From pumpkins to Pop songs, to a big purple whatever-it-is McDonalds mascot, the Mets have rallied around a bounty of rituals and unexpected good-luck charms and now found themselves tied a game apiece in this best-of-seven LCS against the favored Los Angeles Dodgers.
OMG! It’s been East Coast versus West Coast, Broadway versus Hollywood, and the victor faces either the New York Yankees or Cleveland Guardians for the big trophy and a ring on their fingers.
And it might not be a spoiler alert that it sure seems like the World Series is headed to the Bronx right now.
Another Subway Series? Can you imagine? Do you remember what it was like in 2000?
Doc Gooden and Darryl Strawberry were on hand to throw out the first pitch before Game 3, and the former Mets – and Yankees – were asked about the possibility.
“It would be great for New York, great for the city, great for the fans,” said Gooden.
“After everything it’s been through, yes, good for the city,” said Strawberry. “You know how it is here, for the bragging rights. In ’86, we had the city to ourselves.”
Ironically, between Doc and Darryl, they played for all four teams in the LCS. Doc was also a Yankee and earned a pair of rings, and briefly played with a then-Cleveland Indians. Darryl defected to Los Angeles as a free agent after his celebrated career with the Mets, and won three rings with the Yankees.
But their hearts still belong to the NY Mets and their ever-memorable 1986 club.
“We had heart,” Darryl beamed about his ’86 team. “We were a lot closer as a ballclub, we had a lot of time (together) on the road. The ’88 team was more talented, but ’86 had more guts.
“If you got ahead of us, we believed we were coming back to win. We were not going to lose, no matter the circumstances.
“We were crazy. We were a different breed. A lot of swagger about us. We had a slogan…(I) can’t tell you what it was…we had a lot of fun in those days.”
Today’s Mets call Mark Vientos “Swaggy V,” so maybe this ’24 team has a bit of that ’86 “Magic” in them.
“I spent time with (the Mets) in spring training,” said the Straw Man. I saw the talent they had. They’re fun to watch. They’re not afraid of the moment. They got a chance to be just like we were, a chance to win.
“When you win here, the people in this city take care of you. We never had to pay for anything. When you win in New York, this city will embrace you.”
The city already has embraced a singing infielder with one of the best songs associated with the team since “Meet the Mets.”
“OMG” is a catchy tune sung in Spanish by Jose Iglesias (#11 in your program), who goes by the stage name of “Candelita” when he is performing.
“Candelita” essentially translates to someone who is energetic and passionate, and that certainly fits Iglesias.
Left behind and relegated to the minors when the team broke camp in Port St. Lucie, Iglesias stuck to his beliefs and treated his Triple-A games as major league games, which led to a call-up in May.
The 34-year-old infielder used “OMG” as his walk-up music in his first game as a Met on May 31st, and soon thereafter, the team caught fire. The club started using it for home runs, and when the team ignited a seven-game win streak in June, it was the song that led the surge, right?
It was, or was it a weird coincidence that a purple cartoon character made a Citi Field appearance and that also kick-started the winning streak.
Credit Andy Goldberg, Mets Chief Marketing Officer, and Brielle Speranzini, the team’s Senior Director for Integrated Brand Marketing, with assists for making the Grimace connection with the Mets. Goldberg became aware that a couple of Mets players were somewhat “fans” of the Grimace character, and that McDonalds was having a birthday of sorts for the character, which was first introduced in 1971.
Goldberg invited McDonalds to have Grimace throw out the first pitch on his Anniversary, June 12, and wouldn’t you know it, the Mets won that night and that officially began the seven-game win streak.
So of course, fans organically made the connection that Grimace brought good luck, and soon fans were wearing Grimace costumes, shirts, carrying signs and making Grimace more popular than Mr. and Mrs. Met.
Even the players got into the purple burger Mascot.
“I don’t know about coincidences,” said Brandon Nimmo, “but he definitely correlates with us going (on a win streak), and if that’s what you want to attribute it to, then I’m all for it.”
Pitcher Tylor Megill credited Grimace on his Instagram account.
Mets slugger Pete Alonso wore Grimace on specially designed cleats in July.
The Mets honored Grimace with a purple seat in Section 302, Row 6, Seat 12. Get it? June 12. The 6th Month. The 12th day.
The bottom line is that the Mets were 28-37 before Grimace threw out the ceremonial first pitch, and went 61-38 afterward. Thanks, Grimace.
The OMG association also was fan-promoted.
The song was one thing, but then a local artist named James McCroy made the now ubiquitous OMG sign that now adorns everything from shirts and caps to signage of various sizes.
Already a longtime Mets fan, McCroy brought his first hand-made sign to Citi Field in late June, and by chance, met Mets co-owner Alex Cohen. McCroy essentially gifted the sign to her, and she in turn forwarded it to the Mets clubhouse.
The Mets hit three home runs that night, and the players started waving around the OMG sign with each blast. A photo landed on the back cover of Newsday, and that’s all it took. Soon fans were making their own versions and bringing them to the ballpark.
The players took that first OMG sign on the road with them, but it didn’t survive the wear and tear. The O broke off. McCroy made a new, stronger version, and that’s the one the team has been smiling with every time they hit a home run.
OMG, indeed.
But Oh, My, God turned into, Oh, God, No, on Wednesday night for the Mets, as the Dodgers shut out New York, 8-0, behind a strong performance by LA hurler Walker Buehler and a quartet of relievers.
The Mets had their chances on the cool autumn evening with chilly winds. They loaded the bases in the second inning, but Francisco Alvarez and Francisco Lindor both struck out to end the inning. Two runners on in the third were also left stranded.
Another opportunity materialized in the 6th when Starling Marte singled to right and JD Martinez walked. But Iglesias bounced into an inning-ending double play.
Walker yielded just three hits in four innings, with six Ks. Mets starter also pitched well, and gave up just two runs on three hits in his 4.2 innings, with three strikeouts, but walked four, and that led to their downfall.
Dodgers catcher Will Smith knocked in a run in the second after Max Muncy led off with a walk, and later, Teoscar Hernandez scored on a sac fly by Tommy Edman.
And that was really all they needed, as you can’t win when you score zero runs.
Muncy added a home run in the ninth, and Shohei Ohtani launched his second home run of the postseason, his first in the LCS, in the eighth.
Perhaps this series is embracing a pattern. The Dodgers shut out the Mets, 9-0 in Game 1, but the New Yorkers responded with a 7-3 victory in Game 2. The Dodgers now take a 2-1 LCS lead with Game 4 on the docket for Thursday night.
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