Some say it’s ridiculous.
Some say it’s refreshing.
Some say it’s unprofessional.
Some say it’s all in good fun.
One thing is certain — Mets relief pitcher Jefry Yan got everyone’s attention with his high-flying, post-strikeout celebration during his MLB debut on Wednesday in Cleveland against the Guardians.
Called up from triple-A Syracuse a day earlier, the 29-year-old Dominican left-hander took the mound to start the bottom of the sixth inning and faced Guardians pinch-hitter Ángel Martínez. Five pitches into the at-bat, Yan caught the hitter looking on an 88.7-mph slider for a called third strike.
Then came the celebration. Yan jumped up — way up — into the air, contorting his legs into somewhat of a split. He landed in a crouch position and slapped the ground before popping up, standing still with his hands up for a fraction of a second, then walking back up the mound with a bit of a leg slide to commemorate his first Major League strikeout.
“Once I had him with two strikes I said, you know what, I’m going to throw that slider,” Yan said through an interpreter after the Mets’ 6-5 victory in 10 innings. “And if I freeze him, which is exactly what I did, I celebrated accordingly.”
Several batters later, however, Yan commemorated his second major league strikeout similarly. Yan had given up two singles and a walk to load the bases before getting Cleveland designated hitter Chase DeLauter on a 90-mph slider for strike three and the second out of the inning.
Once again, Yan did the whole jumping, landing, ground-slapping thing (no slide this time though). Later in the game, Cleveland’s José Ramírez was seen in the dugout apparently imitating Yan’s airborne style of rejoicing.
While most MLB fans might be seeing Yan’s post-strikeout air show for the first time, the celebrations have actually become a signature move for the player during his long, unconventional journey to the majors.
After initially signing with the Angels organization as a teenage international free agent in 2013, Yan eventually spent several years out of affiliated baseball, playing for semipro and amateur teams while also working odd jobs.
He was signed by the Miami Marlins organization in 2021, followed by the Saitama Seibu Lions of Nippon Professional Baseball and the Colorado Rockies organization before the Mets last August.
Yan has other methods of celebrating during games as well. On Wednesday, after Guardians right fielder Jo Adell — playing his second game for Cleveland after being traded by the Angels earlier in the week — grounded into a fielder’s choice at shortstop to end the inning, Yan did a low slide move and slapped his chest, then smacked his glove emphatically several times and blew a kiss toward the sky while leaving the field.
Cleveland fans expressed their displeasure, but Yan wasn’t bothered.
“If they want to yell at me, if they want to boo me, they can do whatever they want,” Yan said. “I’m in my zone. And yeah, I’m going to enjoy my game any way that I want to.”
Yan gave up two hits and no runs with two strikeouts and one walk in one inning pitched. Five of his pitches, all sliders, reached triple digits on the speed gun.
“It’s real stuff. It’s really impressive,” Mets interim manager Andy Green said. “To get out of a bases-loaded jam, get your first punchout, just excited for him. He deserves that.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.