On my position player callup anticipation scale that ranges from Who? to Strawberry, I’d estimate A.J. Ewing ranked somewhere north of Nick Evans, somewhere south of Wilmer Flores. I’d heard of A.J. Ewing. I knew he was valued by those who pay attention to every prospect. I hadn’t banged any drums on his behalf, not even theoretically. I was too depressed by what had been going wrong in New York to think deeply about who was doing what in Syracuse. Yet when the word went forth that A.J. Ewing was en route to the majors, I was excited like I’d been excited to get a look at Gregg Jefferies.
Here’s what stoked my enthusiasm for A.J. Ewing directly in advance of his big league debut on Tuesday: he wasn’t Andy Ibañez, and he wasn’t another Andy Ibañez. No shade intended toward the journeyman OF-3B DFA’d to create space for the first Met born in 2004, a mere six months before this blog came into existence. Somebody had to go. Something had to change.
The appeal of the decision to elevate a quintessential fast riser instead of claiming from waivers a proverbial Quincy Quadruplé was simple. We’d get to witness a fresh face at the outset of his baseball journey, not the next retread who plops his voluminously stickered bags down in the clubhouse for two weeks before moving on in favor of a doppelgänger destined to act out the same role. Enough with the Andy Ibañez Mets.
Let’s Go A.J. Ewing Mets.
The A.J. Ewing Mets didn’t have to beat the Tigers on Tuesday night at Citi Field for refresh to be successfully hit on this sullen season, though they did, handily. The Tigers were frighteningly Metsian in their approach to basically everything in the 10-2 defeat they were dealt. Do you realize the implications of this victory? We’re now 16-25, whereas entering Tuesday we were 15-25. The won-lost column remains wallpaper for now.
What’s not to approve?
The standings will have to slouch in the corner until they develop proper posture. Win or lose, Ewing is the show. Ewing and Carson Benge and whoever they rub off on. The team looked alive in Ewing’s debut. I daresay they were alive. Nobody once had to hold a mirror under the Mets’ nose to determine if there was breathing. The signs of life were as reassuring as Ewing was sensational. The new No. 9 in town walked three times; tripled; stole a base; drove in two runs; scored two runs; ran like the wind off Flushing Bay; and referred in his postgame interview to a feeling that was “undescribable”. We’ll take an innate ability to read the strike zone over perfect grammar every time.
Exactly one game of the A.J. Ewing Era has been completed. Benge commenced his epoch in a similar fashion on Opening Day, pretty much the last time the Mets emitted élan rather than ennui. Then he sank into a big ol’ slump. He’s since emerged. He’s fun to watch. Ewing, pending whatever wall a 21-year-old with limited Triple-A experience might hit once the adrenaline levels off, profiles as fun to watch. A.J. in center, Carson in right. That’s 22.2% of the lineup not making a fan brace for boredom. Other Mets are bound to pick up their pace. They can’t drop it much further.
Ten runs will make every starting pitcher an ace, including the stray openers. Hopefully, Freddy Peralta discovers the seventh inning at some point, but on a night like this one, you’ll accept the six he gritted his way through over 100 pitches. Extra credit is awarded Freddy’s way for backing up third and throwing out a rumbling Colt Keith at the plate at a juncture of the game when the Mets threatened to look as much like the Tigers were already looking like the Mets. Francisco Alvarez made a forceful tag, a little before Alvy hurt his knee swinging and had to exit. He didn’t foul a ball off it or anything. He was just being a 2026 Met in the pre-Ewing sense.
A.J. Ewing looms as a dividing line between what has bummed us out and what might pump us up. His promise and potential have been injected into the Metstream, taking effect with the first dose. If it isn’t a whole new season, it’s definitely a whole new feeling. A few more games of this nature, and it, too, will be…well, undescribable.
Well said, Greg. If we are going to salvage anything from this season, it’s going to come from giving the Benges and the Ewings a proper run in the majors rather than recycling journeymen. It might not translate into anything substantial this season, but at least it gives some hope for the future.
2004?!!! Good grief.
The kid was brilliant – full stop.
