For about five months, the 2022 season was a dream for Mets fans. It came crashing down very fast in September and October. Despite all New York’s offseason spending last winter, it didn’t lead to 2023 success before Billy Eppler traded away several players at the deadline.
I know looking back to last season doesn’t help with the way things have transpired over the past few months with the Mets. But still, it’s not the worst thing in the world to occasionally look back at happier times. I’ve seen a few jokes flying around the interwebs throughout this season about the “last time Mets fans were truly happy”. Since it’s officially the one-year anniversary of that night, I wanted to momentarily relive it.
On August 31st, 2022, Citi Field was packed and rocking. The 90-38 Los Angeles Dodgers had just taken Game 1 of a three-game set in Queens, which looked like a potential NLCS preview. Jacob deGrom, who had returned at the beginning of the month from the injured list, was on the hill and was his typical, dominant self.
His night was finished after seven innings, allowing just one run on three hits, one walk, and nine strikeouts. That brought his ERA to just 1.98 through 36.1 innings. But before he exited the ballgame, it looked like Justin Turner had hit a game-tying home run off him.
That’s when Brandon Nimmo provided a Catch of the Year candidate. Between the roar of the crowd and the reactions from Nimmo, deGrom, and Gary Cohen, this highlight was an instant classic.
👉 Get Your FanDuel NY Promo Code
New York held onto that 2-1 lead long enough to hand things over to Edwin Diaz. He faced three hitters and struck out one in a scoreless ninth to lock down his 29th save of the year. That was fun to watch, but it was even better to see Timmy Trumpet do a live rendition of his part in “Narco” when Diaz made his entrance into the bullpen.
After a night like this, life was phenomenal if you were a Mets fan. DeGrom was finally back and dominating as we had expected. This potential postseason preview had plenty of exciting moments, *and* we got to hear some live trumpets in the ninth. The Mets won the rubber game the following night to take the series, too. Does it get any better than that?
Unfortunately, it didn’t for the 2022 Mets. Despite having a soft September schedule, they couldn’t hold off the Braves in the NL East. And then came the disappointment of getting bounced by the Padres in the Wild Card Series.
Witnessing New York’s historic offseason spending spree was fun. However, what happened the year prior was still a fresh wound. It also didn’t start happening until deGrom officially left New York for the Texas Rangers. And then, there was the whole Carlos Correa drama.
While it’s been a running joke that August 31st was the last time Mets fans were happy, I think there’s some truth to it. There was no late-season slide or lackluster postseason showing yet. Just five months of terrific baseball with lots of memorable moments.
This night at Citi Field was, unfortunately, the top of that particular mountain. Hopefully, the Amazins will get back to these kinds of moments in the near future, because it was freakin’ awesome.
You can reach Matt Musico at matt.musico@xlmedia.com. You can follow him on Twitter: @mmusico8.
