New York Mets

Thumbs up! Mets apologize to fans, then Javier Báez leads dramatic victory

Updated Sep. 1, 2021 1:49 p.m. ET

Turn those thumbs around, Mets fans — at least for one day.

The New York Mets, embroiled in self-inflicted controversy over the weekend, are suddenly engulfed in good feelings, with thumbs lifted high throughout Citi Field after a dramatic 6-5 comeback victory over the Miami Marlins on Tuesday.

They did it in epic fashion, erasing a four-run deficit in the ninth inning. Javier Báez scored the winning run on a single by Michael Conforto, managing to hustle around from first base – with an assist from Marlins left fielder Jorge Alfaro, who booted the ball.

It led to an excited reaction in the broadcast booth.

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It was fitting that Báez played a central role in the win, given that he was one of three players – Francisco Lindor and Kevin Pillar were the others – who created the mess Sunday by making thumbs-down gestures to the fans after they managed to get hits.

Those gestures caused all sorts of drama around the team because while Pillar explained it away as just the boys trying to have some fun, Báez and Lindor both said it was a direct message to fans that they don’t like being booed — even though booing does tend to occur when you lose 12 times in a 14-game stretch, as the Mets did between Aug. 13 and 27.

Regardless, the players were called out for their behavior by both their team president Sandy Alderson, who called it "unacceptable," and owner Steve Cohen, who said the players shouldn’t upset the people who essentially pay their salaries.

"These are young guys, and sometimes we forget they are on a public stage and can make mistakes," Cohen said. "They hit the third rail, though, by messing with fans. And it is unacceptable. Hopefully, this is a teaching moment and they will learn from this."

Clearly, the message was received, as the players apologized Tuesday for their behavior.

"Thumbs down for me means adversity, the adversity we have gone through in this whole time," Lindor said. "Like the negative things, we overcome it, so it’s like, ‘We did it! We went over it!’

"However, it was wrong, and I apologize to whoever I offended. It was not my intent to offend people."

Báez echoed Lindor, saying: "The fans obviously want to win, and they pay our salary like everybody says, but like, we want to win, too, and the frustration got to us. And, you know, I didn’t mean to offend anybody, and if I offend anybody, we apologize."

The Mets then went out and defeated the Marlins in dramatic fashion, finishing a game that had been delayed on April 11.

New York, which has endured a roller-coaster season that has seen it drop from first to third in the NL East since early August, has now won three games in a row.

Will this be the start of a surge? Perhaps one day the Mets will look back on this moment and see it as a turning point in their season. The game certainly brought the team together Tuesday, with Alderson joining others in searching for a piece of jewelry that Báez apparently lost while scoring the winning run.

It remains to be seen whether the good feelings will last for the Mets. For now, we’ll just enjoy the highlights here: