A virtual all-star team
This team littered the AL leaderboards in every category with superstars in Harpreet, Kunal and one of the MVP front runners Ramy Abdelhamid. The team still has the feared hitter in Masoom and some of the best defensive players in John Sans and Craig Cymerman. Add to the mix veterans, Ali and Usman Ghumman, Naveed, and Sikander; it is actually shocking what has transpired over the last two seasons to end their seasons. Teams built like this, don’t end their playoff hopes like this!
Let’s revisit the 2017 season playoffs for these Mets. Seen as one of the four teams to surely make it to the semi-finals with a star studded roster, they lost in epic fashion to the hugely underdog Hit Squad. So in the 2018 season, we expected them to come with renewed focus to destroy the SASL.
Over the off season, they retooled quite a bit. They lost Veteran Keith Ginsberg. Even with that loss, they were one of the big winners of the off season. They introduced a rookie in Craig Cymerman who has dazzled in the defensive end and signed big time bopper in Masoom.
2018 season recap:
The Mets started with two ugly losses to the Ducks. But rebounded back with 8-4 stretch over the next 6 weeks. As most veterans team tend to do, they sort of coasted in the regular season. A see-saw battle jockeying for seeding ensued with 516, Outlaws and Empire. In the end they finished 6-4 in their last 10 games to finish with the third seed comfortably.
They finished 4th in runs scored, 5th in runs allowed and 5th in run differential. They sent 3 representatives to the All Star game in Ramy, Harpreet and Kunal. Their defense left a lot to be desired. Only half of the 10 positions were secured. Craig, Ramy in the OF, John at SS, Masoom at 1B and Ali at P. Harp, Kunal, Naveed, Usman, Bilal, Manpreet etc played at different positions every week. That may have hurt them as players like consistency and getting in a routine.
2018 Playoffs:
Oh what a series! Number 2 seed facing off the number 3 seed. The matchup had a lot to drool over. Two teams that obviously don’t like each other but respect each other’s passion, and talent. Savages were the betting mans favorites, but the SASL crowd were in the Mets corner for sure. Can the Mets topple the defending champion Savages? They sure had the talent. The series featured such luminaries as Ramy, Harp, Kunal, Masoom, John, Hashim, Pavy, Charley, Dex, Jeremiah, Irfan, etc.
Game 1 started in epic fashion. Masoom with a grand slam in the first inning. Masoom with a 3 run homer one inning later. After 3 innings? They were up 13-3. The dugout was LIT. The juices were flowing. Oh but what a spectacular fall after that. It all came crashing down soon after. Savages nicked away at the lead and before you knew it, couple of errors later, the Savages took the lead and the tide had turned.
With a devastating game 1 loss, it was inevitable what would happen in game 2. While they gave a valiant effort; they lost by 7 in game 2 and their season came to a crushing close.
Looking ahead to the future:
Two crushing playoff series losses to finish the regular seasons later, let’s take a look at their future. Craig was a great addition and will grow into a superstar. Ibrahim is a up and coming talent. But how many years does Usman, Masoom, Harp, Kunal, Ali etc have left in those legs? Is next year a transition year for the Mets or will they retool in the fly?
Needs:
-Outfielders to flank Ramy and Craig. Kunal, Harp, Usman and Naveed just don’t have the range anymore.
-better bottom of the lineup. Their 8-9-10 hitters doesn’t consistently turn over the lineup and it results in 2-3 innings of 0 runs often.
-Speed. Besides Craig, Ibrahim and Ramy they have no speed. Yes they have thunder in that lineup. But where is the lightning? You need speed to beat the really great teams. Taking extra bases demoralizes teams faster than anything.
Final thoughts:
Game 1 of the semifinals captured the state of their team very well. From Euphoria to Sadness.
Over the off season, everyone thought they finally made the adjustments to win the whole thing. By the end of the season, they seem like light years away from Ducks and Savages. Does Ali and co. have more magic to turn this franchise around?
Is there some more machismo to draw from for a 2019 run? We will wait and ponder into the off-season.
