Darryl Strawberry not only would like to see Pete Alonso break his Mets career home-run record, but to remain with the franchise long term.
The two are probably intertwined, as Alonso — who is entering his final year before free agency — would need a 61-homer season in 2024 to eclipse Strawberry’s franchise mark of 252.
But Strawberry is all in on the All-Star first baseman.
“Some guys can sit here and don’t want players to break their records, but I hope players break my record because that means I have done something and you have done something too,” Strawberry said Wednesday on a Zoom call. “[Alonso] has done that, he has performed at that level. You just hope and pray they work it out. That you go into a free-agent year, you have a big year and you are going to demand more.”
Strawberry shared the call with Dwight Gooden, as the Mets announced dates for separate ceremonies this year at Citi Field to retire the former players’ uniform numbers.
Gooden’s No. 16 will be retired before a game against the Royals on April 14. The Mets will retire Strawberry’s No. 18 before a game against the Diamondbacks on June 1.
Strawberry, a homegrown Mets player, left the organization as a free agent, signing with the Dodgers before the 1991 season. It’s a situation he still wishes would have worked out differently.
“You leave a guy [Alonso] open like that, that is what happened to me,” Strawberry said. “I think the relationship with him and the organization is probably different, but I didn’t have a relationship with the front office when I hit that free-agency market. They left the door open for me and I just hope Pete doesn’t leave. I ended up personally with a belly full of regrets for leaving.
“There is nothing like playing in New York. There is nothing like the atmosphere, nothing like the fans; nothing like being booed and letting fans let you know when you suck. That is part of it. That is either going to make you or break you … it was a big challenge for me to go forward and play like I used to play in New York after spending those eight seasons there.”
Gooden and Strawberry, integral parts of the Mets’ last World Series-winning team in 1986, will join Tom Seaver, Mike Piazza, Jerry Koosman, Keith Hernandez and Willie Mays among former players to have their number retired by the Mets.
The organization has also retired numbers for managers Casey Stengel and Gil Hodges.
Gooden, who like Strawberry battled drug and alcohol addictions as a player, said he is finished wondering what his career might have been had he remained on a straight path.
“When I look back at it, as a young kid my only dream was to play major league baseball, stay healthy and try to play a long time,” Gooden said. “Along the way has come a lot of things … and the day is coming, April 14. I never could have imagined that, so I can’t beat myself up with that anymore or hold that against myself because I think I [accomplished] more than I really expected of myself. The off-the-field stuff played a part, but honestly by going through that I am able to help others in need.”
Gooden said the fact his number will be retired in the same season as Strawberry’s only adds to the thrill of it.
“It’s a celebration of our careers and what it meant to be at Shea Stadium during that era,” Gooden said. “It feels a little weird for me to say it, but we basically helped — not by ourselves — but we helped change the organization. The fans played a big part in that … I am out there accepting [the honor] and doing a speech, but they are a big part of that. There was no better feeling than being out there at Shea Stadium and having a home crowd cheering for you.”
The Mets will begin selling single-game tickets on Friday. Tickets can be purchased through Mets.com or by calling the team’s ticket office at (718) 565-4360.