Don La Greca Credit: ESPN NY
By Sean Keeley on

Pete Alonso broke the New York Mets franchise record for home runs on Tuesday night. A day later, it was Gary Cohen’s call of that homer that people were still talking about.

Alonso hit a two-run home run off Atlanta Braves pitcher Spencer Strider in the bottom of the third inning, the 253rd of his seven-year Major League Baseball career, breaking a tie with Darryl Strawberry for the most in Mets history. Not only did he hit that record-breaker at home in Citi Field, but he got an excited and memorable call from SNY’s Cohen to boot.

“It’s outta here! Outta here! Pete Alonso stands alone,” uttered Cohen. “The Polar Bear on his own private iceberg,” a reference to his nickname.

Now, because the Mets are currently mired in a miserable stretch, having lost 31 of their last 50 games and falling far behind the Philadelphia Phillies in the National League East, not everyone was on board with the boisterous celebration on Tuesday night. ESPN’s Chris Russo slammed the Mets and Cohen for going over the top on the celebration, especially when 253 home runs didn’t measure up to the kind of numbers the crosstown Yankees have among their top sluggers.

“I love Gary, I hate to do that. ‘Polar Bear on an iceberg?’ I mean, really now?” yelled Russo on First Take. “This is not Henry Aaron against Al Downing!”

ESPN New York’s Don La Greca didn’t take too kindly to Russo’s complaints, especially around Cohen’s home-run call. During Wednesday’s episode of Don, Hahn & Rosenberg, the longtime New York sports radio voice urged Russo, a longtime San Francisco Giants fan, to mind his business.

“Dude, this is a Met moment. If you’re a Yankee fan or Chris Russo, a Giant fan, Red Sox fan, don’t care about baseball, what do you care to have an opinion?” asked La Greca. “It was for the Met fans. It’s a Met broadcast by a Met announcer who grew up a Met fan talking about a Met record. He’s playing into the room.

“So obviously, nationally, it’s going to hit different because there might be a lot of people going, ‘Wow, 252 home runs doesn’t sound like a lot of home runs. I don’t know why this is a big deal.’ Well, maybe you look at yourself in the mirror, maybe the reason you don’t think it’s a big deal is you’re not a Met fan. Met fan thought it was cool because Pete Alonso is one of their favorite players. Daryl Strawberry is also one of their favorite players. He has the franchise record for home runs.

“It’s like breaking into the He-Man Woman Haters Club and commenting on the meeting that’s going on. You’re not involved. You weren’t invited. I don’t understand why you should even care.”

Later, La Greca zeroed in on Russo and explained that this was a moment specifically for Mets fans, so any other opinions are moot.

“I don’t need to hear a San Francisco Giant fan peeing all over it. It’s disrespectful to Gary. It’s disrespectful to the Met fans. Chris, I love you. I don’t care what you think. I don’t. Your opinion doesn’t count because you’re not part of the club that that call was for. That call was for Met fans watching the game, living and dying with the team. Not a guy that’s a San Francisco Giant fan that doesn’t get it. Of course, you don’t get it because you don’t know because you’re not a Met fan.

“Yeah, there may be Met fans that don’t care, but that’s their opinion. They could do that. They’re entitled to that opinion because they’re Met fans, and they’ve decided they don’t care. But this wasn’t for the Yankee fan, or the Giant fan, or the Red Sox fan, or the non-baseball fan. It was for the Met fan last night.”

About Sean Keeley

Along with writing for Awful Announcing and The Comeback, Sean is the Managing Editor for Comeback Media. Previously, he created the Syracuse blog Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician and wrote 'How To Grow An Orange: The Right Way to Brainwash Your Child Into Rooting for Syracuse.' He has also written non-Syracuse-related things for SB Nation, Curbed, and other outlets. He currently lives in Seattle where he is complaining about bagels. Send tips/comments/complaints to sean@thecomeback.com.

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