Matt Seelinger is back home.
The Westbury, LI, native was called up by the Mets on Tuesday after being traded from the Tigers for cash considerations. In 39 ¹/₃ innings for Triple-A Toledo this season, he recorded a 3.89 ERA with 49 strikeouts and 19 walks.
Seelinger is a career minor leaguer, having made stops with the Pirates, Rays, Giants and Phillies organizations. Now, it’s likely he’ll pitch in the big leagues in relief tonight.
Pregame, the 31-year-old discussed what finally having this moment means to him, especially when it’s happening just a short drive away from his childhood home.
“It’s a whirlwind, it’s a dream scenario for me. I grew up 20 minutes from here, so I used to come to games all the time as a kid.
“I was throwing [yesterday], and I was like ‘I’ve sat there for a game, I’ve sat there for a game, I sat there for a New York Rangers Winter Classic back in the day, I went to the Home Run Derby here and all that.’ … I couldn’t be more thankful for the Mets to give me this opportunity.”
It’s not the first time Seelinger has come home to play baseball. Seelinger pitched in 21 games for the Long Island Ducks in 2024. Since then, he’s pitched in 31 games for Double-A Erie and Triple-A Toledo in the Tigers system.
Needless to say, Seelinger will have some familiar faces in the stands Tuesday.
“I think all of Long Island,” he said jokingly.
Seelinger is familiar with Mets history, despite rooting for another team growing up.
“Well, I hate to say it, but I was a Yankee fan growing up. I didn’t want to say it, but you squeezed it out of me. But don’t get it twisted, I had the heartbreak of the ’06 Mets, I knew that. ’07, ’08, we don’t have to bring those years up but I know all about it, and ’15 obviously and all that.
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“In ’24, it was cool watching, the city was unbelievable. It was so fun to be here with the Mets and the Yankees going at it, almost playing each other in the World Series. I’ll never forget watching Pete Alonso’s home run, and Lindor’s grand slam … as an avid baseball fan, you can never forget that.”
One career highlight for Seelinger came earlier this year at a 2026 World Baseball Classic exhibition game, where he struck out Juan Soto swinging.
Now, the two join forces as teammates as Seelinger chases his big league dream.
