Pete Alonso #20 of the Mets hits a home run against the St. Louis Cardinals in the first inning at Busch Stadium on April 21, 2019 in St. Louis, Missouri. Photo Credit: Getty Images/Dilip Vishwanat
NY Mets
St. LouisST. LOUIS — The legend of Pete Alonso gained another chapter Sunday.
In the first inning against the Cardinals, hours after Mets manager Mickey Callaway revealed that Alonso begged him Saturday night to be in the lineup against St. Louis righthander Dakota Hudson, Alonso crushed a homer to straightaway center against Hudson, his old college foe.
The ball landed an estimated 444 feet from home plate, on the concourse behind the berm that serves as the batter’s eye in centerfield at Busch Stadium. It came off the bat at 114.5 mph.
And Alonso really wanted this one.
“I guess he faced this guy in college,” Callaway said Sunday morning. “He called me last night and said, ‘You better put me in the lineup.' "
Callaway was heading to dinner with his parents when Alonso texted and called.
“I got scared, man. Like, what happened?” Callaway recalled with a laugh. “And then I saw him and then he was like, ‘Hey, I want to play tomorrow. I hate this guy. I played against him in college.’ I don’t know what he was saying. Going nuts.
“He obviously didn’t like him very much. Something like that.”
Alonso (second round) and Hudson (first round) were both draft picks in 2016. They were SEC rivals, too, Alonso at the University of Florida and Hudson at Mississippi State. Alonso went 0-for-4 against Hudson in college.
Before his homer, Alonso wasn’t particularly interested in discussing whatever history he has with Hudson.
“We had some pretty good battles. I just want to win today,” Alonso said. “I played against him in college, I know him well and I want hit to against him. Simple as that.”
On Saturday, Alonso got hit in the right hand with a pitch, but X-rays were negative.
“I’m sure he probably thought there was a small chance, since he got hit, that I was going to sit him,” Callaway said. “But he feels great.”
Even better, apparently, against Hudson.
Hello, my name is Jack Sparrow. I'm a 50 year old self-employed Pirate from the Caribbean.
No comments:
Post a Comment