Initiated by a late night prediction made by DP to me the other night, I have recently come to believe whole heartedly that Johan Santana will end his upcoming 2008 season on the Metropolitan’s bench; a victim of the dreaded Tommy John Surgery. It’s so obvious once all the facts and historical events are laid out in front of us. The Mets have this and only this outcome to anticipate for the upcoming year, the table is set. Their history with their pitching staffs make this tall skinny Phillies fan cool, calm and collected about Johan entering the gauntlet that is the NL EAST.
With that being said, let us now dive head first into the deep end of the ice cold “prediction pool”.
In order to know where this team is heading, we need but look at where they’ve been. The Mets have remained consistent in its “questionable” approach to its pitching staff. Combine this with the curse that follows its newly acquired pitchers, and you have a beautiful thing to watch unfold before your eyes.
Travel with me for a moment to a simpler time; a time when those we now know as legends were still lacing up and battling on the diamond. The time period I speak of is obviously the 1970s. This Metropolitan team entered the 1970 season coming off a World Series championship; thanks to (in part) a one Nolan Ryan. After starting the season with a one-hitter, Nolan’s time as a met would come to an abrupt end. In 1971 he requested a trade and the Mets obliged, sending him to the California Angels with three other players all in order to obtain Jim Fregosi, arguably the worst deal in Mets history.
But hey, people make mistakes right? Teams can make mistakes and just let the past be past….right? Well not the Mets, they refuse to be outdone by anyone but themselves. Why give up a guaranteed future hall of fame pitcher when you can get rid of….dare I say it…2 guaranteed future hall of fame pitchers! The date is June 15 1977 and it brought with it the biggest “shakeup” in Mets history. After a handful of seasons of floundering in the middle of the pack, it seemed time for some rather drastic changes. But when they came, the changes were more drastic than almost any New York fan could possibly have been ready for. Franchise star Tom Seaver had not been getting on well with the Mets' front office for some time.
Tom Terrific's sudden departure was itself only the tip of the iceberg. Seaver had not only been let go, inconceivable in itself, but on the surface, the deal that finally was made had not seemed to bring very much in fair exchange. There was no big-name star headed to New York to replace baseball's top pitcher. Instead, the Mets had picked up what appeared to be no more than a handful of unheralded prospects, the best of whom was an unrecognized minor league outfielder named Steve Henderson…
(this guy)
…who supposedly “glistened with star potential.” Seaver, meanwhile, enjoyed a banner summer and fall with his new club in Cincinnati, ringing up the league's second-best victory and innings-pitched totals and the top mark for shutouts. Things, of course, only got worse in the standings and at the turnstiles the following year for our bumbling Mets. Seaver's expected replacement, Pat Zachry proved largely a bust on the hill; which goes to show, just because you have a great beard, does not mean you can pitch as well as Tom Seaver.
With a quick history lesson now coming to an end, let us first of all, remind ourselves that Pat Zachry never got a fair shot at glory….and second: the Mets continued to encounter unfavorable outcomes with their pitching staffs from that point back in the 70’s all the way to the present day. Don’t believe me….HAHA I laugh at your stupid brain.
- In 1986 Mets' ace Dwight Gooden was admitted to a drug clinic after testing positive for cocaine.
- They also traded McReynolds and Jeffries for one-time World Series hero Bret Saberhagen and his $3 million contract, along with signing veteran free agent pitcher Frank Tanera for $1.5 million.
o The experiment of building a team via free agency quickly flopped as Saberhagen and Coleman were soon injured and spent more time on the disabled list than on the field
- During the 1992 season popular pitcher David Cone was dealt to the Toronto Blue Jays during the 1992 season for Ryan Thompson and Jeff Kent.
o (PSST….the blue jays won the world series that year.)
- 1993
- In April, Coleman accidentally hit Gooden's shoulder with a golf club while practicing his swing.
- Later, in July, Saberhagen threw a firecracker under a table near reporters.
- Their young pitching prospect of the time Anthony Young started the '93 season at 0-13 and his overall streak of 27 straight losses over two years set a new record.
- After Young's record-setting loss, Coleman threw another firecracker out of the team bus window and injured three people resulting in felony charges that effectively ended his Mets career.
- Only a few days later, Saberhagen was in trouble again, this time for spraying bleach at three reporters. The meltdown season resulted in the worst record for a Mets team since 1965.
- Fast forwarding to more a more recent era, Pedro Martinez came to the big apple before the 2005 season. (this is coming off a world series win in Boston)
o It’s safe to say his career will never recover from the injuries he acquired shortly after becoming a met; his shoulder was all fucked and he now struggled with homosexuality (part of all Metropolitan ball player’s contracts)
Johan, I got love for you. But you fucked up coming to the Mets, that is now very clear. While all teams have had some rough times at some point in their histories, the Mets have consistently been fucking things up with their pitchers, both on purpose and on accident, for almost 40 years now. You can’t fight the truth on this one; you have to face the facts.
San--tana--AYE!
--Wootman
No comments:
Post a Comment