In addition to multiple grimaces, including real faces, Mr. and Mrs. Met, Candelita, Frank the Tank, and various other Mets-themed celebrities are alive and well in Queens these days, and they're probably the best in baseball history. So far, I'm immersing myself in the best story ever. The team too. The Mets are hot, probably hot enough to keep this blue and orange extravaganza alive.
There's a party going on in Flushing, and with the current situation, it might go on for a while. While they may not yet be a hot team among the Big Apple's glitterati (although superfan Frank is extremely popular today), they are definitely a hot team and one of the best showings. This is a team that shows a lot of talent, and at least has been winning championships recently.
In an unparalleled season, a rare year without a 100-game winner, the Dodgers' pitching power appears to be waning, the Yankees are off to an underwhelming start to October, and the Phillies have been outclassed since the All-Star hiatus. The Mets seem to have the most teams, but the Mets have the most. Important things in sports. And that's a real opportunity.
For the second year in a row, the National League's No. 6 seed somehow made it to the World Series. A few years ago, this Phillies team had the misfortune of playing against the Astros. It turns out the Astros were tough, clutch, and didn't need to cheat. And last year, the Diamondbacks faced a much hotter team than them, the Texas Rangers, who didn't lose a game on the road. They also entered as a wild card, but rode the good hitting of Corey Seager and Adris Garcia to win their first World Series title.
That Rangers team won only 90 games and the Diamondbacks won 84 games. There's no reason the Mets, who have won 89 games, can't do that now. When I wrote on May 18th that they should be in the playoffs, that possibility seemed crazy even to me. I just thought they were in the top 40 percent of teams and never thought they could actually challenge the Yankees, Orioles, Dodgers, and Phillies. I was just using common sense, and in October that seems to be the least of your expectations.
At the beginning of the season, when the Mets started 0-5 and stumbled to 22-33, people were wondering if Francisco Lindor was worth his $341 million contract. It's certainly a long way since then (when he might have been worth it). (Only this year!), back when Jorge Lopez was firing his glove into the crowd and the Mets were clearly looking like deadline sellers.
The Mets are having fun right now, as well as B and C list celebrities. There's the ever-present “OMG” sign, a lucky little pumpkin that starslugger Pete Alonso appears to treat like a pet, and more.
“We have a lot going on, but we have to focus on what's important, which is to go out and play baseball,” manager Carlos Mendoza said.
Things can change quickly in baseball, but in this case everything changed for the better. A coaching revelation, Mendoza made a key change, moving Lindor to leadoff, where he immediately became a legitimate MVP candidate (before Shohei Ohtani showed he was a superhuman, anyway) ). Mark Vientos replaced Brett Batty at third base and showed he was every bit as good or better than expected.
Jose Iglesias (stage name Candelita) came along, hitting like Luis Arraez, solidifying a superior infield, and breaking through the rigors of the clubhouse thanks to his ubiquitous “OMG” song, cheerful demeanor, and clutch hits. The reputation was wiped out. The Mets, a team with a technical salary of $341 million (including mistakes from Max Scherzer, Justin Verlander, and James McCann), got Iggy a pretty bargain at $1.5 million. .
Something special is happening with this team. According to Sarah Langs, no team has ever won four games in a row in the postseason when they were underdogs in the eighth inning. The Mets did it. The 13 points he scored in the 8th and 9th innings over six playoff games are the second-most in history, behind the 16 points scored by the Yankees in 1936.
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The Phillies look like the world's best on paper and on the field, but there's no question they were the better team for most of the regular season. But whether they want to admit it or not, the Mets have magic, charm and momentum right now. I asked Vientos and Brandon Nimmo if they believed those things. Vientos said no, but Nemo responded that the momentum was real.
It's not luck, it's hot teams getting even hotter at the right time. There's something special going on when you play against a great closer in a game and still keep winning games after falling behind. They stalled Braves star closer Raisel Iglesias, erased Brewers star closer Devin Williams, and made one of the best bullpens in the game, the Phillies bullpen, look worse than theirs. .
Oh, and at least one A-list celeb showed up in Queens. Keith's good friend Jerry Seinfeld is a loyal fan who must have seen the Mets doing the opposite of what was historically expected. There's no reason to complain now. This October is by no means an empty month.
