by This is not a story about statistics. There will be plenty of time to dissect the season, to discuss the offseason moves the Mets made, the ones they didn’t, Pete Alonso, Jeff McNeil, the bullpen, and so many other aspects of the 2019 team. For now though, with the Mets 4 games out of a wild card spot with only 13 games left to play, this is simply a story about not giving up.
By late June, I had heard “I’m done watching this team” so many times, you would think that nobody was watching. And, the way things were going, it was probably only a matter of time until that happened. Then the Mets started winning, and as quick as some fans were to declare that they were finished, they were even quicker to announce their return.
So when Pete Alonso added an excited, and rather explicit, “F” to the “LGM” chant, fans perked up their ears. And when the Mets started backing their virtual chest-beating with actual wins, Mets fans were almost instantly ready to give all the F’s they could. In case you didn’t know, when Mets fans says “I’m done” they really mean “I’m going to pretend not to care until it’s okay to admit it”.
Chances are, if you’re reading this, then none of this is news. You either are a Mets fan, or you know one (or more), and you’re fully aware of the way the fan experiences the team’s extreme ups and downs. Actually, chances are, if you’re reading this, you’re related to me in some way, but that’s another story for another time.
Whether it be in certain games, like that magical Friday night comeback against the Nats, or this season as a whole (I still can’t believe I’m following the standings at this point), the Mets have not given up 2019 just yet. And, no matter how many times they may claim they have, it doesn’t seem like the fans have either.
Thirteen games remaining, four games out of the wild card…a postseason berth seems incredibly unlikely, just not impossible. Sometimes it seems the Mets, and their fans, wouldn’t have it any other way. No doubt they’ll be watching until the very end, whenever that is, even if they tell you otherwise.
