Ultimate Baseball Road Trip (9 page)

The upper tier of the third deck rises steeply. The sunroof provides shade or rain relief to those seated in Rows 7–17. We should mention that there is a jet stream passing through the very top rows. On a hot August day, this makes Row 17 even more appealing. On a chilly April night, it makes Row 17 dreadful. Either way, the view from that part of the park is marginal at best.

Fans seated in Sections 513 and 514, high above home plate, can see the entire field of play, but if one sits even a section to either side of the batter’s boxes, the nearest outfield corner begins to disappear from view. Proceeding down the baselines, the effect is magnified as the underhang of the deck conspires with railings and stretches of Plexiglas, not to mention the rise of the retaining wall at field level, to block outfield views. We were absolutely astounded by how much fair territory was lost from sight
to us when we ventured into Sections 501–504 along the right-field line. We couldn’t even see the right-field foul pole. The effect is similar for those seated in the upper level along the left-field line in Sections 525–528. If you really want to sit in a top-deck outfield seat (why you’d want to, we have no idea!), a better option is to aim for a straight-on view high above left field in the lower rows of Sections 534–538. But hopefully you’ll have the good sense to shoot for an upper infield seat instead. Also beware that the out-of-town scoreboard hangs over the top rows of Sections 535–538. Rows 14–17 of these sections should be avoided.

Unfortunately for Mets fans, Citi Field was built in Shea Stadium’s old neighborhood and the new park’s arrival did absolutely nothing to spur the development of an entertainment district in the streets surrounding the ballpark. Aside from McFadden’s sports bar, which was built right into the ballpark complex, there are no pubs or restaurants convenient to visit before or after a game. This is a sin for an urban ballpark in our book. It’s one thing if a team decides to build its park outside the city at the junction of highways as in Milwaukee, or within a sports complex aside another sports stadium or two, as in Kansas City. At least then a vibrant tailgating culture may develop amidst a pastoral setting. You probably won’t want to tailgate on the scalding asphalt around Citi Field, surrounded by the mechanical clanks and buzzing machinery of the auto shops across the street. But if you’re still not convinced that this last resort for hungry fans in the pregame hour is unappealing, consider this policy from the Mets website:

Kevin:
So technically you
can
tailgate but you can’t cook food or drink beer. I’m confused.

Josh:
No, my friend. The Mets are confused. Clearly they don’t understand what tailgating is if they think they are allowing it.

Citi Field is located on Roosevelt Avenue in Flushing. Parking costs $19 in the team lots, which open for business four hours before first pitch. From Grand Central Parkway East or West, take Exit 9E (Northern Boulevard East/Citi Field) and you’ll practically flow right into the parking area. Even if your GPS is on the fritz (like ours was) you’ll know when you’re getting close, because the ballpark is clearly visible from Grand Central Parkway. This really isn’t a bad park to drive to, especially compared to its Bronx counterpart. So if you’re blowing in and out of New York in a single day and want to take the road trip car to Citi, don’t be afraid. It’s a pretty easy in and out.

If you’re staying in town and planning to hit the bars or tourist attractions in Manhattan after the game, then we do suggest taking the subway to Citi. Hop on the 7 Train (Flushing Line), which takes about half an hour to travel from Midtown to the Mets/Willets Point station.

Metro Info and Maps:
www.mta.info/

As for staying in New York for a reasonable rate in a (hopefully) bedbug-free environment, we recommend any of the discount chain hotels—Red Roof Inn, Comfort Inn, Best Western, Sheraton, etc.—in Flushing’s Chinatown. Just a half-mile or so from the ballpark, these allow for an easy walk to the game.

If you’ve read this book before or have poked at a couple of other chapters already, you know that this is the place in each chapter where we review the extremely seedy-looking auto shops in the ballpark neighborhood. Wait a minute. That doesn’t sound right, does it? Come to think of it, we usually start off by describing the festive baseball attractions around each city’s hardball cathedral, as well as the best restaurants. But the streets around Citi Field are dominated by the specter of car repair shops. We’ve never seen so many in such a cluster before. We observed muffler shops, body shops, transmission shops, brake shops, paint and detail centers, tire warehouses, auto glass repair shops, a scrap metal yard, and pretty much any and every other kind of car-repair, upkeep or salvage establishment we could imagine, all packed into the streets immediately around and across from the ballpark.

Josh:
Do they take every broken down car in the city here for repair?

Kevin:
You’d think this would be prime real estate for a trendy sports bar or two.

Josh:
I think I saw a sports car shop on 126th Street?

Kevin:
I said sports
bar
, not car.

Josh:
Oh.

Not far from Citi Field there resides the Flushing Meadows tennis complex where the U.S. Open is played each year. And in the shadows of the tennis stands tourists find a twelve-story-high stainless steel globe commemorating the 1964 World’s Fair. Kevin calls this the “Death Star” but it’s actually not a half-completed inter-galactic battle station but a jumbo-sized model of planet Earth. You can see it from the 7 Train, or you can walk over for a look and to pose for a few pictures. Or, if you’d rather spend your pregame time in Manhattan, you can just visit the similar “death star” outside the Trump International Hotel and Tower at 1 Central Park West.

Josh:
I can’t believe we just provided free ad-space for The Donald.

Kevin:
He may be a dufus but he’s a rich dufus. Besides, his Death Star is pretty cool.

