Mets–Yankees Rivalry - 2009 To Present: New Stadiums

2009 To Present: New Stadiums

The 2009 season was the first year that both teams played in their new stadiums, Mets at Citi Field and the Yankees at the new Yankee Stadium. The Yankees took it one step further opened their new stadium with their 27th World Series championship against the Philadelphia Phillies, the defending champions, becoming the first team to inaugurate two stadiums with World Series wins.

• June 12, 2009: Both teams played each other for the first time at the new Yankee Stadium. The game had several lead changes, including Mariano Rivera giving up the go ahead run to the Mets in the 8th. In the bottom of the 9th, after Derek Jeter stole 2nd base and Mark Texiera was intentionally walked, the Mets new closer Francisco Rodríguez (K-Rod) paired off against Alex Rodriguez (A-Rod). In what seemed a routine pop with two outs, Mets 2nd baseman and three time gold glove award winner Luis Castillo dropped the ball. Texiera wound up scoring the winning run all the way from first on the error. It would prove to be the Yankees' 7th walk off game that season and the first statistical blown save for K-Rod as a Met. After the game, injured Yankees pitcher Brian Bruney criticized K-Rod and his animated behavior on the mound to reporters. " couldn't have happened to a better guy on the mound, either", said Bruney. "He's got a tired act. ... He gets what he deserves, man. I just don't like watching the guy pitch. I think it's embarrassing." Rodriguez responded, "Instead of sending a message in the paper, next time when he sees me at Citi Field, come up to me and say it. Don't be sending a message to the media. I don't even know who that guy is, somewhere in Double-A and not even pitching one full season."

• June 14, 2009 – Francisco Rodriguez confronts Bruney during batting practice and are separated by teammates. The Yankees shutout the Mets 15–0 in the biggest blowout in the history of the series, tagging Met ace Johan Santana for nine runs in 3 1⁄₃ innings, the most Santana has ever allowed in his career.

• June 26, 2009 – The two teams played each other for the first time at Citi Field. Alex Rodriguez hit his 564th home run, moving past Reggie Jackson into 11th place on the career home run list. The Yankees defeat the Mets 9–1 after the Mets had committed three errors that led to four runs in the second inning, the most ever against the Yankees.

• June 28, 2009 – Yankees closer Mariano Rivera, who entered the game to face a batter in the 8th inning, bats against Mets closer Francisco Rodriguez at the top of the 9th inning. Rivera drew a walk with the bases loaded, forcing home Brett Gardner to earn his first career RBI. Rivera would go on to finish the game and earn his 500th career save as the Yankees swept the series at Citi Field.

• May 22, 2010 - The Mets win their first Subway Series game at Citi Field with a 5-3 victory over the Yankees.

• June 20, 2010 - The Yankees earn their 9,500th franchise victory with a 4-0 win over the Mets. Mark Texiera provided the only runs of the game with a third inning grand slam off of Johan Santana.

• January 3, 2011 - The Yankees signed left-handed relief pitcher Pedro Feliciano away from the Mets. Under the rules of the collective bargaining agreement of the time, the Yankees had to compensate the Mets a draft pick. The Mets would use this draft pick to get pitcher Michael Fulmer. Feliciano would immediately go on the disabled list for the Yankees due to his overuse by the Mets during his career. Setbacks in surgery would prevent him from ever throwing a pitch for the Yankees during the entirety of the two year contract.

• July 3, 2011 - The Mets, down to their final strike and on the verge of getting swept at Citi Field by the Yankees for the second time in three years, tie the final game of that year's Subway Series against Mariano Rivera in the bottom of the ninth on an RBI single from Ronny Paulino. In 23 previous save opportunities against the Mets, spanning the regular season and the 2000 World Series, Rivera had converted 22 (his only previous blown save against the team was on July 10, 1999 ). The Mets would win in the 10th inning on an RBI single from Jason Bay, who had been struggling all season, off of former Met pitcher Luis Ayala. Manager Terry Collins called the game "enormous." The Yankees still won the season series 4 games to 2.

• July 12, 2011 - Days after gaining entry into the 3,000 hit club, Yankee shortstop Derek Jeter elected to sit out of the 2011 Major League Baseball All-Star Game citing "physical and emotional exhaustion" and recovery from a recent visit to the disabled list. Jeter, who throughout his career had been praised by people in and out of baseball for good behavior, was criticized by some players and officials including Mets outfielder Carlos Beltrán. Beltran stated that "I do believe, as a ballplayer, if you have no injuries, you should be here...the fans are the ones that vote for you and want to see you here." Mets shortstop José Reyes, who also was injured, also opined on the incident saying "I want to come no matter what happens."

• June 8, 2012 - After pitching the first no-hitter in Mets history in his previous start, Johan Santana gives up a career-worst four home runs to the Yankees in the first Subway Series game of the year as the Mets, who were held hitless by Hiroki Kuroda until the sixth, lose 9-1. Two days later, after Rafael Soriano blew his first save of the year by surrendering an RBI double to Ike Davis in the top of the ninth, Russell Martin hit a home-run in the bottom of the inning off of Jon Rauch to give the Yankees a 5-4 win and first-ever sweep of the Mets at the new Yankee Stadium.

• June 22, 2012 - One day before first pitch between the two teams at Citi Field, Mets closer Frank Francisco taunted the Yankees by calling them chicken. Francisco's teammates greeted him in the Mets club house the next day with the Chicken Dance and put up a pitcture of Derek Jeter's head on the body of a chicken. "I can't wait to strike out those chickens, I want to strike out the side against them. I've done it before." Francisco would later go on to say "I make a simple comment, just that they complain a lot—for every call, for everything, I thought it was funny. I didn't expect to make a big deal." Although he would not strike out the side and allow two base runners, Francisco did notch the save in the first game of the series before going on the disabled list. Mets reliever Tim Byrdak would go as far to bring a live chicken into the clubhouse and named it "Little Jerry Seinfeld" in honor of a Seinfeld episode. The chicken was used as an unofficial mascot and was donated to an animal farm sanctuary in upstate New York a few days later. Francisco later admitted he himself raised chickens and is an expert about them. Despite the Mets winning the opener, the Yankees wound up winning the next two games, including halting Mets pitcher R.A. Dickey's scoreless inning streak of 44 2⁄₃ innings to win the series. Yankee outfielder Nick Swisher playfully quipped at the end of the series "who's chicken now?"