A Healing Win After a Terrible Loss

My mother was only 15 years old and living in Puerto Rico when her mom passed away.  Soon after, she met a man while she was finishing up high school and married him at age 18.  That marriage lasted for nearly a decade, but when she and her husband couldn't conceive a child, the relationship fizzled and led to divorce.  The year was 1967.  And once again, my mother was alone.  Her aunt, a rabid Yankees fan who lived in New York at the time, asked her to come visit for a few weeks to get away from the heartbreak and disappointment.  My mother accepted the offer and her visit ended up lasting for decades.

You see, soon after my mother arrived in New York, she met a man who just happened to be from Cabo Rojo - the same town in Puerto Rico where she was born and raised.  He had also been involved in a relationship that had recently ended and they found comfort in sharing those stories with each other.  Eventually they shared more stories with each other, sometimes over ice cream on City Island or under the stars by the Hudson River.  Less than nine months after they met for the first time, they were married.  And five years later, I came along.

It.  Had.  Happened.

I was one awkward looking kid.  But I was the only one my mother had, and she loved me for it.

After 15 years of trying, the long-desired title of "mother" had finally been earned.  You can imagine how much Mamita (that's what I called her) loved me and spoiled me, especially after thinking that she would never have a child of her own.

When I was eight years old, I became a Mets fan.  And when Mamita saw how much joy the team gave me - even if it was 1981 and the team rarely won - she became a Mets fan as well.  Her aunt wasn't very pleased with Mamita's decision, but the 22 rings won by her team probably made it a lot easier for her to accept.

Since my father was not a big sports fan, it was Mamita who took me to my Little League games.  She even worked at the field's hot dog stand just so she could be closer to me when I was playing.  When I pitched my first and only Little League shutout, she was the one who served me and my teammates the celebratory frankfurters.  They were probably the best dogs I ever had.

Once my Little League career had ended, my mother would take me to Mets games so we could continue to bond over our mutual love of baseball.  I'd talk to her about Mookie Wilson and she'd tell me about seeing Linguine Lasorda (that's what Puerto Ricans playfully called the legend we know as Tommy) playing and managing in Puerto Rico.  It made those pre-1986 losses much more tolerable to watch in person.

Ah, 1986.  The year the Mets finally won the World Series.  Mamita and I watched every postseason game together that October.   And in the tenth inning of Game Six, she passed down an old Puerto Rican tradition to me, although it was completely by accident.

As you surely know, the Mets needed to win Game Six to force a seventh and deciding game.  My mother had been holding a ceramic elephant for luck during the entire contest.  Not only did she have to hold the elephant, but it had to be facing away from the TV and she could only grab the elephant by its tusk.  It's only weird if it doesn't work, right?

Well, once Wally Backman and Keith Hernandez made the first two outs of the tenth with the Mets trailing by two runs, she tossed the elephant aside in disgust.  Ya gotta believe that I picked up the elephant and held it backwards by its tusk once she let it go.  This long-suffering Mets fan (of five whole years) was not about to give up on the team just yet even if things looked somewhat bleak.

With the elephant correctly positioned in my hand, my mother and I watched nervously as Gary Carter, Kevin Mitchell and Ray Knight singled.  We were on the edge of our seats as Mookie Wilson tap-danced away from Bob Stanley's wayward pitch.  And once Mookie's little roller up along first found its way behind the bag, I knew that I'd be holding elephants by their tusks for the rest of my life whenever I needed a little good fortune.

The Mets didn't make a return trip to the World Series until 2000.  By then, my father had been retired for 11 years and my parents had moved back to Cabo Rojo to spend the rest of their lives in their hometown.  Even though Mamita was now 1,576 miles away (according to what the frequent flyer miles said), she always made it back to New York for important Mets games.

Shea Stadium will always be in my heart.  As will my mother.

She was with me at Shea Stadium when Mike Piazza played his final game as a Met in 2005.  She was there when we saw the Mets clinch the N.L. East division title on September 18, 2006.  (I don't think I apologized enough to her for injuring her shoulder when Cliff Floyd caught the final out of the game.  I was a little excited and started jumping up and down while pressing down on her right shoulder repeatedly.  Oops.)  She even attended the last game played at Shea Stadium in 2008 and the first regular season game played at Citi Field in 2009.

