John Franco now has 424 career saves and one first pitch to forget.
The Mets’ all-time leader in saves was given the ceremonial task for Italian Heritage night at Citi Field on Wednesday night, and his throw delivered flashbacks to rapper 50 Cent’s ill-fated toss in Queens that went viral in 2014.
Franco, donning the promotional green, white and red Mets jersey of the Italian flag, didn’t complete the follow-through on this throw, and it sailed well high and wide and eventually made its way to the backstop in Flushing.
All the Brooklyn native could do was laugh, shrug his shoulders and extend his arms in disbelief as he walked toward home plate for a handshake with Mets catcher Hayden Senger.
The embarrassing miscue was certainly odd from someone who had so much success in the big leagues. But the Mets Hall of Famer’s daughter, Ella, provided an explanation on X. She said it was the first time Franco has thrown a baseball since undergoing shoulder surgery — asking fans to “cut him some slack.”
It didn’t stop her from having some fun at her dad’s expense, writing on X: “Dude I’m crying.”
“This reminds me of 50 cent I have not stopped laughing (crying laughing emoji), she added.
Franco played 21 MLB seasons, including 14 with the Mets. The St. John’s alum, who was drafted by the Dodgers in 1981 and debuted with the Reds three years later, was a four-time All-Star and two-time Rolaids Relief Award winner.
He last played in the majors in 2005 at the age of 44 for the Astros, finishing with a 90-87 record and a 2.87 ERA.
His wild pitch comes with the home team also struggling. The injury-riddled Mets entered the second game of their series with the Tigers at 16-25 and in last place in the National League East.
The club is at least coming off a win Tuesday in the opening game, which included prospect A.J. Ewing’s electric debut.
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