Mike's Mets - Auld Lang Syne

 

By Mike Steffanos

As 2022 gives way to 2023, I raise my glass to a future filled with promise and excitement for Mets fans.

On New Year's Eve, it's traditional to look backward. For many years, it was difficult for a Mets fan like me to reflect on a completed baseball season and feel very good about it. This time around, it's easy to do. Even though it didn't end as I had hoped, the 2022 New York Mets season was a huge step forward. The Mets returned to the playoffs for the first time since their 1-game cameo in 2016 after winning over 100 games for only the fourth time in their history. They took the first important step in changing the perception of the Mets as laughable losers.

The song that has become associated with the New Year's Eve holiday, "Auld Lang Syne," is an old Scottish song. The original words are indecipherable to those of us who weren't bred in the highlands six centuries ago. Dictionary.com did an excellent job of explaining the meaning of the song's title:

The words auld lang syne literally mean “old long since,” though in practice it means "old times, especially times fondly remembered," as well as an "old or long friendship." It’s from the Scots language, and the expression was first recorded in 1660–1680.

For Mets fans, "fondly remembered old times" used to require taking a significant trip back in our memories. But there are great recollections from the season that I can indeed fondly remember. Still, like previous playoff seasons of 1988, 1999, 2000, 2006, 2015, and even 2016, there is also the final, somewhat sour aftertaste of unfinished business. It's been more than 36 years since a season ended in total bliss. For me, that was almost a lifetime ago. For younger fans, the championship seasons of 1969 and 1986 seem like mythological events. The sequel to those great seasons is long overdue.

Part of what stung so much when the Mets dropped the rubber game in the wildcard series was the uncertainty about when they might return to the playoffs with a roster so strong. With so much of their pitching staff and their centerfielder hitting free agency all at once, the Mets seemed likely to take a step backward for 2023. At least, that was the worry. And those worries only grew deeper when Jacob deGrom departed for the Lone Star state a month ago.

Looking back now, that concern feels more than a little silly. While it seemed inevitable that Steve Cohen would spend enough to field another winning ball club, Cohen exceeded reasonable expectations in the spending spree that he authorized GM Billy Eppler and the rest of the front office to pursue. I honestly wonder if we'll ever witness another month like December 2022 again. Not that I doubt Steve Cohen's commitment to this club, but to land the sheer number of top free agents in a single month that the Mets managed to do was remarkable. We could still see successful future hot stove seasons that fall quite short of this one.

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