Josh:
I’m pretty sure it’s not really called a Death Star.

Kevin:
I know. It’s called a “uni-sphere.”

Josh:
You’re right. Death Star has a nicer ring to it.

After spending five decades behind the center-field fence at Shea Stadium, the original Mets Home Run Apple—which arose from a big black hat to celebrate Mets home runs—has found a permanent resting place outside Citi’s main entrance. Adorned by a lush bed of petunias, marigolds, and lilies, the old apple now welcomes fans to the game as they vacate the Willets Point subway station and make their way toward the Jackie Robinson Rotunda. This is the perfect spot to pose for a picture with the apple and stadium in the background.

As you trace the stadium footprint heading to, or from, the parking lot, the walkway is adorned by vertical banners portraying favorite Mets of the past. Mind you, this is a team that in its first five decades saw fit to retire just one of its playing alums’ uniform numbers—Tom Seaver’s No. 41—and by perusing this quasi-Walk of Fame you can kind of see why. The players represented here were all good but unspectacular in their day. We passed by banners honoring Robin Ventura, John Franco, Ray Knight, Lenny Dykstra, Bob Ojeda, Tommy Agee, Darryl Strawberry, Jerry Koosman, and Keith Hernandez, and thought it was wise that the Mets have stopped short of paying more of them the ultimate compliment. When we got to a banner for Jose Reyes we wondered first if he would stay with the Mets upon becoming a free agent after the 2011 season, and then whether he would one day live to see his No. 7 hanging retired at Citi. The answer to the first question was decided in the negative before this book’s arrival on bookstore shelves when Reyes signed with the Marlins. And that first answer may determine the latter one. Reyes—who hit a standup triple during our game at Citi—appears Cooperstown-bound. Unfortunately, he didn’t play for the Mets long enough to become the sort of franchise icon so few players become these days.

For easy access to arriving and departing players, we recommend that Sharpie-carrying fanatics stake out the driveway near the right-field entrance of the park, opposite Lot G. Only a few seriously obsessed seam-heads were waiting on the day we visited, but we didn’t stick around long enough to see if they had any luck. We had bigger fish to fry. We had to see if the beer at McFadden’s was as cold as we hoped it would be (it was!).

Speaking from the standpoint of two guys traveling to baseball parks and looking for good clean fun along the way, the neighborhood surrounding Citi Field might only be described as a “black hole.” Fortunately, there is one quality
club attached to Citi Field. It’s more a haven for swinging twenty-somethings, but it did the trick for us in a pinch. We also took the 7 Train one stop to Corona Park. We recommend going this extra mile into the Corona neighborhood only to those with time to kill. Then again, if you have free time in New York City, you can probably find something more enjoyable and culturally enlightening to do.

36-2 126th St.

www.mcfaddensballparkny.com/

Built right into the ballpark complex near the Bullpen Gate and Lot A, but accessible only from the sidewalk outside, McFadden’s is the only show in town when it comes to eating and drinking in the immediate vicinity of Citi Field. It offers a hopping pregame and postgame atmosphere that comes complete with blaring music, slinky waitresses, and a DJ imploring young ladies to get up on the bar and earn free shots. There is a large dining area too, where patrons can sit down and chow on reasonably priced pub food. The expected Mets decor includes a framed scorecard from the very first game at Citi Field and overhead photos of Citi Field and Shea Stadium. There is also a picture of the mythic Elysian Field. When we visited, they were offering a pregame deal: $30 for unlimited drinks before the game. If that isn’t a binge-drinker’s delight, we don’t know what is.

52-02 108th St., Corona

http://thelemonicekingofcorona.com/

On a hot day, this Corona shop becomes a virtual “must visit.” The King offers nearly one hundred flavors of Italian ice. It was a New York City scorcher when we were in town. Kevin tried the grape, which had delicious whole frozen grapes in it. And Josh ordered the lime, which was streaked with frozen lime peels.

4602 104th St., Corona

This famous Italian bodega serves an array of exceptional Italian sandwiches, of both the hot and cold variety. The lunch buffet is a deal at only $6.99 per pound. We also highly recommend the Mama’s location inside Citi Field, but we’ll tell you more about that later.

108th Street and Northern Blvd., Corona

www.greenfieldchurrascaria.com/location-Corona.html

If you like skewered and seasoned Brazilian meat (Josh could eat the stuff three meals a day), then this is the place for you. The dinner buffet goes for $28.95, there’s valet parking, and the Mets game is always playing on the big screen.

576 9th Ave., Manhattan

www.shortysnyc.com/browsers/shortys/

We’ve included this Times Square–area Phillies bar because we know a great many phanatics from Philadelphia—finding good tickets are hard to come by at home—make the two-hour drive north to watch their boys of summer play the division rivals from New York. Not only can you watch the Phillies play at Shorty’s, but they provide as tasty a steak sandwich as we’ve sampled in any of America’s baseball cities. Yes, we’ve been to Pat’s and Geno’s, and Shorty’s is every bit as tasty and a fair bit juicier for our money. Every day they import fresh-baked Italian hoagie rolls from Philadelphia. They load these up with deliciously seasoned shaved sirloin, topped with cheese whiz or mild provolone. We added peppers and onions to our steaks, along with a pair of 22-ounce drafts. It was a damned good lunch and barely cost us $12 each.

975 2nd Ave., Manhattan