2008: Yankees Vs. Mets
Both the Yankees and the Mets went 89-73 this season.
The Yankees had a shot at the post-season through 157 games this year.
The Mets had a shot at the post-season through 162 games this year.
The Yankees spent 2 days in first place this season: Opening Day and April 16th (when they were tied for first).
The Mets spent 39 days in first place this season – with their biggest lead being 3.5 games on September 10th. Their last day in first place was on September 19th when they were up by a half-game.
So, basically, the difference between the Mets and the Yankees this season was that the Mets spent 37 more days in first place than the Yankees and the Mets were “alive” for 5 more games (longer) during the season.
I offer this up in case you find yourself in a Yanks-Mets debate today and need some stats…
Both teams feel a bit hollow this morning, but for different reasons. It wasn’t a great season for either borough, I suppose.
I won’t lie, I’m pretty thrilled that the Mets flopped again. At least the stupid fallacy that it was Willie’s fault can be put to rest.
At least the stupid fallacy that it was Willie’s fault can be put to rest.
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Hardly. So now it becomes “Willie put them in a hole they could not escape.”
Nah, 2008 shows that the Mets collapse – this year and last year – is on the players.
Nah, 2008 shows that the Mets collapse – this year and last year – is on the players.
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Oh, I know that, I’m just saying… You know the contortions people will go through to make their point.
As the cliche goes, you can’t fire the players, it’s easier to go after the manager, then the GM.
it’s easier to go after the manager, then the GM.
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Which makes me wonder why Omar Minaya gets to keep his job after he scapegoated Willie.
There were some other interesting similarities. From the LoHud blog:
Yankees
89-73
48-33 home
41-40 road
789 runs scored
727 runs allowed
Mets
89-73
48-33 home
41-40 road
799 runs scored
715 runs allowed
And in terms of those Runs Allowed/Runs Scored stats, there wasn’t exactly a huge difference between the leagues. The NL scored 40 runs fewer, which makes the Mets scoring more runs than the Yanks more impressive (although we all know the Yanks offense declined substantially, otherwise this stat wouldn’t be close).
On Runs Allowed, the NL allowed just 8 fewer runs than the AL. So, while its true that the Yankee run prevention improved from 2007, the Mets, with significant pitching issues (and one major ace addition) ended up outpitching the Yanks, all things considered.
Well, just compare the thirdbaseman from each team (courtesy of the Hardball Times):
Alex Rodriguez – .271 BA/RISP, and -11.4 Clutch
David Wright – .243 BA/RISP, and -9.6 Clutch
My Met Fan brothers are as happy with Wright as I am with A-Rod.
Clutch is a stupid stat because it defines clutch relative to a player’s normal performance. If you bat .150, but bump it up to .175 in “clutch” situations, you are rated higher than the player who bats .325, but drops down to .300 in “clutch” spots.
Both Arod and Wright start with such a high baseline, so naturally it is more difficult for them to register as “clutch”. Yankee and Met fans should be happy that they get to watch two of the best players in the game.
>> Nah, 2008 shows that the Mets collapse – this year and last year – is on the players. >>
More specifically, anyone in that godawful bullpen. If the Mets & Yanks combined rosters, that’d be one dangerous team.
Wow how did A-Rod get his average up to .271 with RISP? He was hitting .240 a few weeks ago….nice for him to pick it up once the Yanks were out of it.