Hall of Fame voting winners and losers: Three stars are headed to Cooperstown — who else got good (or bad) news?
The 2024 Baseball Writers’ Association of America vote is in — and Adrian Beltre, Joe Mauer and Todd Helton are the newest members of the Baseball Hall of Fame. Billy Wagner fell just five votes short of the 75% threshold for enshrinement. The three new Hall of Famers will join Jim Leyland, who was elected in December by the contemporary baseball era committee, in Cooperstown in July.
ESPN MLB experts Buster Olney, Bradford Doolittle, Alden Gonzalez and Jesse Rogers break down what the 2024 vote means, and look ahead to what the future holds for this year’s candidates — and those joining the ballot in 2025.
Let’s get into it.
Besides the three elected, who is the biggest winner on this year’s ballot?
Olney: In Andruw Jones’ first year on the ballot, he polled at 7.3%, barely qualifying for a second try — and in Year 2, he scored 7.5%. But in recent years, he has gained momentum and now seems on the cusp of election, with his voting percentage soaring to 61.6% in his seventh year of eligibility. He seems to be benefitting from next-level analytics, with voters finally crediting him for his game-changing defense. That shift could make it inevitable he’ll make a speech in Cooperstown.
Rogers: Just a year ago, Carlos Beltran looked to be somewhat of a question mark — now, after receiving 57.1% of votes this year, he seems a near lock, considering he has eight more chances to be enshrined. His poor showing last year could have been voters doling out a minor punishment for his role in the Astros’ sign-stealing scandal — but in the end, he’ll be a Hall of Famer. It just might take a few more tries.
Doolittle: Tough to pick one between Beltran and Jones, so I’ll cop out and call it a stalemate. Both picked up enough support that given their trajectories and the years they have left on the ballot, they seem close to lock status. The uncertainty around Beltran has cleared up after just two cycles on the ballot, which for me is a bit of a surprise. I thought he’d be cast into limbo land for longer than this, but now I’d be surprised if he doesn’t get in next year.
Gonzalez: This probably won’t make him feel any better, but I look at Wagner falling just five votes shy of induction as a win for him. He’s got one year left of eligibility on the BBWAA ballot, and one would think he’ll be able to make up that gap given how voters tend to rally around players who are close to falling off. Wagner has gained an average of 40 votes over the past six years. It would be shocking if he didn’t get in next year.
Who is the biggest loser from this year’s voting results?
Olney: By all statistical measures — other than the writers’ voting percentage of 63.9% — Gary Sheffield is a Hall of Famer. But after failing to gain election in his final year on the ballot, Sheffield now gets thrown into HOF purgatory; his only chance is to wait for selection from some special committee years from now. And unfortunately for Sheffield, if he ever gets that honor, he’ll have had to wait for the perspective of committee voters to change. It was little more than a year ago that they rejected Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens, who, like Sheffield, have been kept out of the Hall because they were named in the dubious Mitchell report.
Rogers: Oh, it’s definitely Sheffield. Yes, he was mentioned in the Mitchell report, but he was never suspended for a failed test — and that’s an important distinction to me. Call me old-school, but I’m all for one of the last great players to walk (1,475) more than strike out (1,171) getting in. Add his 509 home runs and 253 stolen bases to his résumé, and Sheffield did it all. His increased percentage from 55% last year to 63.9% in 2024 was nice, but voters need to take a closer look during a player’s final year of eligibility. Not enough of them did.
Doolittle: Sheffield is the obvious pick, but in a way, getting off the BBWAA ballot at least is a chance for him to move on. I personally think he’ll do well when his case comes in front of an era committee. But just to add a different name here, I’ll go with Andy Pettitte. I really thought his support would start to tick upward. I didn’t think he was likely to get in, but I thought he had a larger base of support than this.
