Good Morning,
It’s not officially baseball season until you play a home game. After an impressive 5–2 start on the road, the Mets play their Home Opener today against the Diamondbacks.
☀️ The weather looks nearly perfect for baseball, with clear skies and temperatures expected to be in the 60s.
The day starts with the team unveiling the statue of Tom Seaver in a pre-game ceremony.
And it all happens on the 75th anniversary of Jackie Robinson breaking baseball’s color barrier. The first 25,000 fans in attendance today will receive a Jackie Robinson Brooklyn Dodgers T-shirt. Each player, manager and coach will wear the number 42 to commemorate the historic day.
If you’re heading to the ballpark, or want to feel the excitement of attending the opener, here’s everything you need to know.
🔷 PARKING LOTS OPEN: 9:40 AM.
The team encourages people to take public transit. If you drive, it will cost you $25 to park this season.
🔷 SEAVER CEREMONY: 10:30 AM
Of course, most people will be lining up early for the Tom Seaver ceremony, which is set to begin ten minutes before the gates open. The event is open to the public. It will take place to the right of the Home Run Apple in front of Citi Field. Steve Cohen will be there, alongside Tom’s widow, Nancy, their two daughters, Sarah and Anne, as well as Mike Piazza.
From the Mets: “The statue of Tom Seaver features his iconic drop and drive delivery and is two times life-size to scale. The statue is 10 feet high from the granite pitcher’s mound and 13 ½ feet in length. The total weight of the statue is 3,200 pounds (2,000 pounds of bronze and 1,200 pounds of structural stainless steel). The granite mound came in nine separate pieces that weighed 33,600 pounds and added approximately three feet in height.”
You can also watch the ceremony on SNY and on the Mets’ YouTube channel.
📚 LEARN MORE:
🔗 Howie Rose, voice of the Mets and lifelong fan, breaks down meaning of Tom Seaver statue, by Andrew Tredinnick, NorthJersey.com
🔗 The Mets immortalize Tom Seaver, finally: ‘The statement was in what he did’, by Tim Britton, The Athletic ($)
🔗 Tom Seaver left lasting impact on Lee Mazzilli’s career: ‘Things I cherish’, by Mike Puma, NY Post
🔷 GATES OPEN: 10:40 AM.
Since it’s Jackie Robinson Day, entering through the Jackie Robinson Rotunda takes on extra meaning. It should also look a bit different. The team store has been upgraded. You can also check out the Mets Hall of Fame, where they added a new exhibit that features Gil Hodges’ jersey from the inaugural season, Ron Swoboda’s glove from “The Catch” in 1969, Mookie Wilson’s cleats from Game 6 of the 1986 World Series and the pitching rubber from Johan Santana’s no-hitter.
My favorite part of Opening Day at Citi Field, besides the very first time you glimpse the field, is taking those escalators up into the ballpark and seeing the lineup displayed on the baseball cards overhead.
🔷 GET YOUR FOOD: 11:00 AM
If Shake Shack is still your thing, veteran Citi Field goers know to get in line as soon as possible. If you’re looking for something new, you can try some of the new food options highlighted recently by the New York Daily News, such as the “People’s Champion Burger” from Pig Beach BBQ at the stadium’s promenade level, “Loaded Bayside Chips” from Lobster Shack by Section 104, or “Cheesy Tater Kegs” at Amazin Chickin Company, located in the Taste of the City section.
If betting is your thing, check out The Metropolitan Grille at the Excelsior Level behind the left field foul pole. The Mets have partnered with Caesars Sportsbook to offer a sports betting environment at the stadium.
📺 WATCH: Food critic Scott Vogel taste tests Citi Field's 2022 menu
🔷 OPENING CEREMONY: 12:15 PM (ish)
The Mets will honor and recognize fallen NYPD officers Jason Rivera and Wilbert Mora, who tragically lost their lives in the line of duty in January. New York jazz recording artist Anaïs Reno will perform the National Anthem. Tom Seaver’s grandsons, Thomas and Tobin, will throw out the ceremonial first pitches.
🔷 FIRST PITCH: 1:10 PM
Chris Bassitt will throw the first pitch of the season at Citi Field, most likely to Diamondbacks centerfielder Daulton Varsho.
