The New York Mets on Tuesday announced their slate of ceremonial first-pitch flingers and receivers before the team hosts three National League Championship Series games at Citi Field this week. The Mets tied the best-of-seven series at 1-1 with a win on Monday, setting up the possibility that they could take the series (and advance to the 2024 World Series) without playing another road game.
As is often the case around this time of the year (at least as it concerns the franchises with any kind of history to pull from), the Mets’ first-pitch selections are all notable players from their past. In fact, the three first-pitch batteries are all from the Mets’ three most-recent National League pennant-winning teams (1986, 2000 and 2015).
Here’s a look at the pairings, courtesy of MLB’s Anthony DiComo:
- Game 3: OF Darryl Strawberry throwing to Dwight Gooden
- Game 4: 3B Robin Ventura throwing to 2B Edgardo Alfonzo
- Game 5: RHP Matt Harvey throwing to OF Yoenis Céspedes
This is, essentially, the Mets’ version of an Eras Tour. Strawberry and Gooden were members of New York’s 1986 title-winning squad; Ventura and Alfonzo won the pennant with the Mets ahead of 2000’s Subway Series against the New York Yankees; and Harvey and Céspedes were part of the 2015 pennant winners.
Will this Mets squad be able to lay claim to the franchise’s sixth NL pennant? We’ll find out soon enough, but it’s fair to write that they would be doing themselves a service to win Game 3. According to the website WhoWins, MLB teams to go up 2-1 in a best-of-seven series have eventually won that series on 70% of occasions.
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