Darryl Strawberry helped the New York Mets win the World Series in 1986 and suggested this year’s edition of the team can still turn things around despite its record.
“I was down in spring training with them and I saw them and realized that they do have talent,” Strawberry said about the 2023 Mets at his celebrity golf event on Monday, per Alex Smith of SNY. “I think the most important thing is having great chemistry and really believing in yourself. New York is a really hard place to play. You can’t let the noise get to you, and I think that’s important for them. It’s been a very challenging season for them, but you can learn from that too. Sometimes you’re going to go through some real ups and downs, rollercoaster rides. We didn’t have a lot of them (in 1986), but that was a different story. They’re having them this year, this season.”
The ’86 Mets went 108-54 in regular-season play and ultimately defeated the Boston Red Sox in seven games to claim the franchise’s second and, to date, most recent World Series title.
To compare, the current Mets entered Monday at 35-42 and were trailing the first-place Atlanta Braves by 15 games in the National League East standings at that time.
New York was also eight games back of possessing a wild-card spot before the start of Monday’s MLB action following a complete collapse in the bottom of the eighth inning of Sunday’s 7-6 loss at the Philadelphia Phillies.
Individuals such as the hosts of the “Amazin’ But True” podcast are questioning if the Mets should fire manager Buck Showalter even though owner Steve Cohen said earlier this month he is “not going to blow up” over the struggles of baseball’s most-expensive squad. Strawberry sounds in favor of Cohen’s mindset ahead of July.
“I think the most important thing for them to learn is not to give up, not to give up on each other and continue to push until the end,” Strawberry continued. “You have a whole second half of the season, you’ve got a wild card that’s sitting in front of them, so they have to be thinking along those lines. I don’t know about the division because Atlanta is playing so well and you’ve got to hop over so many teams, but you’ve just got to take it one day at a time, and you’ve got to win ballgames.”
The Mets open a four-game home series against the 40-37 Milwaukee Brewers on Monday evening.
