The Wave’s Mark Healey (right center) led off the event by moderating “The State of the Mets” panel, which has been part of the QBC since its inception. Prospect expert Joe DeMayo (left,) Newsday’s Tim Healey (left center,) and WFAN’s Danielle McCartan (right) filled out this year’s dais. Photos by Anthony Santino.
A promotional video that plays at Citi Field before New York Mets home games has players from the organization laying out some ground rules for spectators to follow. During his playing career, the recently retired David Wright shared a message of appreciation in one version of that video in which he said, “Mets fans are the greatest fans in the world.” At the sixth annual Queens Baseball Convention (QBC) held on Jan. 19, fans of the borough’s Major League Baseball team assembled at the sold out event and made their case for why they embody Wright’s sentiments.
Speaking of Wright, the franchise’s all-time leader in hits was the recipient of the QBC’s Gil Hodges Unforgettable Fire Award. The award has been given each year since 2014 to someone from the Mets organization, past or present, who keeps Gil’s legacy alive and “understand[s] what it means to have somebody like that set our team on its path and realize that all the best elements of sportsmanship and humanity can come together in a Mets uniform and a Mets clubhouse,” as explained by Greg Prince. Wright accepted the award in a video presentation.
The event, held at Katch Astoria, featured memorabilia and merchandising vendors, baseball book authors, plenty of great food and drinks, and panels that included sports journalists, Mets executives, and retired Mets players Ed Kranepool, Edgardo Alfonso, Todd Zeile, and Darryl Strawberry. It’s run by diehard fans who originally conceptualized the occasion to fill the void of the team not having a fanfest similar to other MLB organizations.
Pete McCarthy (WFAN) interviewed Mets legend Darryl Strawberry (right), who received a lot of praise from Mets fans at the QBC.
Dan Twohig and Keith Blacknick were the minds behind the QBC, but they were also influenced by another lifelong Mets fan.
“We were actually inspired by Darren Meenan of The 7 Line,” said Twohig. “When he got 300 fans to fly out to Chicago for a Mets game—we [figured we] can certainly get that many to come out here in Queens for a baseball convention, and the response was amazing.”
“I try to do what I can to help promote the event and get as many Mets fans here as possible,” said Meenan. “It’s a good day to see old friends.”
The Wave’s Editor in Chief, Mark C. Healey, was also part of the program at the QBC. He kicked off the day by leading a panel of sports journalists in a “State of the Mets” forum. This panel, along with the other ones hosted throughout the day, fielded questions from fans in attendance to get their takes on the Mets, where they think the organization is going, and where they think it should be going.
Darren Meenan (center) of The 7 Line, a company he created for Mets fans, interviews a QBC attendee.
Justin Yu of Woodside likes the natural camaraderie the QBC provides fans.
“We bleed orange and blue together, and that’s what it’s all about,” said Yu. “It’s my third time here, and every time it’s a blast.”
Andrew Hermida, an illustrator from Bay Ridge, was at the convention to sell Mets themed art.
“I try to go to every home game and draw a different perspective of Citi Field live,” said Hermida. He didn’t make it to every single home game in 2018, but he did have perfect attendance for the 2017 season.
Katch has been open for almost five years. Owner Bill McSorley, a Flushing native, and his wife Roseann were present to make sure that things ran smoothly and fun was being had.
“We love to do it,” said Bill. “We’re a sports bar, we have plenty of space, we think [it was] a great idea. Each time we grow a little more, we make it better for the fans, and we love it.”
Mets legend Ed Kranepool is interviewed by NY1’s Roger Clark.
“We are a Mets house, to say the least,” added Roseann.
During his panel and Q&A session, Strawberry talked about topics ranging from adversity he faced in the minor leagues to his current work as a Christian minister. To the applauding crowd’s pleasure, he also expressed a tremendous amount of praise he still holds for Mets fans and then looked back on the 1986 team’s World Series journey.
“The best team I’ve ever played on was the ’86 Mets,” said Strawberry. “When you go back and you look at that group of guys, the personalities and the swagger that we had—just the belief that we had in winning; we could come back and win any game.”
Based on the energy brought forth by QBC attendees, it would be safe to assume that they’d like to see the 2019 Mets achieve what the organization’s 1986 squad did. In the meantime, with their new signings and GM Brodie Van Wagenen at the helm, Mets fans will have to wait till Spring Training for any concrete indication of winning potential for the upcoming campaign.
Leave a Reply