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The Mets Record After Traveling

It seemed to me that the Mets were having trouble with games just after a travel day, and Terry Collins mentioned something along these lines about last night’s game, so I looked up their schedule and crunched the numbers.

 

The Mets are now 5-12 in first games in a new city.  This includes trips back home but doesn’t include traveling north for Opening Day.  They bounce back in the next game to a 9-7 record that more closely approximates their overall record.  They’re 4-8 in first games on the road (including the Yankees away game) which means 1-4 in first games after returning home, and 2-5 in first games of road trips.

 

Is this statistically meaningful or is it just an oddity?  Is there something the Mets could do with their first game prep that could mitigate some of the travel fatigue?  Maybe something like spending more time perusing scouting reports and defensive positioning and toning down the physical stuff to conserve strength?  I don’t think the value of a good night’s sleep can be overstated.  Being rested and alert for a game in which the slightest delay in reaction time can be the difference between failure and success is not something you can fake.  (Especially without amphetamines)

 

I’d be curious as to what the record is for teams on the Monday following their appearances on Sunday Night Baseball overall.

 

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Are the Mets Irrelevant?

Joe Janish at Mets Today declares the Mets irrelevant.  The preliminary ESPN Sunday Night Baseball schedule came out, and the Mets are not on it.  Of course, the schedule only lists 10 of probably 26 or so total games, but certainly no one at ESPN thinks the Mets are going to be a draw early on.

 

He then asks at what point between the Mets signing Pedro Martinez and yesterday did the Mets fade into oblivion?

 

I think that date was when Jose Reyes signed with the Marlins.  The Mets losing their homegrown star, who’s one of the most exciting players in baseball, and seemingly fading into a financial holding pattern, was a big blow.  ESPN likes to air flashy stars and lots of drama.

 

This doesn’t mean the Mets won’t be on ESPN though.  There are certainly parts of the Mets that can turn into compelling stories.  ESPN would love to see a resurgent Johan Santana face Roy Halladay for instance.  If the Mets were competing with the Marlins later in the season, ESPN would love to twist the knife with the Reyes at Citi Field game.   The Subway Series could get flexed to prime time.  If Ike Davis and Lucas Duda are blasting home runs, it could propel the Mets into a interesting story.

 

ESPN’s opinion on what is a draw is also high skeptical.  A Spring Training beaning of Chase Utley by Mike Pelfrey and an ensuing fight could be enough to prompt them to put the first Sunday Mets-Phillies game on.    Still, the Mets are clearly underdogs in not just the games but in attention.   If they want to be a respected or interesting team, they’re going to have to earn it.