The Mets played in front of a sold-out Citi Field on Tuesday night for their first home game in nearly two and a half weeks, and it was worth the wait.
It was also worth the wait for the 44,000-plus in attendance, who had waited nine years to see an NLDS victory in Queens. The Mets rewarded their patience by leaving no doubt, rolling to a 7-2 win to put the team on the cusp of an NLCS berth.
Meanwhile, the fans rewarded the players with an electric atmosphere where years of frustration and disappointment were turned into three hours of pure euphoria.
“The energy was incredible. Shout out to all the fans,” Jesse Winker said. “It was awesome. It was nice to put on the white uniform, for sure.
“We had plans of this. We talked about this. Being on the road for two weeks was a part of our journey, and now we're back here and we're loving it.”
Winker was one of the Mets who sent the capacity crowd into a frenzy, crushing a no-doubt home run to right field off of Aaron Nola, who wasn’t getting anything by New York’s lineup in the pivotal game three. Winker’s homer came after Pete Alonso set the tone with a solo shot to the opposite field, reminiscent of the heroic game-winner he hit off of Devin Williams to eliminate the Brewers just days before.
When Alonso’s homer off Williams left the yard, a deafening silence fell over the crowd. This time, back in Queens, the excitement pulsated through the stadium, reminiscent of David Wright’s home run in the 2015 World Series.
“The atmosphere was absolutely incredible,” said Alonso, who motioned for the crowd to turn the energy back up in the eighth inning as the Mets were finishing off the win. “The fans brought it from pitch one to the last out, and we need more of that tomorrow. It’s been amazing.
“Every pitch, the more loud that we get, it's a huge advantage to us. It’s keeping that energy up and maintaining that energy and momentum. Because it’s huge.”
One of the loudest ovations came for starter Sean Manaea, who left the game in the eighth inning with zero runs on the board and a cozy lead intact. Manaea was eventually charged a run, but the fans were able to show their appreciation as he left the field having stymied the Phillies and their vaunted top half of the lineup.
Manaea has pitched in home playoff games before with the A’s, but he says Tuesday’s atmosphere takes the cake.
“It was the best,” Manaea said. “The fans were into it the whole game, and we had some huge moments and got into it…definitely up there with some of the best I've ever been a part of.”
As Winker said after the game, the Mets had talked about finishing their playoff push to have the chance of playing in front of their home fans in October. It took a while, and a few miraculous comebacks, to get there, but they made it, and the overall sentiment was that it was well worth the wait.
“Amazing. Fantastic. Let’s do it again tomorrow, but more so,” Carlos Mendoza said. “What a privilege, what an honor for us to have that support from our fanbase. We feel it...they deserve this, and just know that we will continue to fight and to believe.”