Mets ornament of the day: Johan Santana and the rare benefit of being a Michigan Mets fan

There are very few benefits to being a Mets fan in Michigan.

It's nice when the Mets come to Detroit to play the Tigers at Comerica Park because most of the Detroit fans are crowded around the Tigers dugout before and after the game. With less competition, I was able to have nice experiences with Chip Hale and Scott Hairston before the game.

And after the game, Manny Acosta famously looked up, saw my Mets jersey and threw me the ball use to record the final out.

But the other benefit came two years ago when Hallmark issued a Johan Santana ornament.

The designation was disastrous for Santana, of course. He was victimized by the Hallmark curse, as we all knew he would.

But my Michigan location was perfect for snagging leftover Santana ornaments at post-holiday prices. Apparently there wasn't much demand for Johan, because I found several at half-off in the days after Christmas.

But then I hit the jackpot. I was in Kohl's in early January, walked past what was left of the Christmas display and saw ornaments were 90 percent off. And, there were a pile of Santanas, apparently unloved by most other Michiganers but beloved by one in particular.

I cleaned the shelves. Friends and relatives back in the Homeland who were shut out soon found Santanas in their mailboxes. They were a little late for that Christmas, but the next year's trees sure looked better!