Gonzalez: The following eight players, all in their first year of eligibility, received less than the 5% support required to remain on the ballot: Jose Bautista, Victor Martinez, Bartolo Colon, Matt Holliday, Adrian Gonzalez, Brandon Phillips, Jose Reyes and James Shields. None of them are Hall of Famers, of course. But the weeks leading up to the results presents an opportunity for us to celebrate players we otherwise might not take the time to remember. We’ll miss that with those guys. David Wright, however, barely advanced into Year 2 with 6.2% support.
What is one trend that stands out to you from this year’s voting totals?
Olney: During Beltré’s career, he collected more than 3,000 hits, nearly 500 homers, five Gold Glove Awards and consistent MVP consideration over the decades he played. Beyond his production, he had an excellent reputation as a teammate. If there is a legitimate reason to not vote for him, well, we haven’t heard it. But somehow, 19 writers decided to not include him on their ballot — just as some writers decided not to vote for Ken Griffey Jr. and Derek Jeter. Maybe Mariano Rivera will be the first and last unanimous selection.
Rogers: It’s the continuation of a decades-long trend for the Hall: Players can easily get in on their first try, but doing so unanimously is a different story. Would the 4.9% of voters who didn’t think Beltré deserved the honor have voted for him next year? Or the year after? It kind of defies logic — unless those voters simply don’t believe he deserves it at all, which would also make little sense.
Doolittle: David Wright got very little support, though, thankfully, he received enough votes to remain on the ballot. I don’t know that he’s a Hall of Famer, but it’s not that hard to build a case for him. If you look at what he did in his first 10 seasons, there are very few players who have been left out of the Hall who produced what he did (at least once you cross off active players, those still on the ballot and those left out for nonplaying reasons). We’re still not focusing enough on the number of high-quality seasons someone like Wright put up and too much on compilation.
Gonzalez: Rodriguez has made virtually no progress in his three years on the ballot, going from 34.3% to 35.7% to, this year, 34.8%. Manny Ramirez began with 23.8% in 2017 and got up to only 33.2% in 2023, then dropped to 32.5% in 2024. Ramirez is one of the best right-handed hitters of his era; A-Rod is one of the greatest all-around players in the sport’s history. But their ties to PEDs won’t get them even close to the Hall. Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens broke 60% in their final year of eligibility. I don’t see A-Rod or Ramirez even approaching that.
Which one player’s vote total is most surprising to you?
Olney: Beltran’s big spike is our first real indication of how some voters will treat those linked to the Houston Astros’ sign-stealing scandal. If Beltran was nailed with some first-ballot demerits, it wouldn’t be the first time — so was Roberto Alomar because of his spitting incident with umpire John Hirschbeck. Alomar was elected in his second year on the ballot, and Beltran seems to be trending strongly toward election in the next two or three years.
Rogers: Alex Rodriguez. With so much uncertainty about how to handle the steroid era, I’m surprised someone who has failed tests and has suspensions on his record is getting even 34% of the vote. That total hasn’t changed much from what he got last year or the year before, though, so it’s clear about a third of voters are in one category in this debate; two-thirds believe he should not be in the Hall of Fame.
Doolittle: I don’t know that it’s a major surprise, but I thought Chase Utley would do a little better than 28.8% on his first trip through the process. He’s not in a bad spot, though, and I expect his momentum to uptick quickly from here.
Gonzalez: Bobby Abreu polled at 14.8% in his fifth year on the ballot and I continue to be miffed by him not getting much support, especially in an era when we place so much more value on on-base percentage. Abreu did literally everything. He was a great defender with the power to win a Home Run Derby and the speed to accumulate 400 stolen bases, but he was also one of the most skilled, discerning hitters of his time. He batted in the .300s six times, reached 20 homers nine times and drew at least 100 walks in eight consecutive seasons. He was also incredibly durable, playing in at least 151 games 13 times. The counting numbers might not jump off the page, but he deserves a closer look.
Based on this year’s results, who do you think will get in on next year’s ballot?
