As I flip through endless pages of Mets bashing in the sports sections and hear one WFAN radio personality after another complain, I'm not shocked or angry at my team.  I understood that we were not constructed with the necessary pieces to be a true contender going into this season and I'm proud that they played as well as they did.  Many will argue the influence a manager has on his team, some say they are just figure heads or mouth pieces, but Manuel was so much more.  He brought with him faith, his words were the truth, he was everything a good New York manager should be, he was a fighter.  I saw the way Beltran and Delgado played and spoke of him, there was a respect that Willie Randoph never earned from them.  I was a big fan of Randoph in '06, but I realized that going into this season he did not rally the troops. I could see the way he looked at his players with a kind of resentment and distrust carried over from the collapse. 

If you are a true Mets fan, you won't make your judgement on whether or not they made the playoffs.  You will look at the 10 game winning streaks, the come from behind victories and hustle that they had this year.  2008 was nothing like 2007, the only similarity was the outcome in the standings.  You must see the good things, like a veteran finding his stroke again, the young bats igniting the team and a legendary pitcher leading us every fifth day.  I'm excited for next year because I honestly see a team ready to grow and core group of guys ready to get to the next level. 

My hope for 2009 is simple, repair a blistered and tattered bullpen, this is not by spending tons of money on one player such as K-Rod.  I believe it can be achieved by finding young, gritty, unshakable warriors who aren't afraid to take the ball in the 7th inning with the bases loaded and a one run lead.  I hope to see more players on the team with strength of character as opposed to strength of statistics.  I have a feeling that a lot of new faces will be introduced to us next year as we enter Citi Field and I'm excited for that.  I will be cheering them as loud as ever because they are my team.  I'm proud to be a Mets fan and as a goodwill gesture to our division, I'm hoping that the Phillies make it all the way.  If not the Phillies, I hope the World Series is won by one of the very talented NL teams in hunt.  Thanks for your time and keep the faith, we'll get there.