Even In A 60-Game Season, The Contrasts Between The Yankees And Mets Remain Noticeable

If it feels like the contrasts between the two New York baseball teams are extremely noticeable, it is because as the old saying goes the more things change, the more they stay the same.

And that concept was evident yet again over the second weekend of the 60-game baseball season played in empty stadiums and with more people watching remotely than ever before due to the coronavirus pandemic that shut the sport from March 12 through the first week of July.

Back then the Yankees were projected a fairly clear favorite while the Mets were considered a team capable of contending for a wild card spot with the usual caveat of “if things go right”, a phrase that can apply for any team at any sport but also seems to mean about five times more when it comes to the Mets.

After two weekends, it appears the differences remain the same for a myriad of reasons, proving that even with the changes of a 60-game season or sprint, the contrasts remain firmly entrenched in their respective corners.

The Yankees are 7-1, which puts them on a 53-win pace or a 142-win pace in a 162-game season. The Mets are 3-7, which puts them on pace for 18 wins or 49 in a 162-game campaign, which is two more than the Detroit Tigers won in 2019.

And how each team reached the end of this weekend is a noticeable contrast.

Last week, the Yankees saw four games with the Philadelphia Phillies postponed due to the Miami Marlins coronavirus outbreak in Philadelphia. It turned out to hardly be a problem as the Yankees pivoted to Baltimore, won two games there and then returned home to win three straight against Boston
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All of this is being done while the Yankees get glimpses of finally having Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton in the lineup at the same time after last year’s record-setting rash of injuries.

Judge has homered in five straight games and hit six homers in that span with each giving the Yankees a lead or tying the game. He did that twice Sunday, including a massive 468-foot drive in the eighth inning.

“We’re just kind of clicking on all cylinders right now,” Judge said.

Truer words have never been spoken even if they were expected for the Yankees, who have been knocking on the door for three straight seasons before adding Gerrit Cole.

“He’s healthy, man. He’s a stud,” Luke Voit said. “He’s in a groove right now. It’s a guy that you don’t want to take your eyes off when he’s hitting.”

The latest business as usual event for the Yankees occurred several hours after another chaotic day for the Mets, whom you often do not want to take your eyes off for significantly different reasons.

While the Mets were on their way to a fairly dull 4-0 loss in Atlanta, news broke that the team could not locate Yoenis Cespedes, who looked good in both versions of spring training after missing two years with numerous injuries and then hit a feel-good homer in the season opener.

Obviously the first reaction is hoping Cespedes is not in any danger, but then came the bizarre series of events unfolding as the Mets were dropping their fifth straight game.

As the day unfolded, it was announced Cespedes was opting out due to concerns about coronavirus, something Milwaukee’s Lorenzo Cain announced on Saturday.

In a normal setting or at least what passes for normal these days, that would be the end of it. It is a perfectly acceptable reason to miss the rest of the season but as time went on, it became another mess.

After their initial statement on Cespedes not appearing, the Mets added this oddly-worded comment: “They were not worried about his safety.”

If anything adding that part makes it even odder even GM Brodie Van Wagenen insisted there was not an agenda and spoke about transparency.

By this point there were conflicting reports about Cespedes reasoning. While the Athletic cited a health concern, the New York Post said he was upset about reduced playing time that could lower his chances at hitting certain bonuses in his contract.

Keep in mind Cespedes was already working on a reduced salary due to his farm accident last summer after getting the initial four-year contract Van Wagenen negotiated in his previous life as an agent.

This is all unfolding as fans recall the five-year anniversary of Cespedes joining the Mets and becoming the big bat that lifted them to a division title and helped them reach the World Series.

Now, it’s likely he played his last game for the team amid significant confusion for his reasoning and not exactly explained properly by the Mets.