Appreciating when the NY Mets took Grandy from the Yankees

The New York Mets have had several former players who brought meaningful moments to the team and organization. However, there is one player, whose name is hardly ever mentioned these days, that probably should’ve received more credit than he did while on the team. His name is Curtis Granderson.

Back in December 2013, after a second year in a row finishing at a 74-88 season record, the Mets signed Granderson from the New York Yankees. It was essentially the biggest free agent acquisition any Met fan had seen for a while at the time, but throughout his three and a half seasons with the team, it seems that he wasn’t a big-time player that everyone was pleased with, despite making quite an impact since his first season in 2014.

Curtis Granderson benefited the Mets, but didn't receive enough credit

Granderson was a player who brought leadership to the Mets team and organization. His personality and attitude were a significant spark to an offense that didn't hit much for power. Additionally, when he came from the Yankees to the Mets, he admitted hearing that "real New Yorkers are true Mets fans," which he said at a press conference in December 2013. While 2014 wasn’t necessarily a good year for the Mets, he continued to shine as a leader in the next few seasons with the team. Terry Collins made Granderson the leadoff hitter, likely for that reason, and that’s where he thrived.

In 2015, Granderson as a leadoff hitter had set the Mets single-season record by hitting seven homers in that spot. Hitting all those homers and being productive offensively as a Met helped lead the team to more wins and a couple of postseason appearances, including a trip to the 2015 World Series, where he set all sorts of records. For example, he became the first leadoff hitter to hit multiple go-ahead homers in the that World Series since 1973.

Although Granderson helped the Mets a lot, not everyone saw him as a player that can be considered “one of the greatest of all time.” That’s because of his early Mets career struggles on offense. He struck out many times at the beginning of the 2014 season, so he was in a big slump, only batting .136 with one homer and seven RBIs.

Also, if the Mets had won the World Series in 2015 and Granderson hadn’t gotten off to a slow start in 2014, maybe he would’ve been viewed differently. However, the bottom line is that because of his leadership and positive offensive performances, he should’ve received more credit from people who have watched him and baseball fans in general.