SAN FRANCISCO — Joey Lucchesi used to ask his parents not to come watch him pitch because that way he wouldn't get rattled.
There's no way he could do that this time after such a long wait to get back on a big league mound, such a long and daunting road recovering from Tommy John surgery — and being back home in the Bay Area.
So he focused on breathing.
And, a couple of hours later, the New York Mets lefty cherished celebrating this long-awaited victory with mom Michelle, dad Ken and brother Matt, who hadn't seen him pitch since he was with the Padres in 2019.