The emotions of the New York Mets‘ current postseason run have already left an unforgettable impact on a new family.
Mets fan Elisabeth Tarlor, a 32-year-old New Jersey woman who used to be a New York Yankees fan before being converted by her husband, Eric, was pregnant with her first child when the team’s National League Championship Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers began. She wasn’t expecting to have her baby for a few more weeks, according to The New York Post.
But things took a turn on Monday during Game 2 of the series as the Mets were defending a 7-3 lead, looking to even the series at one game a piece.
The first-time mother was sent into an early labor, and credited the emotions of watching her favorite team hold on for a competitive win. It was one of the team’s biggest games in nearly 10 years.
“Just the excitement of it — every game has been so exciting and emotional. There’s been so much cheering and being up and about,” the new mom told the Post on Friday.
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Tarlor gave birth to her baby at around 3 a.m. Tuesday morning. She and Eric decided on the name Summer Shea for their newborn daughter.
“We love Shea as a name. And I told her that’s common for Mets fans like this. If you run into Mets fans that have kids, there’s a decent chance one of them might be named Shea,” Eric said.
Shea was the surname of a man who was instrumental in allowing the creation of the Mets franchise in the 1950s and ’60s.
The late William Shea was a New York City lawyer and civic leader. He was a confidant of many mayors and governors, and was appointed by New York City Mayor Robert F. Wagner in 1957 to help the city regain National League baseball after the Dodgers and Giants left for California. Shea lobbied Major League Baseball for a new club, and also founded the Continental League to bring another team to New York. The National League eventually agreed to expand in 1962, and the Mets were born.
The name Shea is better known for the team’s first stadium, Shea Stadium, which was named after the civic leader and hosted the Mets from 1964 to 2008.
However, the couple almost pushed their dedication to naming the baby in honor of their Mets fandom a big step further — a big dark purple step further.
Tarlor said she considered naming her first child after the McDonald’s mascot Grimace, after it was associated with a Mets winning streak earlier this year.
“They were doing so well, we would joke around that we’d name her ‘Shea Grimace Oh-My-God Carlos.’ We were throwing out crazy names — and our friends were, too,” she told the Post.
The Mets went on a seven-game winning streak in June after a person in a Grimace mascot costume threw out the first pitch.
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The team’s fans and even its front office embraced the superstition of the character’s impact on the team so much, they dedicated a seat at Citi Field to it. The Grimace seat is now on the second deck in right field in row 6, seat 12.
Ultimately, the Tarlor family decided against bestowing that name onto their infant daughter, sticking with Summer Shea.
Still, they made sure their newborn had a closet set up filled with Mets gear, plushies and books — including one titled “Summers at Shea,” per the Post.
Their dedication to the team was so strong that seeing the next two games of the Mets’ series against the Dodgers took immediate second priority in their lives amid the birth of their daughter.
“Her timing was impeccable, because we watched the game Monday night, and I went into labor right after that game, and then we had her Tuesday the 15th, and then we were able to watch Wednesday and Thursday’s game,” Tarlor said.
However, the very first Met games of their infant’s life have been unmitigated disasters. The Mets were blown out in each of their two home playoff games against the Dodgers following their Game 2 win. They lost 8-0 on Wednesday and then 10-2 on Thursday, falling into a 3-1 hole.
The Mets will look to fend off elimination in Game 5, in what will be their last game in Queens of the series. But another loss would officially end the season for the Mets, and Summer Shea will have to get ready for her first long winter.
Still, her father has hope for the future of his daughter’s fandom.
“The fact that they’re winning now… it gives me hope that my children will grow up in a world where the Mets have always been good for them. Maybe they’ll be good from the start for them and an entire generation,” Eric said.
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