The New York Mets announced that they will be building a statue of Tom Seaver to place outside of Citi Field.
It took long enough, but the New York Mets are, finally, properly honoring franchise icon Tom Seaver. After changing Citi Field’s address to 41 Seaver Way in his honor, the team announced on Twitter that they will be building a statue of The Franchise.
⚾️ Tom Seaver statue coming to @CitiField ⚾️
We’ve commissioned a statue of Tom Terrific to be built in front of @CitiField. Additional details to come at a later date. pic.twitter.com/LTUWKR8q0u
— New York Mets (@Mets) June 27, 2019
Seaver, the one and only Tom Terrific, has an association with the Mets that none can match. He was the first star the team ever had and was the leader of the 1969 team that shocked the world to win the World Series over the Baltimore Orioles.
Seaver spent 12 of his 20 seasons in the major leagues with the Metropolitans. He won Rookie of the Year in 1967 and remained with the team until July 15, 1977, when he was traded to the Cincinnati Reds in the infamous midnight massacre. Seaver formed a potent one-two punch with Jerry Koosman for much of his first tenure in New York.
The future Hall of Famer rejoined the team in 1983 and pitched for one season with the squad before being drafted by the Chicago White Sox in the free agency compensation draft that offseason. He won the Cy Young Award in 1969, 1973, and 1975, and was an All-Star 12 times.
He led the MLB in wins twice, including 1969, ERA three times, complete games in 1973, shutouts twice, strikeouts five times, WHIP and H/9 three times each, K/9 six times and K/BB three times. Tom Terrific finished top 10 in MVP voting five times.
He entered the Hall of Fame in 1992 with 98.84% of the vote, the highest total until Ken Griffey Jr. in 2016. He is currently the third highest behind Griffey and New York Yankees closer Mariano Rivera.
He was the first player to enter the Hall of Fame as a Met and remains one of two with their logo on his cap (Mike Piazza being the other one). His No. 41 is one of five numbers to be retired by the Mets, joining Gil Hodges (14), Piazza (31), Casey Stengel (37) and Jackie Robinson (42).
It’s come far later than most hoped to see it, but Seaver is finally getting the recognition that he deserves.
