Mets' year in review: OMG, what a fun run it was
Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor celebrates in the locker room after clinching a playoff berth with a victory in the first game of a doubleheader against Atlanta on Sept. 30 in Atlanta. Credit: AP/Jason Allen
In those raw first moments after the final out, when the Mets’ storybook season concluded without a storybook ending, the hugs and tears soon yielded to smiles and laughs.
The Mets in 2024 — a transition year with new leadership, a quiet offseason and far lower expectations — accomplished more than anybody involved reasonably anticipated at the start (or even in the middle). Consider, as a signal of late October intentions: One of Steve and Alex Cohen’s daughters got married on the day of Game 2 of the World Series, typically a major scheduling no-no for baseball people.
So the emotions were mixed in the visitors’ clubhouse at Dodger Stadium after the Mets lost in six games to the eventual champion Dodgers in the National League Championship Series.
They recognized that for the Mets as an organization, this was a potential turning point, the forming of a fun-loving, success-bolstering culture that may well help future iterations of the squad. But they also knew that that was the last time this version of the Mets — who had just put together the franchise’s most enjoyable, odds-beating season since 1986 — would be together as a group.
Even if the Mets are good and fun again in 2025, they won’t be the 2024 Mets.
“It’s a hell of a year. Unbelievable,” J.D. Martinez, the mercenary designated hitter who signed shortly before Opening Day, said after the last loss. “From where we started to where we’re at right now, it was a blessing. I’ve been on a lot of teams, in the playoffs a few times, and this is one that I’ll always remember because of the group.
“The fact that the core is coming back, I think they’re going to be a good team. Obviously, they gotta fill the holes they’re going to be missing next year. I wouldn’t be surprised if they do that and the team is back in this situation next year.”
Such a prediction — at such an early juncture — underscored an old baseball truth: It’s impossible to know what will happen next. The 2024 Mets embodied that, not just April and May compared to September and October, but also game to game or inning to inning. Good and bad, chaos became their norm.
The Mets had sunk to a season-worst 11 games under .500 after losing to Los Angeles on May 29. That was when they had their players-only team meeting, often cited in subsequent weeks and months as a critical juncture.
Middling results began to change for real, though, with a couple of massive on-field moments in the first half of June. First came Luis Torrens’ 2-3 double play to beat the Phillies in London, saving the Mets from crossing the Atlantic Ocean winless. Later that week, Martinez’s walk-off two-run home run against Tanner Scott transformed what was nearly an ugly series loss to the lowly Marlins into an exhilarating victory.
The Mets got hot. They went 16-8 in June, 17-10 in July, 15-13 in August and 17-9 in September. More than once, they were held hitless into the ninth inning and won the game. They owned the best record in the majors after May and snuck into the playoffs on the final day of the regular season, beating Atlanta in the first game of a makeup doubleheader on Francisco Lindor’s go-ahead home run in the ninth.
A key, they said, was playing without pressure after such a miserable spring.
“You know what, they [outsiders] say we suck? We suck,” Martinez said in October. “Let’s suck . . . Let’s enjoy it. And that’s what we did. We did it as a team and everyone rallied around that.”
McDonald's character Grimace throws out a ceremonial first pitch before a game between the Miami Marlins and the New York Mets on June 12, 2024, at Citi Field. Credit: AP
Along the way, the Mets (and the marketing department) similarly rallied around their gimmicks, from backup infielder/Latin pop star Jose Iglesias’ “OMG” song (which became a post-victory anthem in the clubhouse and on one glorious Friday night in June, a postgame concert) to Grimace (the McDonald’s mascot who threw out the first pitch at Citi Field on June 12, hours before they began a seven-game winning streak).
For the 2024 Mets, that was part of the fun — and part of the story.
“We’re just having fun. And as much as, yes, we take a lot of pride in what we do, also this is fun,” Pete Alonso, who introduced a “playoff pumpkin” talisman hand-picked at a farm in Wisconsin, said during the Mets’ playoff run. “I mean, at the end of the day, this is a game. Through all the craziness, madness and ups and downs, this game is — at the end of the day, it's supposed to be fun.
“There’s no shortage of guys who work hard, play hard, stay focused. But also, what's the point if you're not having fun? That's a part of the culture here. We're not afraid to embrace the fun part of the game. It's not just business. The game is a lot more than just trying to win or lose. You're trying to enjoy the ride with the group that you're with.
“That's one of the reasons why we are where we're at . . . It's really just a perfect environment like when you have guys in the clubhouse having fun and enjoying the ride. The same thing with the fan base in the city. When you have that connection between the guys in the clubhouse and people watching, it's electric.”
Tim Healey is the Mets beat writer for Newsday. Born on Long Island and raised in Connecticut, Tim has previously worked for the South Florida Sun Sentinel, the Boston Globe and MLB.com. He is also the author of “Hometown Hardball,” a book about minor league baseball in the northeast.
