After an off-season filled with mountains of snow and legal documents, baseball was warmly welcomed back to Queens as the Mets took on the Washington Nationals in their home opener at Citi Field on Friday, April 8.
Fans roared during the player announcements for their new manager Terry Collins, fan-favorite David Wright and starting pitcher R.A. Dickey, whose impressive 2010 campaign has earned him much respect.
This season figures to be different for the Mets, but not in the standings. The team is not expected to contend for a playoff spot, as a weak bottom of the batting order and a shaky bullpen figure to crank up the frustrations of every fan. A pennant might not be in the cards, but a regime change in the front office at least tells fans that it’s not quite business as usual.
Besides new manager Collins, Sandy Alderson replaced Omar Minaya as general manager after a tumultuous 2010. Unfortunately, changes at the top did not translate to victory on the field on this opening day.
While the knuckleballer Dickey kept the game within reach for the Metropolitans, he lasted only five innings, allowing three runs on six hits and five walks. The most telling statistic of the afternoon-night affair was the Mets’ inability to capitalize with runners in scoring position going a dismal 0-10. After pitchers Tim Byrdak and Bobby Parnell combined to give up three runs in the eighth inning, the game was eventually lost, 6-2.
While the New York bats were not lively, the scene around the stadium was jumping. With temperatures dipping into the 30s and 40s, many fans found themselves watching from Citi Field’s indoor amenities on flat screen televisions, like Alice Wasneuski from Flushing.
“Hopefully, we have a much better team than we had last year,” said Wasneuski, a life-long Mets fan. “We can only hope. A true Mets fan never stops believing.”
