In perhaps the only significant victory of their season, the Mets shattered the one-day record for cheesesteaks consumed in the visitors' clubhouse in Philadelphia.
The Phillies' gameday spread for visitors includes unlimited, made-to-order cheesesteaks, and over the years, a friendly competition has emerged to set team and individual records. The team mark was somewhere in the 80s until April 30, when the Mets rolled into town and downed an astounding 103 of those greasy missiles.
According to the Star-Ledger, there were rules to be followed.
To viably set a record, cheesesteaks can only be eaten after getting to the ballpark until batting practice, from the end of batting practice until the game begins, and for an hour window after the game has concluded. There are moratoriums during batting practice and the game, likely, so that players and coaches can proceed with their day jobs.
But the Mets may deserve a big old asterisk next to their record, because it was set during a rained-out game that featured lengthy delays.
What isn't in dispute is the Hall-of-Fame eating credentials of Mets bullpen catchers Eric Langill and Dave Racaniello. Last season, Langill set the three-game series record with 17 cheesesteaks horked down—breaking Racaniello's old mark. During that same weekend, Racaniello made a run at the single-game record. Starving himself and making sure to arrive to the ballpark early to maximize his potential, he ingested seven-and-one-half cheesesteaks all on his own.
A few weeks later, White Sox bullpen coach Bobby Thigpen swallowed eight entire cheesesteaks, though he did so over the course of a double-header.
Racaniello says he woke up the next morning with his face swollen from all of the sodium, so this is not something we'd recommend doing. (Being a Met, we mean.)