Long Island's John Nolan, lead singer of Taking Back Sunday, to throw out first pitch at Citi Field Sunday
John Nolan of the Long Island group Taking Back Sunday is scheduled to throw out the first pitch at the Mets game Sept. 17, 2023 at Citi Field. Credit: Taking Back Sunday/John Nolan
Like any good Mets fan, John Nolan’s relationship with the team has been…well, a little emo, actually.
The guitarist and vocalist for Taking Back Sunday – the Long Island emo band that helped define the genre known for emotional and confessional rock music – saw his team win the World Series in 1986 when he was eight years old. Then, like most Met fans of that generation, he didn’t get a whole lot more to cheer for in the coming years.
“I kind of lost touch with the team for a little while because of touring…but then I really got back into it [around] 2009, 2010,” said Nolan, who’ll be throwing out the first pitch at Citi Field Sunday. “It’s been a crazy thing because this year, I had really high hopes for the team and I was honestly pretty shocked at how [they underperformed], but it made me appreciate the 10 years before. I would complain because they would come so close to the playoffs or get in the playoffs and lose quickly. Or, like in 2015, in the World Series – they got so close. And it made me realize that I was a little bit spoiled…It’s a huge bummer when they’re not even close.”
If that doesn’t prove Nolan’s street cred as a Mets fan, little else will. His favorite player growing up was Keith Hernandez, and he has a soft spot for Bartolo Colon, who will announce his retirement on the day Nolan is set to throw his first pitch. He's occasionally engaged with Mets Twitter (Mets X?) and converses easily about how Steve Cohen and incoming president of baseball operations David Stearns will steer the team.
And, when Taking Back Sunday started marketing their first full-length album in seven years – titled “152” and scheduled to come out on Oct. 27 – Nolan immediately thought about getting in touch with the Mets.
“I had this brief time where I thought musicians weren’t supposed to be sports fans or something, so I kind of stopped watching,” said Nolan, who grew up in Baldwin and inherited his fandom from his family. Now? He’s delighted that he can throw out the first pitch to a very special catcher – his 11-year-old son, John Nolan II.
Appearances like Nolan’s are part of an ongoing effort to turn Citi Field into what Mets executive vice president and chief marketing officer Andy Goldberg called a “world-class venue.”
“It’s very cool,” Nolan added. “I sang God Bless America during the seventh-inning stretch during a Mets game – I think that might’ve been 2015, and I was very nervous for that…[But throwing to my son], I think that’s going to make it more fun and relaxed.”
His parents will be there, as well as extended family. There’s a (joking?) bet placed on whether he’ll throw a strike or not. And maybe, just maybe, he’ll get to meet one of his favorite players.
“I don’t know about Keith Hernandez but it might be easier to run into Bartolo Colon,” he said. “I’m keeping my fingers crossed.”
Laura Albanese is a reporter, feature writer and columnist covering local professional sports teams; she began at Newsday in 2007 as an intern.
