Baseball – Sports News One

The Mets have exhibited a rare blend of stupidity and short-sightedness that should be preserved in a time capsule so that future generations can marvel at their ignorance.

If the news that the team sold the jersey worn by Mike Piazza on the night of the first professional sporting event in New York City following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks wasn’t appalling enough, here’s a more disturbing revelation: The Mets are not in possession of any game-worn jerseys from that magical night.

EXCLUSIVE: METS SOLD OFF GAME-WORN JERSEYS FROM FIRST GAME AFTER 9/11

The team shamelessly profited with a 9/11 fire sale a few years ago, an embarrassing display of greed that defies logic. For a star-crossed franchise with precious few memorable moments, the Mets’ 3-2 come-from-behind win over the rival Braves on Sept. 21, 2001, resonates for reasons that stretch far beyond a baseball diamond.

MARK LENNIHAN/ASSOCIATED PRESS

Mike Piazza wears the NYPD logo on his batting helmet.

Enlarge JEFF ZELEVANSKY/ASSOCIATED PRESS

Mike Piazza gestures to fans after the end of the Mets 3-2 win over the Atlanta Braves in New York on Sept. 21, 2001.

Enlarge

Mike Piazza (l.) wears the NYPD logo on his batting helmet. Piazza (r.) gestures to fans after the end of the Mets 3-2 win over the Atlanta Braves in New York on Sept. 21, 2001.

The magic of that night had little to do with the sport itself. Piazza’s two-run home run in the eighth inning was the signature moment that prompted a cathartic release and promoted healing that seemed unimaginable 10 days earlier.

“I stood in the dugout when that ball went out,” former Mets manager Bobby Valentine told The News Thursday. “It’s more than a home run. Much more than that.”

The game became a symbol of strength in the wake of tragedy. It was a defiant message to all the evil out there: Our way of life goes on.

An FDNY cap and jersey worn by reliever John Franco and an NYPD cap worn by Valentine reside at the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, reminders of a special few hours that galvanized all of us.

New York Daily News

The Mets traded a piece of their history for a quick buck.

Some mementos from that stirring night should have been displayed at the 9/11 Memorial in lower Manhattan or Citi Field. The others should have been sold with all the proceeds going to 9/11 charities.

The Mets had other ideas after getting back the memorabilia from that game and many more from rogue clubhouse manager Charlie Samuels, who pleaded guilty to stealing $ 2.3 million worth of team memorabilia in 2012.

The team’s decision to sell memorabilia for their own financial gain from the most transcendent game in their history boggles the mind. They became tone-deaf profiteers, who squeezed out every last dollar at a private sale, lining their pockets by ringing the cash register with one jersey sale after another without any regard to the meaning of that night.

Alfonzo. Zeile. Ventura. Ordonez. Cha-ching!

It’s enough to make you throw up.

AS MIKE PIAZZA’S 9/11 JERSEY IS PURCHASED, THE MOST EXPENSIVE SPORTS MEMORABILIA IN HISTORY

The Mets “brain trust” (and we use that term loosely) obviously didn’t value the indelible moments at Shea Stadium on that Friday nearly 15 years ago. The moving pre-game ceremony laced with tears so vivid in our memory meant little to them. The chants of USA! shaking the foundation have been forgotten.

The bottom line for the Mets was cold hard cash. The team managed to receive less than $ 50,000 from a private collector for the iconic Piazza No. 31 jersey, prompting any clear-thinking person to wonder: Was it worth it?

There’s no telling how little they actually received for the other game-worn jerseys or any other memorabilia from that night that they might have sold.

STAN HONDA/AFP/Getty Images

New York Mets players bow their heads during a moment of silence at Shea Stadium on Sept. 21, 2001.

The private collector with the Piazza jersey auctioned it off Thursday for $ 365,000 to three die-hard Mets fans, who plan to display it at different times at Citi Field, the 9/11 Memorial and the Hall of Fame.

