Thursday, August 2, 2012

San Fran is Just What the Mets Needed

The city by the Bay seems to have a nice effect on the Mets. In fact, it's exactly what this team needed. The series was not pretty. It was downright ugly, even disgusting, at times, but the Mets leave with a series win in what was an unexpected result.

A West Coast road trip is always brutal on this team. Given the fact that they were falling faster than a lead balloon, it was the last thing the Mets needed. After splitting the series in Arizona, a trip to San Fran to face the division leading/tied Giants didn't look promising. Games 1 through 3 of the series would support my point, but the results are what counts.

During the Mets skid in the post-All Star break freefall, nothing was going right. Umpires. Errors. Strikeouts. Ineptitude. You name it, the Mets were doing it poorly. But against the Giants all of sudden the Mets were able to scrape out some wins despite poor performance. And honestly that's what competing teams do. They scratch out wins even when things aren't going their way. That was what the first half Mets did so well and we're finally seeing that again in the second half.

Every double play is an adventure. The BLOWpen gives you ulcers. Hitting with runners in scoring position is still a rarity, but even so the Mets a leaving the Bay area with a 3-1 series win and some momentum behind him as they're currently 5-3 on this road trip.

So now San Diego awaits. A team the Mets SHOULD beat. Should. Not guaranteed but the Mets could start to climb out of this cavernous hole they've dug for themselves if they can continue to find ways to win in San Diego.

By no stretch of the imagination am I think this team is back in contention. What I am saying is the first half traits that we loved in this 2012 team is starting to show up again. Well except for Jason Bay, but that's a separate rant all together...

I'm not looking for the Mets to win every game. I'm looking for the spark, the tenacity, the energy that carried us from April thru June to continue to be seen in August and September.

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