Baseball is the most romantic of sports. Everything about the game lends itself to sentimentality, to memory, to a heartfelt appreciation for what happens each night between the white lines.
That's why, when a team like the New York Mets allows Pete Alonso and Edwin Diaz to sign elsewhere in deals that may have just been a little more expensive than uber-rich owner Steve Cohen wanted to pay, it's particularly painful for an entire fanbase.
To the Mets' faithful, Alonso and Diaz weren't just numbers, although they had plenty of those.
They were memories. They were sentiment. They were romance.
MORE: Why Mets let Pete Alonso leave for Orioles
Alonso has hit more home runs in a Mets uniform than any player in the franchise's history. He embraced the Polar Bear moniker given to him and held down first base for seven seasons in Queens like it was the only job that mattered.
Diaz was the dominant closer with the trumpeted entrance song. When that music came on and number 39 jogged to the mound, the other team's night was over. That's just how it worked.
Now, both of those guys are gone.
Diaz is gone to the new Evil Empire, the Los Angeles Dodgers, the back-to-back World Series champs who simply needed an elite closer, so they got one.
Alonso heads to a more surprising locale, the Baltimore Orioles, a team coming off a nightmare 2025 that wants to contend again in 2026.
The destinations don't matter as much to the Mets' faithful as the departures themselves.
Abandonment is painful, no matter where the departed goes.
Mets fans have applauded more than 250 Alonso home runs, but no more.
They watched Diaz save more than 140 games, but no more.
Baseball is a business. That's something Mets fans know, of course. But sometimes you can forget about that no a summer night at the ballpark when Alonso hits a clutch home run and Diaz slams the door shut.
This week, Mets fans can't forget it. Alonso and Diaz are gone, and departing with them are far more than just numbers.
MORE: What's next for Mets after Pete Alonso's departure