Mets’ Carlos Mendoza’s message to World Series-bound Yankees: Hopefully ‘get to see them’ next

LOS ANGELES: Carlos Mendoza had spent his entire coaching career with the Yankees before becoming the Mets’ manager this season. On Saturday, Mendoza watched his former team celebrate clinching the pennant for the first time since 2009. Now, the Mets, who are trailing 3-2 in the NL Championship Series, are hoping to take the next two games to face the Yankees in the World Series. “Congratulations to the Yankees, Brian Cashman, (Hal) Steinbrenner and obviously (Aaron Boone),” Mendoza said before Game 6 at Dodger Stadium. “It’s not easy to get to the World Series and they’ve been through a lot. “There’s a lot of people that I have a lot of respect for, and hopefully I get to see them. We’ve got to take care of business here. We’re facing a really good team in the Dodgers. But what a great year for them.” The Yankees won the AL Championship Series for the first time in 15 years after finishing off the Guardians on Saturday, winning Game 5 of the AL Championship Series 5-2 in 10 innings. It’s Yankees manager Aaron Boone’s first trip to the World Series since taking over as manager in 2018. Since then, Boone’s been taking a lot of heat from fans, sports radio hosts and sports columnists calling for his job. Mendoza, who was Boone’s bench coach from 2020-2023, experienced it firsthand. Watching Boone finally get over the hump — he’d taken the Yankees to the ALCS twice before and lost — gives Mendoza a good feeling. “I’m proud of him. Like you said, since year one when he took over in 2018, they won 100 games and they were still calling for his head,” Mendoza said. “It’s not an easy gig, just like every one of us, but I know how hard they had to work to get to this point. There’s a lot of people that I have a lot of respect for and definitely Boone is one of them. I learned a lot from him.” Mendoza is hoping he can lead the Mets to the World Series to face off against his former team. First, the Mets need to win the next two games. The Mets have Sean Manaea pitching against the Dodgers, who will deploy a bullpen game in Game 6 of the NLCS. If the Mets can force a Game 7, it’s anybody’s guess who advances to the next round. Thank you for relying on us to provide the journalism you can trust. Please consider supporting us with a subscription. Manny Gómez may be reached at mgomez@njadvancemedia.com.