Sal Licata appears to have reversed his fierce criticism of the Grimace phenomenon as it pertains to the Mets.
The WFAN host made light of the beloved McDonald’s character’s fame after fans and media credited Grimace for the Mets’ turnaround after the purple creature threw the ceremonial first pitch at Citi Field on June 12.
However, during a skit on SNY’s Baseball Night in New York, Licata blundered by playfully apologizing to Grimmas, despite the presence of a character dressed in a fake Grimmas costume.
“We need to make peace here. I have resisted this power for a long time, but its effects are beginning to be felt here,” Licata began in a serious tone, welcoming the impostor Grimus.
“Sorry for the frown. I don’t know what happened. I was just letting my emotions get the better of me. Maybe I was jealous. Maybe I was scared of you as a kid and I was just dragging it on. I didn’t take any credit for the Mets’ run, but you threw a great first pitch and the record since then clearly speaks for itself.”
Licata wasn’t a fan of the Grimmas craze, since the character first appeared at Citi Field and the Mets began their winning streak, and then everyone jumped on the bandwagon.
Since Grimas threw the first pitch, the Mets have won seven straight games and nine of their last 11 games.
The idea that the purple character was being judged in any way, joke or not, infuriated Licata, who mentioned it twice last week on his WFAN show with co-host Brandon Tierney.
“I get that no one thinks Grimmus is to blame for this, but what people fail to understand is that anyone who mentions Grimmus is making fun of the Mets,” Licata said. “The Mets are being honored here, not because of their goofy mascot Grimmus. His fat purple ass. I’m so sick of Grimmus.”
In his tongue-in-cheek apology, Licata took responsibility for the personal attacks on Grimas.
“I called you fat too and made a personal attack on you,” he said. “I love the color purple and I wear purple so I don’t know why I was so mad at you.”
The two ended the segment with a hug.