Olney: The Class of 2025 might turn out to be enormous. Ichiro Suzuki should be a unanimous selection, of course — how could you not vote for him? Wagner, who fell just short this year, Jones and Beltran are within range of election, as well, and CC Sabathia could get the call in his first year on the ballot. Think about this: Sabathia finished his career with 61.8 WAR, which puts him in the same statistical neighborhood as Juan Marichal, Don Drysdale, Dennis Eckersley and Jim Bunning — all HOFers.
Rogers: Wagner has been inching toward enshrinement, and his final year of eligibility, 2025, will help push him over the top after he received 73.8% of the vote this time around. Wagner’s reputation fits with the relievers who have already gone into the Hall. Back in 2016, he was hovering at about 10%, so it has been a long, slow climb. But where you start should have no bearing on your finish. Voters nearly got him over the hump these past two years; 2025 will be his time.
Doolittle: Ichiro is a no-doubter, and I think Jones and Beltran will get over the top. I say Wagner finally gets in after nine misses. A really interesting candidate will be CC Sabathia, whose case might say a lot about the standards we will consider for Hall of Famer starters in the future. I think he’s in, with the only question being whether or not his “first ballot” status hinders him. And if that’s our class, with the U.S., Curacao, Puerto Rico and Japan all represented, Cooperstown will be a fun place to be in July 2025.
Gonzalez: I can see as many as five getting in next year: Ichiro, Sabathia, Wagner, Jones and Beltran. Here’s the thing, though: It has never happened. The BBWAA has never voted in that many. And it voted in four players on only five occasions — 1947, 1955, 2015, 2018 and 2019. Edgar Martinez didn’t get in in 2018; Mike Piazza and Hank Greenberg were snubbed in 2015 and 1955, respectively. Of the aforementioned five players, I see Ichiro and Wagner as certainties, with Sabathia, Jones and Beltran ultimately being close.
It all comes down to this for the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Florida Panthers. Sunday’s game marks the conclusion of a wild roller coaster of a series that included two wins to start for Toronto, then three straight for Florida, followed by a hard-fought win in Game 6 by Toronto that provided one more matchup.
Who moves on to face the Carolina Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference finals? Who begins their offseason vacation a bit earlier than they’d hoped?
Read on for a game preview with statistical insights from ESPN Research, a roundtable debate with key players in Game 7 and final score picks, a recap of what went down in Saturday’s game and the three stars of Saturday from Arda Öcal.
Matchup notes
Florida Panthers at Toronto Maple Leafs
Game 7 | 7:30 p.m. ET | TNT
The Maple Leafs have lost six straight Game 7s and are 12-15 all-time in Game 7s. The Panthers are 3-1 all-time in Game 7s, including a win in last year’s Stanley Cup Final.
Auston Matthews‘ first goal in 11 career postseason games against the Panthers came at an important time, technically serving as the game-winner of Game 6. He became the second Maple Leafs captain in history to score the winning goal in a contest when facing elimination, joining Darryl Sittler in 1976.
Teammate Mitch Marner assisted on Matthews’ goal and is the second player in Toronto franchise history with 50 playoff assists — Doug Gilmour has 60.
Joseph Woll had his first career playoff shutout, becoming the first Leafs goaltender to register a shutout when facing elimination since Curtis Joseph in the 2002 Eastern Conference finals.
Florida’s Brad Marchand will appear in his 13th career Game 7, which will be most among active players. He’s the fifth all-time to hit that benchmark, joining Scott Stevens (13), Patrick Roy (13) and his former Bruins teammates Patrice Bergeron (14) and Zdeno Chara (14).
Sergei Bobrovsky has a 2-0 career record in Game 7s, including last year’s Cup finals win over Edmonton. He is looking to join a group of eight goaltenders who have won their first three Game 7s.
Who is the one key player you’ll be watching?
