Young Syracuse Mets backer surprised with Fan of Year honor (video)

Syracuse, N.Y. -- Thursday night began like so many other summer evenings have for Zach Motondo.

He headed out for a Syracuse baseball game at NBT Bank Stadium.

But before the contest against Lehigh Valley even started, it turned into an event he’ll remember for the rest of his life.

Motondo, 18, was brought onto the field and surprised with the announcement that he was one of the Mets’ 2019 fans of the year. Zach’s parents, Nancy and Clark, were also inducted with the same honor, although they knew of it ahead of time.

Zach,, who was born with Down’s Syndrome, has attended every Syracuse opening day game in his life and has only missed a handful of games overall because of family events or vacations.

The Mets played a tribute video on the scoreboard as an emotional Zach watched from in front of the Mets dugout.

“So cool. Oh my God,” Zach said of his reaction to the video.

Zach also threw out the first pitch to his favorite player, Dilson Herrera. Then, beaming with pride, Zach jumped into his father’s arms.

“Oh, this is incredible. I don’t think it’s all sunk in for him yet,” Nancy said. “But I know he’s really proud. I can tell just by his reactions. He just says, ‘So exciting.'"

The family has held season tickets in the same seats in the front row of section 108 since the opening of NBT Bank Stadium in 1997. Nancy came to games when she was pregnant with Zach in the summer of 2000 and then he attended his first Syracuse opening day in the spring of 2001.

“This is a family thing for us. It’s in our blood. It’s all about baseball,” Clark said.

Over the years Zach has befriended many Syracuse players and a few of them have lived in the family’s North Syracuse house during the season. Zach’s bedroom is layered with various baseball memorabilia. Most of it is related to the Washington Nationals, Syracuse’s parent club before this season, but he is transitioning to Mets memorabilia in the first year of affiliation with that team.

Clark said he pours over the computer daily to make mental updates on all his favorite players statistics. He marks off days during the off-season by filling each day on the calendar with a picture of a player.

Most of Zach’s lifetime has been filled with losing seasons in Syracuse, but his optimism never wanes.

“It doesn’t matter to him. It’s baseball. And he loves it. And he loves the players. And they love him,” Clark said.

Clark, who is program director at radio station WOLF, also works as public address announcer and NBT Bank Stadium This year Zach began working as part of the press box staff.

On the handful of occasions that the Motondos haven’t been able to make a game, Zach follows along on his computer. That may have to be Zach’s lifeline next week. The family planned a vacation to the Outer Banks of North Carolina during a time when Syracuse’s season is usually over. But heading into the last weekend of the regular season, the Mets are in a heated pennant race and if they make it will host postseason games next week.

“I don’t think he wants to go on vacation because of this,” Clark said. “He said ‘Playoffs, playoffs dad.’ We’ve got a lot invested in the trip. You rent a house, you just can’t get out of it. Past years, we haven’t made it this far. And now it’s pretty awesome that we have.”

If you purchase a product or register for an account through a link on our site, we may receive compensation. By using this site, you consent to our User Agreement and agree that your clicks, interactions, and personal information may be collected, recorded, and/or stored by us and social media and other third-party partners in accordance with our Privacy Policy.