PERCEPTIONS: Hope, despair vie for front-row seats

PERCEPTIONS By Steve Feitl Stuck in the middle.

   I’d like to introduce you to two of my very close friends today.
   The first friend — we’ll call him Friend A — is somewhat of an optimist. He’s also a huge New York Mets fan, so he was thrilled by the announcement over the weekend that the Major League Baseball franchise had come to an agreement with free agent Carlos Beltran. The Mets signed the centerfielder to a seven-year $119 million contract Tuesday, making the prize position player of the free agent class a member of the Amazin’s.
   Friend A believes Beltran is a fantastic all-around player who should bring steady production to the Mets this year. Friend A also cites the deal the Mets struck with free agent pitcher Pedro Martinez late last year as further proof that the beleaguered team is now heading in the right direction and should be far more fun to watch this season. Friend A even thinks the formerly lowly Mets might have a playoff run in them in 2005.
   But I also have another friend — let’s call him Friend B — who also is a Mets fan, but admittedly a pessimist. Unfortunately, he’s seen this type of thing before. He remembers the Bobby Bonilla signing of the early 1990s. He remembers the Roberto Alomar trade and Mo Vaughn signing of the early 2000s. Both times the Mets were supposedly favorites for postseason success, but finished in the basement of their own division. Friend B tells me that adding the big names does not always equate to on-the-field success.
   Still, Friend A is pleased to see his favorite team spend some money, especially considering it plays in the biggest market in the country. Friend B counters that they spent too much on a solid, but not elite player.
   Friend A thinks the money is not just spent on the player, but also on changing the perception of the franchise from being New York’s red-headed stepchild to a viable competitor to the Yankees. Friend B wonders why the Mets are trying to outdo — and outspend — the Yankees, especially considering the mercenary-for-hire practice hasn’t brought the Bronx Bombers a title since 2000. And championships aren’t won on the back page of the New York dailies, he adds.
   And so these two friends battle it out over and over. It’s more than an optimist debating a pessimist. It’s two big sports fans going head to head, fueled only by their passion for the team. Friend A wants to believe things will improve for the Mets this year, so he can have meaningful games to watch all season long. Friend B is only so jaded because he’s been so disappointed and heartbroken in recent years.
   It’s the endless dilemma of a sports fan. How caught up in the furor do you allow yourself to get? These two fans obviously have different breaking points and I can’t tell you which one is right.
   That’s because I am both of these friends. These debates have played out in my head every day since the announcement was made this weekend. Obviously, my feelings are mixed right now, but I still can’t wait for Opening Day.
   Because only then will I know which sentiment will take center stage in my heart when Carlos Beltran takes centerfield for the Mets.
Steve Feitl is the managing editor of The Lawrence Ledger, a Packet publication. He can be reached at [email protected].