I asked my brother, Pete Mele, to provide Mets post-season commentary on Nicco.org. Enjoy! – NM
I didn’t get to watch all of this game because I had to put my daughter to bed, and she didn’t go down easy. But I went to put her to bed confident after the 1st inning that a 3 run lead would last a while. It didn’t. I came back in the 5th inning (she really was cranky) and was tense up until our 2nd Carlos came to the plate and got a ball to catch the wind. And then a little tense again as Spezio found a ball that could ride the wind, right to the side of Green’s glove.
This does give me quite a bit of hope though. Carpenter is a pitcher I have always respected and for our Mets to take him for the ride that they did, definitely shows we have what it takes to stand our own against the Tigers. Or you know… the A’s. no really. Don’t laugh. They might do it.
I’m filled with some random statistics tonight: Carpenter has won his last 4 postseason starts. The Mets have won their last 9 of 10 post season home games. So it was a game where someone was going to disappoint. Some one was going to come up short. This is really the best part of being a Mets fan. Why? Well, it’s very similar to Nick Hornby’s conclusions on love in High Fidelity. They way I see it, you’ve got the Fantasy Teams. The teams who are always supposed to win. To Win BIG. The 2001 Seattle Mariners. The Braves of the last 14 years. The Yankees for the last 20 years. These teams can only disappoint you. They either meet your expectations or they fall terribly short. These are the movie stars and musicians you fantasize about. But they aren’t real. You never enter an understanding and fully aware relationship with them, becuase if A-Rod doesn’t go 4-4, you are pissed. You get up close and personal with Bono, but he’s got acne. And probably bad breath.
Then there are the teams that you know are gonna loose. The Brewers. The Pirates. Sure, somebody has to love them, but that’s kinda like the couples that get married, cause well you know it was the right thing to do. Yeah. I live in Milwaukee, and I don’t drink a bunch so I might as well spend my summers rooting for the Brewers. (My favorite Brewers moment? The movie Mr. 3000, where the teams big feel good finish is ending the season in 3rd place in their division. That really tells it all. When the industry that bends the laws of plausibility left and right says, hey now… 2nd place for the Brewers? Lets not stretch them too far.)
And (back on point) most importantly you have the middle level teams. The Mets have often had the potential to go far, and yet as Mets fans, we know they will do some classic Mets move. Loose 10 games in a row or bench Floyd right when he’s setting a hitting record (last May anyone?). Every really intense Met fans knows that the Mets have the drive to win big, but every Met fan also knows that at any moment, Benny Agbayani could toss a fly ball into the stands, even if it was only the 2nd out. It gives these games so much more. It makes giving up a triple to Scott Spezio a little easier to bear (Green… Seriously.. it went off your glove. Come on.) And the winning is that much sweeter because, as we all know Glavine could have easily give up 3 runs, Maine could have walk in a few, and Delgado could have swung way over the ball. But they didn’t and we love them for it. And most of all, we believe! Lets go Mets. Tied game in the 8th. Not to be an advert, but I Live For This.
As If It Matters 
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