Tom Brennan - COLLISIONS GOOD AND BAD
The Mets were hoping Dominic Smith would be an impact player for them, but not in the way he made his impact in the 13th inning, as he collided into Amed Rosario to prevent Amed from snaring an inning ending pop up, and instead allowing what would be the winning run to score.
But, to look at the positive, said Ike Davis (at least I imagine he said it), the Mets did not put Amed into an ankle boot afterwards last night. And Dom walked off in far better physical shape than the guy Ike collided with on May 10, 2011, one David Wright (see video)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MIF2G7vLtoY.
At the moment before Ike and David collided, we sure felt great about both, didn't we?
Ike, coming off a strong rookie campaign, was hitting like an All Star on May 10 of his sophomore season. Soph Jinx? Nah - at least until then.
Ike was hitting .302/.383/.543 through 36 games. Ike and David's collision seemed like nothing, a minor impact. Ike was never the same again.
David Wright on the same date was at .234/.338/.401, far below his blazing earlier career standards, and dealing with what at the time was thought to be a sore back.
He had seen his home run production be crushed in his first season in 2009 in Citi Cavern, dropping from 33 in 2008 to 10 in 2009, while still managing to hit .307 in 2009 despite many a would-be extra base hit being caught by outfielders in 2009 in the Cavern. He adjusted in 2010 and hit 29 homers in his last sound season.
We assumed on that date that if you fixed the fences, you'd have a super duo in Wright and Davis.
In 2011, Wright also (like Ike) ran head-long into mortality, playing in just 102 games and finishing at .254. The collision did not impact him, but it did smash the dreams of having matching perennial All Stars at the right (1B) and left (3B) sides of the diamond.
So Amed and Dom's collision did not seem at all bad by comparison. Maybe it will jar Smith back to being the player we all thought not so long ago that he could become. In the long run, that would make it a good collision.
Wright's and Davis' collision, however, was a terrible turning point for the Mets.
In the next episode of As the World Turns or As CitiField Burns...we find out if Amed Rosario's hot hitting earns him a spot on the bench, if Jose Bautista gets his AARP card before David Wright takes a major league swing, and what dirty blackmail photos does Jose Reyes lord over the team to keep him in the lineup. Like sands through an hourglass, so go the days of our lives.
ReplyDeleteTom
ReplyDeleteI always thought that Davis would be our first baseman.
Yo lo tengo.
ReplyDeleteOf course, the Yanks have caught a cold from the Mets' fever, with the serious injury to Judge and the Clint Frazier concussion from his collision. The Mets still have a double digit lead in injuries, though.
ReplyDeleteThe Yanks also overstocked, and adjusted, so that when injuries came, they'd proceed at a winning pace. The Mets cross fingers.