If records mean anything to you, you probably don’t think the Mets are the best team in baseball. Or the second best, or the third best, or the…you get the point. New York is eight games behind the Nationals in the NL East. They are 4.5 games behind the second-place Braves. Currently amidst a brutal six-game losing streak, the Mets desperately need to avoid a sweep against Washington on Thursday night if they want to remain in the Wild Card chase. Despite their recent struggles, reliever Miguel Batista’s confidence remains sky high.
“Right now (the Nationals are) playing good baseball, but I don’t believe they’re a better team than us,” Batista told reporters after Wednesday’s loss. “They’re playing great baseball. But better team? I believe we’re the better team. We just have to play as we’re supposed to. Every team goes through a bad stretch, from the greatest to the worst.
“I remember I told (manager Terry Collins) two month ago: ‘I haven’t seen a team better than us.’ … We just have to believe how good we are and just go out there and perform. I believe we are the best team in baseball. We just have to play like one. That’s what we’re not doing.”
And now, for a return to reality. It’s nice that Batista still has confidence in his club, but the Mets are currently only a game above .500. Meanwhile, the Nationals seem to keep getting better. It’s starting to look like New York’s only shot at avoiding another missed postseason is a one-game playoff at the end of the year, and even that is slipping away. Maybe the Mets need to take a page out of the Batista Book of False Hope. Otherwise, their season could be over before they know it.
H/T DC Sports Bog
Photo credit: Kim Klement-US PRESSWIRE
