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Numbers to Retire!

d'Kong76 Feb 16 2015 05:26 PM

Kranepool, Carter, Hernandez, and Piazza... get it done already...

Zvon Feb 16 2015 05:48 PM Re: Numbers to Retire!

I assume you just read about Pettite.

d'Kong76 Feb 16 2015 05:52 PM Re: Numbers to Retire!

Zvon wrote: I assume you just read about Pettite. Well, not just.

d'Kong76 Feb 16 2015 06:00 PM Re: Numbers to Retire!

Christ! Retire Davey Johnson's number too!

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Feb 16 2015 06:34 PM Re: Numbers to Retire!

d'Kong76 wrote: Christ! Retire Davey Johnson's number too! Well, yes, I think they will get to that one, eventually... sorta.

d'Kong76 Feb 16 2015 06:38 PM Re: Numbers to Retire!

And on another note, Jeter's number should be retired in all of MLB for breaking the intangible barrier.

Mets – Willets Point Feb 16 2015 06:44 PM Re: Numbers to Retire!

On Andy Pettitte Day, the first 5000 fans will receive and extra-extra-large souvenir cap!

Mets Guy in Michigan Feb 17 2015 08:13 AM Re: Numbers to Retire!

The New York Post today makes the case for retiring Piazza's numbner -- for all the wrong reasons. We should never, ever do anything just because the Yankees do something. [url]http://nypost.com/2015/02/16/the-number-the-mets-should-retire-to-steal-yankees-thunder/ The number the Mets should retire to steal Yankees’ thunder PORT ST. LUCIE — Once again, the Mets let the Yankees beat them to the punch. Andy Pettitte, Jorge Posada and Bernie Williams are getting their numbers retired. In The Bronx, they just keep stacking up retired numbers, guaranteeing those happy summer sellouts when fans reminisce about the pinstriped past. It’s part of the plan of keeping the fans in touch with the team, especially with Pettitte, Posada and Williams. Now a younger generation of fans will get to connect with the Yankees. Good for marketing, too. The Yankees have legacy players and they are not afraid to promote that legacy, even if there is a PED past as in Pettitte’s case. The Mets, meanwhile, sit it out. They ignore their past, even when it’s staring them right in the face. Sure, the Mets don’t have 27 titles, but Mets’ fans have heroes. Mike Piazza should have his number 31 retired by the Mets in 2015. It should have been retired two years ago when Piazza was inducted into the Mets’ Hall of Fame. The Mets don’t do much when it comes to retiring numbers for players who wore their uniform. They have only two world championships, but even more Amazin’ is that the Mets have only one former player’s number retired — Tom Seaver’s No. 41. Besides Seaver, the Mets have retired the numbers of managers Casey Stengel (37) and Gil Hodges (14). Jackie Robinson’s 42 is retired throughout baseball, a most fitting tribute, and the Shea name is on the wall. Retiring Piazza’s number this year would send a positive message to Hall of Fame voters for the greatest home run-hitting catcher of all time. The Mets would be getting ahead of the curve. Piazza is going to make the Hall of Fame, it is just a matter of time. Why not honor him before he gets elected? Then it doesn’t look like the Mets are trying to latch onto Piazza’s Cooperstown glory. Is it possible they are nervous the Piazza PED innuendo is true and a story will surface after they put his number on the wall? Piazza was a seven-time All-Star with the Mets and hit 220 of his lifetime 427 home runs as a Met. His .542 slugging percentage is the club’s all-time best. The Mets went to the postseason in back-to-back seasons in 1999-2000 for the only time in their history with Piazza leading the way — all the way to the World Series in 2000 against Pettitte, Posada and Williams. Acquiring him was the kind of piece of the puzzle Sandy Alderson can only dream of acquiring for this year’s team. The Yankees will continue to retire numbers. No. 2 is on its way. The Mets need to get their act together. Retire Piazza’s number. Let the fans celebrate. Once Piazza’s number is retired, start thinking about retiring another catcher’s number, Gary Carter and his No. 8. Think about 17, 18 and 16, Keith Hernandez, Darryl Strawberry and Doc Gooden. Don’t be afraid to celebrate the best players of your past. Do the right thing, Mets, instead of sitting it out and doing nothing and letting the Yankees beat you to the punch, over and over and over again.

Mets Guy in Michigan Feb 17 2015 08:23 AM Re: Numbers to Retire!

Wait, they're not stopping at Pettitte! Whatever the Yankees may do on the field this season to generate interest and ticket sales, it is clear that they will also lean heavily on their recent history. On four separate home dates this season, the Yankees will honor four different players, three of whom will have their numbers retired, the team announced Monday. While the team’s future may be unclear, the past remains profitable. On May 24, the Yankees will retire Bernie Williams’s No. 51 and honor him with a plaque in Monument Park. On June 20, Willie Randolph will get a plaque, as well, although his No. 30 will not be retired. Aug. 22 will be Jorge Posada day as his No. 20 is retired, and the next day Andy Pettitte’s No. 46 will be retired and both players will also have plaques in Monument Park.

