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Don’t get mad at Braves for winning it all, Mets fans

Photo via UPI

Dear Mets fans:

I know it’s hard to watch the World Series with the Atlanta Braves in it this year. It’s been tough watching the Philadelphia Phillies and Washington Nationals win the World Series while the Mets haven’t won the Fall Classic since 1986.

The Braves are three wins away from winning the World Series after taking a 6-2 victory over the Houston Astros in Game 1 Tuesday night at Minute Maid Park.

It just could be this is the Braves’ year with how everything has gone right for them this postseason. Tuesday night served as a great example with Jorge Soler hitting a leadoff home run in his first at-bat to Ozzie Albies making a great grab to end the Astros’ bases-loaded threat in the first inning to Charlie Morton striking out Chas McCormick, forcing Martin Maldonado to line out and striking out Jose Altuve on a broken leg (his right fibula took a beating on Yuli Gurriel’s liner) until he left the game to the bullpen.

I understand your pain if another hated rival wins the World Series.

As much as I am rooting for the Houstons Astros to win it all, I won’t be upset if the Braves win it all. I actually respect them more than I do with the Nationals or Phillies. They have plenty of likable players from Freddie Freeman to Albies to Ronald Acuna Jr. to old friend Travis d’Arnaud to Darby Swanson. Who doesn’t like Braves 3B coach Ron Washington (my choice for Mets manager)? Braves manager Brian Snitker has been a baseball lifer for all this time, and now he is reaping the rewards.

It could be much worse. Besides seeing the Nationals win it all two years ago was worse since that team was unlikeable.

If anything, I would be more upset with the Mets for quitting on the season by not doing much in the trade deadline because Mets ace Jacob deGrom was basically out for the season with an elbow injury. Sure, the Mets went halfway by acquiring Javier Baez just to show Mets fans that they were trying.

You are not stupid, though. You know the Mets put on a dog and pony show by attempting they tried with the Baez acquisition while doing nothing else. That’s what makes you the Mets fan a unique fan. You suffer no fools, which is the best trait of being a Mets fan.

You saw what Braves general manager Alex Anthopoulos did when Acuna tore his ACL that him out for the season. Rather than punt the season like Sandy Alderson did, he remade and retool the team. He acquired Joc Pederson, Adam Duvall, Jorge Soler and Eddie Rosario to retool the outfield and compensate for the loss of his star player. He even acquired Richard Rodriguez to bolster the bullpen.

Yes, the Braves have so many good players where they can get by, but the message was clear. They were not going to let an injury derail their season. The Mets did by not even trying, and that’s hard to accept.

Not only did the Mets do nothing this trade deadline, but they als had a losing season. They fired their manager in Luis Rojas, and their general manager Zack Scott had to be suspended for DWI. Theo Epstein and Billy Beane rejected Steve Cohen’s overtures to oversee their baseball operation, and the Brewers denied David Stearns permission to interview with the Mets.

It’s a mess that is just too familiar.

All you can do is just admire how the Braves do this with a limited budget. It takes creativity. It means a great baseball culture. It requires intelligence. It means getting players that know how to win.

The Mets have none of that. Not even your owner with big bucks can change that at this point.

Maybe that’s why you are upset that the Braves are in the World Series that can win it all, right? Because they just do it better than the Mets.

I feel your pain, but I would rather channel my anger towards Mets and Cohen. They are more of a problem than the Braves. I mean who keeps Sandy Alderson around when he did such a terrible job operating the Mets in his second stint here? He hired Jared Porter and Scott to be the GMs, and they embarrassed the organization with their off-the-field issues. Porter got caught with his past by sending a lewd text message to a woman that was reported by ESPN’s Jeff Passan, and Scott had the hubris to drive drunk thinking he would not be caught.

This Mets franchise failed you time after time. We thought it would be different with Cohen coming in, but from what we saw this past season, he might be another Wilpon. Keeping Alderson in the organization should serve as a second strike with a losing season as the first strike.

Who knows where the Mets go from here? This should be more of your concern than the Braves maybe winning it all.

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