The baseball-loving-woman-in-my-life torch was passed from my mother to my wife when we were married in 2010, but my mother always asked me about the Mets whenever we spoke on the phone during baseball season.  Even when we couldn't find something else to talk about, there was always baseball.  And it would be like that until her final days.

My mother passed away yesterday, exactly 13 years to the day after I got a little too excited after seeing the team clinch their first division title since 1988.  And even in passing, she gave me one more happy Mets memory.

As my father informed me of her passing, the Mets were playing a day game in Colorado.  Eighteen years ago, when I was told the news that my grandmother had passed away, the Mets were also playing a day game.  On that day (May 20, 2001), the Mets were trailing the Dodgers by two runs as they came to bat in the eighth inning.  New York scored in the eighth, then pushed across the winning run in the ninth inning.  It was a happy moment on an otherwise awful day.  So what do you think happened after I learned of my mother's passing?  Yup, you guessed it.

Mets down by two as they bat in the eighth.

Mets score in the eighth.

They score again in the ninth, turning a potential defeat into a healing victory.

The funny thing is, once the game against the Rockies entered the eighth inning with the Mets trailing by a couple of runs, repeating the scenario from when my grandmother passed, there was no doubt in my mind that the team would come back to win.  When it came to baseball, my mother had never let me down before and she wasn't about to begin now.

The Mets might not make the playoffs this season, but as far as I'm concerned, they already had their biggest win of the year yesterday.  And in a way, Mamita got to experience that win with me.

As a child and young adult, baseball helped my mother escape from the difficulties that life presented her, whether it be losing a parent, a marriage, or even the place she called home.  Now baseball will help heal me as I face my own challenge.  And I will heal, just like my mother once did.

We believe in comebacks.  And just like the Mets did yesterday, I'll come back from this loss.

My mother wouldn't have it any other way.

Dedicated to Juanny Leyro (Dec. 27, 1938 - Sept. 18, 2019)

Mamita, you'll always be in my heart.

Sucks To Be A San Francisco Sports Fan This Week

Flashback: May 17, 2007 - Rally At The Old Shea Corral

Photo by Lucas Jackson/Reuters

Six years ago today, the Mets were playing the finale of a three-game series against the Chicago Cubs at Shea Stadium.  Because the Mets were about to play their crosstown rivals in the Subway Series the following night, manager Willie Randolph decided to keep most of his regular players on the bench for the Thursday matinee to keep them fresh for their weekend tilt against the Yankees.

Out were Jose Reyes, David Wright and Carlos Beltran.  In were Ruben Gotay, Julio Franco and Endy Chavez.

By the sixth inning, the Cubs had a four-run lead on the Mets behind starting pitcher Juan Guzman.  When the Mets came up to bat in the bottom of the ninth, they were trailing 5-1 and closer Ryan Dempster was summoned by manager Lou Piniella in a non-save situation to record the final three outs.  Dempster never even recorded out No. 2.

Randolph was content to let his big boppers stay on the bench in the ninth, but his replacement corps made him reconsider his original plan by reaching base against Dempster.  First, David Newhan lined a single to center.  Then Carlos Gomez stroked a one-out single of his own.  A walk to pinch-hitter Carlos Beltran loaded the bases for Endy Chavez, who also took ball four.  That made the score 5-2.  With Dempster needing to throw strikes, Ruben Gotay lined an 0-2 pitch to left for an RBI single.  Now the tying run was in scoring position and the winning run was on first.  That was all for the Cubs' closer, as Lou Piniella removed a livid Dempster for the left-handed Scott Eyre.

With the bases loaded and the Mets now trailing 5-3, David Wright came off the bench to pinch-hit for the lefty-swinging Shawn Green.  Prior to the at-bat, Wright had never appeared as a pinch-hitter in 1,776 career plate appearances.  It took one pitch for Wright to have a 1.000 career batting average as a pinch-hitter.  Wright’s RBI single off Eyre closed the deficit to 5-4 and kept the bases loaded for Carlos Delgado - one of the few everyday players who played all nine innings.

