Da Supa Scoreboard Make Big Splash! ๐ฎ๐
Pauku on top da Mets’ bench, Steven A. Cohen stay looking true da cameras and notepads in front of him on top Friday morning. His new scoreboard stay out dea, 17,400 square feet of LED awesomeness, almost like one sixth part of New York City. ๐
Ev’ry king need one palace dat fit his kine, and Cohen, da baseball’s richest owna, stay having fun wit Citi Field. ๐คด๐ฐ
โWat I like do is make one mastah plan,โ Cohen stay talking befo da Metsโ home opena. โI no like make one stadium renovation wea ev’ryting no fit togetha.โ Cohen wen remake da Mets into one fancy kine brand, so dass why now dey get da bigges’ scoreboard in da majors. Da team’s record payroll โ aroun’ $370 million, plus anodah $100 million o so in luxury taxes โ stay happening wit one mo’ nice ballpark, wit new kine t’ings big and small: one 100-seat, field-level club on da right; one tequila bar on top centa; one disc fo’ rememba Bob Murphy, da Hall of Fame Mets broadcasta, on da roof on top left. ๐๏ธ๐นโพ
Da World Series flags stay redesigned too: Da two championship banners still stay white, but da tree National League banners stay blue now. Da only t’ing from last season stay one 2022 notation on one โN.L. Wild Cardโ sign on top section 504. ๐๐ฉ
Last season’s quick playoff out, afta 101 regular-season wins, no stay part of Cohen’s mastah plan. Neidah stay Tylor Megill on da mound fo’ da home opena; one free-agent prize, Justin Verlander, stay supposed fo’ do dat, but shoulder inflammation stay making him play catch only. ๐ค
โReal mild,โ Verlander stay talking ’bout da injury, โbut I still feel one teeny kine somet’ing.โ Verlander t’ink he going be back befo’ da end of April, which stay good, ’cause da Mets need him and da oddah $43.3 million-per-year veteran, Max Scherzer, fo’ stay strong and sturdy in Octoba. Da next six months stay one warm-up, and Friday stay encouraging: one 9-3 win ova da sloppy Miami Marlins. ๐๐
Dis stay baseball in da pitch-clock time: Even wit 18 strikeouts, 16 walks, and 11 pitchers, da game stay only 3 hours and 1 minute. In da past years, would have been one neva-ending kine. โฑ๏ธโพ
Da ball stay slippery dis time of year; we seen it from da oddah side,โ da Metsโ Brandon Nimmo stay talking. โBut Tylor wen fill up da zone, get strikes, and make dem chase.โ Megill stay ‘posed to be da ace fo’ Class AAA Syracuse till Verlander’s late-March setback. He stay 4-0 in five starts last April but neva win again, his season stay off track ’cause of one shoulder strain. Now he get two of da Metsโ four wins โ and some mo’ luck. ๐
In da fourth inning Friday, one comebacker from Jean Segura wen bounce off Megill and go right field fo’ one single. Tankful, Megill say latah, da ball wen hit him in da pefect spot โ da top of da foot โ and he stay in fo’ blank Miami fo’ six innings, saving his only curveball fo’ one last-pitch strikeout of Jazz Chisholm Jr. ๐
Da Mets wen get seven walks befo’ dey get dea first hit โ one infield single by Daniel Vogelbach, da designated hitter โ but soon da home runs stay flying: Starling Marte, Francisco Lindor, Pete Alonso. Even dough da Mets’ seasons stay all ova da place, dey tend to start good: da team now stay 41-21 in home openers, including 11-4 at Citi Field. ๐
Dis opena come wit one sneak peek of wass coming, if only in da introductions. ‘Cause of one calf injury to catcha Omar Narvaez, da Mets wen promote Francisco Alvarez, dea top prospect, on Friday morning. Alvarez, 21, goin’ see time behind da plate, but Tomรกs Nido look like goin’ get mo’ starts. โพ๐ฅ
โIt’s kinda like one backup quarterback dat get drafted out of college,โ Manager Buck Showalter stay talking ’bout Alvarez. โEv’rybody know he goin’ be one real good playah, but da time he spend as one backup stay valuable too. Tomรกs stay pretty good.โ Nido wen start da fourth wit one single and wen hustle home from second on Alonsoโs single to left. Ev’ry Met in da lineup โ except fo’ third baseman Eduardo Escobar โ wen reach base by hit o’ walk, and even dough da weatha stay cold and windy, da day stay giving da 43,590 fans wat dey like. ๐ฌ๏ธ๐ฅถ
Da only bumma, too bad, stay da Mets’ tacky new advertising patch, which no stay as big as da scoreboard, but still big. Cohen neva say how much money da Mets stay getting fo’ sell sleeve space to NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, but he stay admit dat dea red-and-white colors gotta go. ๐
โI wen email da C.E.O., Steve Corwin, and we wen agree fo’ change da patch already,โ Cohen stay talking. โDey stay Phillie colors, and he and I wen agree dat it should be mo’ Met-appropriate.โ Fo’ now โ and, really, any kine โ da patch stay one stain on da Metsโ oddahwise clean, sharp home jersey. You might call um one pimple, da word Lindor wen use wen he wen talk about da scoreboard. Wit one big screen fo’ show his face to da crowd, Lindor stay explaining, he gotta take bettah care of his skin. ๐
โI gotta eat less chocolate now,โ he stay saying, smiling as he hold his 2-year-old daughta, Kalina, who stay eating one chocolate ice cream bar. ๐ซ๐ฆ
Lindor wen steal one lick and laugh. On one day fo’ one happy homecoming, one small kine treat stay all good. ๐๐
NOW IN ENGLISH
Mega Scoreboard Makes a Grand Debut! ๐ฎ๐
