NEW YORK -- The Knicks’ victory lap around the five boroughs will wind through Queens this week, with players OG Anunoby and Jose Alvarado set to throw out ceremonial first pitches before Mets games at Citi Field.
Anunoby, the hero of the Knicks’ 29-point, Game 4 comeback, will throw his pitch to former Mets shortstop José Reyes on Sunday. Though Anunoby grew up a Cardinals fan in Missouri after moving to the US from London as a 4-year-old, he later adopted the Mets as his team. In an interview with the Athletic, Anunoby cited Reyes, Carlos Delgado and Pedro Martinez as his favorite players and said he still watches baseball “all the time.”
Days after Anunoby’s legendary tip-in gave the Knicks the lead in the closing seconds of Game 4, Reyes sent a social media post inviting him to throw a first pitch at Citi Field. Anunoby has apparently taken him up on the offer.
Alvarado, a Brooklyn native who grew up a Mets fan, previously threw out a first pitch at Citi on May 27, with the Knicks enjoying an off-day after sweeping their way through the Eastern Conference Finals. After Alvarado spent time around the batting cage that afternoon meeting various players, the Mets responded with a four-game winning streak.
From talk shows to sporting events, the Knicks have celebrated their way around New York City since clinching their first NBA title in 53 years on June 13. Last week, Finals MVP Jalen Brunson and teammate Josh Hart threw out first pitches at Yankee Stadium, a day before the Knicks’ ticker-tape parade through lower Manhattan.
Longtime Knicks broadcaster Mike Breen, who called the Finals for ABC, was also scheduled to throw out a ceremonial first pitch at Citi Field, but he had to cancel on Monday afternoon. It is unclear if Breen, a lifelong Mets fan famous for his “Bang!” calls after clutch shots, will reschedule his appearance.