2011 Post Mortem

Baseball-Reference.com 2011 New York Mets

Well, that...such as it was...was that.

Not much else to say. I mean did anyone honestly expect that much change in year one of the Sandy Alderson regime?

Alright, production out of Wright and Bay, Santana to appear at least once in 2011, Francisco Rodriguez to bounce back a bit, even with that vesting option hanging like a Sword of Damocles over the organization, and maybe a few more things that would have made another mediocre campaign more bearable than it had any right to be.

In any event, it was what it was. A 77 win season, 4th place finish, and a horizon that looks as murky and uncertain as it was when the season began.

Bright spots do include the rise of youngsters like Josh Turner and Jonathon Niese, but the other side of the coin is the fact that Citi Field's dimensions are going to change in 2012. Will whatever the changes are mean that finally David Wright's mind will be clear enough to perform well at his home ballpark on a consistent basis? Will Jason Bay finally be the offensive force the Mets thought they signed heading into the 2010 season? And will changes to make Citi be a more offensive friendly park mean pitchers have to pitch differently, which means a whole new set of headaches if it wasn't enough dealing with Wright's decline in the three seasons the park has been open.



And now to address the 800 pound gorilla in the room. Or will it be the 100 million dollar gorilla in the room? By the way, image courtesy of UltimateMets.com, the great Ultimate Mets Database site.

First, was it a bush and cheap way to "back into" a batting crown? Yes it was. Sure it's been done before, but that doesn't make it any less right.

Second, unless there is some sort of deal that is ready to be announced as soon as the World Series has ended, or somehow Reyes and the Mets feel that a new deal is inevitable, it does seem to be a pretty shoddy way for Reyes to have his final official on field moment to be dashing for the dugout as he is being lifted for a pinch runner. I was there, and the general response from the sparse crowd was a definite "What the?!"



Now, it is fair to say that he did come out alone after the game, but apparently it was at the prodding of Willie Harris, but at the same time, it was robbing fans of an in-game moment. Meaningless in the grand scheme of things of course, but at the same time there always is that "final at bat" or "final appearance" that is what part of that team and fan connection is all about. Put it this way, Carlos Beltran was able to have "that moment" during the last home game before the trade deadline. Reyes robbed the Met fans to give him his "sendoff." And it is yet another telling sign of Reyes' personality that can certainly rub people the wrong way.

Course, that is a moot point if Reyes returns for the 2012 season and beyond, but, no doubt it will add a little more rancor to the reaction if Reyes returns to Citi Field in a uniform other than a home Mets jersey.

All that being said, do I want the Mets to resign him? Now, it would be silly to say no as a Met fan. I mean going from Reyes to Ruben Tejada at short? Not to mention needing to replace what Reyes gave you at the top of the lineup? I'll agree with those that it may be easy to find the same type of player Reyes is, but with the Mets financial situation still looking as murkier as it did heading into this season, and the possibility of payroll being slashed even more, that player would be hard to come by.

Of course the flip side is, do you want Reyes and Wright to still be part of the franchise once they turn the financial corner one way or the other? Part of me says yes, especially watching both take down various All-Time Met leaders in offensive categories. But the other part of me wonders if turning the page from them is necessary at this point. So what I seem to be saying is that while I'll take Reyes back, I won't be all that heartbroken to see him sign elsewhere this winter.