When Major League Baseball's schedule makers decided that the second half of this year's Subway Series wouldn't take place until mid-September, there's no way they could've known how big it would actually be for both teams. The Mets aren't just in first place, they're running away with the NL East. The Yankees, meanwhile, currently hold the first AL wild card and are trying to catch the first-place Blue Jays in the AL East.
It's been a while since they were both good this late in the season. They've only both made the playoffs in the same year three times, of course famously meeting in the 2000 World Series. The last time was in 2006, when the Yankees lost to the Tigers in the ALDS and the Mets lost in seven to the Cardinals in the NLCS. This year certainly looks like it'll be the fourth time New York has had both of its current baseball teams playing in October.
All of this has led to the inevitable back-and-forth between the fans of each team claiming this is either a "Mets town" or a "Yankees town." Since they're never good at the same time (except in 1999-2000), it definitely seems like one is favored more, then it flips and the other is more popular. The truth is somewhere in the middle, though. In a city of 8 million people, there's plenty of room for two teams.
I'm sure this will probably be taken with a grain of salt because my Yankee fandom is well-advertised, but even the most die-hard Mets fan would have a hard time convincing a neutral observer that the National League side is New York's more popular team. I doubt they would even believe that themselves. Which is not meant as a knock on the Mets at all. Fans of the A's and Angels would undoubtedly have to make the same concession, although don't tell White Sox fans that Chicago loves the Cubs more (even though it's true).
The Yankees are the most successful team in the history of North American professional sports. They're also probably the most famous. Their history goes back more than a century, and seemingly every legendary figure ever to play baseball wore Yankee pinstripes. The Yankees have been in families for generations. And their fanbase isn't just limited to New York. What team leads the Majors in road attendance every year? The Yankees. Their fans are everywhere.
And let's not forget, it was the Yankees' popularity in the '50s that drove the Giants and Dodgers out of town. The Mets only came into existence as a replacement for the two National League teams that left. They have fans, a lot of whom they inherited from the Giants and Dodgers, that go back to that original team in 1962, so there are plenty of people who've been Mets fans for a long time, too. (There are probably some people who can still remember the Mets' first-ever game, while it's impossible for anybody living to have been a Yankees fan from the beginning.)
Even things like attendance and TV ratings suggest that the Yankees are the bigger draw. Yankee Stadium is larger than Citi Field and is usually full or pretty close to it. The Yankees normally lead or rank near the top of the American League in attendance. Same thing with their ratings on YES. Both of those figures blow the Mets' numbers out of the water. The attendance at Citi Field and ratings on SNY this season are the best they've been in years. Not coincidentally, they both went up once the Mets started winning.
Don't get me wrong. None of this is meant to say "the Yankees are better than the Mets" or "Yankees fans are better than Mets fans," They're just numbers. Numbers which seemingly prove that, on the surface, the Yankees are the more popular team. Again, this isn't a knock on the Mets. New York is a town with two teams for a reason. It's only natural that one's going to be more popular than the other. The Mets know it. And you know what, they're fine with it. The Giants are more popular than the Jets and the Rangers are more popular than the Islanders, too. That's just the way it is. And there's nothing wrong with that.
Personally, I think all of this is great. I'm probably in the minority among Yankees fans, but I don't dislike the Mets. When they're not playing the Yankees, I want them to do well, and I enjoy it when they do. It's so much better when the Mets are good and their fans show passion. You know something else? They're fun to watch, too. I've bought in on these 2015 Mets. And that doesn't make me any less of a Yankees fan, either.
What all of this proves is that Yankees, Mets, it doesn't matter. New York is a BASEBALL town. And it's great. All three games this weekend have been sold out for weeks, and the cheapest ticket you can get on StubHub is $50 for standing-room only (for an actual seat you're looking at $60 or more). The atmosphere at Citi Field is going to be awesome all weekend.
There's no need for Yankees fans and Mets fans to argue over which one is New York's "team." Because they both are. This season has proven that.
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