This Week in Mets Quotes: Pete Alonso rides the dragon, Jonah Tong redeems himself

Your 2025 New York Mets: Tomorrow is going to be too late.

“We’ve got to get going today. We cannot wait for tomorrow, because tomorrow is going to be too late.” -Juan Soto [MLB]

“We don’t have too many left. Every game matters.” -Carlos Mendoza [MLB]

“Obviously very concerned. We want to be in the playoffs, and we’re not playing playoff baseball right now. But got to come into [Saturday] expecting things to change.” -Brandon Nimmo [New York Post]

“They’re frustrated obviously. I’m not going to lie but I’m going to keep saying it: We got to get out of it.” -Carlos Mendoza [New York Post]

Pete Alonso describes what it felt like to hit a walk-off home run as only Pete Alonso can.

“That one felt amazing. I felt like I was surfing on top of a dragon there. That was sick!” [Yahoo]

A tale of two starts: Act I – 9/12/25 – Jonah Tong 2/3 IP, 4 Hs, 6 ERs, 3 BBs, 1 SO

“I didn’t give the start I had for sure wanted.” -Jonah Tong [New York Post]

“[The advice David Peterson gave Tong] Keep your head up. The sun’s going to rise tomorrow.” -Jonah Tong [New York Post]

“[Manaea advice to Tong while gesturing toward Jacob deGrom] He’s gone through that, too. Every guy out there has had one of these.” -Sean Manaea [MLB]

Act II – 9/18/25 – Jonah Tong 5 IPs, 4 Hs, 0 ERs, 0 BBs, 8 SOs

“Obviously, today we were watching and I’m glad that he stepped up and gave us a chance to win a baseball game.” -Carlos Mendoza [MLB]

“Coming back from that last outing that didn’t go the way that [Tong] would have hoped, I think it shows a lot of maturity from him at such a young age to be able to bounce back and double down on what he does well and go and execute it. He did a great job today against a really tough lineup. I think it proves that he has a really bright future ahead of him.” -Brandon Nimmo [MLB]

“That’s what you’re looking for in young guys. Like, show me that you can handle the tough moments, because it’s guaranteed they’re going to show up at some point in time. So you’ve got a young kid who has shown those moments of resilience, and he can rely on those moments in moments like this and know he can get back on the mound and fill up the strike zone and let this stuff play.” -Mets senior vice president of player development Andy Green [MLB]

“I’m really grateful for the support I’ve had in the clubhouse.” -Jonah Tong [MLB]

“Especially up here in the big leagues, it’s all about adjustments and [Tong] made great adjustments today.” -Brandon Nimmo [MLB]

David Peterson would later have to give himself the same advice he gave Tong above.

“It’s obviously tough when you know what you’re capable of. You’re going to go through times when it’s not going exactly how you want it to, whether it’s baseball or whether it’s something you’re not necessarily executing. But you can’t hold onto it.” -David Peterson [MLB]

Your 1999-2015 New York Mets

“I don’t miss suiting up. This is what I miss, being around these guys and seeing the fans again. When I retired from the game, I threw everything away and said I’m not gonna ever suit up again, but I guess I’m suiting up again. It’s one of those awesome things to be able to give back to the fans…and go down memory lane.” -Benny Agbayani [New York Post]

“For the Mets to want to do this, and to reach out to us, it’s great. The fans want to see it. It’s just a big thank you to ownership for wanting to see this happen and to the players for showing up. We’re just hoping we get through the day, but for the fans, it’s exciting.” -Curtis Granderson [New York Post]

“I’m ecstatic to get to do something like this. I can’t wait to get back and just reconnect with guys and see guys I haven’t seen in a while. Players, yes. But even clubhouse guys, the film guy, the security people underneath the stadium. … Getting to go back and see those guys, give them a hug, just talk to them for a minute, it’s going to be awesome.” -R.A. Dickey [MLB]

Personal Aside: In the summer of 2012, I went on a west coast road trip with my then-girlfriend, now wife, and we bought tickets to see the Mets at Dodgers Stadium months in advance. As we got closer to the date, I realized there was a chance it was going to be an R.A. Dickey start, which was during the height of his unbelievable run that he mentions in the quote below. The stars aligned, I got to see R.A. Dickey in LA, and he did not disappoint. Box score: June 29, 2012

“That two-and-a-half to three months, man, with the scoreless innings stuff, the back-to-back one-hitter stuff all of that felt like a whirlwind. I look back and I think, ‘God, that happened so fast. I wish I would have enjoyed it more’ but I don’t know if I would have taken the time at the time to enjoy it more, if I would have lost some of the [edge]. Those were the times in my life where I felt most in the zone, so to speak. And I didn’t want to get out of that.” -R.A. Dickey [MLB]

Love our Zoomers? Love our Zoomers.

