The Anger Year

On October 5th of 2016, the Mets season ended with a loss to the San Francisco Giants in the Wildcard Game. Instead of "On to Chicago" for the Mets, it was off into obscurity and another year of watching someone else celebrating a World Series Championship.

As a fan I'm still stewing over the way that whole thing ended and I think I've taken quite a bit of heat about it. I don't necessarily care because this is my blog and I can say whatever the hell I want. Plus, if you disagreed, then you sort of missed the whole point. But that's immaterial here as we finally approach the dawn of a new season.

I haven't written anything here in a good 5 months. Really, there hasn't been much to say. The Mets had one move that had to be made this offseason—resign Yoenis Cespedes—and they did that. Otherwise, this afternoon, when Howie Rose comes out, blows the Shofar, welcomes the congregants to the National League Season in New York and announces the Mets roster, there won't be an opportunity to give anyone a Joe Buck "WELCOME TO NEW YORK!!" Nobody's new. Everyone will have been here before.

I wouldn't call it so much addition by subtraction, even though some faces are gone. Maybe it's addition by attrition. The Mets managed to win a Wildcard last season with a team that was mostly decimated with injuries. Of the five that began the year in the starting rotation, only two were still standing come October. Now that we're back in April, one is gone, two are back, one replacement has emerged, and a face almost long forgotten has resurfaced. And, of course, one still sits in injury-prone limbo.

Mostly, the Mets flew under the radar during the offseason. That flurry of offseason activity really didn't produce anything beyond idle talk. Other teams got all the ink, and moving through Spring training, other teams continued to get all the ink. If you believe what you read, the Mets are probably somewhere between the 9th and 12th best team in the Majors, hardly enough to hang with the Big Boys when it comes time for October.

Of course, two years ago, nobody expected much out of them either.

Oh, but those names, those names, and the potential they hold. We're still waiting for the day when all of the "Big 5" are together at last, and really, that day may never come. But when you look at the Mets and see a rotation that's 7 pitchers deep, you realize that they might not necessarily have to be. Or at least not in the order you might have intended for them to be. Certainly, this afternoon's starter, Noah Syndergaard will lead the charge, much as he did last year, and a rejuvenated Jacob deGrom follows. Matt Harvey continues to have a giant bullseye on his back in the court of fan opinion, but we shall see whether his competitive spirit will once again win the day over the haters. Then, we have Robert Gsellman, who impressed last season in an emergency role and continued to do so this Spring. Finally, the return of Zack Wheeler, last seen in 2014, which may as well be a lifetime ago. What we'll get out of him, who knows, but he's back and he's ready to roll, even if he's going to be under the strictest of innings limits.

Offensively, you won't see flash beyond Cespedes, but that was the case last year too. Much like the pitchers, you just want everyone to stay away from Ray Ramirez. And maybe for Michael Conforto to hit so much he forces a move to be made. Otherwise, you sort of have a good idea what to expect from this group. Occasional line-moving, lots of Home Runs, some streakiness. Some days where they bomb an opponent into submission and others where they hit 4 double plays and leave 13 men on base.

But what I said at the end of last year still feels relevant now: the Mets, and even moreso their fans, need to approach this season with some degree of Arrogance. The Mets fan has been generally conditioned to fear the worst, and with good reason. But look at those guys that won last year. They were the saddest of the sad sacks and for some reason spent the entire 2016 season with their chests puffed out and look where they are now. Odds-on favorite to do it again. So, let's go out and knock them down a peg, shall we? The Mets have done this before. It's nothing new.

I've been thinking a lot about the Big Red Machine in the 1970s and how their arc sort of parallels this era of the Mets. They took some time to come together and made it to the cusp a pair of times, only to lose the World Series in 1970 and 1972, and get bounced by the Mets in the NLCS in 1973. But they persevered and ultimately won World Series Championships in 1975 and 1976 and remain one of the enduring Great Teams of their era. The Mets too have been on the edge twice now only to be turned away at the altar. Granted, the nature of the game is different now than it was then and more needs to align in order to make it but you need to continue to persevere. Those guys were probably murderous come '75 and, really, the Mets should feel that way this year.

