Date: September 3, 2024 By: Jacob Wilkins
Induction ceremony will take place on September 7 prior to Rumble Ponies game against Somerset
BINGHAMTON, NY – The Binghamton Rumble Ponies announced Tuesday that the 1992, 1994, and 2014 Binghamton Mets championship teams will be the 2024 inductees to the Binghamton Baseball Shrine, presented by IBM. The Binghamton Baseball Shrine induction ceremony will take place this Saturday, September 7, at Mirabito Stadium ahead of the Rumble Ponies game against the Somerset Patriots.
Fans are asked to be in their seats by 5:30 p.m. for the ceremony. The festivities will be emceed by longtime WNBF and Binghamton University broadcaster Roger Neel and longtime voice of the Binghamton Mets Tim Heiman. Neel was the public address announcer for the B-Mets for the '92 and '94 teams. Heiman was the radio voice of the '14 championship squad.
In the franchise's inaugural season, the 1992 Binghamton Mets delivered a storybook ending to an unforgettable year by capturing the Eastern League championship, bringing the title to a city that had been starved for professional baseball for more than two decades. They toppled Harrisburg in four games in the Semifinals, surviving a 14-inning marathon on the road to clinch the series. This tightknit group then overcame a 2-1 series deficit to take down Canton-Akron in the Finals, grabbing the last two games on their home field. Bobby J. Jones, the staff ace, dazzled in a winner-take-all Game 5, tossing a complete game in front of a standing-room-only crowd of 6,255. The club represented Eastern League Manager of the Year Steve Swisher's old school style on their way to a 79-win regular season.
"The '92 Team" formed an indelible bond with the Binghamton community that welcomed them with open arms. A franchise record 278,492 fans packed newly constructed Binghamton Municipal Stadium, with thousands braving inclement weather on a line snaking throughout the city when tickets initially went on sale for the first professional baseball season in the Southern Tier since 1968.
The 1994 Binghamton Mets captured the franchise's second championship in three years with a magical September run, highlighted by three one-run victories in the Division Series and the most thrilling three-day stretch in team history in the Championship Series. With John Tamargo at the helm and a clubhouse chock-full of future Big Leaguers, the team won 82 games in the regular season and claimed the North Division title. A three-game sweep of New Haven in the opening round sent them to the Championship Series and some of the most memorable performances in team lore. In Game 2 versus Harrisburg, Bill Pulsipher tossed the first no-hitter in franchise history, a dominant affair with only three batted balls leaving the infield. One night later in Binghamton, Edgardo Alfonzo and Frank Jacobs belted back-to-back home runs in a miraculous three-run ninth inning, sending the club to an improbable walk-off victory. In Game 4, the B-Mets rode Chris Roberts' complete-game masterpiece to the title. The southpaw's series-clinching strikeout sent the crowd of over 5,000 at Binghamton Municipal Stadium into bedlam.
The 2014 Binghamton Mets ended the franchise's 20-year Eastern League title drought with a spellbinding postseason run capped by Jayce Boyd's championship-clinching walk-off double in front of an electric crowd of 5,904 at NYSEG Stadium. The group survived a nerve-wracking five-game Division Series against Portland thanks to T.J. Rivera's dramatic walk-off home run to cap an incredible comeback in Game 1. Darrell Ceciliani's offensive heroics with Binghamton's backs against the wall propelled them to victories on the road in Games 4 & 5, complemented by magnificent bullpen work from Hansel Robles and Cody Satterwhite. Following consecutive road wins in Richmond to open the Championship Series, the B-Mets returned home for one of the most memorable sports nights in city history. On a crisp Friday evening in downtown Binghamton, Steven Matz carried a no-hitter into the eighth inning and struck out 11 with the jam-packed crowd hanging on every pitch. In the bottom of the ninth, Boyd's pinch-hit drive to right-center chased home Gavin Cecchini with the historic, series-winning run, solidifying the B-Mets as champions of the Eastern League.
The Binghamton Baseball Shrine started in 1993 and has enshrined 81 members to date. This will be the 28th induction class in its history.
The Rumble Ponies will be playing as the B-Mets for the entire weekend (September 6-8) to commemorate this special occasion. The first 1,000 fans to arrive on Saturday will also receive a Kevin Parada bobblehead as part of the Top Prospect Bobblehead Series.
For tickets to all remaining home games visit www.BINGRP.com, call (607)-722-3866, or visit the Visions Federal Credit Union Starting Gate Box Office at Mirabito Stadium.
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