Longtime Loge13 reader and pal Bobster sent along his thoughts and this photo tonight:
Mr. Met has plenty of reason to cry today. For one thing, the Mets lost
their final game of the season and were eliminated from any postseason
play. But even more, today marked the very last baseball game ever
played at Shea Stadium.
Shea opened in April 1964, back when the Mets were a very bad expansion
team. I saw my first ballgame there in July 1965 when my dad took me to
see the Mets play. My mom had clipped out coupons from Borden's milk
cartons, so we got to sit in the grandstands - also called general
admission - for free. I didn't know a lot about baseball back then, as
my dad wasn't really a fan, but a seed was planted that day. By 1969,
the year of the Miracle Mets, I was a diehard fan.
Shea has seen some great things in those 45 seasons, including the two
World Series championships in '69 and '86. But now it's history. The
place will be dismantled and a parking lot will replace it. The Mets
will play right next door, in Citi Field.
This ticket stub is from the 1968 season. I mostly sat high up in the
grandstands because of the affordable price - $1.30 was a good deal. (A
comic book cost 12 cents back then).
