Mets' most important acquisition.  Not the best acquisition (Johan Santana is obviously a better pitcher than Church is a hitter), but he's a clear upgrade over Shawn Green and may be the piece that puts the Mets over the top.  After all, while Milledge might end up being a stud someday, Schneider and Church are two guys who can help the Mets win now.  That's all that matters.

What's up with all the Sovereign Bank commercials on SNY?
I don't know.  I'd never even heard of Sovereign Bank until I saw Ron Darling endorsing them every other inning.  Turns out they have ATM machines at CVS.  Good to know.  I still haven't seen a branch yet.  Thankfully, SNY's love affair with Sovereign Bank hasn't interfered with the constant stream of Giuseppe Franco commercials we've grown accustomed to seeing every night.  Now all SNY needs to do is find Gary Cohen an endorsement contract and we can enjoy Gary, Keith, Ron, and Giuseppe all night, every night.

What in God's name is up with the booing at Shea?
The other big story, aside from Rick Astley, has been the palpable negativity that has been present at Shea Stadium since the pre-game ceremonies at Opening Day.  This is a topic that's been discussed ad nauseum; it's also a subject where everyone is going to have a different opinion.

My opinion?  OK, since you asked.  In my opinion, the only reason to boo the home team is if there's a legitimate perception that the team isn't giving its best effort.  Clearly, I'm more rational than most.  Hell, I didn't even boo Glavine as he sulked off the mound in a disappointed (not devastated) stupor on September 30, 2007.  That said, I can't blame a fan who's now paying twenty percent more for his or her ticket, who's still mad about last year's collapse, for booing if the Mets lay an egg.  Again, not saying it's right, but it's understandable.

As I see it, the bigger picture is the Mets no longer being the "other team" in New York.  The Mets seem to want desperately to stake a claim to the big-time status the Yankees have attained; as such, they've turned up the intensity at Shea.  This is something the fans have clearly noticed and constantly hold the team accountable for.  Just as Mets management no longer sees a .500 season as acceptable, the fans don't want to see mediocrity.

The moral of the story?  Even though the Mets feel people shouldn't be booing because they got Johan Santana, they also have to realize that people are paying more to see largely the same team as last year.  They're stuck paying the price for a stadium where many of them will never be able to see a ballgame.  And, in the end, they just have the same heightened expectations the Mets do.

Is Jose Reyes happy again?
I think.  He's doing all of his crazy handshakes again, which actually had a bigger headline in the next day's newspaper than the Rangers-Devils playoff series.  Most would argue that while he's been better since his chat with Carlos Beltran, he hasn't been that much better.  But at least he's on the right track.  Leadoff hitters don't have the easiest lot, and he's still one of the best out there.  He'll be fine.

So, should the Mets fire Willie Randolph?
Ah, yes.  The million-dollar question (or, in the Mets' case, the $135 million question) surrounding this team.  Personally, I never got why a team would make any rash moves a month into the season.  Rash moves are for the off-season and the trade deadline.  If you go into the season with a manager, that manager should have at least two or three months to prove himself.  Besides, it's not as though there are a plethora of quality options out there.  Who are the Mets going to replace Willie with?  Jeff Torborg?

That said... it's obvious that all is not well in Mets Land.  There are some days when this team just seems to disappear.  There are countless times when the Mets have the chance to put teams away, only to stall out and let their opponents back into the game.  You could include the bullpen in here if you wanted, but the truth is that every team hates their bullpen.  And, while we'd all love to say things like "It's early, things will improve," we all saw where that line of thinking got us last year.

What's the answer?  Keep Willie for now.  If things aren't better by June 15, see who's out there and do what's necessary.  Don't discount the possibility of Omar Minaya canning Willie just to protect himself; we saw Steve Phillips employ this strategy when he fired Bobby Valentine in 2002.  The word is that if the Mets falter in 2008, both Minaya and Randolph are gone, so if the Mets don't show any fire soon, some Mets may be fired.

Are things really as bad as they seem?
In a word, no.  People love to complain about the Mets.  Every loss is followed by rants about how the team has no heart and how Willie should be fired and replaced by (insert name of retread manager here).  Heading into today, the Mets were a half-game out of first.  Their 119 runs might rank 13th in the National League, but this lineup can't stay down for long.  Besides, April weather always screws offenses up.

Most importantly, the Mets have fared well against their toughest opponents.  They're 4-2 against Philadelphia and 2-3 against Atlanta (not that great, but Atlanta always kills the Mets).  It's not as though the Mets are like the Yankees, who are sputtering despite playing in an awful division.  The Mets are extremely likely to get hot as the weather heats up, leaving all of this negativity and worrying behind.