A few days ago, an article was posted on Fox Sports about how the Mets will be one of 5 teams that won’t make the World Series this year. Here’s the actual point of the article, the author labels 5 teams that did not improve at all during the offseason. To me, that is a little different than their claim but whatever.
I’m not going to sit here and say that the Mets are going to make the World Series, or that the Mets will even be in contention. It is much more likely that the reverse is true. However, this claim is a little fast and loose, as there are real possibilities of things going right, that have the Mets being in contention.
In short, if I was Terry Collins, this article is in locker room. But not just by itself.
In the real world, I’m a teacher. One of the things that I know is really important for my students is me going beyond just filling up my students with hope. I need to fill them with hope AND give them something tangible to build on and grasp. The Mets have a few tangible things that they must be, and probably already are, aware of.
First, the 2011 Arizona Diamondbacks. This article brings up a great point that 28 out of 30 analysts at Baseball Prospectus had the Dbacks finishing last place in the NL West. The West last year, is not like the East this year, but there were enough teams with enough talent + the surprising season from the Padres before, to paint a really dark picture for the Dbacks. Last year, I said at this time that the Diamondbacks were only team with no chance to be out of the cellar last season. They had a youth explosion that led them.
There are similarities to both squads. Arizona had a young lineup that fully broke out last year, led by Justin Upton. The Mets have a young lineup that have several players on the brink of breaking out. There is David Wright at the helm with the young stars of Davis, Murphy and Duda. If they break out, our line up, (Tangible Material), would be even better than it was last year, and last year we had Jose Reyes. The media perception of losing Reyes is stronger than the reality since we missed so many pieces last season.
Going into 2011, the problems for the Diamondbacks was their pitching. Sound familiar? The Mets critically upgraded their bullpen this season. It isn’t the best bullpen in the league, but having a set 9th and 8th inning guy this season is a huge step ahead of last year. Plus, having Ramon Ramirez adds much needed depth.
So the last question mark is the rotation, which also has the possibility of breaking out, but with a lot of questions. Will Dickey return to his form? How will Niese and Gee respond to successful seasons? Will Santana be even 70% of himself? Will Pelfrey return to glory days? Same questions with different players for Arizona last year, and their players played with something to prove and carried the team.
The Mets are in the same situation.
The players on the Mets are playing with something to prove. We likely won’t be going to the World Series, but to be written off at the beginning of the season is powerful material to play with, when players have something to prove.
So if the Mets were my High School students, I would show them what others are saying. I would show them how other players in similar positions succeeded. I would show them How they succeeded with practical, tangible steps. Finally, I would show them why they, as the Mets, can make it happen.