Sometimes it just seems so easy, that it appears we will never lose again. And remember, with the 3 WCs, things can change on a dime. Teams going from first to near last, Pitt and Cinn, and last to 2nd, Phil.
Stearns admitting he chose poorly and that his process is flawed, with signing players with injury histories, like Polanco and Robert. And Bo did not even play in September. He calls it ‘Risk Assessment.’ He will never live down using the term ‘Run Prevention,’ though one of the teams actually has a ‘Run Prevention Coach.’
Finally, he said that this team has the talent to win, so if they do not, Mendoza will fotunately bear the brunt.
For a guy with his much speed, a triple as his first hit is not unappropriate. More impressive -given this was the most exciting day of Ewing’s life and more publicly thrilling than most of us will ever experience in our own, was having the patience to work three walks! The rest of this flailing team should be enrolled in a Ewing seminar in intelligent at-bats. For the Mets this is a point of demarcation to a second, successful season! And, in addition to gaining Ewing, the game featured the injury to Alvarez which should promote Torrens to starting catcher. All of the starting pitchers have better ERA’s with Torrens catching than with Alvarez, so a good winning streak with Torrens behind the plate should convince Stearns/ Mendoza to commit to Torrens as catcher and make Alvarez the designated hitter when he returns.
Greg, when brilliant lines are written, they deserve to be recognized. When you said the other day that today’s lineups appear to be ‘pulled from a digital hat,’ that was pure brilliance. It came on the heels of our blog discussion that according to today’s standards, Kingman would have been our leadoff hitter in 1975.
And BTW, everyone needs to get your great book, ‘The Happiest Recap: First Base: 1962-1973.’
From Greg W. Prince, with appreciation of the great Bob Murphy.
Thanks, Eric. As Murph might have said, blogging is a game of redeeming features.
I would feel better about the A.J. Ewing debut if the rest of the team hadn’t been flailing so desperately all season so far. It just doesn’t breed a lot of optimism. But I’ll keep trying.
Rather than ask Mr. Stearns about Mendy’s status in his press conferences, intrepid reporters should inquire about the following:
1) Where did Mr. Stearns see power coming from the middle of his lineup without Pete?
2) Why does he not value durability in players?
3) Was there an economic imperative which moved him to move Nimmo for a washed up, elderly second baseman due to good soldier Nimmo’s contract?
4) Did he take inspiration from Max Bialystock in creating the biggest flop on Broadway (other than Joel Embiid)?
5) What was he thinking in trading a guy who is now one of the better relief pitchers in the AL for a useless rental like Cedric Mullins — regarding whom it took this observer about one half inning to determine that he couldn’t play?
5) Were either the Nimmo or Alonso disposals in any way politically motivated?
6) What is his spending mandate, and why does he appear to be following the precepts of Bargain Basement Bertha?
6) When will we hear from the Casino owner himself as to his views of the current state of the team?
Inquiring minds want to know….
#4-Let’s hope Stearns is as wrong as Bialystock regarding the results of each of their endeavors.
#5a-I loved Rico Garcia the moment I saw him, and every time he came back from being optioned and released. And I begged him not to get Mullens, believing that Taylor was all the balm we needed at that time.
You can hit Refresh on the Mets as much as you want, but I’m thinking there’s still an internal server error somewhere which is preventing good baseball from appearing.
Or sending players to the IL, which is where Alvarez is headed with a meniscus tear.
a breath of fresh air indeed. i missed most of the game but did catch that first AB, and the long drive.
it was something else to see *excitement* coming from the stands. this season!
i’m not sad about alvarez though i wish him a speedy recovery but i prefer torens as everyday catcher.
as i prefer ewing as an everyday CF. with so many big signings unlikely to play for a long time, one can hope sterns pivots to youth.
i’m actually open to watching some ball tonite, something i haven’t felt all season.
Alvarez experiences significant injury season after season.
Torrens is more than just a back-up, he’s a first-rate defender, an occasional producer of timely hits, and maintains excellent communication with the pitchers he catches.
I was all set to say the exact same thing, and we JUST signed him to a cut-rate backup catcher contract.