The State of the Union of Mets fans

Mets fans,

The state of our union is strong.

We have faced challenges.  There were those who tried to take Banner Day away from us.  But we spoke.  Our voices were heard and our tradition restored.

Our brand was hijacked by those who would have us wear strange colors.  Today, I stand before you proud to see our colors blue and orange prominently displayed.

But challenges remain ahead.

There are still those that would charge us $63 to sit in the far reaches of the stadium to see our Mets play on Opening Day.

There are still those who will tell us that we have a major league outfield, when all evidence is to the contrary.

And there are those of our brothers and sisters who have drifted away.  Those who cannot wait for another 1986, another 1969, another 2000, another 1973, or for those born too late, even another 2006.

It is our generation of Mets fan’s task, then, to reignite the fan base – a rising, thriving fan base.

It is our unfinished task to restore the basic promise that all Mets fans are born into– the idea that if you wait long enough, you can finish first, no matter where you come from, what you look like, or which players you love.

It is our unfinished task to make sure that this ownership works on behalf of the many in the uppers, and not just the few in the suites; that it encourages free expression, rewards regular customers, and opens the gates of opportunity to every child across this great fanbase of ours.

I look out in this fanbase and I see fine people like Greg Prince, who took a vision laid out by Dana Brand, and saw the Hofstra Conference become a tremendous success.

I look over and see Darren Meenan capturing the zeitgeist and bringing the fans together in ways the official organization never has.

So I say to you on this day that we will have a Fan Fest by this time next year.  If the Mets will not hold a Fan Fest, then we will hold a Fans Fest.

The state of our union of Mets fans is getting stronger, and we’ve come too far to turn back now.

As long as I’m blogging, I will work with anyone in this fanbase to build on this momentum. But I intend to fight obstructed views with words, and I will oppose any effort to return to the very same policies that brought on this blog in the first place.

Thank you, and Let’s Go Mets

29 Replies to “The State of the Union of Mets fans”

  1. Now where’s the Wilpon response? “Speaking for the managment, Mr. David Howard” [speaks, lifts bottle of Pepsi-produced Aquafina water]

  2. As a diehard fan since 1970, I embrace all you stand for and speak of. That being said, we have unfinished business and plenty of it. I cannot and will not abandon this lovable bunch of players, no matter how awful we can be. I’m literally surrounded by Yankee fans and have experienced the utter heartbreak of one of my own sons deflecting to the Bronx, leaving me wondering where the hell I went wrong. But I’m not greedy: I don’t need 27 rings; I just want ONE more championship in my lifetime. I don’t think I’m asking for too much.

  3. And since Citi Field is getting all dressed up for the All-Star game, the oversight of Donn Clendenon and Ray Knight, our 2 World Series MVPs, in the Mets Museum must be corrected sooner than later. The accomplishments of these two men must be embraced and properly recognized with some kind of display as that’s where all our achievements are highlighted. One of the front office brass really dropped the ball on that one.

    1. Interesting point about the MVPs of our two World Series championship teams.
      Can’t understimate how important both were to those teams getting to the postseason, particularly in Clendenon’s case.
      I wouldn’t think either one should be inducted into the Mets’ Hall of Fame, but maybe a dispaly of some sort saluting our two WS MVPs would be appropriate.

      1. Okay, maybe not the Mets Hall of Fame, but certainly in the museum. To me, a museum is where important and significant team memories are showcased, along with actual memorabilia from those moments. There is no way to downplay, primarily in the Mets’ history, the winning of two world championships, especially the underdog team of 1969. And neither ring would’ve been won without players stepping up, maybe accomplishing more than they ever have in their career, to ensure their team wins. Clendenon and Knight did those things and should be honored for them. Like I’ve said hundreds of times, we only have TWO rings, and the right thing to do is pay homage to the men who made those championships possible. Because, let’s face it, if Clendenon and Knight DIDN’T step up, perhaps we’d have no rings to show for it.

  4. What Kathy C.–and Shannon–said. As someone raising kids to be Mets fans in a sea of Yankees inbreds and apathy, please give us something, Mets. Show some life when the going is tough. We don’t need Michael Bourn, we need a team that at least pretends to be committed to the future, shows some backbone, and doesn’t try to gouge its few loyalists at every turn. And let me know when and where to stand for Fanfest.

    1. And you can bet if we didn’t hear from the Wilpons on the ticket price increase, we won’t hear a peep on this.

    2. it’s so hard to fend off the Yankees thing. I think I have succeeded by dragging Junior to enough Mets games. The Wright signing helps since it is his favorite player.

  5. The Mets should name an entire section near 1B (for Donn) and 3B (for Ray) and add others for Alfonzo, Millan, Grote, Piazza, Agee, Mookie, Jones, Straw, Hernandez, Seaver, Koos, McGraw, Doc, Leiter, ect.

    1. I just don’t understand how this oversight happened. It’s not like we have 27 titles, where spacing may not permit a section dedicated to World Series MVPs. We would not have won either championship without the accomplishments of these guys, hence their both being named MVP. Jeez, guys, fix this already. There should be a plaque dedicated to each man, in a special section of the museum. I understand why Seaver is so prominent — he won a ring with the Met as well as Rookie of the Year, 3 Cy Young Awards as a Met, numerous All-Star appearances, etc., along with being known as “The Franchise.” But Piazza, Beltran, etc., are all over the place in the museum and we didn’t win anything with them. Hey, Wilpons, give credit to Clendenon and Knight (both of whom, coincidentally, wore #22); they deserve it.

        1. Definitely weird that Ray Knight is persona non grata with the Mets. He’s not even invited to Oldtimers’ Day. He doesn’t know what he did to them to piss them off.

