Mets overachieve and find themselves in the virtual 2007 World Series

Despite injuries and underwhelming pitching staff, the 2007 virtual New York Mets gave us a year to remember.

We should have been heading into this 2007 virtual New York Mets season coming off a playoff appearance. Unfortunately, the 2006 squad underperformed and they missed the postseason.

I had very high expectations for the 2006 Mets because of what happened in real life. They disappointed. Unfortunately, we already know this team has a very tight window to win and it may already be on its way toward getting shut.

As we do each week, let’s remind the virtual Mets fans how this simulation has gone so far:

1962: 52-108
1963: 43-119
1964: 44-118
1965: 50-112
1966: 56-105
1967: 64-98
1968: 74-88
1969: 93-69
1970: 101-61 (NLCS loss 3-2)
1971: 100-62 (World Series Champions)
1972: 80-76
1973: 83-77
1974: 72-90
1975: 75-87
1976: 88-74
1977: 78-84
1978: 68-94
1979: 64-98
1980: 65-97
1981: 34-69
1982: 69-93
1983: 64-98
1984: 83-79
1985: 98-64 (NLCS loss 4-3)
1986: 90-72
1987: 95-67 (NLCS loss 4-3)
1988: 99-63 (World Series Champions)
1989: 110-52 (World Series loss 4-1)
1990: 103-59 (World Series loss 4-0)
1991: 84-77
1992: 76-86
1993: 80-82
1994: 43-70
1995: 74-70
1996: 74-88
1997: 89-73
1998: 88-74
1999: 92-70
2000: 85-77
2001: 76-86
2002: 74-87
2003: 54-107
2004: 82-80
2005: 97-65 (NLCS loss 4-1)
2006: 76-86

Can this team rebound after their down year in 2006? Let’s hope we get better results than the previous season.

Preseason Predictions

The preseason predictions for the 2007 virtual Mets are not positive. After last year’s debacle, the fake experts believe this team will go 74-88.

Only David Wright is expected to finish as a top ten player. He is projected to finish the year with 29 home runs, 105 RBI, and a slash line of .331/.420/.538.

The club ended spring training with a record of 14-16. It wasn’t a good or bad spring. It was just routine for a team we need to see more from in 2007.

Regular Season Results

The Mets hung around in what looks like a tight race in the NL East. Other than the Washington Nationals, anyone can have this division title.

This team finished the first half of the season with a 47-40 record. It was good enough to put them in second place behind only the Philadelphia Phillies. The Mets will march into the second half 3.5 games out of the division lead.

The Mets fell out of the NL East race quickly in the second half, but their playoff hopes remained alive via the Wild Card. David Wright continued to play at an MVP level. For a good portion of the year, he was contending for a Triple Crown!

Just as the Mets were getting comfortable in the Wild Card spot, the Atlanta Braves put together an awesome second-half. The two traded leads throughout the final two months. Needing a win on the final day of the season, the Mets defeated the Florida Marlins, captured an 89-73 record, and took with them a playoff berth!

NLDS

The Mets snuck into the playoffs and avoided a sudden death matchup with the Braves. In order to advance beyond the NLDS, they’ll have to take down the best team in the NL—the Phillies.

These two longtime rivals have never met in the postseason in our reality. Our simulation will provide us with an exciting first.

Game 1: The series began against the man likely to win the NL Cy Young, Cole Hamels. He went 22-3 with a 1.92 ERA in the regular season. For the Mets, it’s Oliver Perez. He was 15-7 with a 3.49 ERA. The Mets put up a fight but lost 4-3.

Game 2: An example of how battered the pitching staff is in this simulation, Mike Pelfrey starts Game 2 for the Mets. Thanks to the second best offense in the NL, the Mets were able to clobber the Phillies 8-4 and tie up the series.

Game 3: New York put on a memorable beat down in Game 3. By a score of 11-0, Jon Niese was backed up by home runs from Jeff Conine, Marlon Anderson, Carlos Gomez, and Daniel Murphy.

Game 4: In a potential deciding game, the Mets send Jason Vargas to the mound. Yes, that same Jason Vargas. The offense helped him out and the team wins 7-4. The Mets are going to the NLCS!

The NLDS MVP goes to Carlos Gomez—yes that Carlos Gomez. He knocked in 6 runs in this series while hitting .438.

NLCS

The Mets find themselves in the 2007 NLCS just four wins away from the World Series where they will face the winner of the AL matchup between the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees. First, they need to go through the Colorado Rockies.

The Rockies finished the regular season 85-77 with the most runs scored. Their pitching was only slightly better than the battered Mets. I suspect this will be an evenly matched up series. During the regular season, the Mets were 5-1 against the Rockies.

