By Mike Trovato
New York City earned the moniker “the city that never sleeps” because of its vibrant energy, bold lights, and bustling nightlife.
Yet, an argument can be made that the reason New Yorkers aren’t sleeping has as much to do with their sports teams as anything else, if not more so. And that doesn’t necessarily mean all good things. While there has been a lot of excitement, there have also been some moments that I’m sure have caused many people to lose some sleep.
Always an epicenter of media attention, New York’s teams have caused a major stir this year, in the tabloids, on the news and over the airwaves. January saw the Giants become kings of the football world with the biggest upset in NFL history over the previously undefeated Patriots. The Jets stole the back pages in August as the acquisition of future Hall-Of-Fame Quarterback Brett Favre sent New Yorkers into a clever-headline, jersey-buying “Jet Favre” frenzy. As for the months in between the Manning/Tyree heroics and Brett the Jet’s arrival, New York has been absorbed in its Major League Baseball clubs.
It’s incredible how so many things can change in such a short period of time. Since I last wrote, names we all know have taken a backseat, while names (and concepts) that never would have touched New York air have now become extremely relevant.
A Yankee-less October? Unheard of. The injury-plagued Bombers have imploded, and now sit in fourth place in the AL East. Across town, more “unheard-of’s” turned out positively for the Mets.
Luis Ayala? Unheard of. Or at least he was before August 19th. With Billy Wagner being shut down until at least 2010, Ayala has catapulted from being a mediocre-at-best reliever on the last place Nationals, to the closer for the Mets in the thick of the playoff race.
Fernando Tatis? The guy who hadn’t been relevant this millennium, known best for hitting two grand slams in one inning back in 1999. The resurrection of Tatis’ career became complete when the Mets called upon the former third baseman to fill the void left by injured corner outfielders Ryan Church and Moises Alou. Fernando hit .316 over July and August, exploding for 10 home runs and 33 RBI, adequately carrying the baton for the concussed Church.
Daniel Murphy? People may have heard of Ayala and Tatis, but Murphy was never on the big league radar, ever- until last month. In 37 games with the club (through Tuesday), Murphy has hit a stunning .360, and has shown that there actually was some talent left in the Mets farm system after it was practically expunged by the Santana trade.
Back in early May, I wrote of the Mets, “The bottom line is this: The Mets marquee players must hit better;” specifically Reyes, Beltran and Delgado. Since May, Reyes has hit .307 and stolen 44 bases. Beltran is, almost silently, one of three Mets with 100+ runs batted in. Most people only expected the Mets to have two men with 100 RBI, namely Beltran and David Wright. The third contributor has been possibly the biggest surprise in all of the New York sports headlines, even bigger than the Yankee’s not making the playoffs. I must admit, as right as I may have been about the stars needing to hit, I was equally wrong about that third man, Carlos Delgado, being finished.
Delgado, at the time I documented it in my May 1st article, ranked 24th in batting average and on-base percentage, and had just 3 HR and 12 RBI. At that point, I referred to Carlos as, “no longer a player that managers ask their aces to pitch around,” and “essentially being paid for his past.” Wow, was I wrong. That’s not to say that anyone else on the planet would have disagreed with me then, but Delgado’s return from what looked like the twilight of his career has him back in the heart of the lineup and within reach of his fourth career 40-homer season.
Carlos is in the thick of the race for National League MVP, and is without question the biggest reason the Mets are where they are right now. Granted, the rapid maturation of Mike Pelfrey has been extremely important, and the contributions of Murphy and Tatis have certainly helped. But Delgado’s tear of 21 HR and 69 RBI in 72 games June 27th has charged the Mets lineup. He has risen back to again being one of the league’s top first basemen. He is 3rd in the majors with 36 HR, and his 106 RBI are 10th best in the league. Most importantly, Carlos has driven the club from fourth place right into the thick of the playoff race, making Jerry Manuel look like a genius.
Since the methodologically questionable firing of Willie Randolph, Jerry Manuel’s Mets have won over 60% of their games, going 49-32. At the same time though, keep in mind that these are, for the most part, the same Mets that Randolph had when he was still in town. The bullpen has been a roller coaster, and has blown 27 saves, 5th worst in the league. The Mets didn’t make a blockbuster trade at the deadline. They were minus Church and Luis Castillo and are now without Wagner and John Maine. Taking all these things in consideration, Manuel does deserve an immense amount of credit, and if he does win Manager of the Year, he will be well deserving of it.
While the Mets far from clinched a playoff spot, but the fact of the matter is, without Delgado the Mets would have been on the outside looking in by now, enduring a long summer and second straight bitter winter. I admit, I was wrong to write him off. We all were. That being said let me go on the record in saying that should the Mets avoid a second straight collapse and make the playoffs, Delgado should, without question, be the National League MVP.