Leave Your Kiddies, Leave Your Wife, Guaranteed To Be A Waste Of Your Time . . .

Let’s say you leave your wife and kids and job and camp out an entire week so that you can be first in line to buy Mets tickets. What game do you get tickets for? Home opener? Interleague action against the Yankees in May?

Nope, not you. Instead, you use that opportunity to get one ticket for what will likely be a totally meaningless late-season game against the Florida Freakin’ Marlins:

Bayside native Eddie Sanchez moved to the Poconos in Pennsylvania three years ago, but that didn’t stop him from vying for the title of “Most Determined Mets Fan”. For 14 years he was number two on line when Mets ticket windows opened on the second Sunday in March, and for the past two years he’s been the first person to buy tickets. This March was no exception.

When the New York Mets opened their ticket windows on Sunday, March 11 to sell single game tickets for the 2007 regular season, Sanchez snatched up the first ticket sold.

Sanchez had waited on line during a week that saw temperatures dip to near record levels, demonstrating his devotion to the National League East Champions. (The Mets missed the 2006 National League Playoff title by one game.) A contractor, Sanchez took a vacation from his wife, three children and his job to trek to Shea Stadium on Sunday, March 4 to secure his place at the head of the singlegame ticket line. On Sunday, March 11 he bought one ticket, for the last game the Mets will play at home during the 2007 regular season on Sunday, September 30, a 1:10 p.m. match up against the Florida Marlins.

. . .

According to Sanchez being the number one Mets ticket-buying fan is easy:

“My secret; take a vacation from your wife, family and job, and be prepared with food to last you for a week. Yes! You must also love the Mets.”