Kansas City, here they come.
The New York Mets will start the World Series Tuesday night in the Midwest when they face the Kansas City Royals, which captured the American League pennant with a dramatic win Friday night over the Toronto Blue Jays.
It’s the first time in MLB history that two expansion franchises will play each other in the World Series. The Mets, of course, began play in 1962, supplanting the departed Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Giants; the Royals came into existence in 1969, two years after their Athletics relocated to Oakland.
The Mets advanced to their first World Series since 2000 on Wednesday night, completing a four-game sweep over the Chicago Cubs and capturing the National League championship, and are looking for their first World Championship since 1986. The Royals, which lost last year’s World Series to the San Francisco Giants, last won a World Series in 1985.
It figures to be an intriguing matchup, as the Royals are largely powered through speed, defense and a strong bullpen, while the Mets have a vaunted staff of young starting pitchers and one of the best offenses in the National League during the season’s second half.
Queens and the rest of the city have gone wild over the Amazins in recent days, with championship memorabilia flying off store shelves and local bars and restaurants planning special game-watching parties. Queens Borough President Melinda Katz also plans to hold a pep rally in honor of the Mets on Monday afternoon at Borough Hall in Kew Gardens.
