There was no anger. No vitriol. None of the animosity seen on social media.
Brodie Van Wagenen sat with Mets fans for the first half of Tuesday’s 4-2 Subway Series victory over the Yankees, and was treated like a conquering hero. He was greeted with hugs, photo requests and some suggestions, but the Mets general manager wasn’t challenged despite the team’s shaky status and his bold offseason predictions.
Making good on a February promise, Van Wagenen sat with The 7 Line Army — a traveling group of Mets fans dressed in orange jerseys — in right-center field for 4 ¹/₂ innings.
“It was awesome,” said Van Wagenen, the agent-turned-general manager who was wearing one of The 7 Line Army jerseys and blue jeans. “The season hasn’t gone the way we had hoped it would go. Being out here and seeing the fans not quitting is inspiring to make sure we’re not quitting in the front office, we’re not quitting on the field and we owe every ounce of our work and energy to make these fans proud.”
When asked why he opted to sit with the group, he said: “I’m going to do what I say I’m going to do. This offseason I thought The 7 Line was a passionate fan base and I wanted to make sure we as an organization were connecting with our fans.”
“I think it takes a lot of balls to come out here,” said Darren Meenan, The 7 Line founder.
At one point, Mets fans chanted “Brodie, Brodie, Brodie.” One told him he should run for mayor. Another said: “He’s the MVP.” He took photos with Eddie “The Cowbell Man” Boison and Nick “The Pinman” Giampietro. He even took part in The 7 Line strikeout chant.
“Rome wasn’t built in a day,” Mets fan Edmund Laskowski told him. “We had three All-Stars. That hasn’t happened in a while.”
“We all deserve better,” Van Wagenen told another fan. “We got to keep working.”
“I just said keep the faith,” Giampietro said. “What team has a general manager sit with their most rowdy fans? The guy is on our side, or at least he’s trying to show it. It says he cares about the fans.”
When the Yankees scored two runs in the second inning, the section grew quiet. In the bottom of the frame, starting pitcher Zack Wheeler failed to get down a bunt. A few fans yelled, “Trade him,” but Van Wagenen was too busy taking a selfie to notice.
Van Wagenen had fun with it, sitting in the front row with Meenan. Prior to Robinson Cano’s first at-bat, he cupped his hand to his ears, a la Hulk Hogan, and spun around as if to challenge fans to boo. None followed. He signed a jersey, a hat and a funnel, among other things.
“Most GM’s would’ve hid in this circumstance,” 7 Line member James Zappa said. “It’s been a bad year and he’s standing tall.”