Edgy MD Feb 17 2015 08:26 AM Re: Numbers to Retire!

Well, that's two more things the Mets shouldn't do.

d'Kong76 Feb 17 2015 08:27 AM Re: Numbers to Retire!

I'm kinda serious about Kranepool... he played 18 years in one uniform. I think we'd be hard pressed to find someone in any sport that donned the same laundry for that long and doesn't have a retired number hanging around in tribute.

Mets Guy in Michigan Feb 17 2015 08:29 AM Re: Numbers to Retire!

d'Kong76 wrote: I'm kinda serious about Kranepool... he played 18 years in one uniform. I think we'd be hard pressed to find someone in any sport that donned the same laundry for that long and doesn't have a retired number hanging around in tribute. Who needs a retired number when he has a forum named in his honor! A good one, too!

Gwreck Feb 17 2015 08:31 AM Re: Numbers to Retire!

My understanding is that several teams retire numbers only for players elected to the Hall of Fame primarily for their accomplishments with that team. I see no good reason to depart from that standard. Piazza gets his number retired if (when) he gets into the HOF. Keith, Kranepool, Carter - they've all been elected to the Mets Hall of Fame. Particularly as that is now a great feature of Citi Field, they're getting an appropriate honor. I would put uniform number 8 back into circulation. I would also put 24 into circulation as well.

Ceetar Feb 17 2015 08:42 AM Re: Numbers to Retire!

err, sellouts? Old-Timers Day for the Yankees last year was the 11th best home attendance game. The day they retired Torre and added plaques for Gossage, O'Neil, and Martinez was 10th. (Mets were 19th and 25th) The Yankees had 0 sellouts in 2014.

Ceetar Feb 17 2015 08:43 AM Re: Numbers to Retire!

Gwreck wrote: My understanding is that several teams retire numbers only for players elected to the Hall of Fame primarily for their accomplishments with that team. I see no good reason to depart from that standard. Piazza gets his number retired if (when) he gets into the HOF. Keith, Kranepool, Carter - they've all been elected to the Mets Hall of Fame. Particularly as that is now a great feature of Citi Field, they're getting an appropriate honor. I would put uniform number 8 back into circulation. I would also put 24 into circulation as well. Yes. Exactly. this isn't really tough. They're not giving out 31, clearly they'd just chosen to retire it when he gets into the HOF instead of "in front" of it. Either way. And I agree about 8 and 24. put 'em back out there. Give 24 to Mayberry this year or something, because you probably need to break the ice a little bit so you don't give it to some hotshot prospect with all that pressure.

Benjamin Grimm Feb 17 2015 08:46 AM Re: Numbers to Retire!

I agree as well. It's time to put 8 and 24 back in circulation. And not just for the Rickey Hendersons, but for the Kelvin Torves too.

Edgy MD Feb 17 2015 08:46 AM Re: Numbers to Retire!

d'Kong76 wrote: I'm kinda serious about Kranepool... he played 18 years in one uniform. I think we'd be hard pressed to find someone in any sport that donned the same laundry for that long and doesn't have a retired number hanging around in tribute. It was pretty jarring to my young eyes to see Hubie immediately adorned with Ed's trademark digit. It seems that, in any case where a rational case can be made for number retirement, a team would do well to suspend issuing that number while the arguments play themselves out. Of course, sometimes the opposite tack is taken — reissue the number quickly to close any debate before it gets any momentum. I get the idea that Ed didn't leave on good terms. Maybe Doubleday (or that dang Wilpon) didn't like him joining a rival bidding faction.

Mets Guy in Michigan Feb 17 2015 08:56 AM Re: Numbers to Retire!

I don't want to see 8 or 24 returned into service. But I also think not issuing them but not retiring them is sort of a half-assed thing to do. I don't have a problem adding 8 to the wall for Carter, but I think it's a shame that it's too late for him to enjoy it. I've also long advocated for 24 because, well, Willie Mays. It may be like the Brewers retiring 44 for Aaron to honor both is previous years in the city on a National League team that moved as well as playing for the Brewers.

Edgy MD Feb 17 2015 09:04 AM Re: Numbers to Retire!

This Mets team is going to make so much history in its next 10 years, it's going to be a blur. A glorious blur. I'm not advocating for the retirement of this guy's jersey or that, or even the un-unofficial retirement of Mays' number. If it happens, it happens. What's going on with the Yankees is so obvious that Bono* sang it out loud in 1988. You glorify the past when the future dries up. Here's to the future. And whatever the team does with regard to ceremonies during that period, here's to those ceremonies taking place on dates that are part of a long string of sellouts. * Bono Bono, not Jason Phillips Bono.

