My friend Jeff sent me an email today asking me if I could name the last time the Mets had won a "there's no way we're going to lose this" game, after the Yankees had done that very thing last night. He came up with two:

• October 3, 1999: The Mets win a walk off against the Pirates to send them to a one-game playoff with Cincinnati.
• September 21, 2001: The first sporting event in New York after 9/11.

Being a Mets fan is iike being suckered by a used car salesman. When we were kids we thought we were getting a decent team (a World Series and and NLCS in a 3 year span) for a reasonable price (not losing our souls). But then, just after we pulled out of the lot, the transmission fell out. But rather than return it, we kept driving home, hoping that someone would fix it. instead, the doors and wheels fell off, and finally between '06 and '08, the airbag inexplicably deployed and punched us in the nuts.

We're fans of a team that, in it's first 24 years of existence went to the World Series 3 times and won 2 of them (and had a legit shot at beating the A's in '73). But in the last 24 years, they have been to the World Series just once, and had no business being there. Even with an extra playoff spot, they've only hit the postseason 4 times since '86, and won the NL East outright just twice (and, coincidentally enough, were the best team in the NL both years, and failed to make the World Series...).

We're fans of a team that only once in their history have they made the postseason in consecutive years, and that was ONLY because of the Wild Card.

We're fans of a team that is the oldest to have never thrown a no-hitter (But are second in one-hitters since 1962!). And I'm sure if someone looked it up, we probably lead the majors in pitchers who've thrown no-hitters elsewhere (I can name 7 right now).

We're fans of a team that has made one superb trade in 48 years (Piazza), but made several million shitty trades. Three that stick out in my mind:

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  Nolan Ryan and 3 other players for Jim Fregosi?

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  Lenny Dykstra and Roger McDowell for Juan Samuel? (This was their big trade deadline move in '89...) 

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  Tom Seaver for scrap metal? (Ok, not really, but it might as well have been.)

Even the Santana trade is starting to look like the Mets got hosed.

We're fans of a team that, no matter how hard they try, will always be Gerald Wilkins to the Yankees' Dominique. The Frank Stallone to the Yankees Sylvester.

And now, 25 years later, that shitty used car is still sitting in our driveways, taking up space and leaking oil all over. Sure, once in a while it starts, and we can even drive it around the block, hoping to take it on the highway one more time. But, inevitably the driver's seat falls through the rusty floor, and we have to push the car home. This Mets team had it's shot in '06, but Carlos Beltran let a World Series ring sail by him atop an Adam Wainwright curveball.