Read: Seaver Won’t Miss Shea
In an article for Newsday, Barbara Barker gets all-time great Tom Seaver’s thoughts on how he will feel when Shea Stadium is torn down after this season.
Seaver, as quoted by Barker:
“I said this before, and got my rear end in a little bit of hot water. It’s just a physical presence to me. Now the physical is just going to move across the street.”
“I get sentimental about the people. When I’m here, I see the spot where Gil Hodges used to sit. I look to see where Tug McGraw used to sit. That’s what I see. It’s the people who occupied those spaces that are important to me.”
Actually, not to be a stickler, but it’s moving next door.
Also, it is noted in the Bergen Record that Seaver was at Shea yesterday to honor longtime Mets employee James Plummer, and said the following:
“You can’t take this the wrong way. I am not a big fan of the stadium. And it’s strictly an architectural observation.”
I’m sure some people will take that the wrong way, but I agree with Tom. I too won’t greatly miss the structure of Shea itself, but it’s the sentimentality of the old ballpark that I will be sad about. It’s where I saw my first baseball game; where I spent many Sundays; and just all the great memories from being there, usually in the Mezzanine or higher, that I will miss.
I’m also disappointed that I wasn’t around to see “The Franchise” throw for those Miracle Mets, but that’s another story.
