I was there for Game Seven of the 2006 NLCS. It was painful.  However, I was able to finally get some sleep by thinking the Mets would be back.

One of the things I could hang my hat on was that most of the players were in their prime and returning. On top of that, Jose Reyes and David Wright were still young and improving. 

I was wrong about the Mets returning to the playoffs. I would watch in horror in 2007 and 2008 as the Mets would collapse in back-to-back years. Then, the Mets were in for six years of just terrible baseball. Finally, the Mets turned it around this year, and they finally returned to the playoffs. 

A lot is different now. The Mets changed ballparks. The core of the team changed from in their prime sluggers to young power arms. The only thing the two teams have in common is David Wright, but not even he is the same. In 2006, he was a 23 year old on the verge of superstardom. This year he’s a 32 year old veteran dealing with a serious back issue. 

In any event, Wright and the Mets are back in the playoffs. They’re just eight years behind schedule. We don’t know if the Mets will start the NLDS in New York or Los Angeles. We don’t know the start time of the game. All we know right now is the Mets will be playing a playoff game next week. 

After waiting nine years, I’m more than happy to wait a week. I just hope I won’t have to wait more than 33 days for the Mets to win a World Series.