WATCH: Kevin James recreates his iconic NASCAR command before Mets game

Actor and comedian Kevin James threw out the first pitch for the New York Mets ' game against the Baltimore Orioles on Thursday at Citi FIeld. In the process, James recreated one of his most famous moments, giving the command to play ball with the same gusto from when he gave the command to start engines for a NASCAR Cup Series race in 2007.

Directly invoking the command he gave as the grand marshal for the 2007 Pepsi 400 at Daytona, the Mineola, N.Y. native and star of "The King of Queens" -- clad in his own personal Mets jersey -- bellowed into the microphone, "God bless America, God bless our troops, God bless the New York Mets, AND GENTLEMEN, LET'S! PLAY! BALL!!!!"

17 years ago, James' command was the precursor to one of the closest finishes in NASCAR history, as Jamie McMurray beat Kyle Busch in a photo finish decided by just 0.005 seconds. Unfortunately for the Mets, Tuesday neither marked a triumph nor a particularly close one. The Orioles won the game handily by a score of 9-5, with sloppy Mets defensive play culminating in a two-error play in the ninth inning that ended all hopes of a late-game comeback.