A look at the overall results in the series.
As the fourth and final installment of this series looking at the different perceptions baseball fans have of the Mets, we break down the information further and share more of what fans had to say about the team’s players and personnel. Though the responses from fans varied, Mets fans tended to be more positive, as evidenced by their comments and ratings. Of the eight players and personnel surveyed, on average, Mets fans gave a higher rating for six of them, with only Bartolo Colon and Noah Syndergaard getting higher ratings from non-Mets fans.
The overall average ratings came in at 6.71 from Mets fans and 6.42 from non-Mets fans. The majority of this difference comes from Mets fans giving more rankings in the nine-to-ten range, as 12.6 percent of Mets fans' ratings were in that range, compared to just 5.8 percent of the non-Mets fans' ratings.
| Rating | Mets Fans | Non-Mets Fans |
|---|---|---|
| 9-10 | 12.6% | 5.8% |
| 7-8 | 47.2% | 47.6% |
| 5-6 | 33.1% | 37.9% |
| 3-4 | 6.3% | 7.8% |
| 0-2 | 0.8% | 1% |
It is also interesting to see how each group of fans perceived the players and personnel in contrast to each other. While David Wright sits atop both Mets and non-Mets fans lists and Terry Collins is firmly entrenched at the bottom, those in between the top and bottom are very different in the two lists.
| Mets Fans | Rating |
|---|---|
| Wright | 8.25 |
| Alderson | 7.19 |
| Murphy | 7.09 |
| Wheeler | 6.84 |
| Lagares | 6.75 |
| Syndergaard | 6.67 |
| Colon | 5.81 |
| Collins | 5.06 |
| Non-Mets Fans | Rating |
|---|---|
| Wright | 7.50 |
| Murphy | 7.04 |
| Syndergaard | 6.78 |
| Wheeler | 6.71 |
| Colon | 6.41 |
| Alderson | 6.17 |
| Lagares | 5.96 |
| Collins | 5.02 |
The differences in the chart above is predicated on the disparities in how each player was rated from the different fan bases. Half of the players and personnel had fairly negligible differences, having a difference no more than .14 either way. However, four players and personnel had significant differences in opinions.
| Largest disparities | |
|---|---|
| Alderson | 1.0144 |
| Lagares | 0.79 |
| Wright | 0.75 |
| Colon | -0.5949 |
| Wheeler | 0.132211 |
| Syndergaard | -0.1134 |
| Murphy | 0.05528 |
| Collins | 0.0425 |
Finally, the ratings are broken down by league. For every player surveyed, the American League fans gave higher rankings.
| Player/Personnel | AL Fan Average Rating | NL Fan Average Rating |
|---|---|---|
| Alderson | 6.6 | 5.3 |
| Collins | 5 | 4.8 |
| Wright | 7.8 | 6.8 |
| Murphy | 7.1 | 6.9 |
| Lagares | 6.4 | 5.1 |
| Wheeler | 6.8 | 6.5 |
| Colon | 6.6 | 5.9 |
| Syndergaard | 7 | 6.3 |
Bonus Quotes
Sandy Alderson
"Who the hell are you and what have you done with the Sandy Alderson who turned Billy Beane into some kind of 'genius'?" —Eric Hainline (Halos heaven)
"Experienced yet forward thinking." —Aaron Finkel (Viva El Birdos)
"It's not his fault the Yankees are more popular than the Mets, and it's not his fault that the team was owned by crooks; a great GM would probably have gotten the team more turned around than Alderson has, but a bad one probably wouldn't have rebuilt the farm system as well." —Jason Lukehart (Lets Go Tribe)
"He certainly hasn't been perfect, but Alderson has been consistent and steady in his approach to building a winning Mets team—an approach I really hope works." —Chris McShane (Amazin’ Avenue)
"If payroll is a limitation from management, he's a master. If it isn't, he's mediocre." —Greg Karam (Amazin Avenue)
Terry Collins
"Still can't manage his resources and still can't motivate or control his players, but since his days as Angels manager he sure has mellowed into a chill dude." —Eric Hainline (Halos Heaven)
"Respectable baseball man, tasked with managing a team that's not ready to win." —Daniel Russell (DRaysBay)
"Caucasian Jerry Manuel when it comes to in-game decisions, namely below-average bullpen management and obsession with bunting." —Huy Nguyen (Amazin’ Avenue)
"I am completely finished with him and am desperately hoping he does not return next year. I would need a full couple of paragraphs to accurately put into words how bad I think he is at his job, so I will just let the zero speak for itself." —Adam Walsh (Amazin’ Avenue)
"Players seem to like him, and he's a good motivator, but his in-game management could use some work." —Aaron Yorke (Amazin’ Avenue)
David Wright
"When fully healthy he's one of the best in the business." —Nico Pemantle (Athletics Nation)
"Even great players have bad seasons sometimes." —Patrick Dubuque (Lookout Landing)
"On the wrong side of 30 and still owed a ton of money. If I were grading the Wright that will be against his contract, I'd probably give him a two. But Wright was so good for so long, I gave him a five. Did I mention how awful his contract is?" —Ben Humphrey (Vivos El Birdos)
