METmorable!

The Mets most memorable opening day moments in franchise history.

Ninth time the charm! April 7, 1970. After losing on Opening Day the first eight times the defending champs finally won an opener vs. the Pirates in the final home opener at Forbes Field as the Pirates moved to Three River Stadium the following season. Tom Seaver pitched eight innings and rang up five Bucs and Steve Blass fired ten innings while striking out nine Amazin’s. While being deadlocked for the duration of the game the former Pirate and World Series MVP Donn Clendenon gave New York the lead in the eleventh with a two-run single. In the home half some rowdy teens threw debris on the field and towards Ron Swoboda and made their way onto the field. With two outs play was briefly suspended as the shenanigans escalated when about a dozen ruffians belligerently frenzied their way onto the field to be chased by security. But Tug McGraw struck out Gene Alley to outlast the Pirates and the hooligans 5-3.

Clash of the Titans April 8, 1975. Tom Seaver faced Steve Carlton in the opener at Shea and both Hall of Famers went the distance as the Mets walked off with a 2-1 victory. Tom Terrific gave up one run and struck out nine and Lefty yielded two runs and fanned six. Dave Kingman hit a home run off Steve Carlton in the home half of the fourth to tie the score then Joe Torre hit a game winning single to left field scoring Felix Milan.

Return of The Franchise April 5, 1983. In Tom Seaver’s return to Shea, The Franchise pitched six innings of shutout ball striking out five Phillies to outduel Steve Carlton 2-0.

Welcome to the Big Apple Kid! April 9, 1985. On a chilly matinee in Flushing, Gary Carter captivated his Mets debut in grand fashion lifting a fly ball over the left field wall in the tenth inning for a 6-5 Mets walk-off win over the Cardinals in the best introduction to NY in Mets history. Keith Hernandez drove in two runs and George Foster hit a homer in the third.

Mets hit six home runs on Opening Day April 4, 1988. The first three home runs were off Dennis Martinez at Olympic Stadium at the Expos. Darryl Strawberry stroked a deep fly ball to center field in the second then Kevin Elster gave the Mets a 4-1 lead with a high fly ball to left in the fourth. Lenny Dykstra smashed a homer to straight away center field in the sixth. In the seventh Strawberry pulverized a titanic blast that hit the roof at Olympic Stadium for his second dinger on the day then Kevin McReynolds went back-to-back and the Mets led 8-4. Kevin McReynolds again went yard to left in the ninth and the Mets won 10-6 setting a Major League record with six home runs by one team on Opening Day.

Ten-inning win over the Cardinals. April 6, 1992. Vs. the Cards at Busch David Cone pitched eight dominant innings of two run ball while fanning nine Cardinals and left trailing by a run. Facing Hall of Famer Lee Smith, Mackey Sasser tied the game in the ninth and Bobby Bonilla pummeled a deep fly ball to right for a two-run blast in the tenth then John Franco shut the doors in the home half and the final was Mets 4, Cardinals 2. It was Bobby Bonilla’s Mets debut and technically he’s still a Met product until 2036 and that tends to be the running joke on social media every June 1^st.

Opening Marathon March 31, 1998. The game was 0-0 for thirteen innings until Alberto Castillo lined a pinch hit single to right scoring Brian McRae to send the Mets faithful home happy in a fourteen inning walk off win that lasted almost five hours. Bobby Jones hurled six shutout innings while Curt Schilling twirled eight scoreless frames.

Mets top Braves in ten April 3, 2001. Al Leiter squared off against Tom Glavine at Turner Field and the score was 3-3 after seven. Robin Ventura crushed a two-run home run to dead center in the eighth but Atlanta tied the score in the bottom frame after RBI by Rafael Furcal and Brian Jordan. Ventura slammed another two-run homer in the tenth and the Mets won 6-4.