Mr. Met
| Mr. Met | |
|---|---|
 Mr. Met at the Mets workout at Citi Field April 5, 2009. |
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| Team | New York Mets |
| Description | Man with a baseball for a head |
| First Seen | April 11, 1962 |
| Website | Official Website |
Mr. Met is the official mascot of Major League Baseball's New York Mets. He is a man with a large baseball for a head. He can be seen at Citi Field during Mets home games, has appeared in several commercials as part of ESPN's This is SportsCenter campaign, and has been elected into the Mascot Hall of Fame.[1]
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[edit] History
Mr. Met was first introduced on the cover of game programs, yearbooks, and on scorecards in 1963, when the Mets were still playing at the Polo Grounds in northern Manhattan. When the Mets moved to Shea Stadium in 1964, fans were introduced to a live costumed version. Mr. Met is believed to have been the first mascot in Major League Baseball to exist in human (as opposed to artistically rendered) form.[2] He was also the first person on the Mets to be represented by a bobblehead doll.
In the 1960s, he occasionally appeared in print with a female companion, Lady Met (sometimes known as "Mrs. Met"), and less frequently with a group of 3 "little Mets" children; the smallest was a baby in Lady Met's arms.
In the mid 1970s, the Met franchise dissolved the Mr. Met mascot and he remained absent for almost 20 years. Unfortunately, he was phased out prior to the upsurge in mascot popularity caused by The Famous Chicken and the Phillie Phanatic in the late 70s. [1] In 1992, long time Met fan, Lois Kaufmann of Queens, New York, wrote a compelling appeal for his reinstatement and asking the Mets to resurrect the mascot.[citation needed] The team did not act quickly or grant Lois her request to be Mr. Met. Frank Manzo refused to allow this to happen. However, in 1994, they did follow her advice and revived Mr. Met as part of a promotion with Nickelodeon. After a long absence, Mr. Met was quickly reembraced by New York Mets fans and has since remained a constant part of the franchise.
On April 14, 2002, the Mets held a birthday party for Mr. Met at Shea Stadium. It was attended by costumed mascots from all around Major League Baseball and by Sandy the Seagull, mascot of the Brooklyn Cyclones, a Mets farm team.[2] Lady Met was conspicuously absent.
In the 2003 season, first baseman Tony Clark was the first Met ever to wear #00, Mr. Met's number. In June of that season, he switched to #52 when Queens schoolchildren asked him what had happened to Mr. Met.[citation needed]
On September 14, 2007, Mr. Met was elected into the Mascot Hall of Fame.
Beginning on August 14, 2009, throughout their series against the San Francisco Giants, the Mets wore throwback jerseys featuring a Mr. Met patch on the right sleeve.[3]
Currently, Mr. Met can be seen at Citi Field during and after games. He is usually found near Mr. Met's Kiddie Field where fans can meet and pose for pictures with him. He can be rented for special events and private parties. Mr. Met is also featured on Mets Money, which are $1, $5 and $10 denomination gift certificates accepted at concession stands and souvenir shops at Citi Field . The design is somewhat reminiscent of standard U.S. currency, but instead features images of Mr. Met attired and posed similarly to the historical official (Washington, Lincoln or Hamilton) featured on the respective bill.
The original Mr. Met head is now on display at the New York Mets Hall of Fame and Museum at Citi Field.
[edit] Performers
Mr. Met has been portrayed by many people over the years. Dan Reilly was the first person to wear the Mr. Met costume, starting in 1964. According to the March 20, 2006, issue of The New Yorker, Reilly is working on a book about his experiences with the team, to be called The Original Mr. Met Remembers.[4]
Mr. Met was portrayed from 1994 through 1997 by A.J. Mass, currently a fantasy sports writer for ESPN and author of the book How Fantasy Sports Explains the World, published in August 2011.[5]
[edit] Outside baseball
In a 2003 This is SportsCenter ad, when the show ends, everyone rushes out of the studio, creating a massive traffic jam. It then shows Mr. Met and Lady Met driving home on the freeway (with the Met children in the back), with Lady Met subtitled as saying they were glad to get out early. The New York Mets theme song, "Meet the Mets", is on their car radio. (A shorter version with just the Mets family has Lady Met accusing Mr. Met of making eyes at one of the female ESPN sportscasters.)
In 2009, Mr. Met appeared in another This is SportsCenter ad, which Mr. Met is talking with Stuart Scott at a microwave. When Josh Hamilton shows up to use the microwave, Mr. Met angrily gestures at him and walks away. Hamilton is confused until Scott reveals that some of the balls Hamilton hit in the 2008 Home Run Derby were actually relatives of the mascot.
In 2007, Mr. Met became a spokesman for MTA New York City Transit, appearing on several advertisements and safety messages within the New York City Subways and buses.
He was also featured in commercials for MLB 06: The Show, a video game for Sony's PlayStation 2, where a camera crew followed him around as he performed his daily duties, such as buying coffee and picking up his laundry. In 2010, he began appearing in commercials for Citi Bank that aired during Mets broadcasts, inducing Mets fans to join him in a "Let's Go Mets" cheer during mundane activities such as business meetings.
He has his own Build-A-Bear Workshop store, but instead of at Citi Field, it's located at their flagship store on Manhattan's Fifth Avenue.
Mr. Met is the subject of the children's book Mr. Met and his Journey Through the Big Apple, by Aimee Aryal. It tells of the mascot's journey through New York City with a few Mets fans.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Goff, Liz (2007-10-03). "Mr. Met Voted Into Mascot Hall Of Fame". Queens Gazette. http://www.qgazette.com/news/2007/1003/features/045.html. Retrieved 2009-10-04.
- ^ a b McGuire, Stephen (2002-04-25). "He's In The Army Now: The Life And Times Of Mr. Met". Queens Tribune. http://www.queenstribune.com/archives/featurearchive/feature2002/0425/feature_story.html. Retrieved 2009-10-04.
- ^ "Mets to wear New York throwback uniforms to honor National League Heritage August 14–16 at Citi field | mets.com: Official Info". Archived from the original on 2009-08-15. http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/news/press_releases/press_release.jsp?ymd=20090812&content_id=6389214&vkey=pr_nym&fext=.jsp&c_id=nym. Retrieved 2009-08-13.
- ^ McGrath, Ben (2006-03-20). "Meet the Mets". The New Yorker. http://www.newyorker.com/archive/2006/03/20/060320ta_talk_mcgrath. Retrieved 2009-10-04.
- ^ Sandomir, Richard. "Mr. Met Keeps His Head Up," The New York Times, Friday, January 6, 2012.
[edit] External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Mr. Met |
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