“There’s no person I know who can make anyone laugh more than Nolan.” -Jonah Tong [New York Times]

“Jonah laughs at everything. You can’t take that seriously.” -Nolan McLean [New York Times]

“Nolan’s personality is very bubbly.” -Jonah Tong [New York Times]

“I never heard that one before. Bubbly, Jonah? Really?” -Nolan McLean [New York Times]

“Bubbly? Who said that? Jonah? Doesn’t surprise me. Jonah’s word is quirky.” -Brandon Sproat [New York Times]

“[Tong’s] too nice of a person [hearing that Jonah Tong’s first job was a youth umpire and he took his parents out to dinner with his first paycheck].” -Nolan McLean [New York Times].

The 2007 New York Mets have some advice for the 2025 New York Mets.

“Going back to that time and thinking about what I can say to a team that is going through the same. I would say, ‘Just go for it. Don’t limit yourself. Don’t be timid. Just be aggressive. Be who you are.’ -Carlos Beltran [MLB]

“At the end of the day, you are in a position where you’re fighting for a playoff opportunity. You know how many teams would love to sign up for that opportunity, to be in exactly this position? So I would say to them, ‘Just go out there and just play hard baseball. And if it’s meant to be, it’s going to be for you. And if it’s not meant to be, at least you’re going to go down giving your best.’” -Carlos Beltran [MLB]

“I like to focus more on the positives. So if you told me in February, ‘You know what? By Sept. 13 you are going to be holding a Wild Card spot.’ … I mean, I’ll take that any time. I would continue to play hard. Don’t scoreboard-watch. One day at a time, one at-bat at a time. ‘Let’s win today. Let’s figure it out.’ And give it all out for the next two weeks, and hopefully for the next six weeks after that.” -Carlos Delgado [MLB]

“This really sucks when everything is going bad. You try to do your best, and nothing’s come out of it. But at the same time, you have to be positive. You have to believe.” -Edgardo Alfonzo [MLB]

If I had to explain to my son what it felt like to root for Jacob deGrom, I would say imagine you had something so special and nice and you were constantly worried that it was going to break and, if it did break, you felt that it was inexplicably your fault but could take some solace in the fact that the disappointment feels more natural to you than when you had something so perfect and good that you knew you didn’t deserve.

“It means a lot. The fans were great to me when I was here and they were great to me tonight. I always enjoyed taking the mound in front of this crowd. Tonight was just as special.” -Jacob deGrom [New York Post]

“That was really cool [that the Mets played Simple Man during deGrom’s return to Citi]. This is where it all started, and coming back here, I thought it was going to be a very special day. Thankful to the Mets for playing that. I knew if something was played, I’d probably feel some sort of emotion.” -Jacob deGrom [New York Post]

One of my favorite writers about all topics, David Roth, wrote a great piece capturing what it’s like to be a Mets fan and how hard it is to rationally explain why we’re so committed to a for-profit entity that routinely frustrates and disappoints us while…OH MY GOD, PETE ALONSO JUST HIT A GAME WINNING THREE-RUN HOME RUN, YES, LOVE THE METS? LOVE THE METS!

“Pete Alonso, who had gone 44 at-bats since his last homer, sent Curvelo’s third pitch into the bullpen in right field at a high rate of speed. While Alonso’s teammates bopped up and down at the plate and whomped him on the head and yelled “Let’s go” and emptied a bucket full of little nurdles of Dubble Bubble onto him, I high-fived friends and strangers; a friend’s son, the one who had the five-pizza birthday party at a Mets game, gave me a hug; I was struck, absurdly, by the urge not just to kiss my wife, which I did, but to like dip her, as I had at our wedding.” -David Roth [Defector]

Binghamton Rumble Ponies Hype Video? Binghamton Rumble Ponies Hype Video.

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This Week in Mets Quotes: Pete Alonso rides the dragon, Jonah Tong redeems himself

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