Three things to know about the Diamondbacks…
❶ SPUTTERING OFFENSE: The D-Backs come to Citi following a dramatic walk-off win against the Astros on Wednesday. They are 2–4, with their other win a walk-off on Opening Day. What happened in between, you ask? They hit a lot like the Mets of recent seasons: finishing their six-game home stand a dreadful 4–35 with runners in scoring position (the Mets are currently 18–65 with RISP).
Overall, the D-Backs have scored only 15 runs over their first five games and their meager .246 team slugging percentage ranks last in all of baseball.
❷ FAMILIAR FACE: Somehow Óliver Pérez is still pitching. We will probably see him this weekend coming out of the bullpen for the Diamondbacks. The 40-year-old southpaw will call it quits after this year, but not before he pitches in his 20th major-league season.
He is off to a bit of a rocky start, playing a similar role as Joely Rodríguez and Chasen Shreve with the Mets. His ERA sits at 7.71 because of a rough outing against the Padres last week in which he served up a two-run homer to Jurickson Profar.
Meanwhile, the Mets have several former D-Backs on their roster. Eduardo Escobar, Starling Marte, Taijuan Walker and Max Scherzer have all spent time in Arizona. People forget Scherzer was originally drafted 11th overall by the D-Backs.
❷ PITCHING: Right-hander Zach Davies makes his second start in his new uniform today. He is hoping to rebound off a tough 2021 campaign with the Cubs. He looked decent on Saturday against San Diego, but struggled with his command. The Mets have always hit him hard, slashing .310/.375/.621 in three match-ups at Citi Field over his career.
On Saturday, Zac Gallen will likely make his season debut. He was forced to skip his first start because he injured his finger trying to fix his home sprinkler system (see, fluke injuries happen to other teams too).
Some more news and notes from yesterday…
🤕 HURT: The Mets are even getting beaned in the minors. Top prospect Ronny Mauricio was forced out of last night’s game after taking a pitch off his left ankle. Jacob Resnick says it “looked precautionary as he was able to walk off under his own power, albeit slowly.”
📈 GREAT STUFF: As we have all witnessed, Tylor Megill has significantly improved his stuff this season. Putting it into a metric, The Athletic’s Eno Sarris shows Megill’s “Stuff+” improvement ranking 8th in all of baseball. Most impressively, Megill has three pitches that have a 105 Stuff+:
“Here is the full list of the other pitchers in the league who have a 105 Stuff+ on three pitches (minimum 20): Aaron Ashby, Frankie Montas, Gerrit Cole, Nate Eovaldi, Shane McClanahan, and Yu Darvish.”
🎙 PRESS BOX: The Mets will dedicate the press box at Citi Field to PR legend Jay Horwitz, who will also throw out the first pitch on Sunday.
⚾️ JACKIE: Robinson Canó and Pete Alonso will celebrate Jackie Robinson by wearing special cleats during the game today:
UP NEXT: I gave a preview of the D-Backs’ starters earlier. The Mets will send Chris Bassitt, Carlos Carrasco and David Peterson to the mound this weekend.
◾️ Celebrate Jackie Robinson:
🔗 Drew Smith's potential emergence as late-inning force could be great news for Mets' bullpen, by John Harper, SNY: “It remains to be seen, of course, but to this point the best news for that bullpen may well be the early dominance of Drew Smith, who looks ready to emerge as a late-inning force at age 28 if he can avoid more of the arm injuries that have sidelined him in recent years.”
🔗 How Alex Cohen’s humble upbringing and life-altering illness drive her to help others, by Deesha Thosar, NY Daily News: Alex Cohen peels back the curtain on her humble and giving upbringing, meeting Steve Cohen, her battle with Lyme disease and more.
🔗 Mets’ home opener reaching all-time levels of anticipation, by Mike Puma, NY Post: “Since the Mets last convened at Citi Field, the organization has hired a new front office and manager and dramatically overhauled the roster. But there are other reasons a sellout crowd will be extra amped heading into Friday’s home opener.”
📺 Mets All-Access: Max Scherzer opens up about his new life in New York:
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Now this is what I call comprehensive coverage!! Great job, Jeff. For me, this is the real inaugural game at Citi Field. The 2009 opener was exciting but Citi Field wasn't exactly "homey." Plus, Pelfrey giving up a HR on his second pitch ruined the night. I love, love, love that the Mets are solidifying their history by unveiling the Seaver Statue and letting everyone know that #Mets60 will be completely Metsie. I hope everyone enjoys this day and it evokes fond memories for all. Let's Effin' Go Mets!