The Subway Series is special, but for the Mets’ Ike Davis, last night was a dream come true when he played first and batted fourth in Yankee Stadium.
“I wish this were the old Yankee Stadium,” Davis said with a smile, “but the new one is just as good. This is why you play baseball.”
Davis then went out and knocked home the only run the Mets would need with a first-inning, two-out single to right off Javier Vazquez in the 4-0 win over the Yankees, the Mets eighth straight win.
“I didn’t know [Vazquez] threw a cutter and I was able to pull my hands in and not hook that ball foul,” Davis said of his hit. “It’s actually a good sign that I did that, I was able to push it over the second baseman.”
The old stadium is where Ike’s dad, Ron, pitched for the Yankees. The father taught many lessons to the son through the years and that’s why Ike, who is 23, seems like a veteran even though he is a rookie.
“He acts like he’s been here before and not in a bad way,” Jeff Francoeur said. “That’s a credit to him and I’m sure his dad had something to do with that.”
Davis has had an RBI in each of the last four games. Since Davis moved to the cleanup spot on May 19th the Mets are 20-7. He is batting .265 with eight home runs, the saame number as Alex Rodriguez.
“Most of all, I want Ike to have fun,” Ron Davis told the Post. “That’s what I always tell him. Have fun playing the game.”
This will be a special Father’s Day weekend for Ron and Ike. Ike’s 28-year-old brother, Ellison, will join them. Ellison, Ron said, was named after former Yankees catcher and coach, Ellie Howard.
“Ellie was such a great guy,” said Ron, who pitched for the Yankees for four years, compiling a 27-10 record as a reliever with a 2.93 ERA and 22 saves in 144 appearances.
On Sunday, after the final game of the series, the family will go to a friend’s house for a Father’s Day barbecue like so many other fathers and sons. On Monday they will go fishing and try to land some stripers.
“We’re going to have so much fun,” Ike said.
Who is going to win the pool?
“Without a doubt, me. Daddy always gets one,” Ron said with a laugh. After pitching in the majors for 11 years, Ron became a professional fisherman, so he knows how to get the job done.
Ike is doing the same on the diamond. He’s had to make key adjustments since being called up April 19.
“When they find a weakness,” he said of the difference between the majors and the minors, “they go right after it. In the minors, it may take them two weeks to pick something up.”
Davis has not gone more than two games without a hit.
The Mets last night produced a home grown infield with Davis at first, Ruben Tejada at second, David Wright at third and Jose Reyes at shortstop.
“Ike has brought stability to our lineup,” Francoeur noted. Davis is batting .314 vs. left-handers.
He’s brought a joy of the game to the clubhouse, too.
“I like to watch and see how people act, there are all different kinds of personalities in the clubhouse” he said. “I have different relationships with different guys.’
Davis often kids with outfielder Angel Pagan, who came up with a huge two-run double in the eighth.
“I’m always messing with Angel,” Ike said. “He’s really intense and he has a fun personality.”
Nothing is easy. Davis knows he has to keep working to get better and keep learning. Noted Ron: “It’s a lot more nerve-wracking being the father instead of the player. As a father, we don’t have the ball in our hands.”
No, it’s his son’s game now, and Ike is helping to turn around the Mets’ season.