Talk a bout a relief pitcher!
Former New York Mets Lenny Dykstra and Wally Backman swung by the Ridge bar Lock Yard to watch the Amazin’s seal Game 3 of the World Series on Oct. 30. Nearly 100 people turned up for a chance to knock back a pitcher with the stars, who brought some serious Mets mojo, according to Lock Yard owner Bob Casatelli.
“There was definitely a lot of energy,” Casatelli said. “People were really into it, having a good time. I wish we could have done it again.”
Pundits dubbed former center fielder Dykstra and former second baseman Backman “the Wild Boys” in the ’80s — the two were the team’s first and second at bat for a spell, and they were integral in the Mets’ last World Series win, when the squad beat the Boston Red Sox in 1986.
After years out of the game, Backman returned to the Mets organization in 2009 as a manager of Single-A farm team the St. Lucie Mets, but two weeks later, franchise honchos tapped him to manage the Brooklyn Cyclones, where his sage-like experience and take-no-guff attitude cemented his place as the greatest manager in Clones history. He moved up to manage the Double-A Binghamton Mets in 2011 after interviewing for the managerial job with the franchise’s major league iteration. He has managed the Triple-A, Blue Jays-affiliated Buffalo Bisons since 2012.
Dykstra got out of the game in the late ’90s but returned to the franchise as a part-time instructor at the Mets’ spring training camp in Florida.
The pair hung out with patrons for the whole game and celebrated the Mets’ 9–3 victory — the team’s only win over the Royals in the entire series.
“They were great, they were out in the backyard talking to everyone and were very nice,” Casatelli said.