“There is significant symbolism to this,” said one of the buyers, Anthony Scaramucci, founder and co-managing partner, SkyBridge Capital. “This is part of New York narrative. It’s a message to young people. You’ve got to step back to the plate and you can hit home runs in your life, no matter what is going on. You have to have that level of resilience.”

The meaning of that night should never fade away. It helped us find our way again.

It let us know that it was OK to cheer and celebrate and feel joy even as we grieved the thousands of innocent people who lost their lives.

It helped us heal.

The Mets should be ashamed and embarrassed for exploiting it all.

Baseball – NY Daily News

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Donaldson, Tulowitzki homer as Yankees fall 4-2 to Blue Jays

staff — Fri, 15 Apr 2016 06:49:24 +0000

Frank Gunn/AP

Nathan Eovaldi pitches 6.2 innings but the Blue Jays get to him late as Troy Tulowtizki rounds the bases after hitting a solo home run in the seventh.

TORONTO – A dominant ace, timely home runs and another Blue Jays win. Sound familiar?

Toronto used that combination to rule the American League East for the final two months last season, cruising past the Yankees en route to a division title.

They used the same formula Thursday night as Josh Donaldson hit a go-ahead, three-run homer in support of Marcus Stroman, lifting the Blue Jays to a 4-2 comeback win in the rubber match at Rogers Centre.

“That was a frustrating game in particular,” said Alex Rodriguez, whose hitless streak now stands at 14 at-bats. “We thought we had control of it. We get a couple of extra hits here, maybe we have Stroman on the ropes a little bit. It felt like we let one get away today.”

A two-run fourth inning gave the Yankees a 2-0 lead against Stroman, but they stranded a pair of runners in scoring position as the rally ended, scoring their only runs on a fielder’s choice and a wild pitch.

“That was really the only good chance that we had to get some runs,” Joe Girardi said. “We had the bases loaded with one out and ended up with two runs. He didn’t give us many opportunities.”

Stroman was masterful after that, retiring 12 of the final 13 batters he faced including the last 11 in a row. He needed only 21 pitches to get through his final three innings, allowing only three hits and two walks over eight innings.

The Yankees didn’t have a hit after the fourth and didn’t put a man on base after Jacoby Ellsbury drew a one-out walk in the fifth.

“He’s got really good stuff,” Brett Gardner said. “He does a good job for the most part of staying out of the middle of the plate and keeping guys off balance.”

John E. Sokolowski/USA Today Sports

Josh Donaldson delivers the big blow, blasting a mammoth three-run home run to give the Blue Jays a 3-2 lead.

Roberto Osuna finished the Yankees off with a perfect ninth, dropping the Bombers to the .500 mark and lifting the Blue Jays to the same.

It was the first series loss of the season for the Yankees, who watched a seven-game lead in the AL East fizzle last season, ultimately finishing six games behind the first-place Blue Jays.

Prior to the series, Girardi said this would be a good measuring stick for the Yankees. How did the manager feel they measured up against the defending division champs?

“We had a chance to win every game,” Girardi said.

Nathan Eovaldi delivered a better performance than his five-inning, five-run effort against the Astros a week ago, becoming the first Yankees starter to record an out in the seventh inning this season.

But the Blue Jays proved to be too much for him in the end as Donaldson’s three-run blast erased a two-run Yankees lead and a solo blast by Troy Tulowitzki provided an insurance run.

Eovaldi was charged with four runs on seven hits and two walks, striking out eight over 6.2 innings.

The Yankees scored twice in the fourth for the game’s first runs, but Eovaldi nearly gave them right back in the bottom of the fourth, getting out of a jam to strand runners at second and third.

John E. Sokolowski/USA Today Sports

Marcus Stroman tosses eight innings, retiring the final 11 Yankees he faces en route to a 4-2 Blue Jays win.

He wasn’t so fortunate in the fifth.

