Neutral (Citi) Field To Feel A Little Less Neutral in 2010

Mets Blog

By Joseph Pascullo

Monday, November 23, 2009 8:51 AM EST

     Hello fans, welcome on back! Well over the weekend it was announced via press release that the Mets organization will be doing a little bit of remodeling as far as Citi Field is concerned. Sadly no major press releases were released as far as the remodeling of the Mets roster is concerned, still waiting for them to trickle in. The changes that were announced are nothing but pleasing to a Mets fans ears. Citi Field is a gorgeous baseball stadium, there is no denying that statement. However...

     Despite Citi Field's beautiful and elegant look, it was obvious to a lot of fans over the 2009 season that it had its share of flaws. Upon first glance, what really made it stand out and shout in the face of all the other 29 teams and their fans faces "Hey this is the glorious home of the New York Mets, be jealous!" Not a whole lot. With Citi Field, the team seemed to be sort of ashamed and embarrassed of its history, originally hiding the playoff banners out of the way near the bullpens, and being more or less devoid of any photos commemorating historic moments and championship clubs from the days of old. Remember how Shea had the '69 and '86 championship murals out in the outfield visible from both in and outside of the stadium? Shea even had that collage of Mets memories outlined in between the mezzanine and loge sections. It wasn't a whole lot of homage, but with Shea Stadium being what it was, was there really a whole lot of space to do more?

     But with Citi Field (a park much larger than Shea ever was) other than some banners outside the stadium - the place where people obviously are going to spend significantly less of their time - there was next to nothing honoring past Mets feats inside the stadium's confines. And that is something that aggravated me to no end. I'm happy that the announcement of a Mets Hall of Fame & Museum was made. This will boast the teams past accomplishments, things the team should be proud of and should want to flaunt to all people visiting the Mets home, whether they are fans of the club or not. Also renaming various areas of the park, such as VIP entrances and the lower level bridge are great ways to honor and appreciate the men who gave it their all and succeeded immensely when donning Met uniforms. Other smaller additions to Citi Field will include more visible Met logos throughout the park, staircases painted blue and orange, and the flowers outside the Rotunda entrance will also be colored in the same two tones.

     The colors blue and orange need to be more prominent throughout the ballpark. They're the Mets colors, they're the Mets identity. Ask any baseball fan in any part of the country what the blue and orange mix represents and of course they'll respond by saying, "The New York Mets." Those colors are who we are; they should be glowing from every nook and cranny of the ballpark. I personally can't stand this sea of green Citi Field has when it comes to the seat color and the outfield wall. Green?! Why? The color has absolutely nothing to do with the Mets, it makes Citi Field look so cliché and makes it look like its a neutral stadium that any team can play in because two of the most viewable portions of the stadium are shaded a color that had nothing to do with the home team whatsoever. Why not make the seats and wall blue? That color would definitely emanate a more Mets-related feel to the ballpark's visitors. I dig the upcoming Hall of Fame & Museum very much, but I think a dream of mine would be the Mets management saying they're going to rip every neutral green seat and outfield wall padding out of Citi Field and replace them with blue, blue, and more blue!

     Longshot? Maybe yes, maybe not, but one thing I really dislike about the new field that's an even bigger longshot for replacement is the Jackie Robinson rotunda. It's an admirable beautiful thing to see, it really is, but why Jackie Robinson? I know he's a baseball pioneer and all, but can't we save all that lovey doveyness for a place like Cooperstown? This is the home of the New York Mets, a place where biasness towards one team isn't just recommended, it should be expected! Why not Tom Seaver Rotunda? Replace the #42 with the #41, and engulf the rotunda with historical Mets moments. The Jackie Robinson Rotunda may be beautiful, but it honors a man who has no connection to Mets history. It doesn’t belong here. Fred Wilpon got a little to selfish with this area, being a past Brooklyn Dodger fan and all. We fans don’t want to honor a Dodger. There's more Jackie Robinson honor and tribute in this one area then there is Mets remembrance in the whole ballpark. Thankfully the much needed changes have been announced. Let's just see how much more Metsy this park feels come 2010.

     What do you guys think? Think these changes were absolutely necessary? Did you like Citi the way it was, or did you want some remodeling as well? Why did it take the brass until season #2 to realize, "Hey, there really isn't a lot of Mets homage in this place, is there?" Comment your thoughts below, I look forward to hearing from you! As always my dear readers, thank you for stopping by!

