NY Mets fans failed this weekend to become the biggest fools in MLB

Heading into the four games against the St. Louis Cardinals, a part of the buzz around the New York Mets was how to treat Juan Soto upon his Citi Field return. He had a horrendous finale in Minnesota. A hero’s welcome wasn’t earned. What about a shake of a bell of shame?

As it turns out, speaking mindlessness into a microphone in New York sports can send out the knucklehead signal to easily frustrated fans. A narrative was suddenly how Mets fans should boo Soto on Thursday. Some did in fact jeer him, but not en masse thanks to a Mets victory.

A hitless night didn’t convince the few who did boo that he was going to break out of a perceived slump. On Friday, things changed with Soto finally coming through with a big hit and it continued for the rest of the series against the Cardinals. Soto spoke after the game on Sunday, showing his appreciation.

An overall amazing weekend for the Mets was made even better with the way the fans behaved regarding Juan Soto

There’s always going to be a few rotten grapes in the bag. Maybe it’s your neighbor who never has anything nice to say about another living creature. Maybe it’s that guy with a cat photo as his avatar you don’t remember following on social media. Whoever it is you may know showing off their true colors, don’t let it stop you from behaving in the way you think is right.

No athlete is above the boo. A lack of hustle. Comments that cross a line. Cheating. They’re all boo-worthy.

Soto hasn’t been at the level of needing to hear it from fans. The “nontroversy” regarding his comments about hitting with Pete Alonso behind him instead of Aaron Judge was all meant to drive subscriptions and clicks. The Mets seem to have put all of that behind them. Based on the fan reaction this weekend, so have we.

Beautiful weather helped out. Even so, can we give some credit to those who showed up to Citi Field each night? The team is outdrawing others who’ve played more home games. They’re averaging one of the best home attendances across the league.

Attendance was a big talking point last year and in the preseason. Owner Steve Cohen practically demanded fans show up. Abide, they have.

A winning ball club will fill seats. In April, so does one where a lot of hope was promised in the offseason. The signing of Soto was significant and was a main attraction for many to reload on their season tickets. The Mets are surpassing expectations on the field. Their 9-1 record at home has made a trip to the ballpark even more pleasurable.

Mets fans had a chance to blow it this weekend. An empty ballpark after the opening home stand would have looked bad. Worse would’ve been if bandwagon jumpers hopped on to callously boo a superstar player off to a slow start for no other reason than things aren’t going so well in their own lives. 

Logic prevailed. So did the Mets.