Sitting on top of the Mets’ bench, Steven A. Cohen peered through the cameras and notepads in front of him on Friday morning. His new scoreboard was out there, 17,400 square feet of LED brilliance, almost like a sixth borough of New York City. ๐
Every king needs a castle fitting his stature, and Cohen, baseball’s wealthiest owner, is having fun with Citi Field. ๐คด๐ฐ
โWhat I want to do is create a master plan,โ Cohen said before the Mets’ home opener. โI don’t want to create a renovation of the stadium where everything doesn’t really tie together.โ Cohen has remade the Mets into a luxury brand, so of course they now have the largest scoreboard in the majors. The team’s record payroll โ around $370 million, plus another $100 million or so in luxury taxes โ has coincided with a spiffier ballpark, with new flourishes big and small: a 100-seat, field-level club on the right; a tequila bar above center; a disc honoring Bob Murphy, the Hall of Fame Mets broadcaster, on the roof above left. ๐๏ธ๐นโพ
The World Series flags have been redesigned too: The two championship banners still remain white, but the three National League banners are now blue. The only tribute to last season is a 2022 notation on an โN.L. Wild Cardโ sign above section 504. ๐๐ฉ
Last season’s quick playoff exit, after 101 regular-season wins, was not part of Cohen’s master plan. Neither was Tylor Megill on the mound for the home opener; a free-agent prize, Justin Verlander, was supposed to do that, but shoulder inflammation has limited him to playing catch only. ๐ค
โIt’s very mild,โ Verlander said about the injury, โbut I do still feel a teeny bit of something.โ Verlander expects to be back before the end of April, which is good, because the Mets need him and the other $43.3 million-per-year veteran, Max Scherzer, to be strong and sturdy in October. The next six months are a preamble, and Friday was encouraging: a 9-3 victory over the sloppy Miami Marlins. ๐๐
This was baseball in the pitch-clock era: Even with 18 strikeouts, 16 walks, and 11 pitchers, the game lasted only 3 hours and 1 minute. In recent years, it would have been interminable. โฑ๏ธโพ
โThe ball is slick this time of year; we saw it from the other side,โ said the Metsโ Brandon Nimmo. โBut Tylor was able to fill up the zone, get strikes, and get them to chase.โ Megill was scheduled to be the ace for Class AAA Syracuse until Verlander’s late-March setback. He was 4-0 in five starts last April but never won again, his season sidetracked by a shoulder strain. Now he has two of the Mets’ four victories โ and a little more luck. ๐
In the fourth inning on Friday, a comebacker from Jean Segura bounced off Megill and into right field for a single. Thankfully, Megill said later, the ball struck him in the perfect spot โ the top of the foot โ and he stayed in to blank Miami for six innings, saving his only curveball for a final-pitch strikeout of Jazz Chisholm Jr.
The Mets had seven walks before recording their first hit โ an infield single by Daniel Vogelbach, the designated hitter โ but soon the home runs were flying: Starling Marte, Francisco Lindor, Pete Alonso. As unpredictable as the Mets’ seasons usually are, they tend to start smoothly: The team is now 41-21 in home openers, including 11-4 at Citi Field. ๐โพ
This opener came with a preview of coming attractions, at least in the introductions. Because of a calf injury to catcher Omar Narvaez, the Mets promoted Francisco Alvarez, their top prospect, on Friday morning. Alvarez, 21, will see time behind the plate, but Tomรกs Nido seems likely to get more starts. ๐๐งข
โIt’s kind of like a backup quarterback that gets drafted out of college,โ Manager Buck Showalter said of Alvarez. โEverybody knows he’s going to be a really good player, but the time he spends as a backup is very valuable, too. Tomรกs is pretty good.โ Nido led off the fourth with a single and hustled home from second on Alonsoโs single to left. Every Met in the lineup โ except for third baseman Eduardo Escobar โ reached base via hit or walk, and while the weather was cold and gusty, the day delivered what the 43,590 fans wanted. ๐ฅถ๐ฌ๏ธ
The only downside, unfortunately, was the Mets’ tacky new advertising patch, which is not quite the size of the scoreboard, but close. Cohen wouldn’t say how much money the Mets are getting for selling sleeve space to NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, but he conceded that their red-and-white colors must go. ๐ฝ๐ซ
โI had an email exchange with the C.E.O., Steve Corwin, and we agreed to change the patch already,โ Cohen said. โThey’re Phillie colors, and he and I agreed that it should be more Met-appropriate.โ For now โ and, really, in any iteration โ the patch is a stain on the Mets’ otherwise clean, sharp home jersey. You might call it a pimple, the word Lindor used when asked for his thoughts on the scoreboard. With such an enormous screen to beam his face to the crowd, Lindor explained, he’ll have to take better care of his skin. ๐
โI’ve got to eat less chocolate now,โ he said, smiling as he held his 2-year-old daughter, Kalina, who was eating a chocolate ice cream bar. ๐ซ๐ฆ
Lindor stole a lick and laughed. On a day for a happy homecoming, a small indulgence was just fine. ๐๐
That’s all for this news article. We’ve covered the massive new scoreboard, the game, the atmosphere, and the players. If you have any more questions or need more information, feel free to ask!