Can-Do Attitude

[TransMonk]

The optimists are up. Give me a reason (or three) why you think the Mets can make the playoffs this season.

I'll start: The average opponent's winning percentage in Mets games remaining: .474

18 games against last place teams (ARI, ATL, MIN, CIN)
13 games against below .500 but not last place teams (SDP and PHI)
15 games against above .500 but not first place teams (NYY, DET, MIA, STL)
10 games against first place teams (WAS and SF)

A few opportunities left to make head-to-head hay vs. WAS, MIA and STL...but also plenty of opportunities to beat up on the little guys.

[Edgy MD]

Young hitters are asserting themselves. The last two games anyhow.

Longer for young hitters named "Flores."

[Guest Mets Guy in Michigan]

We have great starting pitching. That goes far. And with slightly improved offense -- like more than one run -- that will go far.

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

Jay Bruce motivated by the potential to become the team's all-time run leader among guys who wear No. 19 (he needs 18).

[Edgy MD]

Ryan Church? Roger Cedeño?

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

Cedeno

[Zvon]

The Mets could make a mad run, string a few winning streaks, end up 5 games up when the dust settles, because this is baseball.

[Ceetar]

Mets have been unlucky and the National have been lucky. d'Arnaud will round into form and make all the difference. The RISP numbers will round out and the Mets will start scoring in bunches again. They'll rattle off 8/11 and 15/21 somewhere along the way into that first Nats series in September.

Mets will close ground and pounce during the final 6 Nats games. That's where it's at.

[TransMonk]

I'll admit, once Yo gets healthy, the Mets now have A LOT of offensive potential.

I hope 5 days of DHing gets him right.

[Guest d'Kong76]

Ya don't gotta believe, but it helps if you do...
[fimg=550]https://b6c18f286245704fe3e9-05e2055f4cd9122af02914269431c9f6.ssl.cf1.rackcdn.com/5623760_ya-gotta-believe-again_t4b8c0604.jpg[/fimg]

Edited August 3, 2016 by Guest

[Zvon]

Walker could have another April and a half. Bruce could go on to drive in 120. Conforto could become Stan The Man for a few months. The lack of plating RISP could balance out as it should, which means we will be doing a shitload of that from here on out. This can all happen because it's baseball. So I always hope, until the fat lady gets right in my face.

[Centerfield]

Totally possible. Maybe not likely, but definitely possible.

We don't have the rotation we did last year, but if everyone gets healthy and starts hitting, this is not bad:

1. Reyes SS
2. Walker 2B
3. Bruce RF
4. Cespedes LF
5. Duda 1B
6. Conforto CF
7. Flores 3B
8. d'Arnaud C

Sprinkle in Loney and Cabrera (if he comes back), Johnson, Nimmo, de Aza. Still need a RH hitter off the bench, maybe waiver move?

Rotation is solid, if not dominant, and the bullpen is good enough. You can add waiver guys there too. Let's slug our way to the title.

[TransMonk]

Centerfield wrote: Still need a RH hitter off the bench, maybe waiver move?

Maybe this guy?

[fimg=500]http://www3.pictures.zimbio.com/gi/Colorado+Rockies+v+New+York+Mets+MMTS_f1y9Esl.jpg[/fimg]

[Guest d'Kong76]

They're only a game and half out of the wildcard (of course, the push should be
towards the division) and they have 7 games against the Fishsticks and 7 against
the Gnats. There's two months left, they can be in and out of it a half dozen times
in that stretch... just win tonight.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

Duda is this year's d'Arnaud.

Cespedes is this year's Cespedes.

[Centerfield]

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr wrote: Duda is this year's d'Arnaud. Cespedes is this year's Cespedes.

Conforto is this year's Conforto.

[TransMonk]

As long as Bruce isn't last year's Bruce...his 2015 Aug and Sept stats were stinky!

[Centerfield]

It's crazy that they are this close with all that has gone wrong this season:

1. Lost their first baseman
2. Lost their shortstop
3. Lost their thirdbaseman for the year
4. Lost their catcher (found him again, thankfully)
5. Lost their best defensive CF
6. Primary backup OF'er was terrible
7. Conforto played so bad he was demoted
8. Lost Harvey for the season
9. Employed the services of Eric Campbell!
10. Wheeler had a setback
11. Plenty of bone spurs to go around
12. Reached historic levels of futility with RISP

And meanwhile everything has come up roses for Washington.

All of that changes now. For the next three months, everything goes our way, and Washington comes to realize that 2016 is not their year. It's the year the Baseball Gods decided to fuck with them.

[Frayed Knot]

TransMonk wrote: 18 games against last place teams (ARI, ATL, MIN, CIN) 13 games against below .500 but not last place teams (SDP and PHI).

All this optimism forgets one thing: We lose to bad teams!

[Lefty Specialist]

St. Louis, Washington and Miami could be involved in a three-way plane crash.

Outside of that, eh, I got nothin'.

And meanwhile everything has come up roses for Washington.

And that explains why they're 8 1/2 up on the Mets and pulling away.

[ashie62]

I thought the SP and RP pitching would be better.

[Edgy MD]

Third best ERA in the league despite Harvey never being right, Wheeler never arriving, and Mejia getting banned for life. I don't see how we could have asked for more.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr wrote: Duda is this year's d'Arnaud. Cespedes is this year's Cespedes.

Yeah, so...

[ashie62]

Centerfield wrote: It's crazy that they are this close with all that has gone wrong this season: 1. Lost their first baseman 2. Lost their shortstop 3. Lost their thirdbaseman for the year 4. Lost their catcher (found him again, thankfully) 5. Lost their best defensive CF 6. Primary backup OF'er was terrible 7. Conforto played so bad he was demoted 8. Lost Harvey for the season 9. Employed the services of Eric Campbell! 10. Wheeler had a setback 11. Plenty of bone spurs to go around 12. Reached historic levels of futility with RISP Well done. And meanwhile everything has come up roses for Washington. All of that changes now. For the next three months, everything goes our way, and Washington comes to realize that 2016 is not their year. It's the year the Baseball Gods decided to fuck with them.

[Centerfield]

We can still do this. Plenty of season left.

Turn around starts today.

[Centerfield]

Fuck it man. They fucking suck.

[Benjamin Grimm]

I wish I had gone back to Peru.

[Guest d'Kong76]

The quest this week I guess is to stay above .500.

[Guest Rockin' Doc]

Centerfield wrote: We can still do this. Plenty of season left. Turn around starts today.

I'd like whatever Centerfield is drinking.

Centerfield wrote: Fuck it man. They fucking suck

.

Damn, that buzz didn't last long. Best make mine a double.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

I'm not saying we should lean into this slide. But maybe the last month of the year is for regrouping, seeing what we have in some youngsters, and if the draft position improves a bit, well, all the better.