Thank God for hockey

Because I am absolutely incensed at the disgrace that is the New York Mets these last three days.

Driving into Chicago this morning on 90, I was not feeling overly optimistic. Nelson Figueroa was pitching for us and I knew he was due for a rough game. But I tried to get in a good mood. I called my father, hoping he could give me some reason to feel excited. He failed. As I drove through the Second City, I blasted "Meet the Mets" from my car. I ran into Julie at Murphy's Bleachers and she introduced me to a few other Mets fans. I even met Regis C, one of the writers on metsblog.com. I drank a six dollar Chicago brew (I guess they double the prices on game days) and hung with about 15-20 Met fans for a little over an hour, talking the Mets, travel, and whatever else. And then the SNY television crew came by. They actually shot us and put us on camera! I have no idea if it went on TV, but it was fun. Little did I know it would be the only fun thing that would happen today.


I wanted the Mets to jump on Ted Lilly early. I felt they had to get their offense working quickly, jump out to a quick lead, and silence the crowd. Well, we couldn't even get a baserunner in the first three innings. And Carlos Delgado's strikeout nearly made me spew out my hot dogs I had eaten 30 minutes before. He whiffs on three straight pitches, and the last swing looked like Phil Mickelson playing a lob golf shot out of the deep rough. Easy and slow back, easy and slow through, swing straight down to the ball. Somebody walk this guy out to the glue factory and just shoot him. I'm almost begging for Mo Vaughn to come back, 400 pounds and all.


Meanwhile, the bottom of the second inning was my first nervous moment. Figueroa loads the bases with nobody out. But he gets Ronny Cedeno (and I'll get to him a in a bit) and gets Henry Blanco to ground into a double play. No runs allowed, an incredible inning. Of course, as I and the several thousand of my fellow Mets fans in attendance celebrated, some jackass cracks "Go Phillies!" I had a few counters in mind, but why bother wasting my time with a waste of life such as that?


Then in the fourth, the Mets start doing what they do best. Failing to deliver big hits. Reyes leads off and strikes out. Pagan doubles to right and would have gone to third if he didn't trip and fall after rounding second. Wright walks, Beltran walks, and the bases are loaded for Delgado. All I was hoping was for him to hit the ball out of the infield. I knew he was never getting a hit. He pops up. Damion Easley comes up. I was so excited about him playing second. I felt he would mash Lilly. Pops up to second.

Bottom of the fourth. One on with two outs. Cedeno doubles and Blanco is intentionally walked to bring up the pitcher. Slow roller between first and second. Delgado and Figueroa wait for each other to make the play, bases loaded. A total lack of fundamentals. Reed Johnson singles, 3-0.

Top of the fifth, 2 on for the Mets, Pagan pops out.

Top of the sixth. Bases loaded for Brady Clark with one out. Fielder's choice, one run scores. Raul Casnova grounds out, two more stranded.

I'd had it. I knew we were done. Before the seventh, I took off for the 1.5 mile walk back to my car. I found out later Jorge Sosa gives up yet another big home run, this one a grand slam to that a-hole Cedeno, who has been as big an underachiever the Cubs have had in the last 5 years. Now he plays the Mets and he's All-World. He kills us with big hits in two straight games. It's sick. Another R. Cedeno I would like to castrate with a hatchet.

People ask me why I don't like Cub fans. Well, put it this way. Between the comments I heard walking to the park, and everything I heard when I was in my seat, I know Marty Brenneman was right when he said "They are the most obnoxious fans in baseball." And I will add this to his comments. These fans live in a bubble. They shout about how they're so entitled to glory and success. God forbid strike three is ever called on a Cub. And now they apparently struck a deal with Benihana to wear those gay looking headbands for Fukodome. Forget the Cubbies, they are in my mind the Bubbles. Because that's the environment they exist in.

And here is why it is harder to be a Mets fan than a Cubs fan. Nobody cares about us. The Cubs are the chic team in baseball, have been for 30 years. It's fashionable and easy to ride on their bandwagon, which millions are doing right now. It's fake. It's phony. If there was a ever a baseball franchise that would have had too much plastic surgery, it's the Cubs. It takes a lot more toughness and character to root for a team that plays second fiddle to the Yankees and still loses so consistently. The Mets are hated because of the New York aura, yet we're not in style around the world like the Yankees. There's just no way to win in that situation.

And there's this. When the Cubs blow a lead, they get all the sympathy and tears from everyone. Mets choke away the division the way they did, we're snickered at and mocked. Why? Because we're from New York? Because we have a few dollars to spend?

Now onto the future. The Mets could win the NL East. It's not completely inconceivable. But I have no confidence this team can defeat the Bubbles or the Diamondbacks or the Padres in a series. This team is assembled poorly, performing poorly, and I hate to say it, coached poorly. Willie Randolph, I like you as a man, but my patience is wearing very, very thin.