Citi Field is a treasure trove of Brooklyn Dodgers history. There is a Jackie Robinson Rotunda, at which a beautiful ceremony was held last Wednesday. (I admit, of course, that Robinson’s story belongs not just to the Dodgers.) The stadium’s façade evokes Ebbets Field, the home away from home of Brooklyn-rooted Fred Wilpon, today the Mets’ owner. Place names like “Ebbets Club” dot the concourse. The Rotunda itself is reminiscent of an older one in Flatbush. Citi Field, no doubt, stands as a beautiful tribute to the Brooklyn Dodgers and the legacy they left behind.
But what about the Mets?
The Home Run Apple, the scoreboard skyline, and mainstays like retired numbers have made the short trip from Shea Stadium. But as the Mets build up their new home — and executive vice president Dave Howard has called the addition of historical Mets items a work in progress — they should be sure to give the Mets the same kind of treatment they gave the Dodgers.
Surely there is a connection between the two teams. After the Dodgers left with the Giants following the 1957 season, much of Brooklyn’s anti-Yankee, pro-NL fan base was happy to wait for an opportunity like the Mets to come along. Blue and orange were chosen as the team’s colors to honor the two departed franchises.
Yet surely the Mets have been around enough to deserve a little recognition of their own history — something more than the images of great players that line the park’s exterior. If you want your ballpark to feel in tune with the past, there’s a better way to do it than to focus on the vague sentimental feelings evoked by green seats and other generic attributes. Nothing reminds one of the Glory Days like references to the actual events that defined them.
For a team less than 50 years old, the Mets have accumulated a remarkable history. The black cat, the Shoe Polish Incident, Tug McGraw’s “Ya Gotta Believe!”, the NLDS versus the Astros, the Buckner Ball, the stunning clinching home runs of Todd Pratt and Robin Ventura, Mike Piazza’s home run following the 9/11 attacks — these are among the game’s greatest and most famous moments, and not just by New York media standards.
Maybe it would be too much to expect the Mets to open an in-stadium team history museum, as the Yankees have done. But other teams have erected statues of lesser players than Tom Seaver and Mike Piazza, installed plaques commemorating lesser achievements than Dwight Gooden’s startling strikeout totals. Even the giant collection of blown-up great-moments photos that were sprinkled around the Shea Stadium concourse represented a poignant look down memory lane. Moments, after all, are what the Mets have always been about.
Citi Field is a beautiful tribute to the Brooklyn Dodgers and a special time in the history of New York City. Let’s not forget that more than a few moments since 1962 have been just as special.
Post a Comment