Get Angry. Play Angry. Be Arrogant. I don't know if I'm the only one who truly feels that way or not but that's what this season needs to be about. Being on the edge has gone on too long and too many times the Mets have come this far only to stagnate and regress. There's no good reason for anything like that to happen to this group.

As is tradition, I will be on hand for Howie Rose, the Ceremonial Shea Wreath, The Blowing of the Shofar and the Ceremonial Opening Day Car Fire this afternoon with George, marking the 13th consecutive season I'll have done so. I've renewed my tickets—even sprung for better seats this season—so I'll be around, snarling from the Promenade level all year. 20 games the past couple of seasons has turned into 28 or 22 by the time the curtain finally falls on the season and I expect the number this year will approach the former.

Break Out The Bunting

George and I were discussing what the plan was for Opening Day tomorrow, as we usually do since we've attended Opening Day I believe 10 out of the past 12 seasons, and he asked me what time to meet out at Citi Field. I thought about it for a few minutes, and this was the answer I gave him:

"You know, every year, I say let's meet at 11:30, and every year I go dashing out there and show up at 11, so why kid myself anymore? Let's meet at 11."

I suppose, in my advancing age, I've become wiser about my own particular patterns, if not so much my aptitude to sit out in freezing temperatures at April Games at Citi Field.

Regardless, as if it were a surprise to anyone, I'll be at Citi Field tomorrow for my 12th consecutive Opening Day or Home Opener as the case may be. I've got the Shofar polished, I have a brand new Game Hat for 2016 (Classic Blue, 2015 World Series patch), and now all we need is Howie Rose, the Bill Shea Good Luck Wreath, the Ceremonial First Car Fire and a whole mess of Bunting and we're ready to go.

Things will be a bit different this year as opposed to prior seasons, for obvious reasons. The usual blind hope that everyone enters Opening Day with has been replaced by actual Hope, and there's going to be a banner-raising ceremony to prove it. I've never actually been to a Mets banner-raising ceremony, and the scuttlebutt I'm hearing is that Rusty Staub, John Franco and Edgardo Alfonzo will be there to perform the banner-raising, so this should be a rollicking good time.

It's going to be a festive day—Opening Day usually is—but with a bit more of a purpose. Usually, when I leave Citi Field at the final game of the season, which more often than not has been the final game of the regular season, I'll detour myself to walk down through the Rotunda and smack a pillar on my way out, as if I were patting an old friend on the back and saying, "See you next year!" This didn't happen last season. On the final day of the regular season last year, I knew I'd be back, and I ended up being back 6 times subsequent to that date of October 4th. I didn't say my traditional farewell after Game 4 of the Dodgers series—that was too depressing an evening and too jammed a crowd. After Game 1 of the Cubs series everyone was too busy reveling. And then, there was the final game against Kansas City, at around 12:30 in the morning on November 2nd. And on that night, saying farewell for the offseason wasn't really on my mind and I'm sure it wasn't on the mind of anyone else who was silently and sullenly streaming out of the building. This hasn't sat well with me, not so much the lack of farewell, but the way it all ended—I'm sure that holds true for most fans—the ending kind of undoes the great vibes of the journey to get to that point—but now we get to start over again. The crowd will probably be as full and as fired up as it was last October, albeit with much lower stakes, but that doesn't matter. It's a festive occasion no matter how you look at it.

Come on! Opening Day has it all! The Shofar, the Wreath, the Bunting, the 11:30am Beer, the Car Fire...Can't wait. Howie Rose at 12:40, First pitch 1:10. Who's Drinkin'!?

Holiday!

It poses to be a sleepless night for me tonight, as is usually the case before Opening Day at Citi Field, particularly in the now dozen or so consecutive years that I've had tickets to Opening Day, whether it's real Opening Day or the Home Opener. Currently, I feel as though I might be best served waking up at 7am and running out to the ballpark, but conventional wisdom (and my other half, who'll be accompanying me tomorrow in what will be her first Opening Day) will more than likely win out, I'll stay in bed a little later, and then divert my usual trip downtown onto the 7 train for my first sojourn to Flushing for the year.