A one-out walk to Russell Martin got the rally started. Kevin Pillar doubled down the third-base line, bringing the reigning American League MVP to the plate.

Donaldson took ball one, then unleashed a ferocious swing on an Eovaldi splitter, driving it into the second deck in straightaway center field.

“It’s frustrating,” Eovaldi said “As well as I had thrown the ball tonight, I left that split up.”

The three-run blast – Donaldson’s fifth of the year – put the Blue Jays ahead by a run, handing Stroman his first lead of the night.

“That’s why you call him the MVP, I guess,” Toronto manager John Gibbons said.

Having gone 2-3 on the five-game road trip (the finale in Detroit was rained out), the Yankees head back to the Bronx to open a nine-game home stand Friday night against Robinson Cano and the Mariners.

Baseball – NY Daily News

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Piazza's post-9/11 jersey fetches $365G to stay with Mets

staff — Thu, 14 Apr 2016 23:49:28 +0000

The idea of Mike Piazza’s revered post-9/11 jersey leaving New York struck three die-hard Mets fans as blasphemous.

The deep-pocketed trio stepped up to the plate Thursday with a record-winning bid of $ 365,000 to insure the sacred shirt remains available to the team, its boosters and the baseball Hall of Fame.

“This jersey means so much to the entire city of New York, and we wanted it to remain in New York,” said former Goldman Sachs head trader Tony Lauto, one of the buyers.

MIKE PIAZZA’S POST-9/11 JERSEY COULD GO ON PUBLIC DISPLAY

“We spoke to Mike (Piazza) last night as it was becoming more serious, and he was so appreciative, so that was another motivating factor,” said Lauto.

“We thought, even if (the buyer) was only from out of town, even Chicago, that would be like having it leave the country,” he continued. “This has to be for the fans to enjoy.”

Lauto teamed with SkyBridge Capital founder Anthony Scaramucci and a third, unidentified partner to land the iconic item.

JEFF ZELEVANSKY/AP

Piazza wore the jersey when he slammed a two-run homer at Shea Stadium as baseball returned to the city for the first time since the Twin Towers collapsed.

15 MORE PIECES OF METS MEMORABILIA THE TEAM COULD SELL

The shirt, with an American flag on the back collar and 9-11-01 on the right sleeve, was signed by Piazza.

“Huge thanks to Anthony & Tony for coming through!” future Hall of Famer Piazza tweeted Thursday afternoon. “My family & I couldn’t be more pleased knowing the jersey will be where it belongs. Thank u!”

The No. 31 jersey will reportedly spend time at Citi Field, the 9/11 Memorial Museum in Lower Manhattan, and the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown.

THE MOST EXPENSIVE SPORTS MERCH EVER PURCHASED

Lauto said he lost friends when terrorists brought down the World Trade Center.

Huge thanks to Anthony & Tony for coming through!My family & I couldn’t be more pleased knowing the jersey will be where it belongs.Thank u!

— Mike Piazza (@mikepiazza31) April 14, 2016

Piazza, in a feat permanently etched into the city’s memory, wore the jersey when he slammed a two-run homer at Shea Stadium as baseball returned to the city for the first time since the Twin Towers collapsed.

The blast lifted the Mets past the Atlanta Braves, 3-2, as the city struggled to regain its equilibrium in the dark days after the terrorist attack.

The Mets sold the jersey three years ago to a private collector with a massive team memorabilia collection.

According to Ken Goldin, whose New Jersey-based Goldin Auctions handled the bidding, a formal announcement is expected Monday after the trio outbid four other interested parties.

It was the highest price ever paid for a modern day jersey, topping the $ 303,000 paid for Kirk Gibson’s 1988 “limp-off” home run jersey from the World Series.

“I’m glad for the city of New York that this has worked out,” said Goldin. “It is something I thought was the right thing to do.

“Sometimes it is more important to see something like this get treated the right way than to get every last penny out of an item.”

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Baseball – NY Daily News

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