Hometown Sports: Art of the “Mets Sufferer”

Growing up in the state of New Jersey, I’ve been exposed to the dynamics of one of the largest sports markets in the world — the New York metropolitan area. 

It’s expected tons of people will still tune into a live broadcast at any given moment or shamelessly wear their team’s merch, despite said team getting blown out the night before. 

As one of those fans, I feel it’s my responsibility to expose readers to why I consistently sign myself up for the delusion. I’m happy to continue the alternating column between Sports Editor Andi Revesz, myself and our writers highlighting our hometown sports.

However, unlike Andi’s clearcut Detroit background, I’ll have to navigate the muddy waters of the Hudson River to find what qualifies as a hometown team. In this issue, I’ll be covering the significant recent news surrounding the New York Mets, but future iterations will include deep-dives into the New York Giants and New Jersey Devils as well.

The blue-and-orange of the Mets has become a more involved part of my life as of late. Ever since I moved out to Chicago, I’ve felt the need to call attention to my East Coast background and the pride I take from it.

My Mets cap has seen a significant amount of wear over the years, coming along with me on numerous family vacations, canoeing trips in the New England wilderness and most recently, across the Atlantic for my study abroad experience in Rome.

My blue alternate Jacob Degrom jersey is a prized feature of my wardrobe, having made its way to Wrigley Field several times and serving as a source of confusion for Cubs fans who wonder why I’m there for a game not involving the Mets.

A lot of that pride is also, perhaps indirectly, for my father and how he introduced me to the world of sports.

Growing up across from Manhattan in Jersey City, NJ, my father opted out of following the “evil empire” — known as the New York Yankees — and brought me along for the wild ride.

One of my favorite memories involved the two of us riding in a car after work in an hour and a half long drive to the Mets’ home stadium of Citi Field in Queen’s Flushing neighborhood.

My father and I patiently stared at my Ticketmaster homepage, waiting for a “guy in his bathtub” to lower the price of great tickets right behind the opposing team’s dugout, while also holding our breaths for possible cancellation due to bad weather.

We were able to snatch the tickets and had a blast before the game started, touring Citi and enjoying the amenities. The Mets lost the game 1-0, but that experience and many others  conditioned me into being what he described as a “Mets sufferer.” 

If there’s any confusion about what a “Mets sufferer” is, the only way to possibly show what the term means is with what happened on the evening of Sept. 30, the day before Major League Baseball postseason started.

The Mets were facing division rivals, the Atlanta Braves, in a two game double-header. The games were originally scheduled five days earlier Sept. 25-26, but Hurricane Helene made landfall, causing the Wild Card defining matchup to be put on hold.

The Mets had already found themselves in an unexpected position. Only a year after blowing up a squad with record high payroll, the Mets toiled in misery. An early 0-5 record followed by several putrid stretches had their own announcers writing the team off for the season.

Enter McDonald’s mascot Grimace.

With a record of 28-37 and a 15.6% chance of making the playoffs as of June 12, Grimace delivered the first pitch, creating a massive culture shock — nicknamed “Grimace Mania” — in the Mets’ stadium and dugout.

With additional emotional support from second-baseman Jose Iglesias’ Billboard-charting song “OMG,” another celebrity opening pitch courtesy of “Hawk Tuah” star Haley Welch and a permanent purple seat installed in Citi Field’s section 302, the Mets grabbed 60 wins and found themselves staring at a potential Wild Card spot.

With the matchup, not only did the Braves and Mets both need a win to get their Wi tickets punched, but the Arizona Diamondbacks needed one to sweep the other to squeeze in.

The Sunday before the matchup, my father sent me a text while I was cooking dinner, showing even he, a typical nihilist when it came to the Mets, had some optimism in him.

“All the Mets need to do tomorrow is split,” he said. “Watch this!”

The first game in the double header started slow, picking up in the final two innings.

At the top of the eighth inning, the Braves were up 3-0 and had a 94% chance of winning. The bottom of the Mets’ lineup jump started an eventual six-run inning, starting the bottom of the eight up 6-3. 

Closing pitcher Edwin Diaz came to the mound and completely lost control, allowing the Braves to score four before he was able to stop the bleeding. 

In the top of the ninth and one out down, outfielder Starling Marte ripped a single, giving star shortstop and MVP contender Fransico Lindor a chance to make an impact. Lindor smashed the first pitch, which went over the left field fence for the 8-7 lead. 

Diaz surprisingly returned to the mound — a move that prompted my father to text me “I can’t watch” — and was able to recollect himself.

After the first at-bat ended in a pop-up out, the second at-bat saw Atlanta’s left fielder Eli White sneak the ball into the outfield for a single, and immediately steal second.

With a man in scoring position, Diaz was able to retire another for the second out. Former Mets catcher Travis d’Arnaud was the last man standing between New York and October baseball.

He’d eventually put the ball into play with a grounder, which Lindor fielded for the final out of the night. Another postseason appearance and the opportunity for the team to take a crack at the Milwaukee Brewers in the Wild Card the following day.

Although the Braves captured the second game of the double-header 3-0 — much to Arizona’s dismay — the Mets defied expectations, gave fans a speed run of the five stages of grief before bringing hope back and gave a certain purple mascot an even bigger cult following.

Suffering can be sweet sometimes.