2012 Through Rose Colored Glasses

Ignoring the things we don't know... like the future of Jose Reyes and whether David Wright will be traded. Let us look at the season where everything just broke right for the Mets. So light a scented candle, put on some smooth jazz and relax as you allow yourself to pretend for a second that the Mets could JUST MAYBE get lucky.

Johan Santana is back on the mound on opening day. On that day he pitches seven strong innings whilst only giving up one run. As the season wares on he turns out a steady sub 3.00 ERA and 4-5 K's a game. He's not quite All-Star caliber but he's winning more games then he's losing and proving to still be the stopper when things aren't right.

Angel Pagan is hitting, running and fielding. By mid-July the thought of the Mets non-tendering Angel is laughable. His batting average is above .300 for the entire year and he's showed some pop here and there.

R.A. Dickey is SO good the Mets negotiate to extend his contract for two more seasons. Dickey has become the outspoken leader that the clubhouse has needed and his jersey becomes one of the top 5 selling Met jerseys.

Ike Davis is back and fully charged. He leads the NL in home runs through June before falling into a neck and neck race with Washington's surprising Mike Morse. Ike finishes his All Star season with the first (of what will be many) gold gloves.

Jenrry Mejia returns to AA after recovering from Tommy John surgery and promptly puts on a clinic. He winds up the year in AAA with a combined ERA under 2.00 and a 10.1 K/9. The Mets opt to not bring him up to the majors to allow him to build up his strength in the minors for a full year.

Lucas Duda is not only a surprise All Star game player, but he also manages to top Ike Davis for RBIs. His 111 RBIs have cemented Duda into the New York Met outfield for the foreseeable future.

Matt Harvey eases right into the majors. After giving up 4 runs in his first outing in the majors, Harvey quickly demonstrates JUST how good he really is. He finishes his year with a 3.56 ERA a 9.1 K/9 and a 10-4 record in 17 starts.

Jason Bay returns to being a solid performer with an average floating around .275 and 25 home runs on the year. He credits his returned success to an offseason strength building routine.

Zack Wheeler and Jeurys Familia both succeed in the minors. Both of them end the year in the AAA rotation ready to compete for the rotation in 2013. Familia is rumored to be headed for the bullpen but Sandy Alderson is mum on the issue.

The Mets are surprise contenders for the division finding themselves 7 games back of the Phillies with 14 games to play. After suffering injuries to Cliff Lee and Ryan Howard, the Mets win the NL East and return to the playoffs.

Improbable... unlikely and TECHNICALLY possible. Met fans... let us not give up on 2012 before 2012 begins. Even if the whole world tells us we have no shot of success, you play the game for a reason. In any season, in any game and in any inning... someone might just surprise you with something BIG.