More than 80 Patchogue-Medford fans clustered in Citi Field’s Section 139 Friday night and dozens more were scattered throughout the stadium to witness pitcher Marcus Stroman’s first home start as a Met and the Amazins’ incredible comeback win over the Washington Nationals.
Stroman, who grew up in Medford and played five seasons for the Raiders at Patchogue-Medford High School, pumped up the fans at Citi Field during warm-ups, then dazzled the Queens crowd with a solid six-inning performance, striking out nine batters.
The energy Stroman — and his giant squad from Patchogue and Medford — helped build was sustained throughout the night, culminating in a thrilling walk-off, 7-6 win for the Mets.
“What a game to go to with all the Pat Med Alumni!!,” 1980s Patchogue-Medford High School graduate Brian Reams, who was in Section 139, posted on Facebook. “Awesome game and win!!”
Sandi Williford Morissey added on Facebook, “So happy we were there, great night!”
“It was amazing. That crowd brought it,” Stroman, who was acquired by the Mets in a July 31 deal with the Toronto Blue Jays, told the New York Post. “I’m extremely grateful to have their presence there, their energy. I don’t think they realize how much we feed off of that, and how much that gets us going and allows us to elevate our game when we need to.”
Kevin Culhane, a Medford resident and former youth sports coach in the community, proudly watched Stroman pitch from somewhere in the 500s section.
“My older daughter graduated with Marcus and my younger daughter used to train at Infiniti with him!,” he said. “Great win last night!”
The Patchogue-Medford gathering in Section 139 — located just beyond the leftfield wall — was organized by Stroman’s high school coach, Anthony Frascogna.
“This was a great reminder that the thing that makes our community great are the people that live here,” said Frascogna, 51, a physical education teacher who still coaches the varsity squad at Pat-Med.
“When I put the word out, people responded en masse — so happy to support one of our own,” added Frascogna, a 1986 graduate of Pat-Med High School.
