I spent like 15 years hating Gary Sheffield, thinking he was just another bitter player who could never keep his mouth shut and never put up when it counted. But then tonight happened, and it wasn't so much that he finally hit his 500th homerun (I think only 25 other players have reached 500, it's a pretty big deal) after being dropped by the Tigers and going like 0 for 10 already this season, but it's the way the his usual head-down jog was replaced by a genuinely brisk jaunt of elation. The cherry on the top was how he was greeted by the team after rounding the bases. It seems the Mets have really accepted this "bad apple" vet and it, again, was a moment of genuine happiness as each player exchanged what seemed like pretty meaningful hugs and high fives for a minute or two before Sheff, who oddly enough is usually fairly humble about his on field play, took a curtain call and thanked the NY crowd.
Wow.
So now I like Gary. I just hope that's not the only reason he took the bench position to begin with and is planning on checking out for the remainder of the season. Then I'll just go back to hating the dude.
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