Game 1: Mike Pelfrey helped defeat the Rockies to open the series. However, it was the Mets’ bats that did most of the talking. Behind four hits from David Wright including a home run, New York takes the first 10-3.

Game 2: It was a slugfest in the sequel with the Rockies winning 17-6. The series will shift back to New York with the series tied 1-1.

Game 3: Comfortable at home, Jon Niese helped the Mets shutout the Rockies in Game 3 by a final score of 6-0. Niese went all nine innings in the win.

Game 4: Colorado wasn’t going down easily. In Game 4, they defeated the Mets 7-5. We’re tied up again with one last game in Flushing.

Game 5: Mike Pelfrey helps the Mets take a 3-2 series lead in the club’s 2-0 victory over Colorado. One more win and the Mets are going to the World Series!

Game 6: By a final score of 7-5, the Mets take Game 6! The NL pennant is theirs.

Moises Alou takes home the NLCS MVP with a pair of home runs, 8 RBI, and a .565 batting average in the series. The next time we see you, the Mets will be playing for a championship.

World Series

We were bound to get a Subway Series at some point in this simulation and here it is in 2007. The Yankees have won only a single World Series since we began this simulation in 1962. The Mets have won a pair.

Seven years later than we witnessed in real life, the World Series will be played between the two New York teams. Let’s see if the Mets can take down the mighty Yankees, the AL Wild Card team with a 95-67 record.

Game 1: The Mets were no match in the opener against the Yankees in the opener. The Bronx Bombers won 9-3 and showed little mercy to their Big Apple foes.

Game 2: It was a similar story in the second game. The Mets dropped this one 10-4. It’s not looking good for the team from Queens.

Game 3: As the series shifts to Shea Stadium, the Mets pick up a 1-0 win! Mariano Rivera took the loss in this thriller to put some faith back in the orange and blue.

Game 4: So, I’m not quite sure how this one worked out because I’m not saving the box score. However, Lastings Milledge got the win for the Mets in this one. Holy cow! The Mets win Game 4 11-9 and tie the series back up in what was surely one of the most ridiculous games in MLB history.

Game 5: In a near repeat of the opener, the Mets lose 9-1. After storming back in the last two, things are grim once again.

Game 6: The Mets drop Game 6 by a final score of 8-6. The team fought hard but just didn’t have the pitching to compete with the Yankees.

The World Series MVP trophy goes to Alex Rodriguez. He hit 2 home runs, drove in 13, and had a .524 batting average in the series.

That’ll do it, folks. In a year where the Mets overachieved, they come up two wins short of an outstanding victory.

Honors

A pair of Mets were voted into the All-Star Game. For the second straight year, David Wright led all NL vote-getters. He was joined by outfielder Carlos Beltran in the starting lineup.

It wasn’t a very festive game for the Mets players. Wright was 1 for 2 with a single. Beltran struck out in his two plate appearances.

The season included a few major awards handed out to Mets players. For the second time in his career, Wright was the NL MVP. He led all players in the league with an astonishing 10.4 WAR. As you’ll see in our notable individual statistics section, he also came pretty close to accomplishing something else.

Wright was also able to take home the Silver Slugger Award for the third straight time.

This wasn’t the end of the trophies. Mike Pelfrey was the NL’s Rookie of the Year.

Only one individual performance in the year made it to the list of major accomplishments. Throughout this simulation, the Mets have had an easy time throwing no-hitters. I have lost count of how many they have. In 2007, it was Jon Niese’s turn. His actually came in a playoff game against the Colorado Rockies!

Notable Individual Statistics

David Wright had another phenomenal year for the virtual Mets. He was the team’s Triple Crown winner with a .339 batting average, 43 home runs, and 129 RBI. The home runs and RBI also led all NL hitters. Wright was 13 points in his batting average shy of winning a Triple Crown.

Jose Reyes shocked the world with 103 RBI of his own. In addition to his run-production, Carlos Beltran drove in 99 and Carlos Delgado finished the year with 92 ribbies.

Pitching was the main concern throughout the season. The club’s top pitcher was Oliver Perez. At 15-7 with a 3.49 ERA, he provided the Mets with a little hope every fifth day. The club also got fine performances from Mike Pelfrey (8-4 3.01 ERA) and Jon Niese (12-4, 3.48 ERA).

John Maine led the team in wins with 16, but a late-season injury had him miss the postseason. Only in a simulation would the Mets have benefitted from having Maine on the postseason roster.

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There’s no doubt the Mets overachieved in this simulated season. Before Bernie Madoff ruins everything, let’s cross our fingers for better results in 2008.