Usually when I wake up the morning after a Mets game wondering, "What if," it's because I'm replaying all of the game's disastrous events that caused the other guys to take home the W.
Today, after a series sweep of the Nationals that included an A-Gon grand slam and an Ass-Man bomb over the right field fence, my "What If?" is far more painful:
What if A-Rod took control over his career like he wanted to and took his talents from Seattle to Flushing?
Sunday night, during A-Rod's second game in the booth with ESPN (a game in which he managed to spill zero water on himself. Huge props!), A-Rod was reluctant to give any advice to Bryce Harper (who REALLY needs to stop being so good), but was more than happy to talk about the things he'd have done differently himself.
I think I almost cried when I heard him say he wished he'd have picked up the phone and called Fred Wilpon, asking to meet him one-on-one without an agent present, to express his desire to come to New York. Queens, New York, to be exact. For the first time this season, I had a reason to scream at my television.
The 2000 season ended in heartbreak, as the Mets lost the World Series in five games to the Evil Empire, and the three years that followed didn't bring much relief. The Mets posted win totals of 82, 75, and an embarrassing 66 wins, respectively. In those three seasons, A-Rod hit a combined 156 home runs and 395 RBIs. IMAGINE what a bat like that would have done for team that was struggling the way the Mets were. Imagine Alex Rodriguez and Mike Piazza playing ball together. Imagine never seeing him in pinstripes. IMAGINE J-LO WALKING AROUND NEW YORK RIGHT NOW ROCKING A METS FITTED!!!
I always wanted ARod to be a Met. Wow. What a difference.
— Bobby Valentine (@BobbyValentine) April 9, 2018
I think it makes sense for me to be the one to over-analyze everything A-Rod said Sunday night, internalize it for the rest of my life, and use it in random arguments with Yankees fans years down the line when it has zero relevance to the conversation we're having at the moment. I will not get over this one for a long time. A long, long time.
We'll be spending Opening Weekend in Houston! Hopefully you'll be one of the 1,300 Mets fans kicking the season off with us in Texas! The Astros didn't have enough availability to fit us for Opening Day, so we locked up 1,300 tickets to game 2 of the season on March 29th.
Alyssa Rose
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T7L contributing blogger - Follow Alyssa on Twitter