I spent the July 4 weekend in New York City. The Molinari family reunion was held on Saturday, and it was a great time.
And on Sunday, we saw our first Mets game at Citi Field which is located in Queens near the site of the old Shea Stadium. This seemed like a great opportunity because the Mets were playing the Yankees. Interleague play now allows the"Subway Series" to be played every year. We were fortunate to be able to get tickets; and the stadium was nearly full.
I was a Mets fan when growing up in New York. Over much of the last few decades, however, taking interest in this particular team has been a fairly thankless pursuit. I disliked the Yankees, but they have taken most of the prizes.
The game was rain delayed. Once the game started, the weather was drizzly, with one brief period of rain toward the latter part. Although the Mets got off to a good start, the Yankees took the lead during the eighth inning. It seemed all was lost when Mariano Rivera took the mound during the ninth inning even though the Yankees were ahead by only one run.
Rivera retired his first two hitters. Jason Bay worked a 3-2 count, and was down to his last strike. The rest is history. He scored the game-tying run; and the following inning, he drove in the game-winning run. His teammates rushed from the dugout to swarm him. The Mets beat the Yanks; Rivera blew a save; and Bay resuscitated himself, at least momentarily, in the eyes of Mets fans. (Jason Bay has had a very sparse start with New York after having previously been a major star with the Boston Red Sox.)
There were large numbers of Yankee fans at Citi Field. It was interesting to watch and listen to both Yankee and Met fans as they offered their running "color commentary" regarding various players and the events on the field. Mets fans were elated after the game, and chanted "Let's Go Mets!" loudly in unison as they descended the stairwells to exit.
The Yankees still won the series. But it was an enormous psychological victory for the Mets and the team's fans not to get swept.
Citi Field itself is a very nice stadium, planned and built in a manner not unlike many of the new ballparks. The difference, however, is that it's a pitcher's park. The distances to hit a home run are fairly long, and there are some high fences. There are no "sweet spots" for hitters. This has undoubtedly had a negative impact on the success of players like Bay and David Wright because hitters tend to thrive based on confidence.
There is a "Jackie Robinson Rotunda" as one enters the ballpark. The construction of the field was intended to be a bit reminiscent of the old Ebbets Field in Brooklyn. But the Mets franchise, in my opinion, replaced in hybrid fashion both the Brooklyn Dodgers and the New York Giants, both of which were National League New York teams-- and both of which left the city for California during 1957. It is quite ironic that the Los Angeles Dodgers have recently filed for bankruptcy.
Baseball fans in New York have had a huge, passionate rivalry brewing for many decades. I once lived and breathed the Mets when I was a boy; and did partake in that rivalry. One can only hope that what happened on Sunday might represent somewhat of a turnaround. But the Mets' lineup is populated with .250 hitters, so I am likely indulging a pipe dream.
At least the Mets did their part to support Red Sox fans everywhere.
Would that every NL team do their part in that noble cause.....particularly at World Series time.
Posted by: bubba | July 05, 2011 at 05:58 PM