“This game was very similar to our season,” Callaway said. “That was appropriate.”
Still, despite Callaway’s past as a pitching coach, it was the shortcomings of the bullpen, and specifically closer Edwin Diaz, who was acquired by Van Wagenen in an off-season trade, that most frustrated the team’s officials and fans. Callaway’s frustration seemed to boil over in June, when he lashed out at a reporter in the clubhouse after a loss to the Chicago Cubs.
Callaway planned to drive 19 hours to his residence in Florida after Sunday’s game, and noted that he remained under contract for another season. He said he did not have any meetings planned with ownership.
“I don’t have any anxiety,” he said. “I’m proud of what we did this year.”
Alonso provided Callaway with plenty of support. The Mets put him on the major league roster to start the season rather than keep him in the minors to manipulate his service time, and he had an immediate effect, squaring the barrel of his bat to reroute fastballs that came his way. He finished the season with 53 home runs, the most for any major leaguer this season and an all-time major league record for rookies that supplanted the Yankees slugger Aaron Judge, who hit 52 in 2017, in the annals. Alonso also led all rookies in R.B.I. (120), extra-base hits (85), total bases (351), runs (103) and walks (72).
In the coming days, Alonso, who quickly became a fan favorite in Queens both for his nickname, Polar Bear, and for his power hitting, will stay in New York to make several public appearances after his record-breaking season, including on “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” on Friday, before heading west for a hunting trip in Colorado. He plans to have dinner with Judge soon, as well.
“If he’s picking the place, it’s probably McDonald’s or something, because I eat a lot,” Alonso said. “But if I get to pick and it’s on him, then it may be, like, Peter Luger.”