Ryan S. Clark, NHL reporter: Joseph Woll. There are a few reasons here. It starts with the obvious: whether he can replicate what he did in Game 6, or at least carry several elements of that performance over into Game 7. Another reason stems from the conversation around tandem goaltenders, and the need for depth at that position. We’re so used to seeing teams have one primary option in net who’s expected to play every second. But this postseason has shown the value of having at least two — if not three — goalies who can be trusted. Woll getting a Game 7 victory would further emphasize that reality.
Victoria Matiash, NHL analyst: William Nylander. The most productive player for the Leafs this playoff run, Nylander has been scoresheet-silent this past week. After posting six goals and nine assists through nine games against Ottawa and Florida, Toronto’s most dynamic performer all regular season long has posted an egg in three straight.
If one of the coolest cucumbers in the game manages to break loose and rifle one past Bobrovsky, he’ll give his side an excellent chance to clear a hurdle not enjoyed by Leafs fans for many, many years.
Arda Öcal, NHL broadcaster: Auston Matthews. The Leafs captain scored his first career playoff goal against the Panthers in Game 6, which was also his first career goal beyond the first round of the playoffs. We hear it all the time: The superstars need to show up and show out when it matters the most. He got it done in Game 6. Can he do the same on Sunday when it’s winner takes all?
Kristen Shilton, NHL reporter: Mitch Marner. Now that Matthews got the monkey off his back with that critical goal in Game 6, it’s time for Marner to have his own series-defining moment in Game 7. Marner had four points in the Leafs’ first three games against Florida, but he has registered just one assist since then. And after that ill-fated spin-o-rama turnover move Marner pulled in the Game 5 debacle, this is his opportunity for a little redemption on home ice, too.
Marner is, like Matthews, among the most criticized players in the league for poor postseason performances when it matters most. Well, the stakes have never been higher. It’s now or never for Marner to put his mark on this one.
Greg Wyshynski, NHL reporter: Brad Marchand. Even in a moment of pure elation — a Game 6 victory on the road, with your two most maligned players combining for the winning goal — the prevailing thought among Maple Leafs fans is whether this is just another mechanism to eventually deliver maximum anguish. Marchand powering the Panthers to a Game 7 victory on Toronto’s home ice would be maximum anguish.
It has to be Marchand who twists the dagger. He has a 4-0 record against Toronto in Game 7s, all with the Boston Bruins, and can become the first player in NHL history to defeat the same opponent in at least five winner-take-all games. Factor in that the Leafs wanted to trade for Marchand before he chose Florida as his deadline destination, and now we’re talking an ironic level of pain. Brad Marchand being the reason that the Panthers win this Game 7 would cement his status as the Toronto Maple Leafs‘ greatest tormentor — perhaps second only to themselves.
The final score will be _____.
Clark: 4-3 Panthers in OT. Think about how this current iteration of the Panthers really started making its mark. It was that Game 7 win against the Boston Bruins back in 2023 that set the stage for the Panthers to become one of the NHL’s preeminent powers.
They have shown a comfort level with playing in Game 7s, which was the case last season when they won the first Stanley Cup in team history. Tapping into that experience in Game 7 could be the difference between a third consecutive Eastern Conference finals appearance or starting their offseason earlier than they would like.
Matiash: 4-2 Maple Leafs. Never mind the Leafs’ depressing losing record in Game 7s with the Core Four in action. Disregard Paul Maurice’s impeccable history in carbon-copy essential winner-take-all contests. Losers are only losers until they win.
If Toronto adheres to Berube’s system, utilizes its advantage in speed, counters Florida’s physicality reasonably enough, and doesn’t commit ridiculous infractions — silly penalties, dumb giveaways — they can finally flip the script on what’s been a tired and gloomy narrative in a town that’s craved better for much too long. If this central crew of bona fide stars truly wants to keep the elite band together for years ahead, this victory is essential. Marner scores the empty-netter to seal it.
