A mic’d-up Pete Alonso showed some love for Grimace.
During a mid-game interview on ESPN Sunday night in the Mets’ 5-2 win over the Chicago Cubs, Alonso was asked in the third inning whether he would rather go on a walk with Frank the Tank or Grimace.
“Probably Grimace,” he answered.
The 53-year-old McDonald’s character, who threw the first pitch before the Mets’ 10-4 win at Citi Field over the Marlins nearly two weeks ago, was being embraced by fans for sparking a seven-game winning streak and offensive surge for the team.
The first baseman, who leads the Mets (37-39) with 16 homers, offered his take on “The Grimace Effect.”
“Grimace got us hot,” Alonso said. “If we can keep Grimace around and keep playing good ball, good things are going to happen… It takes time for certain things to unfold. Those seven games didn’t happen all at once, I mean winning seven in a row was super nice. We’ve played really well on the road so far, and it’s been nice playing well, that’s for sure.”
While the Mets’ winning streak came to an end on Wednesday night in a 5-3 road loss to the Texas Rangers at Globe Life Field, they went on to take two of three from the Cubs at Wrigley Field over the weekend.
Sunday’s victory included back-to-back homers from Francisco Lindor and Brandon Nimmo, giving the Mets a 3-0 lead.
Nimmo’s home run was his fourth in his last six games, and Lindor’s was his 13th of the season, leaving him just three behind Alonso for the team lead.
Mark Vientos also had a 451-foot bomb to center field in the eighth inning, which extended their lead to 5-2.
Severino’s six shutout innings were an improvement from the six earned runs he gave up in Texas on Tuesday. He recorded 10 strikeouts and allowed three hits and no walks over 102 pitches.
While the winning streak may have ended, the Mets — who sit at fourth place in the NL East — aren’t stopping, nor is “The Grimace Effect.”
The Subway Series kicks off on Tuesday as the Mets take on the Yankees at Citi Field.
