As told to The Post’s Kevin Kernan
David and I are brothers, not just teammates, and we will be brothers forever. Even when I went away from the Mets, we still kept in touch. You don’t see that too often. We are family.
I first met David in 2001 in Instructional League in Port St. Lucie when I was 17. We talked a little bit, but at that time my English was not quite there yet. But I could see right away he was going to be a great player. Before we met, a lot of people were talking about how good he was going to be, but then when I saw the talent on the field, we were basically in the same group in Instructional League and played in the same lineup every single day, that’s when I said, “Man, this guy has a lot of talent.”
I was a year ahead of him in the minor leagues, so we really didn’t play together. We became good friends when we were both with the Mets in the big leagues. When we first got on the field together, our relationship clicked right away, and it’s never been broken.
It was so exciting when we started playing together. We both knew in our minds we could do something special for the organization. I know we’re both kind of disappointed that we did not accomplish what we wanted to do, and that’s win the World Series for the Mets.
But we both gave our hearts to this organization.
There have been lots of highlights, but to me, that catch David made in San Diego (2005) with his barehand is one I will never forget, along with that walk-off hit he got against Mariano Rivera (2006) in Shea Stadium to center field. I will never forget that. And then there was the celebration in 2006 when we clinched. If that is not my best moment, what else can I say? Popping that champagne with David, together, wow, that was special.
As for that play in San Diego, I started to go to the ball, but I knew that I had no chance to catch that. Then I saw David running, too, and I don’t know how he did it, how he came up with the bare hand. That was an amazing catch, that is one of the best of all time.
The biggest thing about David is that he’s always been the same guy. He is an unbelievable player, but he is an even better person. Through all the years that I’ve known him, I’ve seen the same attitude from him. He’s always smiling. He talks to everybody. Always accountable to what people need him to do. That’s something you don’t see too often. He’s helped me become a better person and a better player, too.
He is a symbol for every young player, not only the way that he goes about business, about playing the game: He always gives 110 percent. He never wanted an off day. He wanted to be in the lineup every single day. I tried to keep up with him. If I take an off day, he is going to be talking trash about me. Believe me, he talks lots of trash. But I’m gonna say something to him, too.
As young players, we had a lot of love for the game and wanted to be out there on the field.
When I left the Mets, he would call me and say he saw an interview with me and joke, “Man, your English is getting worse.” Always something with David. Always fun.
We had so much fun together. Every day he would say something. Every single day. I would fire back a lot of different stuff. Even during the game when we were playing together. I’d be at shortstop, I’d call his name and then when he’d turn around I would look the other way and count 8-9-10-11 and he would do the same to me. Over and over.
And when he would throw the ball from third base, I would whistle, you know, make a sound like a bomb falling from the sky, always getting on him about his looping throws. He would get on me in batting practice. We used to hit in the same group, and I’d be swinging good and then I’d hit a pop-up or a weak ground ball and he’s always going to say, “Oh, same guy.’’
We tried to enjoy the game as much as we could, but at the same time, when we take that field, we are going to play hard. And play together. David played the game so hard. I’ve had a lot of great teammates through the years, but he is No. 1 on my list. I don’t want to take anything away from Carlos Beltran or Carlos Delgado, guys like that, but I think David is No. 1 on my list.
It’s been very hard to see what he has had to go through to try to play again. The day he said he was basically going to retire, he pulled me aside in the hallway outside the clubhouse and told me, and I had no words to say. We were both crying. My tears and his.
I don’t think any baseball player went through what he went through in his surgeries and rehab. I don’t know how he did all that to try to play, and that’s another reason I admire him. To do rehab is not easy. When you do it for almost three years to try to come back to play the game you love, I put him on top.
That is a tremendous thing for kids to see: Never give up. Give everything you have and if your time comes, it comes, but never give up.