Author: Matthew S. Ray
The filthy slider on which Billy Wagner struck out Torii Hunter early this morning ended a phenomenal win for the Mets, giving Jerry Manuel his first as manager and the Mets their second consecutive series. That it came on the road against one of the better AL teams makes it that much more special. That they won it after trailing 4-3 with 2 outs in the 9th against one of baseball’s premier closers punctuates the victory even more.
But to contradict what the late Jack Buck once said, “Don’t go crazy, folks! Don’t go crazy!”
We know the Mets are capable of winning games against good teams and putting little streaks together. We also know they’re just as capable of going out and being swept by substandard cupcake teams, erasing all their hard work. So yes, while a series win, capped by a thriller in which Jose Reyes – who looked like a child possessed 24 hours earlier, looked like a man possessed – is big, its true measure will only be discovered in the coming weeks.
If the Mets now go on one of those runs every prognosticator keeps calling for (10 wins out of 12 games, 14 of 18, 20 out of 26) then we will look back at June 18, 2008 as the turning point in the Mets season. But if they keep playing .500 ball, we will think no such thing. It’ll be just another footnote to a disappointing season.
I’ll root for the first scenario, but until I see differently, I’ll expect the second one.
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solid piece of writing i must say mr ray. i look forward to more articles from yourself.
Posted by: Matt | June 19, 2008 at 05:02 PM