Big Mets news on Thursday: Doc Gooden and Darryl Strawberry will have their Nos. 16 and 18 retired at Citi Field in 2024, news that was “an honor” for Sal Licata to announce on the air.
“As a kid who grew up loving those guys and that ’86 team, even to this day, I get goosebumps,” Sal said, remembering how he even told Doc his number needed to be retired on air.
“Those guys weren’t nearly as tight as some people think, but I love them both, so it’s great they’re doing them separately,” BT replied.
Brandon jokingly asked if the montages for both would include Yankee highlights, which prompted Sal to only respond “this is why Mets fans hate you, BT!”
Truth be told, though, BT is happy for Mets fans and for both players, but Sal wants one more?
“They deserve to be there next to Keith (Hernandez), but there’s one more – Gary (Carter) has to be the one,” Sal said.
“I’m a little older, and the conversation around the Mets before that time was that they had to find a catcher,” BT said. “They had a few, but when they got Gary, even though they didn’t win it his first year, he had a walk-off homer his first game as a Met, and that really brought it. The farm system started it, Keith solidified it, and Gary punctuated it.”
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Carter has since passed away, and is a Hall of Famer as an Expo, but both BT & Sal agree that he should still get his day in the sun – and will, because Steve Cohen is a fan first.
“I don’t think Steve will be that petty, and if I, as a non-Mets fan, know what Gary means to you and the team, I would think Steve would,” BT said.
“And to punctuate this…Keith having his number up there alone felt lonely,” Sal replied. “You needed to have Doc & Darryl, and now you have to have Gary up there too.”
Listen to BT & Sal’s entire conversation on Doc, Darryl, and the Mets’ retired numbers above!
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