How many times has it happened to you? The Mets lift you up and then send you back crashing down to earth. That is the maddening way of this franchise, and anyone who’s been around for any appreciable stretch of times knows the feeling of those whims all too well. The highs feel dizzying, while the lows are infused with that weight of doom that feels like an anchor in your gut. So it goes, so it goes.
The Mets are thoroughly mediocre – scoring 509 runs, giving up 507, and with a .508 winning percentage heading into Monday night – yet there were so many expectations coming into this season, the parallels between 2015 and 1984/85 feeling perfectly valid at the time. They’re going to put it all together this time. Last year was a precursor to something more. You first have to learn where you’re going in order to reach the mountaintop. The pitching can only get better; the lineup now knows how to deliver hits consistently. And when you’re striking out that many opposing batters, who cares about your porous defense? Oh, the things we tell ourselves.
The book is certainly not completely written on this particular iteration of the team, but I don’t suspect the 2016 Mets are going to be dismissed as a lost opportunity. The National League is deep and talented this year, certainly far more than the American League. It seems viable that any one of five NL teams could win the World Series, and the Cubs – the Cubs! – feel like the overwhelming favorite at this point. So sure, you can see that they haven’t posted a winning season since April and cringe at all the winnable games tossed aside, but even if everything had gone swimmingly for the Mets in 2016, the deep end of the pool feels mighty crowded at the moment. Nothing still would be certain.
Besides, the way this season has been far from ideal. The offense, aside from their surprising ability to mash taters with increased regularity, has been dismal. No speed, no consistency, no faith. The defensive chances have been limited, which was the plan with this pitching staff, but anyone who say they have a firm idea of, say, a majority of who the Mets will be fielding on Opening Day 2017 is selling something you shouldn’t buy. There are future stars on this roster, yes, but their development has either been stymied or, at worst, seen regression. The trade for Jay Bruce was misguided, the signing of Jose Reyes was embarrassing, and the demotion of Michael Conforto has been nothing short of prospect malpractice. And though David Wright, Lucas Duda, Matt Harvey, and Zack Wheeler were all expected to be on the field and contributing at this point in the season, their collective futures are instead mysteries for another day.
And yet, there is so much to be hopeful for in 2017. Noah Syndergaard, Jacob deGrom, and Steven Matz could easily be the best 1-2-3 of any staff in the NL East. There’s a decent chance Harvey and/or Wheeler start to resemble their capable former selves. There’s every reason to expect Conforto can thrive in a post-Terry Collins world, and there’s Brandon Nimmo, Amed Rosario, Dominic Smith, and Gavin Cecchini following close behind him in the pipeline. If Yoenis Cespedes sticks around – and perhaps depending on a new contract for Neil Walker – the Mets will have the early makings of a lineup core that could outproduce this season’s meager middlemen. Point is, the Mets have room to grow, their ceiling still not even within arm’s reach. What do the Mets end up with this season, 85 wins? It’s not hard to see the jump to 90 or 92 next season so long as the rotation maintains some positive balance of relative health.
That’s what the fans want to see. Not necessarily a World Series championship but a team that plays to its highest caliber and gets the chance to show off all that it can do. Last season was a surprise, a trickster demon in the dark who held off his final scare for the bitter end. Going forward, the Mets and their fans know what they have, know what Syndergaard’s fastball can do to opposing bats, know what a healthy Cespedes can provide when unleashed. Sure, deserve got nothing to do with it, but the Mets should recognize that their window is likely shorter than most, thanks to a dependence on pitching, and that these opportunities come along oh so rarely. Just ask the Cubs. Hell, ask the Indians and Rangers, who may very well be vying for the role of Ultimate Sports Spoiler when the American League pennant is decided.
For the Mets, that season won’t be 2016, but no reason why it can’t be 2017. That’s why we watch. That’s why we hope. That’s why we always come back.
Photo Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports