There’s a time to celebrate, and there’s a time to handle business. When it comes to how much everyone is getting paid for the playoffs, it’s best to put the celebration on hold.
Following one of the nuttier doubleheaders to clinch a playoff berth, the New York Mets celebrated in the visiting clubhouse at Truist Park in Atlanta, Ga.
However, once they were on the team plane heading to American Family Field to begin their Wild Card series with the Milwaukee Brewers, they were all business.
“I honestly think probably when leaving the clubhouse — switched from celebration mode to locking it back in,” Mets outfielder Brandon Nimmo told the media on Tuesday. “I mean we even had to — right when we got on to the plane we had to decide on business kind of stuff as far as like playoff shares go and all that stuff. So they just say, ‘Hey, we need this by the end of the flight.’
“You can’t be drunk handing that stuff out, otherwise somebody’s going to get way too much and somebody’s not going to get enough so …”
Brandon Nimmo says the Mets shifted back into “business mode” on the flight to Milwaukee and in handling business matters like playoff shares:
“Can’t be drunk and handing that stuff out” 😂 pic.twitter.com/OvxDNnsJlp
— SNY (@SNYtv) October 1, 2024
Playoff shares work when MLB pools together all postseason gate receipts and disperses the money based on how far the teams advance. A certain percentage of the sales from every guaranteed playoff game continues through the World Series. Each team needs to decide which players get a percentage from the team pool, even if they’re no longer on the roster.
“Honestly by the time we were on the plane, everybody’s still in a great mood, and feeling really good, but you are locking it back in. And I know for me, coming down a little bit,” Nimmo added. “You’re on such a high and you’re playing 18 innings — which, it’s not just a regular 18 innings, right? I mean, there was a lot of emotion that first game.”
There sure were.
Game 1 of a scheduled doubleheader against the Atlanta Braves, who also clinched a playoff berth with their win in Game 2, had the makings of a movie.
FRANCISCO LINDOR GO-AHEAD 2-RUN HOMER FOR THE METS IN THE 9TH! THIS GAME IS BONKERS!
Gary Cohen on the SNY call. ⚾️💣🎙️ #MLB pic.twitter.com/3Z5vC3vOsl
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) September 30, 2024
Don’t worry, the celebration was filled with enough prosecco and cigar smoke to hold them over for now.
[SNY]
About Jessica Kleinschmidt
Jess is a baseball fan with Reno, Nev. roots residing in the Bay Area. She is the host of "Short and to the Point" and is also a broadcaster with the Oakland A's Radio Network. She previously worked for MLB.com and NBC Sports Bay Area.