The Mets and the Nationals line up for the “Star-Spangled Banner” during opening day at CitiField Monday. Photo courtesy New York Mets/Facebook
While the Mets lost 9-7 to the Washington Nationals in a chilly Opening Day game marked by rain and snow, fans were not dissuaded by the defeat and many issued the same proclamation: Baseball is back.
“It can snow or rain or thunder or do whatever, we don’t care – we’re in the stands again,” said Luis Rayez, 43, a South Ozone Park resident who attended the Opening Game festivities at CitiField in Flushing, during which the Mets honored the legendary broadcaster and Hall of Famer Ralph Kiner, who died in February.
Alison Bartram, 32, of Ridgewood, said she even took the day off from work to go to the game – for which, she added with a laugh, her employer gave the thumbs up.
“We’re all kind of baseball crazy at my office,” said Bartram, who works for a healthcare facility in Manhattan. “We definitely have a Mets-Yankees rivalry going on with who can wear the better baseball outfits. The Mets are going to do well this year; I know it.”
To kick off the game, which ended in the Mets giving up their lead in the eighth inning, Mayor Bill de Blasio threw out the first pitch – and was greeted by many fans hurling jeers.
A self-proclaimed Boston Red Sox fan, de Blasio renounced his favorite team from the north and donned a Mets cap and jersey to throw out the first pitch – during which he was joined on the field by five children affected by the recent gas explosion in East Harlem that killed eight people.
In a press conference before the game, the mayor called CitiField “a fantastic ballpark.”
“I’m a baseball fan – I go all over the country whenever I get a chance and try to experience different ballparks,” de Blasio told reporters. “This is really a wonderful ballpark. As for the response of the crowd, I think everyone’s going to be too cold to respond. But whatever it is, I’m as ports fan; I think sports fans have a right to express themselves any way they want.”
When asked if he was more of a Mets fan or a Yankees fan, de Blasio laughed and said, “Let’s just say, I have a special appreciation for the New York Mets. We’ll leave it at that.”
Mayor Bill de Blasio throws out the first pitch for the Mets on opening day at CitiField in Flushing on Monday. Photo courtesy Rob Bennett/NYC Mayor’s Office
By Anna Gustafson
