Giving The Devil His Due ..... Finally

By John "Metstradamus" Coppinger
Posted Friday, April 13, 2007

"I think we are the team to beat in the NL East – finally. But, that's only on paper." –Jimmy Rollins
 

With those words back in February, Rollins threw down the gauntlet. And Mets fans picked it up and beat him over the head with it during the home opener, after his error helped the Mets tie the game. It’s important for us to stay in touch with our feelings of anger, and understand exactly why we’re mad at Jimmy Rollins.

In a sports writing culture where fans of teams that lose constantly have to hear that teams like the Yankees and the Braves “are the champs until someone knocks them off”, Mets fans had every right to expect at least a little of the same love and respect from the mainstream media. Now the Mets have certainly done some of that constant losing in the early decade of the 00’s, but one would figure that the work that Omar Minaya and Willie Randolph have done would speak for itself.

But it never has seemed that way has it? Instead, it seemed like the accomplishments of Minaya and Randolph were callously cast aside as everyone was looking for the successor to the Mets’ throne before they even officially sat in that throne. It went from “hey, look at those Marlins” back in July of ’06 to “watch out for those Phillies” during the winter, and then finally it was “you know the Braves bullpen is going to bring them back to the top” near the very end of spring training. Whenever talked turned to the Mets, the prevailing theme was “well, their starting pitching stinks.”

So when Jimmy Rollins came with the “team to beat on paper” quote, it put a face to the disrespect. And it wasn’t just any face; Jimmy Rollins is a boo-able face. Let’s face it, 56,000 people aren’t going to boo the press box or the broadcast booth, because P.A. announcer Alex Anthony isn’t going to introduce Wallace Matthews or Steve Phillips to the crowd. But Jimmy Rollins is going to have his face plastered on the Diamond Vision with the accompanying “now batting…shortstop…Jimmy Rollins” over the loud speaker.

You know what got me about the quote? It wasn’t so much Rollins’ assertion that the Phillies were the team to beat…because really, what do you expect Rollins to say? Do you expect him to concede the division in March? I certainly don’t. But it was the throw in word: “Finally”, as if the lords of baseball reached down with a glowing finger and made Tom Gordon ten years younger, brought back Freddy Garcia’s velocity, and made Geoff Geary into an all-star all with one touch. It was a one-quote, one-word summary of what every “expert” seemed to be doing, which was writing off the Mets.

For a fan base that already has a Yankee complex, and for so long a Braves complex, it was yet another perceived slap in the face.

But you have to hand it to Rollins. He knew that the bulls-eye was squarely on him this season because of those quotes. And on a team that is falling apart at the seams so far, you can’t blame Rollins. He leads the Phillies in most offensive categories including home runs (3) RBI’s (6) and runs (7). And he knew and understood what he was in for when he came to Shea Stadium, especially after his error. He took his medicine without any cherry flavor or dilution. He drank it down in one gulp.

"I like it. I do. They say something, you wave at them. Give 'em thumbs up," he said. "They were cracking on me pretty good. I've been booed, but not like this. It was kind of fun." –Rollins after the Mets home opener

Let’s face it: if Rollins was a New York Met and he made those comments in spring training, he’d be the toast of our town. So although you are decreed to automatically hate Jimmy Rollins (and after Monday, we all know that hating Jimmy Rollins can be loads of fun), the hate must come with at least a dash of respect.
 

For more Jimmy Rollins hating (with all due respect, of course), come on down to my home at http://metstradamus.blogspot.com and show Jimmy the Bronx, where hopefully he and Bobby Bonilla will fight to the death and I can profit by selling tickets…which begs the question: Who would you root for in a fight to the death between Jimmy Rollins and Bobby Bonilla? Stop, my brain hurts.