Edgardo Alfonzo Autographed Signed New York Mets “Batting” 8 x 10 Photo – Beckett Witnessed – Comes in 8 x 10 Toploader!

Description

Edgardo Alfonzo, nicknamed “Fonzie”, is a Venezuelan former professional baseball player, coach and manager. He played Major League Baseball (MLB) as an infielder from 1995 to 2006, most prominently with the New York Mets, where he became an All-Star and was an integral member of the 2000 National League pennant winning team. Alfonzo’s 29.7 wins above replacement (WAR) as a Met place him as the seventh most valuable player in franchise history. He also played for the San Francisco Giants, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Toronto Blue Jays and Navegantes del Magallanes from the LVBP.

After his major league career, he played in the Liga Mexicana de Beisbol in 2008 for the Tigres de Quintana Roo then played for one season in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) with the Yomiuri Giants in 2009. When his playing career ended, Alfonzo became a coach and later, the manager of the Brooklyn Cyclones. In 2020, Alfonzo was inducted into the New York Mets Hall of Fame.

Alfonzo had his first opportunity to display his clutch hitting ability to a nationwide audience in the 1999 playoffs. After finishing in a tie with the Cincinnati Reds for the National League Wild Card, the Mets played a one-game playoff to decide who would go on to the division series. In his first at bat of the game, Alfonzo hit a two-run home run over the center field fence, providing the Mets with all the offense they would need as Al Leiter threw a complete-game shutout. On the very next night, the Mets played the Arizona Diamondbacks in the first game of the Division Series. Facing the feared Randy Johnson, Alfonzo again homered in his first at bat of the game, this time launching a two-run shot to center field. In the ninth inning of the same game, with the score deadlocked at 4–4, Alfonzo launched a grand slam down the left field line to help seal the victory for the Mets.

In 2000, playing against the San Francisco Giants in the Division Series, Alfonzo hit a two-run homer in the ninth inning of game two, which would prove to be of immense importance as J. T. Snow launched a three-run homer in the bottom half of the inning to tie the game. The Mets would eventually win the game 5–4 in ten innings. In game three of the series, with the Mets trailing 2–1 in the bottom of the eighth inning, the Giants brought in their dominant closer Robb Nen, who had not blown a save since the All-Star break. Alfonzo responded by lining a ball down the left-field line for a double to drive in Lenny Harris. Benny Agbayani would later homer in the thirteenth inning to win the game for New York. Alfonzo then batted .444 against the Cardinals in the NLCS. Alfonzo’s knack for clutch hitting endeared him to many Met fans, who still consider him one of the all-time Met greats.

2002 would be Alfonzo’s last season as a Met as the team chose to move on, so he then became a free agent. In a show of appreciation to Met fans and New York, Alfonzo spent $15,000 to buy taxi tops (ads on the roofs of New York Yellow Cabs) reading “Fonzie Loves New York,” and “Edgardo Thanks You,” with a photo of himself in an FDNY cap.

The featured 8 x 10 photo has been signed in blue by New York Mets Hall of Famer Edgardo Alfonzo. The Photo includes an official Beckett Authentication Services serially numbered hologram for authenticity purposes. The signing of this item was witnessed by Beckett.