Rising To The Occasion

By Stefi Kaplan
Posted Monday, August 6, 2007

Ever notice how historically mediocre hitters always seem to hit .500 against the Mets? How the career .217 hitters look like Albert Pujols? How about how the “poor defensive players” have more web gems in a short three-game series against the Mets than the entire Mets team has collectively all year? (I’m looking at you Ryan Braun/Kevin Mench.) I know you have noticed the no-name pitchers turning into Cy Young when they face us. And how many times have we heard Gary Cohen say “And [insert washed up veteran] has been in a year long slump…” only to see that player hit the next pitch out of the ballpark? So what gives?

Well, it is something that can’t be measured, quantified or really even understood. It’s called rising to the occasion. Players approach facing the Mets entirely differently than they do a series against the Phillies or the Cubs. Despite the fact that the Cardinals are the reigning world champions (sorry to bring that up, but it is true), teams and players really strive to take down the Mets more than any other National League team. Because the Mets are the class of the NL. Because they are the best team, at least on paper. Because they exhibit that aura of confidence, that unique blend of youth and veteran presence and that relentless ability to come back from a seemingly insurmountable deficit or put up crooked numbers to remove a pitcher in the first inning. And then of course, and perhaps most importantly, because they play in New York.

For better or worse, the Mets play in the most high profile market in the country. The Mets have it rough – despite always playing second rank in the media to that other New York team across town, the Mets still get that same reputation for being overpublicized (and thus overrated) because they play in New York. The irony is that the Mets finally got their own network last year and even SNY covers the Yankees almost as much as the Mets. We can’t even rise to the level of “overpublicized” on our own personal network!

True (non-Mets) baseball fans know that the Mets are nothing like the Yankees in terms of team composition and mentality. And anyone living in New York sees that a Yankee off-day is more enticing to the New York papers than a Mets walk-off win. But the large majority of people who watch baseball (i.e., not the crazy baseball fans or New Yorkers) don’t see any of that. There is a sense among most average fans that New York is evil, that the Mets’ payroll is just as high as that of the Yankees and that the Mets can and will buy any player they desire. Which explains why so many fans are bitter toward the Mets, making them a team everyone loves to hate and lumping them into the same category as the Evil Empire.

I think this mentality has to extend to the players as well, especially the young ones, even if inadvertently. Consider the fact that most young players are not so far removed from being fans and if they grew up in a smaller market, there is a good chance they grew up with an anti-New York sentiment. We all know how passionate fans can be about their teams. But that passion could be precisely what gives these players that extra drive to play up against the Mets. Imagine (growing up as a Mets fan) if you someday had an opportunity to play in the majors. Which game would you be more amped up for and most want to show the other team up – the Braves or the Nationals? Enough said.

Or, on the flip side, perhaps these players are playing for the league minimum in a small town and see playing the Mets as an opportunity to get their fifteen minutes. It’s no secret that a player could make a little more money by drawing the interest of the New York teams. A solid game against the Mets could do more for a young player’s career than the same game against another team – that’s just the reality of the business and the impact of the media.

Taking these things into consideration, it makes sense that players tend to overperform against the Mets. So, despite the fact that the Mets’ reputation is probably more than a bit unfair, the perception is that the Mets are the big New York bullies that everyone loves to take down. Forget the twenty-year drought of World Series championships, or the fact that most of the players on the team have never so much as played in a World Series game, they are the team to beat because they play in New York.

And this will never go away. Whether the Mets win 100+ games or beat the all-time record for losses set by the 1962 Mets team, the sentiment of playing against the Mets won’t change. I think the Mets as a team embrace it. Especially this current Mets team, which relishes the opportunity to tackle challenges (like all good teams should). It is harder to understand and accept this as a fan, however, because it is much more palatable to watch the Mets get shut down by Johan Santana than by Kyle Davies. And it is more understandable, even if not preferable, to give up the game-winning homerun to Larry Jones than to give up that same homerun to Kelly Johnson.

But that’s not reality. These mediocre players will continue to rise to the occasion against the Mets. It will never go away. But consider this: maybe it all evens out in the end. For every Greg Dobbs getting a big hit against the Mets, there is a Ryan Howard striking out with bases loaded. The Mets couldn’t hit Mike Maroth, but took down ace Jake Peavy instead. And before we start claiming that it is not fair, well, maybe it is. Maybe it is perfectly fair because we do have a higher payroll than the majority of the other teams and the greatest players in baseball do seem to want to play in New York these days, in blue and orange of course.

So bring it, Hong Chih Kuo. I’m pretty sure the Mets will eventually take you down. I mean, you can only rise to the occasion for so long before the limits of your talent are exposed. And if not, we can always rest assured that ace Brad Penny may start the next night.