Mayor Zohran Mamdani embraced the nickname “Mayor Mambino” Tuesday as hoped the Mets would end an embarrassing 11-game losing streak that some fans blamed on a curse he unleashed.
Hopeless fans claimed “The Curse of the Mambino” began when Hizzoner hugged the team’s mascots Mr. Met and Mrs. Met during an April 9 photo opp at Citi Field, sparking an 0-10 stretch ahead of Tuesday night’s game against the Minnesota Twins.
“There’s a lot of baseball to be played,” Mamdani said at an unrelated press conference early in the morning, when asked by a reporter about the alleged curse, which was outlined in a front page story in The Post on Monday. “I’m still keeping the faith as I know that many Mets fans are across the city.”
Mamdani embraced the nickname at a press conference. NYC Mayor's Office
Mamdani meets Mrs. Met and Mr. Met at Citi Field prior to the game between the New York Mets and the Arizona Diamondbacks. Getty Images“Though I will accept being addressed as ‘Mayor Mambino’ for the day,” he added.
The same reporter then asked if there was anything Mamdani could do to undo the curse, such as waving a wand.
“I will keep my fingers crossed, as every Mets fan does,” he said of the not-so-Amazins, the mayor’s team of choice that last won the World Series in 1986 and last took home a National League pennant in 2015. “I wear my Mets hat from time to time, and I’m gonna send all the best wishes to the team.”
The team was two games above .500 at 7-5 to start out the 2026 campaign before hug-gate, but had dropped 11 straight games overall going into Tuesday, cementing their spot in last place in the National League East.
The front cover of the New York Post April 21, 2026.
The last time the team lost that many games in a row was in 2004 when retired Mets legend David Wright was in his rookie season.
Mamdani hadvisited Citi Field to show support for stadium workers before New York’s contest against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
The two mascots also put an oversized Mets hat on the 34-year-old mayor during the photo opp.
“When he hugged them, I was like what’s going on? Nobody touches Mr. Met, only Mrs. Met, that’s it,” Mets fan and Mamdani voter Nelson Berrios said on Monday.
Mamdani hasn’t stopped by Yankee Stadium in the Bronx as the New York Yankees sit atop the American League East.