After a 2006 season in which Delgado produced 38 HR and 114 RBI, the first baseman underachieved during the first month and a half of 2007.  Entering the day, Delgado was batting .217 with three homers and 19 RBI in 36 games.  But he had always done well against Scott Eyre, collecting three hits and four walks against the southpaw in 11 career plate appearances for a gaudy .636 on-base percentage.  After taking a first-pitch ball from Eyre, Delgado grounded a hard smash that found a hole between first and second, scoring Chavez from third base with the tying run and Gotay from second with the winning run.

Photo by Kathy Willens/Associated Press

Incredibly, the Mets scored five runs in the ninth inning, snatching an improbable 6-5 victory from Lou Piniella and the Cubs.  The win allowed the Mets to go into the Subway Series on a high note, while the Cubs went back to Chicago wondering what went wrong.

This year, neither New York nor Chicago are doing particularly well.  With the Astros now playing in the American League, the Cubs have spent most of the season in Houston’s customary spot - the basement of the National League Central - while the Mets are playing like a team determined to finish in fourth place for the fifth consecutive season.

Today, on the six-year anniversary of their thrilling come-from-behind win against Chicago, the Mets are opening up a three-game series with the Cubs at Wrigley Field.  Only David Wright remains from the team that rallied from a four-run ninth inning deficit on May 17, 2007.  But just because most of the names have changed doesn’t mean the Mets aren’t capable of giving their fans a reason to believe.

Anything can happen on the field on any given day.  Six years ago today, something special did happen on the field at Shea Stadium.  Through sheer willpower and their unwavering desire to win, the Mets pulled off an unlikely victory over the eventual Central division champion Cubs.  It just goes to show that even when all appears lost, there is always a glimmer of hope that the day can end with a happy recap.

We (Finally) Believe In Comebacks

Comebacks. A nine-letter word that sometimes resembled a four-letter word to the Mets. After all, the Mets had not won a game in which they trailed by more than four runs all season. In fact, the last time the Mets rallied from a five-run deficit or greater was last September 15, when they defeated Pittsburgh at Citi Field. In that game, the Pirates held an early 5-0 lead, only to watch the Mets score seven runs in the fourth inning en route to the one-run victory. That game was started by Paul Maholm.

Fast forward to this afternoon. The Mets fell behind early to the Pirates by giving up an early touchdown. By the third inning, it was already 7-0 Pittsburgh (the Pirates, not the Steelers). Paul Maholm (that name sounds awfully familiar) was in control and it appeared as if the Mets were about to lose their third straight game to the Pirates.

Then after consecutive two-out singles by Jose Reyes and Justin Turner, Carlos Beltran smoked a three-run homer off the facade of the left field landing. The score was 7-3 and the rally was just beginning. The Mets then added four runs in the sixth inning to tie the game and took the lead with a two-run eighth. The second run in the eighth, which scored on a bases loaded walk by Carlos Beltran (his fourth RBI of the game) proved to be the game-winner, as Frankie Rodriguez gave up a run in the ninth before putting the 9-8 victory in the books.

So for the second straight year, Paul Maholm was given a seemingly comfortable lead at Citi Field and then watched it all crumble away as the Mets posted two unlikely comebacks.

Today's game marked the first time since June 30, 2000 that the Mets erased a seven-run deficit to come out on top. Only once have they come back from a larger hole to post a victory, wiping out an 8-0 deficit versus the Astros on September 2, 1972, to win 11-8.

The Mets' marketing slogan last year was "We Believe In Comebacks", something they did very little of in 2010. They might be a year late, but today the Mets finally believed enough to come back and post a victory in a game where they were left for dead. It's up to them to continue believing if they want to "come back" in the NL East standings.

We Believe In Comebacks, But Not Winning

The Mets are off to their worst start in 18 years. Not since 1992 have they begun the season with a 2-6 record. The team is in last place, five games behind the Phillies. The team's slogan for 2010, "We Believe In Comebacks", was supposed to be for the team coming back into contention after a miserable 2009 season.

Apparently, the team didn't read the fine print when they were informed of the new slogan. So far, the Mets have been able to come back from late-inning deficits, but have not finished the job.

Last Wednesday against the Marlins, the Mets erased a five-run seventh-inning deficit, turning a 6-1 deficit into a 6-6 game that went into extra innings. Unfortunately, Hisanori Takahashi gave up the go-ahead run in the tenth inning and the Mets fell to the Marlins by the final score of 7-6.

