Tom Brennan - Post Season Baseball in New York

If you bother to jump, why not be sure you make it?

Someone challenged something I wrote here a few weeks ago - about me being too focused on Mets' failures, I think - hey, it happens.  

We all have opinions.

I suggested, however, as a homework assignment, that the person research the Yankees' post season appearances over the past 25 years vs. the Mets', to see that I was not making my point flippantly, but was concerned with:

The Mets really actually being able to make the playoffs A LOT MORE than they do.

The assignment, sadly, was never handed in.  Bad student.

So, not relying on the unnamed bad student, I have my teacher's answer sheet here - this is how it goes:

Yankees Playoffs - 1995-present:

21 playoff appearances in 25 years.

I did not ask how many World Series they won, or how many rounds they won in the play offs how many times.

I just asked how many times they made the playoffs.

84% of the time in the past 25 seasons.

Of course, I would be remiss if I did not remind you, the readers, that the Mets have had 33 seasons without winning a World Series, while the Bronx Boys have won several in that span - if you are interested, you go count them up.

Most years, the Yankees know they are getting in long before the season ends - the only drama being: division title or wild card.  Nothing flukey.  They have strong teams - they play well - they win. 

Simple.

You see, Yankees fans have had their expectations greatly raised - they expect nothing less than the playoffs.

Most times, they have real reason to also assume that they will go deep into the playoffs.  They have real reason to believe this well before the season ends.  Pressure's off on their fans - they don't bite their fingernails - they just go to games and enjoy themselves, expecting SUCCESS.  

OK, they failed against the Astros - but their fans got 9 exciting games - 9 more than we got.  

OK, enough about the Yanks.  What about those Mets, huh?

Mets Playoffs - 1995-present:

Well, they made it 5 times in 25 years - that's 20%.  

(Actually, I believe it is just 5 in the last 31 seasons now - that's 16%).

Since 10 out of 30 teams make the playoffs each year, they are well below standard

And even more so as a big market team.

Of those 5 appearances, two were flukey - ask most Mets fans in mid-July 2015, and in late August 2016, if they thought the Mets were getting into the playoffs, and they would have said no.  

In 2015, Daniel Murphy ignited, Achy Breaky Cespedes showed up along like thunder, with Kelly Johnson and Juan Uribe, and the worst offense in baseball through mid-July became the best in baseball over the rest of the season - which, if you're honest, is flukey.  Who expects a team to be worst for over half the season, then the best the rest of the way?  FLUKEY!

The next season, TJ Rivera shows up in September, gets hot, and the Mets scramble to grab the wild card slot that looked unlikely going into August.  Flukey, too.

Take out the Mets' "flukey playoff seasons" and they are down to 3 playoff appearances in 25 years that were pretty solid early on.  

I don't know about you, but:

I find this BLATANTLY UNACCEPTABLE.

And I have seen it often on Mets fan Facebook sites - if you complain about the Mets as a Mets fan, you are not a true Mets fan.

Nope, not so.  If you don't complain, you are highly naive.  

Because their playoff history over the past 25 years has been BLATANTLY UNACCEPTABLE.

Wait, I already said that, didn't I?

If you agree with me, reach out to the front office, and tell them so.

Or just complain (or not) to no one who could make a difference.