The New York Mets were founded in 1962 and atthe time,it seemed the club was a filler club, created to replace the departed New York Giants and Brooklyn Dodgers, teams of great fame. The team since the ’60s has carved out its own history and rabid fan base. Since their inception, the Mets have won two World Series in 1969 and the unforgettable 1986 season.
When thinking about the design for the New York Mets MLB soccer jersey we wanted to pay homage to the teams New York roots. The Mets are very much an attraction in Queens, and we took that focus in representing not only New York, butthe neighborhood the team plays in: Queens.
The Mets have had MLB greats on their roster over the years, fromTom Seaver, Nolan Ryan, Mike Piazza, Willie Mays, and the great Casey Stengel, have all been a part of the Mets organization. But if one really wants to talk about the Mets, all Met fans will point to the Mets of the 1980s,with Gary Carter, Ron Darling, Keith Hernandez, Daryl Strawberry, David Cone, and the unforgettable Lenny Dykstra. Many pundits consider the 1986 Mets possibly the best New York sports team in history, they were a rowdy bunch for sure, andwhen they won the 1986 World Series, it was dubbed that “the bad guys won” given their rowdy nature.
The Mets have already matched wits with two of the teams featured in our jersey series, beating the Boston Red Sox in the 1986 World Series after being down in both Games 6 and 7. In 2000 they did face the New York Yankees in the Subway Series but were overmatched by the much deeper Bronx Bombers. One thing is for sure, the Mets have left their own mark in the MLB and have carved out their place in Baseball history!
METS HOME JERSEY INSPIRED BY THE CLUBS QUEENS ROOTS
The home jersey takes the New York Mets classic color patterns, buttransforms them to have the look and feel of the world-famous Unisphere located in Flushing Meadows Park, a few minutes’ walk from where Citi Field and the old Shea Stadium is/was located at. Anyone who visits Citi Field or goes to see a Mets game on the 7 train or by car cannot miss seeing the Unisphere as they approach the stadium. The Unisphere was built in the 1960s as part of the 1964 New York World’s Fair and is a fixture of Queens and a tourist attraction.
The jersey also features along the neck the two World Series championship years as stars. The 1969 Miracle Mets, whobeat the Baltimore Orioles in 5 games had players like Tom Seaver, Bud Harrelson, Jerry Kossman, and Cleon Jones. Ironically, Davey Johnson was the Oriole player who made the last out of the 69 series, he would later lead the Mets as manager in 1986. The 86 team would beat the Red Sox in a rollercoaster 7 game series with Jesse Orosco striking out Marty Barrett and winning the title in the final play.
The jersey also features the famous New York City skyline near the bottom, paying homage to the club’s team logo which has the skyline incorporated in it. If you look carefully along the sides of the jersey the nicknameThe Bad Guys is present, a nickname that currently stands at the club and pays tribute to the unforgettable 1986 Mets. If you are a Mets fan who can forget Game 6 of the 1986 World Series? Seeing Ray Knight being named MVP of the series or that incredible solo home run by Daryl Strawberry in Game 7.
The crest is the classic Mets cap logo with two stars, the stars representing the two World Series the Mets won. It is customary in soccer for teams to place stars over their logos to represent championships won. Teams like AC Milan, Juventus, Inter Milan, and Bayern Munich have featured stars over their crest to represent championships. Juventus had to stop putting stars all together because, well, theywere winning a lot. Hopefully, that’s a problem the Mets have in the near future.
NEW YORK METS AWAY JERSEY INSPIRED BY THE 7 TRAIN
We got creative for the away jersey, paying homage to the 7 train, a train that starts near Citi Field, and ends at the heart of Times Square. Met fans cram into the elevated train to get to Citi Field to catch games after work or on those long hot summer days. The jersey features the classic violet color that represents the 7 train. Another element is the graffiti, the word Mets are written across the neck in classic New York City graffiti lettering.
If you look closely at the front of the jersey you can find a 7-train logo that makes a direct reference to the train line. When the New York Mets played the Yankees in the Subway Series,the New York papers made reference to the 7 train and the 4 train as if they were going head to head. The 7 train even had New York Mets players on the front of the first cart, so the 7 train is very much a huge Mets fan. The away jersey finishes off with the Mets script logoalong the chest and the two stars and crest in white.
So, what do you think about these Amazin Mets jerseys? Did we get the history of the Mets down? If you rocked these jersey’s,whose number would you put on the back? Piazza, Strawberry, Hernandez, Carter, Cone, Céspedes?