The New York Mets owned the division-rival Philadelphia Phillies in more ways than one during a weekend series held at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia.
For starters, the first-place Mets took three of four games over the series after the clubs split a Saturday doubleheader. However, it's something that happened ahead of the opening game of the twin billing that has generated headlines throughout the early days of the workweek.
As Dave Uram noted for KYW Newsradio out of Philadelphia, the well-known Mets fan group known as The 7 Line Army purchased over 1,400 tickets for Saturday's action. Per terms shared by the Phillies Community/Corporate Partnership Program, this allowed the Mets supporters to select one of their own to throw out a ceremonial first pitch before the first game played on Saturday.
They didn't disappoint, as they chose somebody wearing a bright Mets jersey with the word "General" on the back of it for the honor:
"How often do you guys let a fan from another team throw out the first pitch?"
— The 7 Line (@The7Line) August 21, 2022
"This is the first time since I've been here....." pic.twitter.com/bYcFweV6bh
Radio personalities Evan Roberts and Craig Carton of New York's WFAN certainly seemed to get a kick out of the situation:
“The Phillies had their building taken over in such a pathetic way that a Met fan wearing a Mets jersey that said General on the back threw out the first pitch” - @EvanRobertsWFAN @craigcartonlive @CartonRoberts @T7LAGeneral @The7LineArmy pic.twitter.com/3hHyZb7lCc
— The 7 Line (@The7Line) August 22, 2022
The on-the-field rivalry was quite one-sided throughout the 2022 MLB season, as the Mets posted a 14-5 record against the Phillies. The Mets began Tuesday holding an 11-game lead over the third-place Phillies and with a three-game lead over the second-place Atlanta Braves in the National League East standings.
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