Mets fans are an angry bunch these days. I had gathered as much in the wake of the team’s latest swoon, but my trip to Shea’s upper deck last night left little doubt.

The fans around me screamed at a woman trying to start a wave in the sixth inning of a tied pennant-race game. They cursed at a Mets-sponsored photographer roaming the stands. And they were less than hospitable to the Cubs-hat wearing guy who sat among them.

The collective ire of Mets fans all over the city, however, was most apparent after the team squandered a 5-1 lead in the top of the fifth. The lead had provided a brief respite from fans’ angst thanks to Carlos Delgado who hit a grand slam in the third inning. Like most of the Mets good moments of late, it didn’t last. After many blown opportunities chances, the Mets lost in 10 innings and forfeited their sole possession of the wild-card spot.

For the second straight year, Mets fans are left wondering why they bother. A Mets fan friend sent me this text after attending last night’s game. I think it says it all:

From now on I think I’m just going to throw fifty bucks in the toilet, and then punch myself in the nuts and save the three hours for something else.

Ah, the life of a sports fan…