Öcal: 3-1 Leafs. Here’s how I see it going: Toronto gets the first goal in the first period from Marner, then weathers the Cats’ onslaught in the second. Marchand scores early for Florida in the third, followed by a John Tavares quick response, then Auston Matthews pots home the empty-netter. The Leafs head to the Eastern Conference finals for the first time since 2002. And then 300,000 people celebrate this second-round victory at Nathan Phillips Square.
Shilton: 3-2 Leafs in OT. If not now … when? Toronto knows exactly what to do in order to shut Florida down. It won’t be easy. Paul Maurice is 5-0 in Game 7s. The Panthers know how to win big games. But the blueprint to beating them is also there for the Leafs to execute.
Joseph Woll was at his best in Game 6. Toronto’s top line got rolling. The Leafs look stout defensively, and there’s a collective effort there that’s been lacking before. This chance to reach a conference finals for the first time since the early 2000s is too good to let slip away and for once, Toronto won’t let it. And that last appearance in 2002 came off a Game 7 win over Ottawa — with a chance to play Carolina. Coincidence? Maybe not!
Wyshynski: 2-1 Panthers. Auston Matthews has been eliminated from the playoffs eight times. Three of the past four eliminations were by one goal, with two of the games going to overtime. This is to say that even when they fall short, these Leafs usually don’t go out with an effort like their Game 5 embarrassment at home.
But they will go out. Florida just has too many guys that have done this before. Carter Verhaeghe and Sam Reinhart have been huge in Game 7s. Sergei Bobrovsky is 2-0 in them. Another team might be rattled by squandering a chance to close out their opponents. Florida squandered it three times in the Stanley Cup Final last season against Connor McDavid — and still pulled it together to win the Cup in Game 7. The Panthers win, the Leafs finish the series valiantly and another offseason of critical decisions begins in Toronto.
Öcal’s three stars from Saturday
Upon hearing of the unexpected death of Winnipeg forward Mark Scheifele‘s father, the Stars’ fan base mobilized online and began a campaign to donate $55 (Scheifele’s jersey number) to charities that the veteran supports. Add that to the list of reasons why hockey fans are the best.
The overtime hero who sends Dallas to the Western Conference finals for the third straight year — a rematch from 2024 against the Edmonton Oilers. Harley became the fourth defenseman in franchise history to score an OT winner in the playoffs, joining John Klingberg (2019), Mattias Norstrom (2008) and Paul Cavallini (1994).
Scheifele had an incredible game, including the opening goal, hours after finding out his father had passed away. It was Scheifele’s first road playoff goal in the past 13 games.
0:34
Mark Scheifele strikes first for Winnipeg
Mark Scheifele scores the opening goal of the game for Winnipeg just a day after his father’s death.
Saturday’s recap
Dallas Stars 2, Winnipeg Jets 1 (OT)
DAL wins 4-2, plays EDM in conference finals
Multiple games of this series ended with multi-goal victories. That was not the case on Saturday, as these two heavyweights played a tight contest that would eventually go to OT. Winnipeg’s Mark Scheifele scored the game’s opening goal 5:28 into the second period (the day after his father unexpectedly died), followed by the equalizer by Dallas’ Sam Steel. That’s where the score would remain until the end of regulation. It did not take long in OT for Thomas Harley to send the fans in Dallas into a frenzy and his team into the Western Conference finals for a rematch from last year with the Edmonton Oilers. Full recap.
0:24
Jake Oettinger makes remarkable save to keep score level
Jake Oettinger does his best attempt at acrobatics in the crease, making a lights-out save for the Stars in the third period.
Sports
‘He turned his back on us’: What it was like watching Juan Soto’s Bronx return with the Bleacher Creatures
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Jorge Castillo
NEW YORK — The first sustained jeers of the 2025 Subway Series, a raucous and crude chorus of pent-up resentment, were unleashed 20 minutes before first pitch of Game 1 on Friday, when Juan Soto emerged to stretch in center field in his New York Mets grays.
