So You Think You Know The Mets: First Subway Series in 1997
You know the first baseball game I ever went to, was in fact not an official game at all. It had all the earmarks of an official game from the smell of the green grass at Shea, to the sounds of a packed house cheering away, and there were even two major league teams ready to battle it out on the field – the Mets versus the Yankees. Of course, I’m referring to the father of the Subway Series – the Mayor’s Trophy Game.
It was 1973, and while I don’t remember the score, I know for certain that the Mets won big. I remember a Cleon Jones triple and a big hit by Buddy Harrelson and that’s about all I can recall from that day – other than a delicious hot dog and a warm soft pretzel. I would go to two more Mayor’s Trophy Games after that one until they came to an end. Those were some fun times.
The Mets and Yankees would not play each other again until June 16, 1997, for the first of three games at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx. The Subway Series was born.
How many of you remember that first Subway Series game? It was glorious… It was a convincing victory for the New York team donned in Orange and Blue and that we beat them on their turf magnified the joy tenfold.
For this weeks edition of So You Think You Know The Mets, I wonder how many players you could name from that first Subway Series game?
The Mets used ten players and the Yankees eleven, and yes, the DH rule was in effect. 21 players in all, and you have a very generous 4 minutes to try and name as many as you can.