5 weirdest NY Mets-Yankees moments in Subway Series history ranked

MLB Rivalry Week is here, and for some clubs, it means a strained and manufactured "rivalry" that only serves to fuel marketing hype. For the New York Mets and the crosstown New York Yankees, it means a bitter feud that takes the city by storm in the form of the Subway Series that predates the fabricated drama.

Throughout the years, we've seen thrilling finishes, epic comebacks, and wild and whimsical moments. The latter of which will be our focus today as we break down the five (plus one honorable mention) weirdest memories from the rivalry.

Ranking the five weirdest Mets-Yankees Subway Series moments from least to most wild

5. The El Duque glove toss - June 5, 1999

Orlando "El Duque" Hernandez's story of arriving to the major leagues is too wild to be believed. His escape from Cuba's Castro regime was full of drama, intrigue, follies, and questionable birth certificates. Hernandez is best remembered for his time with the Yankees, but like many participants in the Subway Series drama, he played on both sides.

Known for his affable personality, propensity to exclaim, "Todo bien," and a unique windup that involved bringing his knee above his shoulder, and was emulated by every kid of a certain age, it's no surprise that he's an entry in this list.

On that June 5, 1999, matchup while pitching for the Yankees, Hernandez fielded a comebacker off the bat of slick-fielding Mets shortstop Rey Ordonez. The only problem was that the ball got stuck in the glove's webbing. With Ordonez hustling down the line, El Duque calmly just tossed his glove, complete with the stuck ball, over to first for the out. Todo bien, indeed.

4. Dae-Sung Koo's unlikely batting and baserunning prowess - May 21, 2005

Dae-Sung Koo might not have been a Met for a long time; he'd throw just 23 innings for the club as a 35-year-old in 2005, which was his lone big league season. But he certainly made an impact. The Yankees had vied for the Mets for his services, but when he signed with the Mets, he became the first Korean-born player to play in the KBO, the NPB, and the MLB.

He'd face off against the Yankees on May 21, 2005, and had the unenviable task of being a left-handed-hitting pitcher unaccustomed to actually hitting, and having to step into the batter's box against Randy Johnson.

In what was only his second professional at-bat, Koo ripped a double to center field. Standing awkwardly on second base with his warm-up jacket on, Koo took off when the next batter, Jose Reyes, laid down a bunt that Yankees catcher Jorge Posada fielded. Realizing that no one was covering home, Koo darted towards home and dove past a hustling Posada to avoid the tag and score from second on the bunt.

3. The Yankees' 1-in-500 comeback - August 30, 2020

The 2020 campaign was a weird one for a variety of reasons, as the COVID-19 Pandemic wreaked havoc on the MLB and the world at large. Against that backdrop, this wild Yankees' comeback makes all the sense in the world.

Playing a seven-inning game as part of a COVID-rules doubleheader, the Mets looked destined for victory with a seven-run lead and two outs in the bottom of the seventh at Yankee Stadium. Mets reliever Jared Hughes had gotten himself into a bit of a jam when he hit Thairo Estrada to load the bases. Still, all he needed was one more out and had a five-run cushion.

Except a check-swing Luke Voit single dwindled the Mets' lead to three. Despite the fluky hit, Hughes almost escaped as it looked like Estrada was dead to rights heading to third on the play, until he opted not to slide and knocked the ball out of Andres Gimenez's glove.

With the game in doubt, the Mets turned to Edwin Diaz, but he allowed Estrada to score on a wild pitch before serving up a two-run homer to Aaron Hicks, tying the game at 7-7. Diaz would return for the "extra-inning" eighth, but a two-out single by Gio Urshela allowed Mike Ford to score, winning the game in dramatic fashion for the Yankees. This one features oddities, including the condensed game, the extra inning eighth, and a finish that seemed impossible at the start.

2. The Luis Castillo dropped pop-up - June 12, 2009

Another Yankee Stadium affair, the Mets led 8-7 in the bottom of the ninth with two outs. The matchup to decide the game was a clash of the Titans, with Alex Rodriguez at the plate and Francisco Rodriguez on the mound.

K-Rod delivered a 3-1 pitch with runners on first and second that A-Rod popped up to shallow right field. Visibly upset, the Yankees slugger slammed his bat down in front of home plate before running to first. However, when Mets second baseman Luis Castillo went back for the ball, he kept drifting, and the ball clanged out of his glove and fell to the ground.

Derek Jeter came around to score the game-tying run, and Mark Teixeira chugged around third to beat the throw home, giving the Yankees a 9-8 victory on a brutal walk-off error.

1. The Roger Clemens bat toss - October 22, 2000

The air was electric in the New York Metro area for the 2000 World Series edition of the Subway Series. The Yankees were the goliath, winning three out of the last four World Series, while the Mets were the pesky upstarts.

This moment is one with history and featured two of the matchup's biggest stars. During the regular season, a feud had developed between Yankees ace Roger Clemens and Mets superstar catcher Mike Piazza. During the regular season, Piazza launched a grand slam off of Clemens, who responded weeks later by drilling him in the head.

Now with the bright lights of the October Classic shining down on the simmering rivalry, tempers would explode once again. Clemens managed to saw off Piazza and induce a weak ground ball. The shattered barrel helicoptered out in front of Clemens, who picked it up and hurled the jagged piece of lumber in Piazza's direction as he ran to first.

Clemens claims it wasn't intentional. Those of us who were around to see it remember it certainly looking different from how The Rocket wanted to have it portrayed.

Bonus weirdness - Shawn Estes avenges Piazza - July 15, 2002

The Clemens-Piazza beef simmered for a long while after the crescendo in the World Series, and in 2002, a little two years after everything ignited, Mets starter Shawn Estes decided he was going to avenge Piazza.

With the matchup taking place in Shea Stadium, Estes first attempted to plunk Clemens with the long-time American League hurler at the plate. He missed by a mile, but his intention was clear.

Later on, in the fifth inning, Estes would exact an even sweeter form of revenge, homering off the legendary starter and helping the Mets to an 8-0 route of the Yankees.

This one definitely tips the weirdness scale because Estes got his revenge, just not how he expected. It also served to show just how fraught this rivalry was when both clubs were at their absolute peak.

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