Mets' Francisco Calls Yankees 'Chickens'; Grandy Not Bothered By Subway Slight
NEW YORK (WFAN) -- Who says the Subway Series has lost its juice?
The trash talk for this season's Mets-Yankees matchup has come almost exclusively from fans of the crosstown rivals -- until now.
Enter Frank Francisco.
"I can't wait to face those chickens," the Mets closer told the New York Post.
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Francisco never got his shot to take the mound in the Bronx earlier this month. The Mets, swept out of Yankee Stadium in three straight games, will certainly be looking for some payback.
"I want to strike out the side against them," Francisco told the paper. "I've done it before."
He sure has, though it was in just his third career appearance, a 9-7 Rangers win over the Yankees on May 21, 2004, when he K'd Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez and Jason Giambi.
Yankees outfielder Curtis Granderson said Friday he wasn't bothered by the Subway slight.
"I got no problem with what he has to say," Granderson told WFAN's Joe Benigno and Evan Roberts. "We're all competitors, and you should be confident that you have the ability to go out there and perform, that his team is gonna win. He should be able to go out there and pretty much say anything he wants."
The homer-happy Yankees went deep eight times against the Mets earlier this month, including two each from Robinson Cano and Russell Martin. But don't expect the ball to fly out of Citi Field quite the same way.
"Yankee Stadium is a great place for their team and for the fans," said Mets manager Terry Collins. "There's a lot of home runs hit. They can hit them out of here, too. It's just not quite as easy as it is over there."
The battle for New York has favored the Bombers of late, who have won seven of eight against the Amazin's.
"Anything — beat them one time," first baseman Ike Davis told the Post. "I don't like not beating a team in a season, so it's our chance to get a 'W' off them."
Andy Pettitte and Jonathon Niese will get things started in Flushing on Friday night. Ivan Nova for the Yankees and the Mets' Chris Young are scheduled to start Saturday, and the marquee matchup will come Sunday night with aces CC Sabathia and R.A. Dickey on the mound.
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"Citi Field's going to be rocking this weekend," Yankees first baseman Mark Teixeira told MLB.com. "A very good atmosphere, very good team."
Think the Mets will return the favor with a sweep of their own? Be heard in the comments below!
