Howie Rose is heading toward his final season in the Mets booth, and Sunday gave him one more chance to land a line that cut right through the wreckage. While calling New York’s game against the Miami Marlins, Rose took a look at Jorge Polanco’s numbers and turned them into a joke that Mets fans won’t forget anytime soon.
“Here’s Jorge Polanco, batting .135… wait! 135? That’s not a batting average, that’s the Seaford Oyster Bay Expressway!”
That was the moment that stood out most, and it landed because it matched exactly where the Mets are right now: buried in a season that has gone sideways. Polanco entered the day hitting .131, then went 0 for 3, and the ugly total only underscored how rough this year has been for him. He is now 4 for 51.
Rose’s humor also hit because there’s been so little to laugh about around this club. The Mets haven’t been at .500 since early April, and their last truly meaningful game came with the possibility of snow in the forecast. Rose isn’t pretending otherwise, and that honesty has made him a favorite for fans who’d rather laugh than sit through more misery.
He also isn’t alone in taking shots at the way things have gone. Bob Ojeda, during the reunion of the 1986 Mets, was also willing to direct criticism at David Stearns. At Citi Field, the blame has shifted around, but Carlos Mendoza is no longer the easy target.
Polanco has become a symbol of the offseason questions hanging over the roster. There were people saying he wasn’t really meant to replace Pete Alonso, but instead to fill a Brandon Nimmo-type role, and that argument looks stronger now. The fit was awkward from the start, and no one on this roster better captures the mistakes of the offseason.
That’s what made Rose’s line so sharp: it wasn’t just a joke, it was a clean little snapshot of how broken this season has become. And for a broadcaster leaving after this year, it was a reminder of why Mets fans will miss him.
In Other News...
Mets Are Trying To Fix One Trade Mistake With A New Plan
When the Mets shipped three prospects to the Cardinals for Ryan Helsley, the move was supposed to shore up the bullpen with a proven late-inning arm. Instead, the trade has looked far less tidy on the other side of the ledger, especially as one of the players sent away, Jesus Baez, has stood out in St. Louis minor league system with the kind of power production the Mets have been trying to cultivate at home.
Since then, New York has clearly tried to patch the hole left by that deal in a broader way, targeting infield bats with power through both trades and the draft. It is the kind of course correction that says as much about the organizations farm system priorities as it does about one imperfect deadline gamble, and it leaves the bigger question of whether the Mets can replace what they gave up without waiting too long to feel the difference. [Read more 🡒]
Mets Sell-Off Is Starting To Look Like A Win For The Future
The Mets midseason trade work is starting to look a lot more interesting in the rearview mirror. Nine of their top 30 prospects now came from in-season deals, a reminder that the front office did not just move pieces at the deadline, it tried to restock the system in a meaningful way. Jefferson Rojas, Sammy Stafura, Aidan Smith and milien Pitre are among the names giving that approach some early credibility, with each showing encouraging signs at different stops in the minors.
For a club always balancing the present against what comes next, that kind of return matters. The Mets have reason to be optimistic about how those newcomers fit into the organization, and the early development they have shown suggests the sell-off may have been about more than just clearing space on the roster. The real question now is how many of those prospects can keep climbing and eventually turn those deadline moves into help at the major league level. [Read more 🡒]
Mets Infield Pressure Is Growing As Top Prospect Forces New Questions
Emilien Pitres climb through the Mets system picked up another level this week, a sign that the organization sees more than just a deadline pickup from Tampa Bay. After a strong run in Double-A, where he hit .343 and showed a patient approach at the plate, the infielder is moving up again as the Mets keep looking at ways to broaden his value beyond the position hes known for.
Mostly a second baseman to this point, Pitre now enters a stage where his development and versatility matter just as much as the bat. For the Mets, the appeal is obvious: a player who has adjusted quickly since arriving at the trade deadline and now has a chance to expand his role in an infield picture that already has some unresolved questions. [Read more 🡒]