The New York Mets clinch playoffs
The New York Mets clinched the 2024 playoffs in an exciting game Monday night against the Atlanta Braves. Despite the rocky start to their season, the Mets came back with a chip on their shoulders and a mission to complete.
New York lost their previous game and needed to win at least one of their two games on Monday to ensure a spot in the playoffs. With tensions rising for the Mets in Truist Park, the Braves led 3-0 going into the eighth inning.
The Mets rallied six runs in the eighth inning in a stunning turnaround, including a tying single from Jose Iglesias and a homerun from Brandon Nimmo. The excitement soon settled in the bottom of the eighth when Braves player Jarred Kelenic singled on a ground ball, allowing Eli White to score. Just after, Ozzie Albies hit a three-run double, now leading his team 7-6 into the ninth.
After this blunder, Mets fans again faced fears from earlier in the 2024 season, flashing back to their poor record and a potential season down the drain. No one captures the dreaded feeling more than owner Steve Cohen, who told reporters, “I was in tears in the eighth inning when we went ahead.” However, the fears soon diminished when Mets captain Francisco Lindor stepped up to the plate. According to Cohen, Lindor has “probably dreamt of it his whole life.”
On a 0-0 pitch with Starling Marte on first, Lindor homered on a fly ball into center field. Edwin Diaz, pitcher for the Mets, would close out the game in the bottom of the ninth and lead his teammates into the National League Wild Card Round.
The Mets won their first game against the Milwaukee Brewers on Tuesday night, and now the dreams of Mets fans across the Tri-State area seem a little less impossible.
White Sox Loss Record
An enraged fan predicted it in 2023, and now the worst fears of Chicago White Sox fans are coming true. The White Sox finally achieved the inevitable and broke the MLB record for most losses in a single regular season, exceeding the 1962 Mets record of 120 losses. The defeated team is now faced with making a change after this horrible failure.
Owner of the Chicago White Sox, Jerry Reinsdorf, released a letter to fans apologizing for the lack of result on the field, stating, “I want to thank you for continuing to support the team throughout what was an embarrassing season. You all deserved better. This season’s performance was completely unacceptable and the varying reactions and emotions from our fanbase are completely understandable.”
Reinsdorf goes on to explain plans for improvement in future seasons, detailing plans of conducting internal evaluations of the team’s performance and hiring new personnel that will help bring Chicago’s south side new success.
At the start of the 2023 major league season, radio station ESPNChicago took a call that summed up how Chicago fans still feel after the firing of former General Manager Rick Hahn and the promotion of Chris Getz in August 2023, as well as the team’s overall success this 2024 season.
Oakland A’s Last Game
The Oakland Athletics played their last game in the Oakland Coliseum on Thursday, Sept. 26 in front of a sold-out crowd. A 57-season chapter has now ended for the A’s fans in southern California, as well as the Major League altogether.
The sold-out stadium of over 46,000 fans led to a celebration of the team’s time in Oakland, as well as a rally of hate towards the Athletics’ owner John Fisher. Throughout the game, fans chanted “Sell The Team” referring to Fisher’s poor job as an owner and mistreatment of Oakland fans. However, this angry feeling soon settled into grief as life-long supporters were forced to say goodbye to their beloved organization.
On Sept. 23, Fisher released a statement to fans regarding his decision to move the team to Las Vegas. He directly addressed fans in his message about their grief over the move, assuring, “I know there is great disappointment, even bitterness. Though I wish I could speak to each one of you individually, I can tell you this from the heart: we tried. Staying in Oakland was our goal, it was our mission, and we failed to achieve it. And for that I am genuinely sorry.”
This message also came up short of comforting Oakland fans of their loss, many still left angry and depressed over their team abandoning their city.
Supporters have also compared this to the end of the Montreal Expos, a Canadian baseball team whose time came to an end in 2004. Soon after, they moved to Washington, D.C. and became known as the Nationals. This major sports move has sparked the emotions of baseball fans across the league as a reminder that all good things must come to an end.
Pete Rose Passes Away
Major League Baseball’s all-time hits leader Pete Rose has died at age 83. The cause of death has yet to be determined. Rose is known not only for his record-setting baseball career but also for his controversial demise after betting on baseball games, including his own with the Cincinnati Reds.
Rose was known as an electric player throughout his career in the 1960s, ‘70s, and ‘80s. Captivating audiences with his consistent success, Rose had 4,256 all-time hits during his career in the Major Leagues. He broke Tyler Cobb’s record of 4,189 hits on Sept. 8, 1985, in a game against the San Diego Padres.
On that infamous night, Rose hit a clean single off a 2-1 pitch in the first inning in front of a crowd of 47,000. Fireworks banged and streamers flew as the entire Cincinnati Reds celebrated with Rose, hoisting him up on their shoulders in triumph. Rose was given the ball and the first base bag after celebrations of his record-breaking hit ensued.
Baseball Commissioner Peter Ueberroth declared that Pete Rose would soon have a permanent spot in the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame, also known as Cooperstown. After the game, Rose received a call from former President Ronald Reagan, in which he was told “Your reputation and legacy are secure,” Reagan continued, “It will be a long time before anyone is standing in the spot where you’re standing now.”
Four years later, Pete Rose’s stardom would soon diminish. MLB released a statement, informing fans that they were investigating “serious allegations” against the Reds player. It had been revealed that Rose was involved with friends and other gamblers in placing bets on baseball games including those Rose played in. Rose denied the allegations, but they were later proven to be true.
Bartlett Giamatti, Baseball’s commissioner during the end of Rose’s career, spoke at a New York City press conference regarding the investigation. Giamatti told reporters, “One of the game’s greatest players has engaged in a variety of acts which have stained the game, and he must now live with the consequences of those acts.” Fans across the league were devastated by the news that Rose was now banned from Major League Baseball and ineligible to enter the Baseball Hall of Fame.
Rose continued his gambling after his lifetime ban, but would only start admitting to doing so in 2004. The man who once was guaranteed to produce at least 200 hits per season would now be disgraced from the baseball world. People have started to relook the events of his career after his death.
bkeatin1@ramapo.edu
Featured photo courtesy of @whitesox, Instagram
