Mets Morning News: The Wright time to smile

Meet the Mets

Steve Gelbs, Dominic Smith, and J.D. Davis were all smiles as David Wright joined the latest installment of The Cookie Club. The newest episode will air drop on Wednesday.

Wright passed along a message of encouragement to a fan fighting a battle with cancer, which resulted in tears of joy.

Pete Alonso is on his way to becoming a great Met. Mike Puma outlined his next big challenge on that path.

Jeff McNeil clinched a playoff spot in the MLB The Show Players League yesterday as his regular season concluded. He finished the year with a 21-8 record, which was good for fourth best overall. The playoffs begin on May 1.

Bobby Valentine posted a photo of himself lending a helping hand by giving out masks.

This week’s Mets Mailbag looks at Marcus Stroman’s future in New York and the status of Michael Conforto’s injury, among other things.

Baseball games at Citi Field and Yankee Stadium this summer? Sounds far-fetched, but Governor Andrew Cuomo envisioned it during his Sunday press conference.

Speaking of far-fetched, Alex Rodriguez and Jennifer Lopez owning the Mets isn’t as far-fetched as it sounds.

Hitting Coach Hensley Meulens is trying to keep Curacao fed, one meal at a time.

The Mets will pay employees through the rest of the originally-scheduled season, but with pay cuts that take effect on June 1.

Which postseason play is the best in franchise history? Ron Swoboda’s grab in the ‘69 World Series, or Endy Chavez’s miraculous catch in the ‘06 NLCS?

Who belongs on the Mets’ Mount Rushmore? SNY debated the issue.

The Athletic looks at how Foley’s, New York’s baseball bar, is surviving without baseball. (Paywall Alert)

Around the National League East

Tim Britton talks real baseball about the NL East with a roundtable.

NBC Sports Philadelphia made the case for Ryan Howard as the most important Phillies player during their run of dominance. We commend them for going with not-Chase Utley and not-Jimmy Rollins.

NBC Sports Washington ranked Max Scherzer’s demeanor as the Nationals’ greatest strength.

Talking Chop looks at Freddie Freeman as an extension candidate.

Around Major League Baseball

ESPN could soon be broadcasting KBO games on their network.

According to Jeff Passan, most people around the game believe baseball will return in 2020. For ESPN’s 20 Question, he looked at the details of how baseball will return.

Meanwhile, a potential path back to baseball could be taking shape.

Nolan Arenado shared what a day would have been like with baseball, and what it’s like now as he waits for the sport to return.

This is not the time for the league and the player’s union to be bickering over money. (Paywall Alert)

Zack Britton talked about the clubhouse discussions that took place in 2015 during the Freddie Gray riots.

Vin Scully provided an update on his health.

Ken Rosenthal took a trip down memory lane by recalling the last ten pitchers to record the final out during the World Series. I’d recommend skipping 2015. (Paywall Alert)

Steve Dalkowski, the inspiration for Bull Durham’s Nuke LaLoosh, passed away last week from coronavirus. Nobody will ever throw harder.

Yesterday at Amazin’ Avenue

Final Four voting is now open for our UltiMEt of the Millennium Madness tournament!

Episode 57 of From Complex to Queens went up!

This Date in Mets History

On this day in 2019, Steven Matz pitched seven strong innings and Alonso recorded his first career triple as the Mets topped Gio Gonzalez and the Brewers 5-2 to avoid a sweep at Citi Field.