The already infamous video of Brodie Van Wagenen-Rob Manfred was made public when diehard Mets of and aspiring sports journalist Nick Albicocco stumbled upon it on the team’s website as he searched for the status of Thursday’s game.
“I found the video on Mets.com when I was looking for an update on whether they would play tonight,” Albicocco, a 20-year-old diehard Mets fan, told The Post. “It was on their website for who knows how long. When I heard [Van Wagenen’s comments,] I could not believe it. ”
The video titled, “Mets Pregame Press Conference 8-27,” according to Albicocco, interested him enough to click on it.
In the video, Van Wagenen told two others that what he would say, “can not leave this room,”
Manfred, the video seems to indicate, wanted the Mets and Marlins not to take the field for an hour to take part in the protests of the social injustice that the sport has in the aftermath of the shooting of ‘ the Wisconsin police of Jacob Blake.
“At the leadership level, he does not get it,” Van Wagenen said in the video, which is faintly audible. “He just does not understand it.”
In a later statement, the Van Wagnen said that the poorly received idea to leave the field an hour before playing was actually Jeff Wilpon, not that of Manfred. Van Wagenen apologized to Manfred.
It turned out that the Mets did not play Thursday night. They took the field with the Marlins, took off their hats for 42 seconds of silence, put a Black Lives Matter shirt home, and then immediately left the field.
Earlier, Albicocco posted the comments on Twitter to his 490 followers. It went viral fast.
The Mets sought to get “clarity” on how the video was on the site in the first place.
The video has since been shot by the Mets.
Albicocco insisted he did not want to hurt Van Wagenen as MLB commissioner Rob Manfred. It was already public that he just shared it with his followers.
Yet Albicocco is sort of like a modern Brad34. In 2000, a Penn student named Brad Rosenberg appeared in the Mets.com chat room as Brad34, posting inflammatory quotes he attributed to Mets manager Bobby Valentine. What became known as “Whartongate” almost cost Valentine his job.
Albicocco’s role in BVW’s hijacking was more than a passing one, as the video was already public and featured prominently.
A 20-year double major (sports journalism and economics) in Maryland, who graduated next year, Albicocco now has a small footnote in team history.
Maybe it will be a sign. In 2000, Valentine led the Mets to the World Series.
.
