18 years ago the Mets played one of the most difficult games in franchise history. The dust from lower Manhattan still lingered, even on September 21st, but life had to go on after Muslim terrorists murdered thousands of innocents.
A baseball game could feel frivolous in light of what the country had just gone through, or it could symbolize strength. The Mets versus the Braves was the first New York sporting event to take place after 9/11.
There are Atlanta Braves players on record who stated that they got chills, themselves, when Mike Piazza hit a dramatic game winning home run to give New Yorkers something to cheer about again.
NY Post- “When Piazza hit the home run, it was kind of like, ‘OK, that was supposed to be,’ ” Glavine said. “ ‘These people needed this a whole lot more than we needed to win a game.’ It was the only game that we played at that level where I felt that way.”
Pete Alonso, a rookie, is New York’s current day Mike Piazza – hitting a home run of a different sort on 9/11.
Pete Alonso gets it.
Unfortunately, it seems like Major League Baseball never will.
Alonso ordered custom 9/11 cleats for all of his New York Mets’ teammates to wear during Wednesday night’s game at Citi Field as a way to commemorate the victims and first-responders from that tragic day 18 years ago.
It was the latest commendable act from one of baseball’s brightest young stars.
Of course, there was also the absolute ridiculousness that came with it.
The 24-year-old rookie slugger originally wanted to do custom hats featuring the FDNY and NYPD, but the league shot that idea down.
It’s not the first time this has happened. It was the same exact nonsense on the 10th anniversary. Which is par for the course when it comes to MLB looking mighty foolish on this day.
“I think it’s kind of sad,” Alonso said after the Mets shut out the Arizona Diamondbacks — fittingly by scoring nine runs on 11 hits. “ … I mean, since that first game back (in 2001), they kind of shut it down every single year since. I think that’s really unfortunate. So a way to kind of get around that was the cleats.”
Baseball didn’t know about the cleats. The Mets players wore them anyway. Kudos to them.
“I’m just really happy that everyone wore the shoes because we could’ve gotten fined for it,” Alonso said. “But everyone was willing to back up the cause and it’s really awesome. I’m just really happy that everyone was behind me and stuck with this …”
Alonso, who was in first-grade and living in Tampa when the tragedy occurred, said the cleats were a gift to his teammates. He went around and found out their brands and shoe sizes. And thanks to a lot of different people, they got done in time for the game.
“I’ve just been thankful and gracious for this opportunity,” Alonso said. “For me, this season has been an absolute fantasy. I just want to give back. I want to help. I don’t just want to be known as a good baseball player, I want to be known as a good person, too.
“And I just want to really recognize what this day is about. I don’t want it to be a holiday. I want it to be a day of remembrance of everything that happened. It was an awful day.”
!snip!
Geaux Mets!
Good for the Mets!
Why is it against MLB rules? They have these men wearing pink cleats for breast cancer awareness, as an example.
Watch your ass, MLB. You see what happened to the NFL, right? #emptyseatsmotherfuckers!
MJA, remember Kaepernick wearing his police piggies socks? The Nat’l Felons League went right along with it.
God I love when you talk dirty….
If it is anti- police or anti$US then these leagues are on board with it. If it supportive then they have a problem.
A couple of years ago the Seattle Mariners suspended a catcher for a Tweet on his own personal Twitter account, the team saying that they are there to play sports not be political. But be anti American and teams and leagues fall all over themselves to support the First Amendment.
what a great gesture by a great kid … Mets lucky to have him
“Can’t we all just get along?” Left; “NO! I hate America, mom and apple pie.”
Bravo! Much better than commemorating a player who OD’d and choked to death on his vomit.
RadioMattM: “If it is anti- police or anti$US then these leagues are on board with it.”
That’s because the leagues are chickenshit scared of the pansyassed left who threaten to call them mean names.
Being a braves fan and growing up hating the Mets, I tip my hat to you, Pete.
Over recent years there has been a debate about what sport is America’s Game – baseball or football. The NFL has already demonstrated they’re no longer interested in the honor. MLB management seems determined to follow the same path.
Good for the Mr. Alonso and his teammates. I am still a homer for my area teams, but since my teams are mediocre at best, I will root for the Mets (at least for a couple of days).
Never Forget!
mlb doan’ like it, FU
The league thwarted the rookie at every turn in his effort to commemorate 9/11 and he just chipped away at it and figured out a way to do it right under their nose. A tenacious patriot. Go Mets!