Mazzy Award winner Paul asks….
I haven’t heard a thing about the Mets Hall of Fame Committee or plans for future inductions. Before the quartet of 1986 heroes were added in 2010, the last induction ceremony had been held in 2002 for Tommie Agee.
But the Mets aren’t really going to let their 50th anniversary go by without honoring any of the great players in the team’s history, are they?
The stars from the 1960s and 1970s are fairly well represented in the Mets Hall, though you might be able to make a case for Willie Mays if you wanted to badly enough. And while I might like to add some more personal favorites from the 1980s, the best players of that generation are now represented.
But 1986 was 26 years ago and it’s time to start recognizing more recent history. Mike Piazza is going to be on next year’s Cooperstown Hall of Fame ballot. I can see waiting until then to think about retiring his uniform number, but he belongs in the Mets Hall of Fame now. Once he’s enshrined in Cooperstown, team honors lose a bit of their luster.
What about John Franco, one of three captains in team history and holder of many of the Mets’ career relief records?
I’m going to sit this discussion out for right now because I have a lot to say about it, and I haven’t yet fleshed out my thoughts and I might save it for the ebook I am writing. Discuss!