"It's impossible for me to answer this objectively, as I imagine it is for many Mets fans. I like him because I like the Mets, I care about him because I care about the Mets, and his transference with the team and my feelings about the team is more or less total. All of which is to say that, while I know he will decline and suspect that his extension -- while clearly the right thing to do, and something I was happy to see happen -- may not be worth it in a bottom-line sense, I feel more sad about it than I do anxious. Mostly, I am glad, still, that I get to watch him play for a team I care about." —David Roth (SB Nation)
"Vastly underrated, quite possibly because of ownership's own comments" —Chris Strohmaier (Amazin’ Avenue)
"In the year that I've finally stopped mixing him up with David Murphy, Daniel seems to have become a very god player." —Jason Lukehart (Lets Go Tribe)
"Not a star, but always solid... was disappointed Cincinnati didn't get him at the —Brandon Kraeling (Red Reporter)
"Kinda wish the Orioles had traded for him, though not for Dylan Bundy." —Mark Brown (Camden Chat)
"Murphy has turned into a very nice player to have if you're a contender and the Mets should trade him this offseason since he's getting a bit long in the tooth and his value is at its highest point." —Ben Humphrey (Vivos El Birdos)
"I underrate him because of unintentional pushback from too many others overrating him" —Steve Sypa (Amazin’ Avenue)
"I am aware that he is a good and useful player, and yet no Met so demonstrably good and useful has made me more nervous or left me more incredulous -- both at his bizarre florid fuck-ups or when he does awesome things -- as far as I can remember." —David Roth (SB Nation)
"Lagares is young and a tremendous defender, but man, it'd be much more exciting to watch him if he could take a page from Brett Gardner's book and figure out some semblance of plate discipline." —Andrew Mearns (Pinstripe Alley)
"Defensive wizard." —Jonah Keri (Grantland and Five Thirty Eight)
"Is it that difficult to take a walk?" —Charlie Drysdale (Purple Row and Minor League Ball)
"The defense speaks for itself but I have been very surprised by how well his bat has come along, but I am a little concerned about his ability to be a reliable 150+ games/year player with injuries cropping up for him." —Adam Walsh (Amazin’ Avenue)
"There isn't a Met who makes me happier than Lagares, and I don't think there has been a Mets position player who has since Carlos Beltran left town. It's not just that he is so astonishing and elegant in the field, or so reliably not-quite-disappointing at bat. There is all that, but mostly it's the surprise of it that makes me happy. It is nice to have a thing that wasn't supposed to happen go down in a way that's good for the Mets." — Roth (SB Nation)
"I don't care if he hits .200, just put him in center and leave him there for the next ten years." —Nic Tatano (Amazin’ Avenue)
"Looks like he should be better than he is but I'm not convinced of upside." —Larry (South Side Sox)
"His early numbers sort of remind me of A.J. Burnett, but Wheeler can probably be better than that." —Tyler Drenon (Royals Review)
"Could be a 9. Not yet, though. I MISS HIM." —Grant Brisbee (McCovey Chronicles)
"Future All Star and one of many stud arms in the Mets system." —Scott Cooke (Blue Bird Banter)
"Growing pains, but doing well and with upside; can't deny that I root for him to succeed in order to make Brian Sabean look dumb for throwing him away." —Alex Hall (Athletics Nation)
"Will be part of a zillion 'Who is better, Zack or Matt?' articles in 2015." —Micahel Donato (Amazin’ Avenue)
"Still developing, but has the potential to be an ace." —Chris Strohmaier (Amazin’ Avenue)
Bartolo Colon
"Colon’s comeback in the last few years has been amazing to watch, and his peripherals still look good despite the decline in ERA, making his age the number one concern with him." —Matt Collins (Over The Monster)
"How?" —Daniel Russell (DRaysBay)
"Good gamble. Not going to last forever." —Grant Brisbee (McCovey Chronicles)
"I'm so happy the Mets signed Colon; now we get video and photos of him trying to hit. He's also a fine pitcher for being over the proverbial hill." —Ben Humphrey (Vivos El Birdos)
"Innings-eater in every sense of the word." —Micahel Donato (Amazin’ Avenue)
"I thought it was a great signing of a very good player, and I wish he was as highly thought of with other baseball GMs, so his trade value was higher" —Steve Sypa (Amazin Avenue)
Noah Syndergaard
"If Harvey comes back strong and Syndergaard actualizes ... holy shit." —Tyler Drenon (Royals Review)
"Still a top prospect who I'm pretty sure I first heard about 17 years ago." —Nico Pemantle (Athletics Nation)
"Please stay healthy." —Jesse Spector (Sporting News)
"He’s doing real well in Vegas. There’s a lot of speculation he could end up as a Cub for someone like Castro or Russell, so I’ve got my eye on him." —Josh Timmers (Bleed Cubbie Blue)
"Lucky bastards." —Charlie Drysdale (Purple Row and Minor League Ball)
"Two way avenue; Either a piece in the rotation or a trade chip for the future." —Ryan Gaydos (Amazin’ Avenue)