Mets finally bringing team history to Citi Field
Photo credit: Freelance/Photo by David Pokress | Flushing, NY - Friday, August 14, 2009. N.Y. Mets vs. San Francisco Giants at Citi Field. the Mets have installed a large video screen in right field at Citi field. Photo by David Pokress
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Take a tour of Citi Field
This season, the Mets have looked like a family that moved into a new home and just never had the time to decorate the walls.
As top of the line as Citi Field is, the biggest knock is that it's the Marriott Hotel of ballparks. Close your eyes for a few seconds, and when you open them, you might feel as if you're sitting in a new park in Seattle, Pittsburgh or Washington.
When you go to Yankee Stadium, you get a headache from the references to their history. Everywhere you turn, it's Mickey Mantle this and Babe Ruth that. Yet on this side of town, sometimes you have to remind yourself who plays here.
The Mets, to their credit, are working to change that.
Fans who attended Friday night's game against the San Francisco Giants might have noticed photographs of notable players plastered throughout the concourses, mostly on the promenade level. They also might have seen the championship pennants on the outfield wall, just as they were at Shea.
Minor changes, yes, but there is a much bigger message here than the fact that there now are photos of Gil Hodges, Lenny Dykstra, Carlos Beltran and others hanging above elevators on the upper level.
By making these changes - and promising more to come - what the Mets are saying is that they have heard your complaints and have decided to act, not ignore.
Amazing concept.
"Admittedly, we did underestimate the interest that our customers and fans have in seeing our imagery, especially on the concourses," said Dave Howard, executive vice president, business operations. "We heard them. Then we decided where we can start to do things immediately and respond to their desires."
The biggest change is yet to come. Howard said this offseason, the team will work on installing a Mets museum that - yes - will have their Hall of Fame on display.
You can argue that this should have been done long ago, during the planning stages of this stadium. The fact that the busts of Tom Seaver, Keith Hernandez and Ralph Kiner are sitting in storage somewhere, and are not on display at Citi Field, is head-scratching.
Howard's explanation won't make you feel much better, either. "It wasn't a high priority for us," he said, "because of all the other needs we had to get this building open."
But another thing Howard said will make you feel good if you're a Mets fan. "We'll make sure we'll get it done," he said.
The busts might not make the move, though.
"I've always felt that as nice as they are - they're very nice pieces of art - they don't tell the fans enough about who the person was," he said. "I always got a kick out of Cleon Jones' bust. He's in a jacket and tie. People see that and ask: Why is he in a jacket and tie when Tom Seaver and all the others are in uniform?"
Fair point. And in reality it's not exactly as if the Mets' Hall of Fame was a destination point at Shea. It was almost as if fans knew about it only if they stumbled over the display en route to the Diamond Club.
This has been an odd first season for Citi Field, from the disappointing product on the field to the complaints from their fans about their new home.
But good for the Mets for doing something about the latter, and promising more.
Might just be their best move of the season.
