That happened
Now look: One clutch double from Chris Carter means very little in the grand scheme of things. It was totally awesome, though, and perhaps enough to quiet the skeptics that say a Triple-A lifer like Carter might not be able to hit (or that he can hit but not pinch-hit) in the Major Leagues.
First impressions massively impact perception, so Carter’s double could be enough to win over dubious Mets fans and media for the time being — at least until he amasses an adequate number of at-bats for anyone to make a reasonable evaluation of his talents.
If Carter struck out in that spot, it wouldn’t mean he never should have been called up or that Frank Catalanotto could do better. It wouldn’t make him more or less likely to hit a go-ahead double his next time up. Dae Sung Koo once doubled off Randy Johnson. One at-bat means almost nothing.
But Carter succeeded and the Mets won. The latter part is most important, but it’s certainly nice that Carter took a big step toward earning labels like “clutch” and “gamer” and “deserving Major Leaguer” that will make the work of all of us long advocating his promotion much easier.