      1. As a contributor (loaner) to the museum, I can tell you that the individuals in charge of the museum are thoughtful, caring Mets fans. As far as artifacts, they have had Knight items (I.e. his WS bat used in Game 6) and the Clendenon family has loaned his WS ring to be on display (previously Bud Harrelson had loaned his ring). The HOF in Cooperstown has Ray Knight’s helmet from the WS on permanent display. perhaps that could be offered up. They have certainly loaned many items to the Mets HOF in the past.

        If the imagery within the museum doesn’t include enough of the MVP’s, that’s a different concern. I do recall shots of Knight, but not of Clendenon. Perhaps a separate display case could include some artifacts of those two exceptional players from those very special years.

        As an advanced collector (someone who pays WAY too much attention to this stuff) of almost thirty years, there is not a lot of Knight and Clendenon artifacts available on the open market. Perhaps someone who reads this fantastic blog could loan any items they might possess.

        Hope this helps! LOVE THE JOB YOU DO SHANNON! Keep it up! Lets Go Mets!

        Jessie James Burke

        1. Thank you for that insight. Perhaps I’m a little biased because Clendenon is my all-time favorite Met and the trade for him in the middle of 1969 was the difference-maker, as was getting Gary Carter in 1985. But because 1969 was our first World Series win, he should be acknowledged where AT LEAST a photograph of him is in the Museum. And Ray Knight should be honored significantly as well. As an aside, I watched the 50 Greatest Mets DVD and how Clendenon isn’t included in that, I’ll NEVER understand. I guess fellow 69ers Wayne Garrett and Al Weis were considered more contributory, and believe me when I say I doubt that.

  6. As we have all said for years now–Citifield need to be more Metsified. I love the idea of naming different sections for some of our favorites and i agree with Kathy that Clendenon and Knight should be honore-

    1. The question is this: how can we get this fixed? Circulate a petition for thousands of fans to sign? Contact the Wilpons? Did that, to no avail. I tried calling the museum, also to no avail. Perhaps I’ll have to wait until Opening Day and talk to someone in the museum — a manager or something. Not that that will work, but anything’s worth a try at this point.

  7. The first, last and only priority of Met fans everywhere is to do what is necssary to get the Wilpons to sell the team.
    The Bourne debacle is one more example that the Mets cannot compete with the Indians, let alone, the Yankees.

    It takes money to operate a big market major league team. Players cannot be found in the bin of the 99 cent store while we wait for young players to develop.

    Enough already–vote with your feet! Stay home until the Wilpons finally go broke from lack of fan support and decide to sell. Our future and the future of our children as Met fans depends on it.

  8. As a life long Mets fan, how do we energize a fan base when the owners and GM are a) not truthful and b) could give a crap about us? After listening to Shecky the GM on WFAN today, and his supposed plight over not getting a ML accomplished OF ALL off season, when he himself stated that the OF needed an “influx of talent”, can he explain why he couldnt get a Dennard Span or a Ryan Ludwick? Notice I’m not asking for Josh Hamiliton here. It’s about lack of $$. What did they do with Bay’s deferred $$? How abot that poor bastard Wright’s deferred $$? What did they do with it? So we can talk renaming sections and Fan fests, etc. but the bottom line is the Wilpons are in the business of making money. We will all see this up-close for real when they spend little in 2014, and blame it on a lack of revenue from an empty CitiField this year….now, don’t forget to buy your All-Star Packs!The Wilpons are trying their hardest to take the biggest fan of thsi team and destroy their hopes and dreams all while living in a fantasy world.

    1. Today’s backpage of the NY Daily News has Fred Wilpon proclaiming the Mets have plenty of $$$$ to throw around. Because if that is truly the case, I do expect a significant free-agent signing next winter. And if Johan does have a phenomenal year, three’s no reason NOT to pick up his option for 2014. And, by the way, they didn’t have the money a couple of months ago when they could’ve made an offer to an available free agent? Now all the “good” ones this year are signed. Great timing, Fred.

  9. I’ve been a Mets fan for as long as there have been Mets. I’m not a youngster anymore and I don’t live in the tri-state area anymore. But neither age nor geographic location has dimmed my love for the NY Mets. I’ve seen the greatest of moments, 1969 and 1986. And I’ve seen the poorest of moments. I visited “Grants Tomb” back in the 70’s and as bad as things may seem now, you should have seen it then. No hope at all. At least this GM seems to have a plan, and I’m willing to wait another year, if need be, to feel the way I did in 1969 and 1986.

    BTW, should you have a Fan Fest, I’ll leave sunny Florida for a few days, and happily commiserate with my fellow Mets fans.

    Let’s Go Mets!!!

  10. I was 7 months old when the Mets won their first World Series. Since that time, I have been a Mets fan through and through. At first, I had no choice, but in 1973 I became aware of the Mets blood flowing through my veins. Today, I am struggling mightily to fend off the Yankee influence on my young daughter. Shannon, you are right. A lot more Mets at Citi whatever it is would go a long way toward ensuring that another NY generation is not lost to that other team in NY. How do we get this done?

    1. Born in 69′ has issues with a family member who’s a Yankee fan. Well, I can certainly sympathize. You see, my darling wife whom I love and adore, is a Yankee fan. I think she became a fan of theirs because her brother grew up rooting for the Dodgers. We all know how siblings can be. Anyway, our house is still a home and no blood has been shed. Not even in 2000. She watches her Yanks in the livingroom and I watch our Mets in my “Mancave”, which is LOADED with Mets pictures, bric-a-brac, souvenirs and other blue and orange paraphernalia. Suffice to say, I usually have to clean my “Mancave” if it’s to get cleaned.

      Let’s Go Mets!!

Comments are closed.