I've said in the past that Opening Day really only feels official when it's a True Opening Day, such as it has been for the Mets the past 3 seasons. Still, even though the Mets have been playing for a week already, since I've barely seen much action live, the Home Opener will actually feel like Opening Day for me. The Mets have played 6 games; I've seen 0 live, except for a snippet of Friday night's game, and it's made for some pretty shoddy blogging around here of late. I'll try to do better tomorrow since I'll actually have seen the game.

Also, it's hard to not get fired up when you hear Howie Rose get on that microphone and start yelling, "WELCOME TO CITI FIELD, AND THE START OF THE 2015 NATIONAL LEAGUE SEASON IN NEW YORK!!!"

Other nice things about Opening Day, which can happen whether it's True Opening Day or not, is that it's a nice day off from Work, which I've generally requested and received several weeks in advance (although this year as I've recently switched jobs, my new employers were kind enough to honor my request for a personal day in spite of lack of accumulated service time). It's now a rare game where I feel a legitimate need to arrive at Citi Field 2+ hours prior to game time, just because it's nice to walk around the stadium, see what's new, get some food before the masses arrive and be in my seat at a leisurely pace before the Shofar is blown and the home season gets underway.

Even Opening Day has been a tough sell for the Mets in recent years, but this year, it's completely sold out, so I'd have to guess I'm not the only one raring to get going in the morning, but most, unlike me, will probably be driving. The Mets are encouraging fans to use mass transit but most people don't listen to those kinds of things, so the parking lot should be plenty full. You know where this is going. There has, for my money, been no better Opening Day Omen for a good season than a nice car fire during the game. Opening Day 2006, car fire. Mets run away with the division. 2006 NLDS Game 1, car fire. Mets win a nailbiter over LA. Ever since then, no car fire, and we know how things have turned out. Now that the Mets have moved into Citi Field, you can't even see the parking lot from where I'm sitting, so if there's a car fire, I'll have no idea. But maybe I can just sort of generate one with my mind, and that will carry things forward from there. If not, maybe being able to get a pocket schedule on Opening Day will be a fitting equivalent. It's been a good 3-4 years since the Mets have had pocket schedules available on Opening Day (and of course they have more than they know what to do with at the end of the season), but I think it might be just as good a sign if, by some chance, I could get a bunch of pocket schedules. Let's hope for at least 1 out of 2.

Howie Rose at 12:40. First pitch 1:10. See you then!

WELCOME TO NEW YORK!!!

Well, here we go once again, just a few hours from Howie Rose welcoming us to Citi Field and the blowing of the shofar to raise the curtain on the 2013 National League Baseball Season in New York. The calendar may just show the benign date of April 1st, but it's really a holiday for me and approximately 40,000 other people who will be making our first pilgrimage of the year to Citi Field. It's tradition. This will be my 9th consecutive Opening Day and 12th overall. How can I possibly miss Opening Day? It never gets old, because it's always the start of something new. I put in for the Day Off from work 2 months ago and even my boss knew exactly why I was requesting off for April 1st. "IT'S METS DAY, ISN'T IT?!" is what she told me.

A few bits of housekeeping to discuss here before game time, though.

1) THE TEAM
We've already been through this in short form and longer form, but this is a transitional year for the Mets. It's going to be a lot of throwing spaghetti at a wall and seeing what sticks (I read this somewhere about some team, but I don't recall where. It applies well to the Mets, though, so I'm stealing it), and seeing what the givens do. I expect that the Mets will win somewhere in the neighborhood of 75-76 games. I said that last year and they finished with 74, but I think the Mets this year can be better, or at least more interesting down the stretch. If, by some chance, they have a hot start at the beginning of the season like they did last year, I don't think anyone is going to buy into it, though. They have to prove they can finish strong. Individually, I look for impactful things from the following players (take "impactful" to mean whatever you want)
1) David Wright
2) Ike Davis
3) Ruben Tejada
4) Jonathon Niese
5) Matt Harvey
6) Lucas Duda
7) Bobby Parnell

I look for meaningful contributions from the following players (meaningful contributions is not "impactful"):
1) Marlon Byrd
2) Colin Cowgill
3) Shaun Marcum
4) Zach Wheeler*
5) Travis d'Arnaud*

*I assume they'll be called up around May 1st, or whenever that mythical service time clock resets itself. That might not be enough time to impact the season in the larger picture, but enough to do something worthwhile.

