No one would have blamed Curtis Granderson if he celebrated his walk-off run-scoring single against the Marlins on Friday night through the weekend and into next week. When you sign a $60 million free-agent contract amid high expectations and then endure an 0-for-22 slump, moments like Granderson enjoyed Friday night at Citi Field deserve to be relished. His game-winning single off Marlins closer Steve Cishek gave the Mets a 4-3 victory and offered Granderson a chance to dance, smile and get a face full of shaving cream.
Yet, less than 24 hours later, Granderson was acting like it never happened.
“Last I checked today’s Saturday and it happened on Friday,” Granderson said before Saturday’s 7-6, 10-inning loss to the Marlins. “You’ve got to focus on today. Whether you were 22-for-22 or 0-for-22 in the past you have to forget about it. That’s the great thing about this game. … Whatever happened in the previous game or previous at-bat are forgotten about because today is a new day.”
The new day didn’t turn out so good for Granderson and the Mets. A day after driving his game-winning hit, Granderson went 0-for-4 with a walk and run scored. He grounded out to lead off the 10th inning in which the Mets failed to score, handing the Marlins a come-from-behind win at Citi Field.
Granderson certainly wasn’t the only goat of the game. Starting pitcher Jenrry Mejia blew a 5-1 lead by allowing five runs in the sixth, the Mets offense failed to score after the sixth and closer Kyle Farnsworth gave up a deciding home run by Jarrod Saltalamacchia in the 10th. But it was a step back for Granderson, who hoped his clutch hit on Friday night might be a sign his slump had ended. No so fast.
While Granderson’s hit on Friday allowed him to hear cheers, the boos returned on Saturday. He is still a work in progress as his averaged dipped to .134. Granderson warned before the extra-inning game that all might not be well with his swing.
“You know when you’ve got it and when it’s not there,” he said. “You just have to continue to work in the cage, making sure we’re not moving too much with the entire body, making sure the hands are where we want them to be, making sure we’re able to attack balls that are in the zone and not chasing too much and expanding the zone.”
Granderson still doesn’t look like a man wilting under the spotlight of his contract. A slump like this might have been less conspicuous when he was playing with the Yankees and Derek Jeter, Robinson Cano and Mark Teixeira. With the Mets, he’s expected to carry the team along with David Wright. So far Granderson hasn’t held up his end of the arrangement, hitting just one home run with seven RBIs. The Mets managed just six hits off against five Marlins pitchers.
Granderson insists he’s not pressing and said he doesn’t feel any added pressure to justify the four-year, $60 million deal he signed to switch boroughs. But after a month, Mets fans must be wondering whether they bought another Jason Bay. Granderson, meanwhile, is preaching preparation and patience.
“It doesn’t make it any harder or less harder,” he said of his contract. “You always want to play well not only for your team but yourself. When it doesn’t go the way you want it to, you keep your head high and know that things will eventually turn.”
Granderson said he is confident it will turn. But his 10 years in the majors have taught him success won’t come overnight or in a month.
“Each day is a step closer to where you ultimately want to be,” he said. “It could be a long way away still. You never want to peak too soon one way or the other. We’ve still got a lot of baseball to play. We’re not even through April, but you want to continue to get hotter and hotter as the season goes along and help this team out.”
The Mets still are waiting.