The Most Memorable Sporting Events I saw Live

I have been to many sporting events in my lifetime. We used to have season tickets to the Rangers when I was a kid, and had multiple ticket packages for the Mets throughout my life. Over the years, I have gotten to see many all-time greats play for and against my teams. Today, I am going back down memory lane and taking a look at some of the most memorable sporting events I have seen live. Most of them will be positive, but. not all of them. They are not in any particular order either. So with that in mind here are my top 3 most memorable sporting events I have seen live.

1. Mets vs. Nationals, August 2, 2015

There will be a lot of Mets games on this list. I try to go to at least a couple games a season, especially when they are good. The Summer of 2015 was one of the best and worst Mets seasons I have seen. This game in particular came right after the trade deadline. This series with the Nats started with the Mets trailing by 3 games for the division. Terry Collins did an excellent job with the starting rotation as he had it lined up with DeGrom, Matt Harvey, and then Noah Syndergaard for the three games.

The Mets went down 1-0 quickly on an Anthony Rendon home run but had themselves a nice 2-out rally in the bottom of 3rd. Curtis Granderson hit a 2-run home run off of Jordan Zimmerman and then the very next pitch, Daniel Murphy hit a ball to the back of the Pepsi Porch. Yoenis Cespedes singled and then Lucas Duda hit a towering ball off his hands that just made it inside the foul pole.  In a span of like 6 pitches, the Mets hit 3 home runs and scored 5 runs. Syndergaard threw 8 strong innings and got Bryce Harper to strike out swinging on a 99 mph fastball to end his night.

The Mets won this game and tied the Nats at the top of the division. The train ride home was filled with “Lets Go Mets” chants and other things that my mom would not be proud of.

2. Game 4 of the 2015 NLDS

On Tuesday October 13, 2015, I woke up to a call from a friend of mine from Gordon who is a Dodgers fan. The Mets and Dodgers were playing that night and he found tickets for a good price. Neither of us had class that day so we bought the tickets and drove the 4 hours from Boston to Queens to go to the game. The game itself was not that memorable to be honest. Steven Matz pitched pretty well, but he was matched up against Clayton Kershaw. Daniel Murphy began his 6-game home run streak this game.

The Dodgers ended up winning game 4, but the Mets went on to win the series. We made the 4 hour drive back to Boston after the game making it back between 4 and 5am. And to answer your question, yes, we were both in our 9am classes that morning.

3. The First Game of Linsanity

On February 4, 2012, a Knicks legend was born. The Knicks were playing the Nets at Madison Square Garden. Jeremy Lin, who had made his debut against the Celtics the game before, went on to steal the show and the hearts of New Yorkers for the rest of the season. Lin energized a sluggish Knicks team and propelled them to a 99-92 victory. Lin finished this game with 25 points, 5 rebounds, and 7 assists. He led the Knicks on a 7 game win streak and even outscoring Kobe in their matchup.

In Lin’s 12 starts before the all-star break that season, he averaged 22.5 ppg and 8.7 assists.

Final Thoughts

There were a few other moments (mostly Mets moments) I could have put on this list. However, these 3 stand out above the rest for me. These are stories I love to tell and will continue to tell. Sports bring us insurmountable joy and bring out a passion in us that few other things do. Enjoy every sports moment you get to see; you never know when you can witness history.

-Pete Chatterton (@Pchat12)