9th Inning Anxiety

While I watched Billy Wagner once again take years off of the lives of New York Mets fans everywhere when he blew a save recently against the Phillies, it hit me that the feeling of angst I had was way too familiar. It's one of the worst feelings a baseball fan could have, that feeling that no lead is ever safe. Unfortunately, Mets fans know this feeling very well. In my lifetime as a Mets fan (established in 1984), they have never had a bullpen stopper. Have they had closers? Definitely. They've had a few players who were very good at collecting saves. Brooklyn native John Franco and his 276 saves as a Met is the first person that comes to mind. Jesse Orosco notched 107 saves while playing in Queens. Even the infamous Armando Benitez logged 160 saves for the Mets, good for second in franchise history. Of course statistics, especially the save statistic, never tell the entire story. None of these relievers were true stoppers. They were not "turn out the lights, this game is over" firemen. Whether it was Braden Looper spraying fastballs to random parts of the strike zone or Benitez hanging sliders, the Mets bullpen aces always seemed to struggle against the better teams. They weren't Dennis Eckersley. They weren't Mariano Rivera. At one point Randy Myers seemed like he would develop into an elite level closer for the Mets. The lefty with the broad shoulders would arrive to the mound with an explosive fastball, a sharp slider, and the swagger of a gun-slinging cowboy. But the Mets traded him for John Franco. Franco, who is the franchise all-time saves leader, obviously was extremely productive and a fan favorite. However he had a knack for "making things interesting" in the 9th inning and his lack of velocity made him vulnerable against better teams. Meanwhile Myers went on to be the anchor of the Reds "Nasty Boys" bullpen trio and helped lead them to the World Series in 1990. Of course true stoppers, like franchise quarterbacks, are rare. Eckersley was a middle of the road starter before becoming the model of the modern day closer. Rivera has been freakishly dominant in his career, especially when you consider that everyone knows he's throwing the cutter, and it just doesn't matter. With that said, I still hold out hope that one day the Mets will acquire or develop a true stopper. Someone that will shorten the game. Someone that will put fear into opposing teams. Until then, please pass the Valium, Wagner just came into the game.