Early in the working day at Citi Field, at a pre-game press conference,Buck Showalter brought up the power of fickle destiny. I was.
"If you want to make the baseball gods laugh, I always say," he said. ``Tell me about your plans.''
Showalter brought up the same baseball gods a while later without any prompting, so he asks the Mets manager this one-on-one question of him. I urged you to Do you think the Mets owe you for the 1994 season in the Bronx? } "No, I owe them. I really do," said Showalter. "I never had that feeling."
Maybe he has that feeling now. Showalter, 66, after a game-filled and illustrious life, gives him the best chance of winning a championship since the 1994 Yankees were denied a shot in a labor dispute that wiped out the postseason. given a team.
These Yankees had the best American record in his league with his 70-43 record, 6½ games behind him in the AL East, and the best of the National League, Felipe. He had enough talent and chemistry to match his 74 wins for the Arrow of 2012. 40 Montreal Expo. Paul O'Neill had a .359 batting average, Wade Boggs had a .342 batting average, and Jimmy Key was the only pitcher with 17 wins for the Bigs.
"It was a great team," Showalter recalled on Tuesday,, his Mets beat Cincinnati 6-2for their 14th victory in their last 16 games. "Every piece fits. Everything fits."
In February 1996 the Phoenix office building was expanded after he was ousted by George Steinbrenner. I remember him telling me after being hired by the Diamondbacks: "We would have won it all."
Showalter paused before replying, "Yes, it's underway."
At least until the annual tradition of October when the baseball commissioner canceled the season and even World War II could not shut it down.
"That really hurt," said Showalter. "I remember it like it was yesterday. I saw Bud Selig's face on TV at home and he said he was canceling the season. And I was like, 'They're actually going to do this.' was. ''
Showalter's general manager Gene 'Stick' helped rebuild the club which he lost 273 games in his three years until Showalter arrived in 1992. I received a call from Michael. to the manager's room.
"I remember a long silence on the phone between the two of us," the manager recalled. “Stick and I felt the same way.
Showalter was fired the following year in a classic five-game playoff series loss to Seattle. He took Arizona to the playoffs once and the Orioles to the playoffs three times, but never reached the World Series. 52} Robert Sabo
Until this fall, maybe.
The Mets still have to deal with the NL East and still have to deal with the Dodgers. But the return of dominant Jacob deGrom looks like a credible threat to book the first tickertape parade since 1986. Too much for the Yankees to deal with, and Pete Alonso and Francisco. Lindor has been around for a long time. Referring to May's team harmony, Showalter told the Post, "This might be the best group I've ever had." 62} Showalter cited his players' day-to-day approach as his greatest satisfaction this 72-39 season, before Carlos Carrasco took his 13th win on a rain-delayed Tuesday night.
"Just like everyone enjoys the game," he said. "It was fun to watch. It was fun to be with them. There are a lot of guys here [that] would love to hang out with if I wasn't in control.
"There's a lot of baseball players here, and they've really embraced it...a lot of things a winning team has to do to win."
As my colleague Larry Brooks pointed out, In fact, Showalter is most responsible for this cultural shift. He is the undisputed star of this team. It's easy to see that the Mets play for their managers as much as they play for each other, and the old man is having a blast.
"I love these people," said Showalter. "They don't take themselves very seriously.
"I think they realize they're being scrutinized too, so they think about the weight their words carry. They will not be callous to put their teammates or the organization at a disadvantage.What they have learned is what happened in the past.”
The same can be said for Showalter, who started out as a league player and has learned a lot since then. 99.9% of his Mets fans want him hired because of his know-how, and so far this has been a dream marriage.
But even if the director doesn't admit it, the game has a little more responsibility. In his five years immediately after Showalter left the Bronx, Joe his Torre Yankees won his four titles, and Arizona won the Eternal World Series in the year immediately after Showalter left the desert. We beat the Yanks in Game 7.
Buck's best team never made it in the parade, after all. After 28 years, the baseball gods may finally be ready to put it right.