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Fifty Missing Aspects
| Edgy DC Aug 21 2006 10:42 PM Edited 2 time(s), most recently on Sep 28 2007 08:44 AM |
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... of the Reunion Ceremony
Bruce is in an amazing situation. He’s technically out of the closet, I guess, but it’s a story the tabloids have missed, despite them gobbling up that crap, even when it’s a highly speculative source. He could’ve created a real media shitstorm by coming out during reunion weekend, gotten ink in every paper (plus airtime) for a day or two for being gay, and then for a few days more for drawing attention from the event. It would be the best thing that ever happened to Paul Lo Duca. 39) Stupid John Gibbons. If he had flipped out on his pitcher a few days earlier, he might’ve gotten fired in time to be at Shea. 38) Kevin Elster was not only not in the uniform number he wore in 1986, but he stood by a giant placard with the correct number as he wore the incorrect one. 37) Randy Myers, though merely throwing a not-particularly-effective 10.2 innings in 1986, felt so strongly about his status as a member of that team that he years later asked the team for permission to re-use the original cast and make himself the ring that the team didn’t offer him. He also made one for each of the other cup-of-coffee players. Camouflage Myers wasn’t typically tagged with the adjective class, but there you have it. The Mets could’ve thrown a little class his way also. 36) Is Steve Zabriskie not a man? If you prick him, does he not bleed? If you snub him, does he not chafe? 35) Barry Lyons was supposed to start the year as the backup catcher, but got hurt, and Ed Hearn made the most of his opportunity. Lyons only got nine at-bats that year, but would go on to contribute to subsequent Mets squads. It would have been nice to undo his bad luck of that season and let him squat once more. 34) Despite the throwback uniforms, a few orange dots got on the field. Charlie Samuels, you’re on suspension. 33) Santana should’ve eaten a balloon. 32) How about Stanley Jefferson entering the field in his cop uniform except for a Met jersey with his shield on it? It would’ve brought Met fans to their fickle little knees. 31) Representatives of Cooters? Where were you guys? 30) Rusty Staub, Met legend, a part of that era if not that team, and qualifies as a 1986 broadcaster. Absent. Boo. 29) Backman and Dykstra should’ve had dirty uniforms. How could a self-promoter like Dykstra blow that? 28) The players called bullpen coach Vern Hoscheit “Dad.” Did the reunion committee think to call him at all? (Last I heard, he isn’t in the best of health, and he was just about the only guy that didn’t get interviewed for The Bad Guys Won.) 27) Who was the Schaefer Player of the Game the night they clinched? Dave Magadan, that’s who. Dave, recently dumped by the division-racing Padres, would’ve appreciated a call and an ovation. 26) And who put the field back together in time for a day game the next day? Pete Flynn did, that’s who. The man deserves an ovation on the field he tended all those years. Unless I missed a memo and he’s dead. If so, forget it. 25) Where was Morganna? 24) An Astros representative should’ve been there. Maybe Charlie Kerfield or Bill Doran. 23) Come on, George Foster may have burned a bridge or two, but we’ve had twenty years to rebuild them with redundant materials this time. George Foster in June 1986.
22) Rick Anderson pitched fine ball for them the second half of the season, but got bumped when Kevin Elster got called up on the last day of August to be the reserve shortstop. He was the first alternate in the post-season, traveling with the team as the batting practice pitcher, and was additionally victimized when the collusive owners decided to make 1986 the year that they took 24-man rosters to the World Series. Anderson should’ve gotten the chance in 2006 he never got in 1986 21) Glenn Close in a 1993 jersey with a swoosh? Charlie Samuels, fired. 20) The signs with the players numbers were nice, but why not send them out to their positions on the field. Kevin Mitchell could’ve taken a tour. 19) Ed Lynch called being traded from the Mets in the midst of a runaway season like being with a family all year long and getting kicked out just before Christmas. That’s the sort of quotability that should’ve gotten him an invite. Bring back Ed. 18) A fight would’ve been fun. You know, maybe a pillow fight 17) A Red Sox representative should’ve been there, maybe Oil Can Boyd or Dave Henderson. 16) He couldn’t have handled the MC job, but a little more Ralph Kiner is usually a good thing. 15) “The Curly Shuffle” is fine. But how about actually having the Jump ‘N’ the Saddle Band perform it? 14) Freaking Lee Mazzilli. Show some backbone, Lee, and tell George that you got something you gotta do. 13) Get help, Lenny. 12) Straw getting the last call was nice, but the Hernandez and Carter were undisputably the team leaders and the eventual co-captains and Carter is a Hall of Famer. 11) Simply not enough speechifying. Brief extemporaneous comments from Keith Hernandez and Mookie were sort of disappointing and anti-climactic. Seaver may be whatever he is, but he always came prepared with welll-considered comments. 10) Tim McCarver (and Ralph and Bill Webb) were as much a era-defining watermark in the broadcasting booth as the Mets were on the field. Tim should’ve been there. 9) Howie Rose was eh. If not Tim McCarver, then definitely Gary Cohen. 8) A little more of the players’ Met career highlights would’ve been welcome, along with their 1986 highlights. 7) Roger McDowell should not only have been there, he should be paid a generous coaches salary to not coach the Braves. Eh, maybe not. 6) And a line or two about what they’ve been up to. 5) Ray Knight was the World Series MVP, and the most gung-ho of dudes. He should’ve been there, and it’s sort of puzzling that he wasn’t. 4) The parachute thingie was fun. But it should’ve surprisingly interrupted the ceremony like it interrupted the game way back when. 3) Few peeps like Fred Wilpon. And fewer like Nelson Doubleday. But nobody likes that they grew to dislike each other. Done correctly, a warm on-field handshake and the two of them entering the field together would’ve gone a long way toward healing some the bitterness of the fan base since 2000, and cleaning the slate for 2006. 2) Davey Johnson should’ve been there. It was simply the defining moment of his career. 1) Dwight Gooden should’ve been there and not in custody. But it’s just one more of too many shoulds in Dwight’s story. And the last of my shoulds. I was glad to see the goodwill that I saw, perhaps ten years too late.