Everyone else, just do the best you can and don't screw up too badly. You know what I mean.

2) CITI FIELD
They didn't make any more major improvements to the field, so I've heard, but one thing I did notice is that some of the concession stands have been moved around. I've talked plenty about eschewing the Shake Shack Zone for the concession stands near my seats in the Promenade, because the lines are always short and the food is just as good. I was a fan of the Blue Smoke outpost up there, but apparently it's been moved out in favor of "Nathan's Hot Dogs and Chicken," which appears to be the same thing as regular old Nathan's, except that they offer a larger array of Chicken-involved food. I suppose I'll find out what they mean by this chicanery tomorrow, but if it's not as good as the Blue Smoke chicken sandwich, I will be very upset. Of note is that Blue Smoke downstairs is now Blue Smoke "On The Go," and doesn't offer the chicken sandwich either, so Citi Field may well be lacking in a good chicken sandwich. What it will not be lacking in, however, is the absurdly good Pat LaFrieda Filet Mignon sandwich. This sandwich debuted midway through last season and took Citi Field by storm, proving itself so popular that the single location on the Field Level is no longer enough, so popular that it's successfully managed to boot Keith's Grill out of the Promenade level and take over the stand for itself. So, maybe I'll be eating a lot of steak sandwiches this year. Until I run out of money.

3) NEW GAME HAT
For the first time since 2009, I'll be debuting a new Game Hat. And not a moment too soon, since that hat has brought me no luck as far as team success is concerned. The new model for 2013 is not so dissimilar from the old one, Blue on Blue, with the classic orange NY and orange button on top, and the 50th Anniversary logo on the back. Yes, it's from last year, but I bought it at the end of the season (when the Mets kindly discounted all 50th Anniversary merchandise) and it's been sitting in the plastic bag I bought it in in my drawer for the entire offseason, so it's properly marinated for today's maiden voyage. Hopefully a new hat will bring some new success to the team.

4) CAR FIRE?
It's just not Opening Day without a good Car Fire. But I haven't seen one out there in a few years. Anyone else out there know what I mean? It seems like every time there's a good Opening Day Car Fire, the Mets have a good year...

I think that about covers it. Now on to the more official matters. Opening Ceremonies at 12:40, First pitch at 1:10!

This Next One...Is...The First Song...On Our New Album.

Last year, I talked about how I'd been ready for Opening Day for about two months before the day came. I think this year, you can double the time and magnify the intensity factor by about 100%.

For the past 2-3 days, I've been hearing the voice of Howie Rose in my head, as he bellows "LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, WELCOME TO CITI FIELD, AND THE START OF THE 2009 NATIONAL LEAGUE BASEBALL SEASON IN NEW YORK!!!" A more beautiful sentence, I don't think I could hear on a day like this.

Over the weekend, Rose was talking about how the Mets should be playing the Pirates today, since the Mets first home game ever was against the Pirates in the Polo Grounds, and their first game at Shea was against the Pirates. I think I may be the only one who sees any symmetry in the Mets playing the Padres tonight. It's fitting for me, because the first Mets game I ever attended at Shea Stadium was against the Padres. And on the 20th Anniversary of my first game ever, the Mets played the Padres, and I was at the game. And now, tonight, the Mets will play the Padres in my first game at Citi Field.

There's going to be a lot to get used to for a lot of people as we open Citi Field tonight, and not just for the players on the field, or the fans getting used to a whole new set of stairs, escalators and food options. For me, it will mean the formation of a new series of pregame superstitions. As I'd mentioned, I would always enter Shea Stadium through the same gate, go up the same escalator, walk around through the Loge and then resume up on the same escalator. Now, I've got to figure out a new way to do things. My tickets specify that I enter through the Jackie Robinson Routunda, which I didn't actually get to see in my maiden voyage last weekend. No doubt, this is the easiest gate to get to, even easier than it was to get to Gate E from the Subway at Shea. You get off the subway and you're right there. The Left Field gate holds some potential as well, but you do have to walk a bit to get there. I may never see the Bullpen gate if things remain equal. Where will the program vendors be? What is the easiest route by escalator to get to my seats in the Promenade level? Will the lines at the JRR be ridiculous? I suppose we'll all find out tonight.

