Longtime Mets reliever Jeurys Familia joins the rival Phillies

Jeurys Familia is the best closer New York Mets of a certain age know.

Really. Can you believe it? Darryl Strawberry is also 60-years-old now. Your bad knees aren’t getting any better. Is that a hole in the ozone above your house?

Time can go by quickly and younger folk don’t always appreciate it. Those who watched Familia’s 2015 and 2016 regular season dominance will always think of him fondly in some way. So to see him sign with the rival Philadelphia Phillies over the weekend takes a little bite out of some younger fans’ childhood.

Longtime Mets relief pitcher and former closer Jeurys Familia suits up for the Phillies this year

The contract is a one-year deal worth $6 million with the potential to reach $7 million. It’s a much more favorable deal than the one Brodie Van Wagenen signed him to after the 2018 campaign. BVW brought him back on a three-year contract worth $30 million. The team had already acquired Edwin Diaz from the Seattle Mariners so they were about to embark on paying a setup man a whole lot of money.

Round number two with Familia didn’t go well at all. He reached free agency with a lifetime 2.73 ERA and 124 saves. His three most seasons with the Mets resulted in a 4.62 ERA performance and only a single save.

Familia can provide the relief-needy Phillies with some late inning experience. The Mets, meanwhile, can give him the same treatment many hitters have given Philadelphia relief pitchers in recent years. An Achilles heel for them, we shouldn’t rule out Familia eventually winning the closer gig in the City of Brotherly Love.

This parting isn’t too heartbreaking of one for Mets fans. I think many were ready to move on from him even before he returned on his three-year pact.

Unfortunately for Mets fans who absolutely hate the idea of players leaving Flushing and going to Philly, he’s not the last one who could.

If your heart aches even a little bit at the thought of Familia beating the Mets at Citizen’s Bank Ballpark, you better hope Michael Conforto takes a deal from another team.