Many things can be true at the same time, as you will see in this post.
The retirement of Willie Mays’ 24 made me really take notice about what bad stewards the Wilpons were of this franchise. And I’m not even going to pile on Jeff here, I am looking at you Fred.
Personally, I did not watch Old Timers’ Day. I had a nice day at the beach. Like a really really nice day.
But for many others yesterday was the type of day I screamed into the wind about for a decade plus (this blog is in its 15th season) while being told I was old, shit up, LFGM, Jose Reyes rules, Matt Harvey is the next Seaver, Daniel Murphy sucks….all that.
So I am truly happy people had a nice day yesterday. Weather was great, water was warm.
But back to the Wilpons and Steve. Great job Steve.
Thanks to the Wilpons, we waited until Willie was 91 to retire his number.
We waited until Tom Seaver was dead for teh statue to be completed.
We waited 30 years for Keith Hernandez’ 17 to be retired.
And now, Steve has finally layered on a culture of Mets history that we haven’t had. Man oh man if he hadn’t brought back the black uniforms.
Great job on this Steve. Except the black uniforms.
…
Now as for me – it all comes too late.
There was a time, not that long ago, mid 2010’s – where I would have been the biggest loudest cheerleader of all this, and the first in line to buy tickets. But baseball is death by a 1000 paper cuts. The actual game of baseball has become unwatchable. Home Runs and strikeouts, openers and four hour games. I last two pitches and I want to turn it off, and have cut watching baseball from my daily routine which gives me an extra three hours a day.
I don’t miss the habit at all. I can follow the team from afar via tweets. I can get the score in one second on my phone. And then I go do other things.
But that’s about me, and shouldn’t take away YOUR enjoyment of all this. This is what I always wanted, it just comes a few years too late.
I raise my plastic Mets cup to a toast – Great job Steve – it’s a shame that you couldn’t have done all this in 2012. Maybe Seaver would have liked his statue. Maybe 81 year old Willie Mays could have come by. But that’s not on you. That’s on the Wilpons.
…
Someone asked me if it makes me happy that Daniel Murphy was welcomed. It makes me neither happy nor unhappy. You guys should have appreciated him when he was here, but you were like Ooooh Ike Davis. Oooooh Jordan Valdespin. Oooooh Neil Walker. Welcome to the party pal.
I haven’t watched any of the ceremonies yet. I taped them. I thought about watching them last night…but then wasn’t in the mood. I still haven’t been in the mood to watch the Hernandez ceremony. Enjoy your four hour games with openers, MLB. I moved on.