One final thought: With the Construction of Citi Field taking up most of the parking lot, it's obscured my view of the action and I've noticed that we haven't had a good Car Fire for a few years, or at least not one that I've been able to see. I think the Opening Day Car Fire is always a good omen for a new season (and our plans to set our own Car Fire last year on Opening Day were thwarted by better judgement), and though the Parking Lot now exists behind the stadium and not in view of anyone watching the game, it is very easy for me to turn around, look behind me and see the entire lot, thereby getting a clear view of any car fires that may occur. I think we're overdue for one, and it should be in order for tonight.

Happy Opening Day, everyone!!!

Once More Unto the Breach, Dear Friends

Needless to say, I've been chomping at the bit for today to finally arrive. Finally ready to return to Queens, return to Shea and begin another season, officially my 22nd and final season with the Mets at Shea Stadium.

It will be my 6th Opening Day (7th if you count the rained-out 1997 Home Opener) at Shea. I've been ready for today for about 2 months. I'll be meeting The Former El Guapo and The Former Shirts v. Blouses at around 11:30, at what used to be the tree and bench-lined plaza near where the ramp from the 7 train used to be. Of course, I might get to the stadium at 10am. I might be so amped up I'll run out there. This happened last year, too. We agreed to meet at 11. We were there by 10:30 easily. A few minutes earlier and we could have been the first people in the stadium.

Today, we had a long discussion about exorcising the ghosts from last year. We decided there needed to be some sort of ritual. Among our suggestions were sacrificing a lamb or a virgin, Burning the Guap's old Al Leiter jersey and cooking sausage and peppers over it, buying new Game hats at the team store (provided we a) felt like spending $25 for a hat and b) were able to stand waiting on line for an hour just to get in the team store), buying this hat, and getting into a fistfight with Scott Schoeneweis.

It took me some time to brainstorm, but I think I finally figured out what the proper exorcism would be.

We need to start a car fire.

Early in the 2000 season, El Guapo and I were watching a game on TV, and off in the back of the parking lot, the cameras caught a car on fire. It burned and burned, and there was no sign of a fire truck pulling up. Black smoke billowed from the car and blew into the stadium. Finally, after about 10 minutes, firemen finally showed up and put the fire out. That year, the Mets went to the World Series.

On Opening Day, 2006, we were present at Shea, and during the first inning of the game, with Paul LoDuca stepping up for his first Mets AB, we saw some smoke creeping over the left field side of the Upper Deck. We peered around into the parking lot, and, sure enough, there was a car on fire. Fortunately, it was extinguished rather quickly. The Mets won the game and went on to roll to a Division title.

That October, we were present at Shea for Game 1 of the NLDS against the Dodgers. With Pedro Martinez and El Duque hurt, John Maine was set to take the ball for this most important ballgame. There was a palpable tension filling the stadium. El Guapo and I were searching for any sort of a sign, a good omen to let us know that things would be OK. And sure enough, during the 1st inning, there it was. A car fire had broken out in the parking lot, behind the left field seats, right next to some fencing put up around the Citi Field site. The fire burned for quite a bit of time, and nearly managed to light the fence on fire and burn down what little of Citi Field had been built at the time. That was the sign. The Mets won the Game and the Series.

This being any indication, if we are going to perform any kind of an exorcism ritual to remove the bad feelings of last season, this would be the way to go. Either that or I have to yell at some nuns.

Coming tomorrow: Opening Day at Shea Stadium and Citi Field, too...

Let's Get It Started in Here

Everyone psyched for the home opener? Mets2Moon and I will be out there in our 7-pack seats. If you want to say hi, come by section 40 and start yelling "El Guapo! El Guapo!" over and over again. Either I'll say hi, or security will become concerned and escort you away.

First pitch: 11:10. First car fire: 12:16.

Two quick notes:

• Yeah, yeah, I know. We dropped two to the hated Braves. But if we went 4-2 on every road trip we'd probably win about 130 games, so no complaints.

• This trumped-up nonsense about Jimmy Rollins's comments will play out in a fun way. No doubt he'll hear it from the crowd. Personally, I think he' just saying what any team's fans would want their team to say (not that I won't be booing him too).

Right back at ya, Pat. Douchebag.