The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
Seaver statue among possible tributes
A statue of Hall of Fame pitcher Tom Seaver is one of the options being considered by the Mets as a tribute to the former pitching great, a source said Sunday.
The team is discussing the options with the Seaver family, the source said. Seaver’s family revealed Thursday that the 74year-old three-time Cy Young Award winner had recently been diagnosed with dementia, a disorder of the mental processes, and has retired from public life.
The family said Seaver will continue to spend time in the vineyards outside his home in Northern California, but will not attend the 50th anniversary of the 1969 World Champion Mets June 28-30 at Citi Field. Seaver will be honored during the celebration with members of his family expected to appear on his behalf.
There is no timetable on when the decision on a tribute will be made, the source said, and whatever is decided likely won’t be ready to be unveiled this season.
The Mets have named several entranceways at Citi Field named after club Hall of Famers including Seaver, Gil Hodges, Casey Stengel and former owner Joan Payson. The Jackie Robinson Rotunda, a shrine to the first African American to play in the major leagues, has an eight-foot sculpture of Robinson’s uniform No. 42. Seaver’s No. 41 is retired by the Mets, along with Hodges (14), Mike Piazza (31), and Stengel (37).
In 2016, Nancy Seaver, the former pitcher’s wife, criticized the Mets for not erecting a statue of her husband and the others with retired numbers. “It’s ridiculous. I’m embarrassed for (the Mets),” she told the Daily News.
At the time Seaver himself said of a potential statue, “I wouldn’t want people throwing rotten eggs and pigeons (messing) all over me. I have a plaque up in Cooperstown that’s across from Walter Johnson and Christy Mathewson.” Seaver also said he believed Hodges, manager of the ’69 Mets, was more deserving of a statue.
Matt Merola, Seaver’s
agent, said he and Seaver “never talked about those things,” referring to a statue, but said “I’m sure it would be great.”
Many former major leaguers have been immortalized in statues, but not by the Mets or Yankees. The Yankees have honored their past stars with plaques and monuments. The museum inside Yankee Stadium does have a statue of catcher Yogi Berra and pitcher Don Larsen in commemoration of Larsen’s perfect game in the 1956 World Series.