“F— Juan Soto!” reverberated from the bleachers beyond the right-field wall amid boos all around Yankee Stadium. Soto, ever the showman, did not directly acknowledge the greeting. But he subtly tugged at the bill of his cap toward the bleachers, surely in the direction of at least some people who had showered him with love last summer into autumn as the New York Yankees rode Soto and Aaron Judge‘s historic tandem production to the franchise’s first World Series appearance in 15 years before Soto ditched them during the winter.
This was a battle between first-place teams 10 miles apart, a fact that alone would have provided more juice than usual to the weekend series. The addition of Soto’s perceived betrayal, one of the sport’s biggest storylines, made it perhaps the most anticipated meeting between the clubs since the 2000 World Series.
Marc Chalpin took his usual bleacher seat in Section 203 behind right field, surrounded by his Bleacher Creature brethren, at approximately 6:30 p.m., anticipating the inevitable. If he had it his way, fans wouldn’t have greeted Soto in his return to Yankee Stadium with vulgarity. “F— Juan Soto!” was, to Chalpin, both over-the-top in its obscenity and underwhelming in its creativity.
Chalpin, tasked to initiate the Bleacher Creatures’ famous Roll Call since 2016, didn’t believe Soto warranted the vitriol, because he was a Yankee for only one season and, above all, didn’t win a championship. But he knew the three-word melody was coming for the man who spurned the home team for the — gulp — Mets.
“You’ll hear it from non-regulars,” Chalpin said, “but it won’t be us.”
Daniel Cagan was one of the non-regulars in attendance Friday. A die-hard Yankees fan from Los Angeles, Cagan happened to be in town for work, bought a ticket and attended the sold-out group therapy session by himself. Wearing a No. 68 Dellin Betances jersey, with a beer in hand before getting to his seat in Section 204, he predicted what he expected to ensue.
“Mayhem.”
With Soto’s decision to spurn the Yankees for the Mets over the offseason, the “Re-sign Soto!” pleas he heard from the bleachers in 2024 morphed into the crude taunt repeated dozens of times over the next three-plus hours. They were interspersed with rounds of boos and occasional fresh, less crass chants. It was a reaction stemming from Yankees fans’ introduction into how other fan bases have often felt about their ballclub.
For years, the big, bad, richer-than-everybody-else Yankees snatched stars, via free agency or trade, from other teams. This time — and probably for not the last time — the roles flipped: Mets billionaire owner Steve Cohen, refusing to be outbid, lured Soto from the Bronx to Queens after the Yankees offered a 16-year, $760 million contract. Soto opted for the Mets’ 15-year, $765 million deal, which includes an option to increase the total value to $805 million, free use of a luxury suite at Citi Field, up to four tickets behind home plate for all home games, and personal security for him and his family for both home and away games.
“Seeing him go to the Mets, it’s just, like, it rubs you the wrong way,” said James Roina, a 22-year-old Yankees fan who was sitting in Section 204.
Roina wore a white pinstriped Soto No. 22 Yankees jersey that he customized to read “SELLOUT” on the back using packing tape and a marker. A few brave Mets fans were sprinkled throughout Sections 203 and 204 behind Soto, proudly wearing his No. 22 in blue and orange. Fans of both teams wore Dominican-flavored caps and jerseys.
“F— Juan Soto” chants and middle fingers flew every few minutes as fans from the two sides sporadically exchanged pleasantries over the nine innings. It was so boisterous during the first inning that the Bleacher Creatures were drowned out for some of the Roll Call. Most interactions were light-hearted. On occasion, a security guard intervened to defuse a situation. Nothing escalated to a physical altercation.
“[Soto] was only here for one year,” Chalpin said. “It was a very, very good year, but it was just one year. So he’s not an all-time Yankee great or anything like that. This isn’t Paul O’Neill. He never won here. He had a great year. But there is a distinction between a guy who won here and a guy who didn’t.”
