Revisiting the Philosophy of Moises Alou

By Taryn Cooper
Posted Monday, September 24, 2007

By Taryn “The Coop” Cooper

Back in June, I wrote this article, basically extolling the virtues of signing Moises Alou. Consider this, Part Deux of what has happened since Alou has come back to the team.

Back in the beginning of the season and even as he was injured, I was still drinking the Moises Alou Kool-Aid. I believed that when he did return, he would be “Mr. Contribution.” When he got back from his injury, however, he got off to a notoriously slow start. “Mr. Contribution,” all right. He was contributing by grounding out into double plays, weak grounders and just all around sluggish play.

We paid $8 million for this guy?

Then something magical occurred. After his 28-game (and still counting) hitting streak, .340 batting average, and his multiple contributions that have gone leaps and bounds over what he not only did early in the season, but what he was able to contribute in the final Pennant Push, does anyone blame me for taking a drink of the Kool-Aid?

When Moises went down for a long vacation, the Mets missed his bat. While it seemed like the Mets lost, oh about every single game in the month of June for example (and of course, I am exaggerating), the one thing we could say is — well, at least the pitching kept us in the game.

Then, the pitching (not to mention the bullpen) started floundering too. But the offense came together, and we managed to scrape by.

When Moises rejoined the lineup, it wasn’t exactly earth-shattering. In fact, I was beginning to wonder if we needed him anymore.

Twenty-eight games, a new Mets record, and an MLB record for the season — I would say, Moises Alou has been exactly what the doctor ordered.

The amazing thing about Alou is this: he may be 41 years old chronologically, but has the hunger of a rookie — and the focus of a veteran.

In other words: Alou has been exactly what the Mets needed this year. Good or bad, Alou could be counted on for a lot.

Whether it’s a key hit (like his game-tying single in the 8th inning against the Marlins on September 23) or a defensive play (like his key catch in that same game to end the inning), Moises Alou has been the lefty-masher we needed to plug in the lineup this year.

But that’s for 2007. Sadly, we may bid Alou adieu in the off-season, whether for retirement or just contractual reasons. But I will always have a soft spot in my Mets heart for Moises Alou as the catalyst for the pennant push in 2007. I could only imagine what he could have done had he not taken a vacation earlier in the season.