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| Gwreck Aug 21 2006 11:34 PM |
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Wasn't Close in the '94 jersey?
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| G-Fafif Aug 22 2006 02:32 AM |
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I heartily endorse probably every touch you would add, yet, having stood (not sat, but stood) through it, I can say with a few days' hindsight, that I wouldn't change a thing about Saturday night. Davey, Doc, Ray...sure. But even without them, even with the numbers slightly askew, even without optimal staging and inclusive casting and blockbuster production values, it was one of the most beautiful evenings I've ever experienced inside that ballpark. If I've got that, I'm not changing it one hair.
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| MFS62 Aug 22 2006 04:40 AM |
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Yes. Later
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| Edgy DC Aug 22 2006 05:50 AM |
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Yeah, sorry. A non-'86 jersey. Point stands, Charlie Samuels.
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| ScarletKnight41 Aug 22 2006 06:21 AM |
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Actually, optimal staging and blockbuster production values would have detracted from the emotion of the ceremony. It was so powerful because it was pure and not forced.
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| Benjamin Grimm Aug 22 2006 07:14 AM |
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I wasn't there, but even watching on TV it was Goosebump City. It may not have been perfect, but it was perfect.
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| Edgy DC Aug 22 2006 07:22 AM |
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Cheeps, peeps. Take it in the spirit it was offered.
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| SteveJRogers Aug 22 2006 07:27 AM |
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I have a feeling Ms. Close wanted a little representation of the 1969 Mets since that uni had the 1969 25th anniversary patch prominatly displayed. This despite Bud Harrelson being in the building
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| Benjamin Grimm Aug 22 2006 07:29 AM |
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That 1994 jersey was a splash of ugliness on the ceremony. I certainly didn't want to be reminded of a strike-shortened season from the Dallas Green years.
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| MFS62 Aug 22 2006 07:32 AM |
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Fun stuff Edgy.
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| Edgy DC Aug 22 2006 07:35 AM |
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How about Rose covering for his flub, accidentally re-reading Kevin Mitchell's introduction for Tim Teufel? "He played seven positions in 1986... . That was Mitchell, but Tim Teufel was pretty versatile too. And he would have played seven positions if you asked him.Nice cover, Howie. Of course, I would have played seven positions if they asked me.
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| Frayed Knot Aug 22 2006 07:37 AM |
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I suspect that before Koch showed up in the Mets dugout prior to the final out he got himself a quick briefing from his aides to explain to him that this is a baseball game and the team is the M-E-T-S.
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| Benjamin Grimm Aug 22 2006 07:38 AM |
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Was that Pete Flynn serving as Frank Cashen's driver?
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| Benjamin Grimm Aug 22 2006 07:43 AM |
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don't see Koch as "our" mayor, either. He'd appear at Opening Day in his Mets cap but he'd be gone by the second inning.
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| Frayed Knot Aug 22 2006 07:48 AM |
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I have nothing against Koch and kind of liked the fact that he rarely even pretended to be a sports fan -- but I don't look at him as "Our" mayor and, as far as I'm concerned, the fewer politicians at these sort of things the better.
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| Edgy DC Aug 22 2006 07:58 AM Edited 2 time(s), most recently on Aug 22 2006 08:56 AM |
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"I'm old. Politicians, public buildings, and whores all get respectable if they last long enough." --- Noah Cross, Chinatown
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| HahnSolo Aug 22 2006 08:53 AM |
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I actually thought of Clint Hurdle, in the dugout as the opposing manager. He played for the Mets in 1985 and 1987, but not 1986. In 1986 he was with the Cardinals. That's gotta hurt.
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| Farmer Ted Aug 22 2006 09:20 AM |
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I sent a comment to Uni-Watch that El Duque, although in his throwback '86 uni on Sunday, wore the modern cap with the orange button while his teammates correctly wore the blue-buttoned caps.
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| cleonjones11 Aug 22 2006 09:30 AM |
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Clint Hurdle was in jail in 1986 for shoplifting and then in klepto rehab Pete Flynn is alive. Is Cashen alive or was that a "Weekend at Bernies" stunt?
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| MFS62 Aug 22 2006 09:34 AM |
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I did. I saw her on Broadway in Sunset Boulevard. She has a good voice. Later
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| Willets Point Aug 22 2006 09:38 AM |
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Koch was not gay, he was always hanging out with a former Miss America.
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| ScarletKnight41 Aug 22 2006 09:38 AM |
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The first time I ever saw her was in the Broadway production of Barnum in the early 80's. Not only could she sing, but she could also walk a tightrope!
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| Benjamin Grimm Aug 22 2006 09:42 AM |
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I remember sitting at Shea in Loge reserved seats at Game 1 in 1986. I had my binoculars on Glenn Close as she sang the national anthem, and I could see how thrilled she was to be singing for the Mets as they opened the World Series.
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| Edgy DC Aug 22 2006 09:50 AM |
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Fifty-one!
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