In the days leading up to the game, Chalpin knew how he wanted the Bleacher Creatures to welcome Soto.
“You know, he turned his back on us,” Chalpin said. “My attitude is we should turn our backs on him. I don’t wish him harm, but I don’t wish him success either.”
So Chalpin and dozens of Bleacher Creatures in Section 203 turned their backs on Soto when he ran out to take his spot in right field for the first time. After the game, Soto said he didn’t notice the gesture.
Joe Lopez, a Bronx native and Bleacher Creature regular since 1987, joined in on the silent treatment.
“I knew he wasn’t coming back,” Lopez said. “Because the idea is to make as much money as you can. So how are you gonna dog Soto for going after the money? I mean, come on. He got everything he wants. He got the money. He got the suite. So you’re going to hate him for that? He’s not Aaron Judge. Aaron Judge could’ve gone home to San Francisco for more money. But he wanted to be here.”
Other chants occasionally surfaced. “MVP” chants for Judge were louder than usual, an effort made to remind Soto he wasn’t even the best player on the Yankees anyway.
Another favorite was “We got Grisham!” in reference to Trent Grisham, the other player the Yankees received with Soto from the San Diego Padres and who was buried on the Yankees’ bench last season but is now enjoying a breakout campaign. Fittingly, the praise came almost a year after they chanted “We want Soto!” when Grisham replaced an injured Soto in a weekend series against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Yankees fans yelled, “You can’t field!” at Soto in the first inning. They called him, in rhythmic unison, an “a–hole”. With his monster contract in mind, they chanted, “Soto, greedy!” Later on, they unearthed the classic “Overrated” chorus.
All along, Soto did his best to ignore them. He jokingly acknowledged the sentiment at-large before his first plate appearance when, smiling, he took off his batting helmet, tipped it to the crowd, tapped his chest twice and mouthed, “Thank you.”
The bleachers, however, did not get that level of acknowledgement — until the eighth inning, when a “you miss Judge!” taunt erupted and Soto appeared to outline a heart toward the bleachers. Moments later, Soto caught the inning’s final out and threw the ball into the bleachers behind him without looking. A fan, after some peer pressure, threw the ball back, igniting another roar from the crowd.
“We finally got to him,” said Milton Ousland, another Bleacher Creature staple. “He knew the F-him chants were coming. We had to do something different.”
Ousland has been sitting in the bleachers since the 1980s, back when home games were at the old Yankee Stadium and the Mets were, in a blip in the franchise’s 63-year history, the best team in town. He became the section’s cowbell man in 1996, in time for the first of four Yankees championships in five seasons. Back then, Ousland insisted, Friday’s reaction to Soto would’ve been G-rated.
“This is nothing,” Ousland said. “We used to be so bad that [opposing right fielder Jose] Canseco used to DH. We used to look up bad words in Japanese. We used to chant curse words at Ichiro [Suzuki] the whole game in Japanese. We would look it up and hand out a paper to everybody, as they walked in, that had all the curse words in Japanese.
“We’ve really been on top of players before. This is nothing new. The only thing that’s new is that a guy chose the Mets over us.”
There was a point late in Friday’s game, with the Yankees holding a five-run lead, when the two fan bases momentarily coalesced to become one. It happened when the score of Game 6 of the Eastern Conference semifinals, played at Madison Square Garden, was shown on the video board. The hometown New York Knicks were thrashing the Boston Celtics 46-27 en route to an easy series-clinching win.
Ousland, who wore a Knicks cap, banged his cowbell in celebration as the bleachers went wild around him. Pinstriped people high-fived the brave blue-and-orange souls. A light “Jalen Brunson!” chant broke out. But the truce was fleeting. It was quickly back to business until Soto, who finished 0-for-2 with three walks in a 6-2 Yankees win, made the game’s final out.
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