Beltran was a superb producer in his six-plus seasons with the Mets, being at or near the top in franchise history in many prime offensive categories. The man was highly underappreciated by many Mets fans, even still by some in his final hours with the franchise. The argument for his superbness as a Met has been made many, many times by many people in recent months, so I feel no need to rehash any of that.
I thought it'd be better to discuss the impact Carlos has had on me and fellow Mets fans during his years in the uniform.
I really started following this team in the 05-06 offseason. Beltran had a by his standards very poor 2005. That was my introduction to him as a player. An expensive disappointment. I was ten years old.
The 2006 season.... let's just say he blew my minimal expectations out of the water. Beltran tied a franchise record with a forty-one home run onslaught. He was a hot topic again. He was awesome. Everything seemed to be coming together that year.
I'm assuming anyone reading this knows what transpired in that postseason. Adam Wainwright's wicked curve made Carlos Beltran into an unforgivable goat for many Mets fans.
Beltran played the next few seasons like a man determined to right his perceived wrongs. Through some near miss seasons and through some nearly farcical ones, he persistently worked his hardest. He gave, as cliche as it may sound, 110% on the field... and off. Beltran was said to have been in tears in the dugout after the team's 2007 collapse. Beltran rushed back from an injury in a by that point meaningless 2009 season to support his team- an ultimate act of selflessness often forgotten by the casual Mets fans who blabber about blaming Beltran for all the team's woes on and off of the radio airwaves.
The "blame Beltran" phenomenon took on a life of it's own, though, becoming a running social media joke rather than a legitimate sentiment for the most part. The people mocked were the craziest of the remaining crazies- New York's resident sports radio yellers, and a horribly misled Staten Island "filmmaker" who shall remain nameless.
This ended up being a much less personal post than I had envisioned. Either way, to summarize: to hell with the haters. Congratulations on a fabulous stint with the Mets. I'm sorry you couldn't get a ring with us. I hope you're properly appreciated in San Francisco, and wherever you head to after this season. I tip my hat to you, sir.
