What The Mets Must Do To Put The Thumbs-Down Drama In The Rearview
With frustrations boiling over on multiple ends of the spectrum, the uproar caused by the meaning of the players using the thumbs-down gesture has created a whirlwind of unneeded drama with the Mets' season dangling by a thread.
And at this point, there is only one thing that the Mets can do to make this go away -- and that's win.
Maybe this whole thing was blown out of proportion, and based on the reactions from owner Steve Cohen and president Sandy Alderson, it sounds like we will soon be hearing some sort of clarification/apology from Javier Báez regarding the comments he made following the Mets' 9-4 win over the Nationals.
Regardless, the last thing the Mets want to do is to play against their fans since not only are they the customer, but their energy can help uplift the team when they need them the most. The players want the fans on their side. Especially with their backs against the wall, as they are in need of a miracle to get back in the postseason race at 7.5 games back in the NL East with 32 games left to play.
Yes, the booing is obviously going to get to them. No one wants to be booed, ever. But the bottom line is, the fans boo because they are passionate and disappointed with how the team has played lately.
And rightfully so. The Mets held onto first place for three straight months and found themselves with a record of 54-46 and a four game lead in the division as of July 28. However, they have since plummeted, going 9-21 in their last 30 games. Not only did this push them down to third place, but they now have a record of 63-67 and went from four games up, to 7.5 games behind the Atlanta Braves.
They also came up small in two of the biggest moments of the season, getting swept by the Phillies at Citizens Bank Park earlier this month to lose first place, as well as going 2-11 against the Dodgers and Giants during a rough 13-game stretch.
This Mets team has noticeably let the fans, media and social media get to them this season. And during this putrid stretch, where they haven't delivered, they have remained focused on the outside noise, which has likely affected their play.
They continue to stress positivity, when in reality, that's just not going to cut it in New York if you aren't performing. If you don't deliver, you are going to get booed. It happened to Mickey Mantle, Dave Winfield, Alex Rodriguez, you name it. Every big star in this town has been booed at some point. If you can't handle it, then you shouldn't play here. It takes a different type of individual to play in this city given the pressure that it brings.
At this point, Báez, Francisco Lindor and the rest of the players who have a voice in that clubhouse need to make amends with the fans. While the booing puts more pressure on them when they aren't performing, the colossal hole that they have to dig themselves out of just got deeper, due to Báez's comments whether they were misconstrued or not.
The fans ultimately buy tickets to come watch the players of their favorite team perform well. When this doesn't happen, they are upset and express that by booing. It is a tale as old as time in sports, and an aspect that should not be taken personally.
Not to mention, that the fans have every right to be mad at what has taken place over the course of the past 30 games. Instead of getting mad at the fans for being ticked at the outcome, the Mets must re-direct their focus to winning more ball games and playing a better brand of baseball. Maybe this incident will finally ignite the Mets and help them turn the corner, but the players just made a tall task even taller by calling out the fans.
And if they don't go on a run here as soon as Tuesday when they face the Marlins, the boos will only get louder. Unfortunately, the Mets players just put a whole lot more pressure on themselves.
The only way it will go away? Is by winning.
