Coincidence?

I was looking at some pictures of the Mets online and I saw one of Willie Randolph, Sandy Alomar Sr., and Rick Down, and I got a bit nostalgic but not in the good way. I remember throughout all of last year saying to myself that we need to get rid of hitting coach Rick Down. That we need to bring up the AAA hitting coach Howard Johnson (HoJo). Down is the former Yankee hitting coach. He had a successful track record before the 2003 post season when the Yanks blew up against the Marlins. Randolph liked Down's abilities and asked him to join him on the other side of NY. Down gladly accepted and there he was standing next to Willie and Sandy. All season long the Mets lacked the ability to drive in runs. To get that hit with runners in scoring position. The top of the lineup lacked the ability to get on base. Down continued to spiral down. But then in September the rosters were expanded, and that was when Down started to shine, or was it... When the Rosters expanded, so did the coaching staff. Howard Johnson came aboard, and suddenly the Met players had a sudden burst, despite having a 13-14 win-loss record in September, the players looked energetic, they wanted to keep playing. Last year we had many young guys who worked with HoJo in the minors, many including David Wright, and former Met, Mike Jacobs (1st baseman for the Marlins). On many occasions we have heard David blame his success on HoJo. In September Wright had 6HRs, 19RBIs, and 14 runs scored. This is not exactly a good example because Wright put up just about those same numbers all season long. But if we take a look Jacobs did in September, when HoJo arrived, we will see the impact HoJo has on our young guys. In 71 Abs, Jacobs hit 7 Hrs, 14 RBIs, 11 runs scored, and maintained a .310 batting average. Many other guys on the team also showed a spark when HoJo arrived. When Omar Minaya acquired Anderson Hernandez, everyone though he got him for his defensive skills. Hernandez was never much of a batter, but after meeting with HoJo in AAA his hitting skills suddenly increased and was given a chance to play at the major league level. Kazuo Matsui played the best American baseball he has ever played, in September. He had 18 hits, 3 doubles, 3 triples, with a BA of .353 and an OBP of .382, in 51 Abs. Floyd had 7 HRs in September (In July and August combined Floyd had only 6HRs). Many of these players had an offensive spark in some way when HoJo arrived. Perhaps it is all a coincidence. Maybe Wright was just playing baseball, Jacobs was trying to earn a starting job, Hernandez just had a break through season, Matsui had to adapt sometime, and Floyd was due to break out of his HR slump. Or maybe, just maybe Howard Johnson brings a spark to the Mets that Rick Down cannot. What do you think?