After a last-minute cleaning blitz – most of the responsibility for the cleaning goes to sprite – we welcomed her parents into town for a weekend of dining and baseball. It was wonderful to have them back in town (they lived here nearly full-time for 14 years), and they got to see the Mets crush the Nats today, 8-2.
It’s somewhat sad that, just as they left to resume full-time residence in Connecticut, DC got a MLB team. But they’ve been back every year to take in a Mets-Nats game. And with this year’s win, the Mets are now 2-1 in games the family attends together at RFK.
Of note is the fair-weather fandom of the Nats fans at today’s game. By the 7th inning stretch, after the Mets went ahead for good, fans in Nats gear started to make their way home. This worsened in the 8th, when the Mets added insurance runs. A few die-hard Nats fans stayed, including a very vocal man about 3 rows behind us, who tried to get the crowd to chant “let’s go Nats.” A happy usher urged him to continue, saying “it’s not over yet” as the Mets continued to score runs.
But the crowd also had its fair share of Mets fans (DC is a city of transplants, after all, and NYC is a short train, bus or plane ride away), and the chants of “let’s go Mets” were loud, with the reactionary “boos” from Nats fans getting less and less audible as fortunes turned towards the boys from Flushing.
Being a quartet of Mets fans, we stayed to the very end – after all, the Mets have an uncanny reputation for blowing leads in the 9th. But the Mets held on, giving up nothing in the end.
A funny sight at the game: Sandy Alomar, Sr. (3B coach for the Mets), giving signals to Sandy Alomar, Jr. (C for the Mets) during the latter’s first at-bat in the game. “Junior” was called up from New Orleans yesterday, as their top two catchers – Paul LoDuca and Ramon Castro – are on the disabled list. And at 41, he still does a great job as catcher.
16 more home games at RFK before its baseball days are over.
jank
20 August 2007 — 06:33
Likewise, Shea’s days are numbered, too.
Thank goodness.
Grand Poobah
20 August 2007 — 10:14
Funny thing: I’ve enjoyed games at Shea, just like I’ve enjoyed games at RFK. Yeah, the places are old and rickety, but they really rumble when the crowd gets into it. The newer ballparks tend to lack this aspect, which is a shame.
And the worst part is this: our current season tickets at RFK are about 24 row up, directly behind home plate, and under the upper deck overhang. Thus, our view is perfect, and we’re covered for rain delays. The tix are $34 a piece, and life is good.
In the new stadium, the same seats (which wouldn’t enjoy the same rain protection) are $150 a piece – talk about inflation! That’s what infuriates me: it’s all about the greed of the owners and the players union.
So I’m enjoying RFK while I can.