No Mets fan fest? No problem.
It’s the time of year when the last pitch of the World Series and the first pitch of spring training both seem like an eternity away. That’s why many teams use this time to connect with their fans. When they aren’t signing washed up players to minor league deals that is. If you’re a Mets fan though, there is no mid-winter celebration to fill this void. Or at least there wasn’t until the fans took matters into their own hands and put together the first Queens Baseball Convention on January 18.
For me, the journey started in Massachusetts. And then went up into New Hampshire because I needed to get gas. From there, I crossed Massachusetts and Connecticut before stopping in New York to prepare for the event the next day. It may not sound like an epic journey, but it sure looked like one from the train along the Hudson on Saturday morning. Ice and snow gave way to cold rain as Citi Field drew near.
The home run apple was not welcoming fans to a game on this dreary day. The gates to the Jackie Robinson Rotunda were closed and locked. What few fans approached the stadium made the long walk around to the back where McFadden’s Citi Field and the Queens Baseball Convention welcomed them in from the cold.
This was my first trip to McFadden’s, so I wasn’t sure what to expect. A convention in a bar? How would that work exactly? It turns out that the bar area is actually just a small part of the space. The bulk of the activities took place in two main panel/presentation areas: the one shown above and a separate room through the doorway at the left end of the back wall.
But before you could get to those, you had to pass through the vendor gauntlet. The 7 Line’s Darren Meenan was there to make sales and greet fans when he wasn’t busy with other QBC duties. Other vendors displayed photos, books, collectibles, and even pieces of Shea Stadium.
Taking a right from the entrance would give you a slightly different view. Ed Marcus spent the first hour of the convention perched on a small ledge over a pool of water. Anyone able to hit a small target with a large ball (or their hand if they took a less sporting approach) would get to see him splash down.
Various mascots could be found among the crowd for most of the afternoon. Brooklyn Cyclones mascots Sandy the Seagull and Pee Wee greeted fans at the start of the event. Mr. Met made an appearance later on and stole the show wherever he went.
Brooklyn Cyclones GM Steve Cohen was one of the first speakers of the day. A new media panel was in progress on the other side of the wall.
Next on the agenda was former Mets pitcher and current Mets broadcaster Ron Darling, who spoke for an hour to a maximum capacity crowd before signing autographs. Darling shared stories about college baseball, his trade to the Mets, his playing days in Queens, and broadcasting. Most notable was the story about how he changed his uniform number from 15 to 12 just to confuse Mets PR director Jay Horwitz.
@kranepool with Ed Kranepool
While fans were waiting for autographs from Ron Darling, Ed Kranepool arrived to a warm greeting from the assembled crowd. Kranepool spoke at length about the importance of the fans and expressed displeasure over the team’s experiment with black as a uniform color. He then signed autographs and spent some time taking in the sights.
Before he left, Mr. Met joined event MC Jeff Hysen in leading the crowd in a rousing rendition of Take Me Out to the Ball Game. For someone who doesn’t speak, he’s a pretty good singer.
Uni Watch’s Paul Lukas then moderated The Greatest Discussion of Mets Uniforms of All Time, which included some of the foremost experts on Mets uniforms and insignia. MLB logo designer Todd Radom revealed a long-forgotten Sporting News article that told the story of the creation of the Mets logo, the original version of which was drawn up in pink and black. Stitches owner Russ Gompers then filled in a few pieces of recent Mets uniform history including the story behind Jason Isringhausen’s Mercury Mets jersey having the name “Izzy” on the back.
By 5pm, the event was winding down. Much like a baseball game, that just means that the crowd was down to the die-hards. First up for the late crew was The 7 Line dating game, offering lucky guys a chance at a date with one of the girls featured in the company’s annual calendar.
Things got a bit more serious with the presentation of the Gil Hodges Unforgettable Fire Award. Greg Prince presented this award, dedicated to the memory of the late Mets manager with the blessing of the Hodges family, to Gil Hodges Jr. with 1969 Met Art Shamsky on hand to say a few words.
And the final Mazzy is presented to… Matt Harvey?
The evening concluded with the presentation of the Mazzy awards, a not entirely serious awards ceremony whose winners were almost certainly not going to be in attendance. One winner was present, but the remainder of the golden bobbleheads were distributed to anyone who happened to be nearby. And with that, QBC14 came to an end. There was much more that I didn’t see, but just this much was a full day. I was going to need a day to recover, so of course I was off to another event the next day. But that’s another story.
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