SteveJRogers Feb 17 2015 09:15 AM Re: Numbers to Retire!

d'Kong76 wrote: I'm kinda serious about Kranepool... he played 18 years in one uniform. I think we'd be hard pressed to find someone in any sport that donned the same laundry for that long and doesn't have a retired number hanging around in tribute. To be fair, most of the ones fitting that bill are HOF, or just a cut below in terms of that sport's caliber of players. We can agree to disagree about the point of how to honor a longtime employee like Ed Kranepool, but his being considered a Met "legend" and icon is used as a punch line for those who love to bash the Mets' supposed lack of history as compared to other franchises.

Lefty Specialist Feb 17 2015 09:24 AM Re: Numbers to Retire!

d'Kong76 wrote: I'm kinda serious about Kranepool... he played 18 years in one uniform. I think we'd be hard pressed to find someone in any sport that donned the same laundry for that long and doesn't have a retired number hanging around in tribute. Um, no. That he hung around for 18 years is more an indictment of the inability to have good-hitting teams that could survive without him.

SteveJRogers Feb 17 2015 09:32 AM Re: Numbers to Retire!

Lefty Specialist wrote: d'Kong76 wrote: I'm kinda serious about Kranepool... he played 18 years in one uniform. I think we'd be hard pressed to find someone in any sport that donned the same laundry for that long and doesn't have a retired number hanging around in tribute. Um, no. That he hung around for 18 years is more an indictment of the inability to have good-hitting teams that could survive without him. He hung around because the Payson family was loyal to him because he hit a trifecta as an Original Met, member of the 1969 and 1973 squads (but the emphasis I'm sure is on the 1969 World Champs) and a local kid done good.

d'Kong76 Feb 17 2015 09:34 AM Re: Numbers to Retire!

Bunch of wet blankets we have here, I tell ya.

Frayed Knot Feb 17 2015 10:00 AM Re: Numbers to Retire!

d'Kong76 wrote: Bunch of wet blankets we have here, I tell ya. And I haven't even begun to wet blanket!! btw, Kernan should be ashamed of himself for playing that angle.

SteveJRogers Feb 17 2015 10:49 AM Re: Numbers to Retire!

Frayed Knot wrote: d'Kong76 wrote: Bunch of wet blankets we have here, I tell ya. And I haven't even begun to wet blanket!! btw, Kernan should be ashamed of himself for playing that angle. That I'd agree with. They ignore their past, even when it’s staring them right in the face. Sure, the Mets don’t have 27 titles, but Mets’ fans have heroes. As if the Mets never created a HOF (which was done under the Doubleday/Wilpon era) or littered both Shea and Citi with banners and such featuring memorable players and moments over the years (again, both within the last 30 years of Met ownership). Or set up an alumni thing (complete with playing former players as ambassadors) for local events and such. I'd argue that at times it seemed the Wilpon regime hadn't quite figured out how to handle certain aspects of team history (the Payson entrance is just a door with "PAYSON" above it, as opposed to the full scale Hodges and Seaver entrances with banner sized photos of the two, and lobbies featuring framed photos and their old Met HOF busts), but you can't say they've completely failed to embrace it only because they've haven't retired a number since 1988.

Frayed Knot Feb 17 2015 12:41 PM Re: Numbers to Retire!

They ignore their past, even when it’s staring them right in the face. Sure, the Mets don’t have 27 titles, but Mets’ fans have heroes. Creating this notion that the only way to honor someone is by retiring their number; anything less (or merely different) is the equivalent of an insult both to the player and the fans. And then he pretty much admits it's mostly a marketing ploy. Reiterating my policy on this topic (for like the 15th year running now): - all numbers not currently retired should be in circulation. The 'in limbo' status of 24, 8, and 31 is worse than either a yes or a no choice. - If you want to save numbers with a distinguished past for (hopefully) the next special player at that position, even better. - next number under consideration is #5 - and that's a discussion for the decade of the '20s, let's see how things play out I'm not one for absolute standards on this stuff, but I think they should consider players who are something along the lines of: 1) HoF status player or pretty damn come to it; 2) majority of his career in an NYM uni; 3) not an asshole. Carter fills the first criteria there but doesn't come close to the second. Keith falls somewhat short of both but had a much better Met career than Carter which means if you retire #8 then you're into the same slippery slope dilemma I brought up with the Yanx. I'd listen to arguments about Piazza (will eventually satisfy #1, is close on #2) but given the choice I'd prefer not to.

Benjamin Grimm Feb 17 2015 12:48 PM Re: Numbers to Retire!

I agree. I wouldn't retire any numbers that haven't already been retired. (The player most deserving, I think, is Keith, but he falls short. As does Carter and Piazza.) I expect that David Wright will be next, and given that he'll be the all-time leader at virtually every offensive statistic for a franchise that will be almost 60 years old, I'll be okay with retiring his number.

Mets – Willets Point Feb 17 2015 01:04 PM Re: Numbers to Retire!

I like the idea of not retiring #24, but only issuing it to certain future hall-of-famers who join the Mets late in their career. Actually, in general, I like the idea of issuing particular numbers as an honor to players who achieve great things instead of putting them out of circulation. A player who wins a Cy Young or MVP, or sets a franchise record gets to wear one of the special numbers the following season.