On Saturday, the Mets entered the ninth inning against Nationals' closer Matt Capps trailing by one run. Capps was not particularly effective, giving up a line drive single to Jose Reyes, followed by two walks. The Mets appeared poised to complete the comeback when Rod Barajas lined a frozen rope to left field. Of course, that's Willie Harris territory, meaning that the catch was made and the comeback was thwarted.

Now we get to last night's game. The Mets were already in last place and needed a victory to get back on track. They were trailing 5-3 going to the eighth inning, but scored a run in each of the last two frames to send the game into extra innings. Could the Mets finally complete a comeback, pulling out a much-needed victory at Coors Field?

I'll let the following set of pictures paint the picture of what happened on the fourth pitch from Jenrry Mejia to Rockies' catcher Chris Iannetta.



For the third time this year, the Mets appeared poised to come back from a deficit, snaring a victory from the jaws of defeat. Instead, all they snared was another heartbreaking loss. Had they completed each comeback, their record would be a much more attractive 5-3 instead of the dreadful 2-6 that's staring back at us from the newspaper.

The Mets do believe in coming back. They've shown the ability to fight back from an early deficit on three occasions this year. However, if they want to remain relevant in the NL East race and not continue to be the laughing stock of baseball, they must add "We Believe In Winning" to the equation.

If the Mets don't learn how to pull out these tight ballgames soon, not only will their 2010 slogan seem silly, but the fans will stop believing in coming back...to Citi Field, that is.

M*A*S*H: Mets Are Still Hurting

For what seems like the 4077th time over the past year, the Mets' battalion has lost another of its key troops to the MASH unit. This time, it's Jose Reyes' turn to miss extended time, as his hyperthyroid condition will keep him out of action for as little as two weeks and as many as two months, as was revealed today on a conference call by Reyes' agent, Peter Greenberg.

The condition is not considered serious and Reyes will not be prescribed any medication for it. He will require plenty of rest and will be tested weekly until his thyroid levels come down to a normal level.

Even if Reyes misses the minimum two weeks, he would still need to rebuild his strength until he's healthy enough to play in a game, putting his Opening Day status in jeopardy.

Should Reyes miss Opening Day, he'd be the second regular player who will not be in the starting lineup when the Mets take the field on April 5 at Citi Field, joining Carlos Beltran, who is recovering from offseason knee surgery. Potential set-up man Kelvim Escobar will also be unavailable until at least mid-April due to a shoulder injury.



The more things change, the more they stay the same. Apparently the Mets didn't get the memo stating that 2009 was over. How else can you explain these injuries continuing? There's no WBC to blame it on this year.

Fortunately, these injuries will not keep Reyes, Beltran and Escobar off the field for a major chunk of the season (supposedly). When the Mets take the field with their ugly red caps during Memorial Day Weekend, all three players should be available to them. How they will perform is something we won't know until they cross the white lines.

Experiencing the 2009 season prepared Mets fans for the worst. These pre-season injuries/surgeries are bringing back visions of last year's reunion that took place at Citi Field. Unfortunately, the reunion I'm talking about is not the one featuring the 1969 Miracle Mets, but the one starring the 2009 Buffalo Bisons, since most of the players on the Bisons' Opening Day roster ended up reuniting as New York Mets at some point last season after each injury claimed another victim.

When the Mets added Jason Bay, fans thought this year could be different than last year. However, with each announcement of another player missing significant playing time, fans expecting to see the equivalent of Hot Lips Houlihan at Citi Field in 2010 might have to settle for Corporal Klinger instead.



There are still a little over three weeks of exhibition games left on the Late Winter Training docket. It's imperative for the Mets to focus on remaining healthy just as much as it is for them to get in game shape and practice good baseball fundamentals. (I'm talking to you, Angel Pagan!) They can't continue to lose players to injuries and expect to remain competitive for long.

These injuries almost make me wonder. When the Mets unveiled their "We Believe In Comebacks" slogan for 2010, were they referring to the team being able to come back from a miserable season to compete in the NL East or were they just being cautiously optimistic that injured players would eventually come back from their injuries before the season was over?

