My goodness, how quickly things can change in just one calendar year. At this point in the 2022 season, the Mets looked primed to win the National League East and march into the playoffs. Fast-forward to the present day, and it’s anything but that. New York welcomed the Texas Rangers to Citi Field for a three-game series on Monday. The similarities between the 2023 version of the Rangers and the 2022 Mets are kind of scary.
Check out what Twitter user @TreIindor20 pointed out:
Also a 300 million shortstop thank you @McBlastoff
— Sam (@TreIindor20) August 28, 2023
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It’s hard to deny these facts, folks. Of course, there are small differences that need to be pointed out (and plenty of people did so in the replies).
Both Buck Showalter and Bruce Bochy hadn’t been in a dugout for a few years before taking their respective jobs. The biggest difference between these two, though, is that Bochy has three World Series rings, while Buck hasn’t even advanced to a Fall Classic.
Did the Rangers spend a lot of money last winter? It was punctuated by the $185 million they awarded Jacob deGrom. Overall, Texas dropped just over $265 million in total contracts. That pales in comparison to what they did in advance of the 2022 season. Corey Seager and Marcus Semien made up the vast majority of the $500-plus million Texas spent that winter. When compared to the Mets, the more expensive winter came first, not second.
Regarding that large division lead, the Rangers didn’t have one quite as big as the Mets. New York led the NL East by 10.5 games on June 1st before eventually coughing it up to Atlanta. Texas is currently part of a three-team race for the AL West title between themselves, the Seattle Mariners, and Houston Astros. Their biggest divisional lead was 6.5 games on June 23rd.
We’ll see what happens the rest of the way. But still, there are too many similarities here to not talk about it. Maybe before the Rangers skip town on Wednesday, Showalter can give Bochy a few pointers on how to avoid the Mets’ 2022 fate.
You can reach Matt Musico at matt.musico@xlmedia.com. You can follow him on Twitter: @mmusico8.