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Reader Comments

The following are comments from the readers. In no way do they represent the view of queenscourier.com.

Sergey Kadinsky wrote on Nov 23, 2009 9:46 AM:

" The green stadium seats are an homage to the Polo Grounds in a stadium modeled on Ebbets Field. "

Jimmy V wrote on Nov 23, 2009 10:32 AM:

" Elegant? Hardly. The architects tried too hard to add too many nooks and crannies, too much character into this stadium. There is no architectural unity - CitiField looks like it was designed by a committee - of 14 year olds. I never thought I'd say this, but Shea at least had a personality. CitiField is modern, corporate, and ugly. "

a riz wrote on Nov 24, 2009 10:37 PM:

" the wilpons have a way of turning off met fans., to start rooting for the other team in town has nice as they appear to be they just dont get it. they own the new york mets, not the dodgers.their other problem is in selecting their circle of trust, or advisors .Spending money is not their problem the problem is they trust the wrong people with their money and team "

AJV wrote on Nov 30, 2009 1:50 PM:

" You're completely missing the point n the Jackie Robinson . It has nothing to do with the fact that he was a Dodger, the man helped revolutionize a predominantly white man's sport and helped allow all races to participate in it. He played in Brooklyn which is in New York, so is Queens, so there's a state connection at least. Stop complaining about the Rotunda and leave it for what it is. It's a beautiful tribute to a great man. I also think the problems with the Citi Field itself stems from the fact that's it's a new stadium and not many people are used to it. We've grown to love Shea Stadium even though it wasn't an ideal ballpark, but we dealt with it. So just give Citi Field some time spruce it up a bit and within 10 years the complaints will become less and less. "

AJV wrote on Dec 1, 2009 2:25 PM:

" The reason why the there's a Jackie Robinson Rotunda was because Mets fan wanted the stadium to be named after Robinson ex Jackie Robinson Field or Stadium, you're complaining about one section being named after Robinson, I'd hate to see what you'd say if they changed the name of the stadium after Robinson "

Joe Pascullo wrote on Dec 2, 2009 2:59 PM:

" Should the Yankees honor Tom Seaver? There's a state connection there too lol. I shudder at the thought of the Mets playing at Jackie Robinson Field! Yikes! How would that be different than the Mets playing at Lou Gehrig Park, or Mickey Mantle Stadium? There's no question Robinson did a lot for baseball, none whatsoever. Save Jackie's lovefest for a neutral baseball location, like Cooperstown. Not at the home of the New York Mets, a team Robinson had zero connection to dude. "

Mike D. wrote on Dec 8, 2009 7:37 AM:

" Hey Joseph? Ever been to Camden Yards, Citizens Bank Park or PNC Park? They're not exactly painted in the team colors or covered with statues, either. Shea Stadium wasn't painted bright blue and papered over with Mets pictures because the Mets wanted to honor their history. They did it to hide how spartan and ugly the building was.

And Jimmy V., if a spare, utilitarian donut where you need a telescope to see the infield from the upper deck serving you inedible, cold, stale food is your idea of elegance, I'd hate to visit you at home. Shea Stadium was Robert Moses-style lowest-common-denominator architecture on the cheap. It had all the elegance of the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel and all the grace of the Cross-Bronx Expressway. The only thing it has on Citi Field is its name. "

stamps wrote on Dec 9, 2009 9:18 PM:

" I have to agree with Jimmy v. I don't mind the green seats but the nooks and crannies are overboard and just plain ugly. The fences need to be moved in and lowered to a more universal height. Get rid of the Modell's zone and put the bullpens where you can actually see the players. And what's up with orange foul poles. Again, ugly. The yellow ones in the other 29 mlb parks are much easier to see. "

Thom B wrote on Dec 23, 2009 1:56 PM:

" How about retiring # 17 for captain Keith and # 36 for Jerry Koosman, best damned lefty and Big game pitcher to ever don a Mets uniform. By the way, the Dodgers made money in Brooklyn, that was not the issue that drove them west. Wilpon realizises that you just need to contend to make money, this is why he will not spend what it takes to go the next step and win a championship. "

don b. wrote on Dec 30, 2009 2:41 PM:

" i put on the met game and i cant tell if they are home or away.....you always knew if they were playing at shea. yes it wasn't perfet but it had a personality and a toughness that this latest edition of the mets sorely lacked. "