Let's just hope that the team doesn't believe in coming back to 2009. But with the way the injuries are popping up again in 2010, it sure looks like they're feeling nostalgic for last season.

Wilpon Monarchy To Continue; So Will Wilpon Malarkey

Mets fans think the only way the Mets can compete with the Phillies in the NL East is for Fred Wilpon to sell the team. However, according to a report by Adam Rubin in the Daily News, the man forever known to Studious Metsimus as "Stupid Is" not only has no plans to sell the team, he wants the Wilpon Monarchy to continue for generations to come.

While taking a break from counting the money he claims he doesn't have, Wilpon offered this tidbit about the family's involvement with the Mets:

"I've always said, if it's up to me, my family will be involved for the next generations. That's all I can tell you. I can't say that about any other asset we own."

That's good to know, Papa Smurf. But what about your feelings regarding the on-field results produced by your "asset" last season? Let's see if you notice a common theme in his various responses.

"Jeff (Wilpon) really dug into this area of what could we do to improve, to prevent injuries. Injuries are going to occur...in any sport they're going to occur. But what could we do to prevent injuries? I challenge you to tell me one team of any sport that could lose 10 or 12 of their key people and succeed. You can't. And I'm not using that as an excuse. I'm just saying you can't."

"Look, you've heard the theme that we have to stay healthy. I'm very optimistic that they will...I think that if they stay healthy, (that) translate(s) into a great team, and that's what my optimism is about, and what my hope is about."

So basically, Daddy No-Bucks is saying that if the Mets can avoid injuries this year, they'll be a competitive team. At least that's what I see when I read his excuse...oh, wait a minute. He said he's not using last year's injuries as an excuse. My bad.

Did it ever occur to him that even when the players were healthy, they weren't producing as well as they could have? David K. Wright hit his usual .300 and stole his customary 20+ bases, but he still only managed 10 HR and 72 RBI. Did injuries also cause him to whiff at an alarming rate?

What about Angel Pagan? Did injuries cause him to make all those baserunning mistakes that ended possible Met rallies?

On the pitching side, which injury was it that caused the Mets to be at or near the league lead in most walks allowed for the majority of the season?

There are many more "injuries" I could discuss, but the main injury I see here is the one causing Flushing Freddy to open his mouth and speak freely when he clearly doesn't know how an owner should run the show.

Instead of spending his popcorn money on a middle reliever here, a 30-something year-old there and a career minor leaguer or two, maybe he could have allocated some funds towards getting what the club desperately needed, a starting pitcher. There were numerous to choose from, but all we're left with is Johan Santana and The Four Rainouts.

The Jason Bay acquisition was a great pickup. He will surely help the offense. But when the team's most glaring hole (starting pitching) is left unaddressed, it makes me wonder if Wilpon really thinks that a healthy team is all that's needed for the team to compete for the division title or the wild card.

Johan Santana is coming off an injury that sidelined him for the last six weeks of the season. Had the Mets signed a dependable starting pitcher, they'd be in better hands if 'Han the Man gets injured again (please recall that Santana was pitching with a hidden injury at the end of the 2008 season as well).

Oliver Perez and John Maine are also coming off injury-plagued seasons. Even when they're supposedly healthy, they have difficulty keeping their pitch counts to a minimum, taxing their bullpen. Signing an innings-eater could have helped them should one or both pitchers continue to rack up five inning starts.

What about Mike Pelfrey? He was actually the healthy one of the staff, yet he couldn't keep his ERA under 5.00. Does Wilpon really think the Mets can compete if the #2 pitcher in the rotation has a similar season?
The Mets have many question marks entering the 2010 season. Fred (Stupid Is) Wilpon and his boy wonder, Jeff (Stupid Does) Wilpon think the Mets have what it takes to compete in the National League East. But as the picture above suggests, the captain of the ship has no clue that his ship will sink as it currently stands.

Just think, Mets fans. Fred Wilpon wants the Mets to remain under his family's ownership for generations to come. In 2010, the Mets' slogan might be "We Believe In Comebacks", but I think after hearing the words coming out of our fearless leader's mouth, the slogan should be "Stupid Is, Stupid Does and Stupid Will Always Be."

Have a nice day!