Citi Field has been where the Mets play games as the home team. But, one of the biggest complaints from fans seems to be that the Mets are not truly home.
Since 2009, when Citi Field first opened, these are the records for the Mets while playing there.
2009: 41-40
2010: 47-34
2011: 34-47
2012: 36-45
Overall: 158-166 (.488 Winning Percentage)
Now outside of the 2010 season, which was the best overall season record wise for the Mets since leaving Shea, the record has been pretty poor.
The past two seasons under Terry Collins, in which he made a point of mentioning how important winning at home was, have been disastrous.
Winning 70 games at home the past two seasons after winning a combined 88 at home the prior years under Jerry Manuel has alienated an already pretty alienated fan base.
To put that in averages, the two years under Manuel they averaged 44 wins at home while under Collins they have averaged 35 wins. That is a nine win drop off that in my expert opinion is…Not Good.
You would hope to win roughly 60% of your home games or basically go 50-31 to be a playoff team. In this time of the extra Wild Card, winning 90 games in the National League should get you to the playoffs.
So if you win 50 home games along with a just above .500 record on the road (41-40), it gets you 91 wins and a chance to play some ball in October.
Citi Field is no longer the gigantic joke that it used to be the first three years it was in existence. The offensive players should be able to hit with power just fine while the pitchers still have a friendly park to throw in.
If the 2012 Mets had pulled off the 50 win scenario at home, they would have won 88 games and would have been tied with the Cardinals for the last playoff spot. Defending your home is important in any sport and the Mets have to do this to be successful.
Now for a team this young and in a clear rebuilding, that is asking a lot. This post is not a criticism of their play, but more a hope that their start at home this year.
They are 7-4 at home at the time this was published and that kind of record would lead to 45-50 wins at home.
Will they be able to pull it off? Probably not, but if this small sample proves anything, it shows they could in the near future.
Citi Field has the potential to be a place that really rocks when the Mets are doing well. The 7 Line Army showed that last year and early this year.
Now maybe the Mets can use this season of rebuilding to build back up their confidence in their home park, because it is not going anywhere for a long time.
