Monday, November 21, 2011

What The Mets Should Be Thankful For

As Thanksgiving approaches kids in elementary school classrooms all over the country are thinking of what they are thankful for.  If the Mets were to join one of those classes they would find that they have more to be thankful for than one might think.

The Mets should be thankful for . . .

Die-hard Fans.  The Mets have been dragged through the mud as an organization recently.  From injuries, to struggling ownership, to poor play on the field, there is no reason for any bandwagon or fair-weather fans to exist.  That leaves a small fan-base.  That small fan-base is made up of the die-hard fans. They still want to support the team and go to games and buy jerseys and t-shirts of their favorite players.  These are the fans that are looking for the Jon Niese and Ruben Tejada shirts in the team store.  They're the ones that can't wait to buy the retro jerseys.  They will find the silver lining of a falling organization. Right now the Mets fan-base is the die-hard fans and the Mets should be thankful they have this fan-base at all.

David Wright.  Ah.  The face of the franchise.  The man that has only played in the Mets organization.  The one person that has been around every year and every day to do whatever is asked.  He has played through injuries of his own and has played when everyone else is injured.  He has been there for oh-so-demanding New York media.  He answers all the questions about the on-field play and off-field uncertainty.  And he has done so with composure.  He had to learn as a 23 and 24 year old how to be a grateful winner and a graceful loser.  He has been the captain of this team for years without having the formal recognition as such.  David Wright has done everything for the Mets and there are a million and one reasons to be thankful for him.

Terry Collins and Sandy Alderson.  Collins and Alderson were the first big pieces of the next-era of the team.  They were both pressed with immediately satisfying the win-now attitude of New York fans.  They definitely did their jobs.  Collins came in and instituted his own philosophies and ideas and it worked.  The team listened and stayed above water for a long time, even through injuries and trades to big players.  Alderson not only had to find Collins, he had to find a way to put together a team despite severe financial limitations.  He found risky players with high-upsides and it worked.  The Mets should be thankful for the security Terry Collins and Sandy Alderson have brought to the organization.

The Future.  The Mets are changing but the Mets are lucky that they have players to look forward to.  Players like Kirk Nieuwenhuis, Jeurys Familia, Wilmer Flores, and Cesar Puello could become key contributors for many years.  David Wright has seemingly been the chosen veteran to lead the next generation and Ike Davis could be right behind him.  Jon Niese can be a cog in the rotation and Pedro Beato in the bullpen.  The Mets should definitely be thankful that their bright future is right in front of them.


There is more for the Mets to be thankful for.  And there are also things for the Mets to worry about and wish they didn't have to deal with.  But focusing on the positives is just more fun.


Let's Go Mets!

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