Can Grimace Save the Mets’ Season?

Shohei Ohtani is hitting baseballs to the moon. Juan Soto is playing himself into a blockbuster free agent contract. But there’s a strong case to be made that Grimace, the big goofy mascot from McDonald’s, is at this very moment the most impactful baseball player on the planet. What does he have to do with baseball, you might be asking? Well, it’s quite simple: Grimace has potentially saved the New York Mets’ season, simply by being his lovable, purple self.

On June 12 in Flushing, Queens, as the Mets prepared to play the Miami Marlins. Grimace, who was celebrating his birthday month, threw out the ceremonial first pitch. Was it a good pitch? Not really. But given the circumstances—Grimace’s arms are too short for any real extension, and his body is so rotund that even getting in position to release the ball is a task—it was a breathtaking spectacle. (This is where I simply must mention that the original Grimace had multiple sets of arms and was straight up evil, using the extra appendages to steal burgers, milkshakes, and the like. McDonald’s eventually made him a total sweetie pie, and the rebrand meant re-inventing the character as a guy with the standard two arms.) Grimace has some lightning in that right arm, too! The ball jumped out of his hand with some surprising velocity, and even though the location left something to be desired, there’s a world in which hitters are swinging through the Grimace fastball.

The Mets easily handled the Marlins that night, winning 10-4. But then, surely powered by Grimace, they won again, and again, and again, and again. Thursday brought another win over Miami, and on Friday the San Diego Padres came into town for a three-game series. The Mets won a nail-biter in the first game, dusted the Padres in the second game, and then hung 11 runs on them to complete the sweep on Sunday. In other words, since Grimace graced them with their presence, the New York Mets are undefeated. Mets fans, the famously well-adjusted bunch that they are, have absolutely taken notice. Cue the fan cams.

This is the kind of stuff that can rewrite baseball history. Pre-Grimace, the Mets were an uninspiring 28-37. Post-Grimace, they’re 5-0, and more importantly, just 1.5 games back of a Wild Card spot. Lest you think this is just a coincidence, the list of similarities between the fast food icon and the Metropolitans is quite long. Both are often overshadowed by the cultural institutions they’re in proximity to (Ronald McDonald is to Grimace as the Yankees are to the Mets), both look resplendent in purple, and, like McDonald’s, the Mets have a beloved mascot crew of their own. Depending on the year, Mr. and Mrs. Met can be more popular than most players, so Grimace naturally had to flick it up with them when he came through Citi Field.

There’s no telling where the Mets or Big G go from here. But we know where they’ve been (playing poorly), and we know where they are now (playing much better). It’s basic science, really. If you want to win some baseball games, you can analyze data and design fancy new pitches in a lab all you want. Or you can call up a 52-year-old anthropomorphic taste bud who peddles a milkshake that kills people and quite obviously has the power to change an entire baseball season with one pitch.