7
2011
A New “I Have a Dream” Speech
An article by Tom Terrific (Stephen Hanks)
As more and more information is released about the connection between the Wilpons, Saul Katz and their families to one of the greatest scammers of all time, it is becoming clear that it is not just a minority partner that the club needs, but totally new ownership.
Whether the Wilpons willfully continued dealing with Madoff in spite of what they knew or were blissfully blind to his shenanigans doesn’t matter any more. Either way, they have been revealed to have been greedy, selfish and totally incompetent. That this group was allowed to decide to tear down the beloved, if flawed, Shea Stadium and build a nice, if flawed, new park in Citi Field has turned out to be a travesty.
Actually, the continuing news about how deep the owners were in with Madoff should be regarded by Mets fans as a blessing in disguise. It could lead to what we all would have loved to have happened years ago–that these posers sell the franchise. By the way, now that we know about the timing and the details of the Wilpons involvement with Madoff, can the lost NLCS of 2006, and the disaster collapses of 2007 and 08, and the decimation of the team by injuries in 2009-10, be seen as anything but karmic payback for the owners’ borderline criminal activities?
It has been reported/rumored that a number of potential new owner groups have come forward with interest in buying a part or all of the team, one led by Martin Luther King III. That got me to start fantasizing about a coming press conference in which the son of the great civil rights leader might address the issue with a nod to his father’s famous 1964 speech at the Capital. It might go something like this:
Martin Luther King III is rumored to be one of the new potential owners of the Mets. We can only dream.
THE “I HAVE A DREAM FOR THE METS” SPEECH
I am happy to speak to you today–in the shadow of Jackie Robinson’s Rotunda tribute at Citi Field–as a potential new owner of the New York Mets. And when that day happens, when the signatures on the transfer of ownership are official, it will go down as the greatest day of relief for Mets fans in history of the franchise.
Almost 50 years ago, a legendary Mets manager anointed the new baseball team in the National League “The Amazin’ Mets. This momentous moniker came to symbolize what became a beloved franchise, which when born came as a joyous daybreak to end the long wait for a new National League team after the Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Giants abandoned us.
But almost 50 years later, the Mets fan feels abandoned once again. Fifty years later, the life of the Mets fan has been sadly crippled by the abuses of the Wilpons. Fifty years later, the Mets fan lives on a lonely island, continually subjected to the empty promises of the current owners, their horrendously poor personnel decisions, and having to listen to Mike Francesa mock and demean us. And so we’ve come here today to to offer a ray of hope.
I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of great trials and tribulations. Some of you have experienced the heartbreaking disasters of 2007 and 2008. And some of you have suffered from years of watching managers who could not tend to a bullpen. Some of you suffer the ultimate indignity of rooting for a team rendered second-class citizens to the hated New York Yankees.
But I say to you today Mets fans, let us not wallow in the valley of despair and Art Howe.
And so even though we face the prospect that the Wilpons could prevail in keeping their team in spite of their sleazy and greedy dive into the Madoff dark side, even though we face the prospect of more years in second division despair, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the dreams of all Mets fans–since the days of Jane Jarvis, Homer the Dog, Marvelous Marv Throneberry and a Black Cat.
I have a dream that one day this franchise will rise up and live out the true meaning of its theme song: ” . . . Because the Mets are really sockin’ the ball; knocking those home runs over the wall.”
I have a dream that one day the ballpark known as “Citi Field” will be called “Seaver Stadium,” in honor of the greatest Mets player of all time.
I have a dream that one day the majestic outfield walls of this park will be lowered and the ridiculously massive spaces of the outfield will be altered so this park will be transformed into an oasis of excitement, runs, and David Wright homers.
I have a dream that families who root for this team will one day be able to come to a ballpark where they will not have to mortgage their home to buy season tickets or spend half of their weekly salary on hot dogs, Shake Shack smoothies and over-priced parking.
I have a dream that one day Mets players will not be judged by the size and length of their contract but by the character of their play.
I have a dream today!
I have a dream that one day, down in the minor leagues, our farm clubs will be filled with the most talented players from all over the world, with no regard to where they fit in a slotting system.
I have a dream today!
I have a dream that one day every baseball fundamental shall be exalted and every ground ball shall be run out; that lead off hitters will ignore pitches in the dirt, that pitchers will consistently throw strikes, and that Oliver Perez will find another line of work.
I have a dream today!
I have a dream that our new front office management, led by the capable Sandy Alderson and his lieutenants, will be able to negotiate for trades and free agent signings armed with the capital they need to compete with any team in the majors!
This is our hope, and this is the faith that I keep close to my heart as a lover of the national pastime.
With this faith, we will be able to transform our discordant ball club into one that plays the game like a beautiful symphony of teamwork. With this faith, we will be able to cheer together, sing Sweet Caroline together, play between-innings scoreboard video games together, catch T-shirts shot into the sky together, and boo Luis Castillo together, knowing that we will be champions again one day.
And this will be the day — this will be the day when all Mets fan will be able to sing with new meaning:
Meet the Mets, Meet the Mets.
Step right up and greet the Mets,
Bring your kiddies, bring your wife,
Guaranteed to have the time of your life!
And so if the Mets are to be a great franchise, what must become true is that the Wilpon family sell the team in it’s entirety and without hesitation.
So let Mets fan freedom ring from Brooklyn; the borough of churches and trendy new restaurants.
Let Mets fan freedom ring from the rising rentals of Astoria, Queens.
Let Mets fan freedom ring from the shadow of a totally over-the-top Stadium in the Bronx.
Let Mets fan freedom ring from the wealthy precincts of Manhattan’s Upper East Side and the Sarah Palin-despising lefties on Upper West Side.
Let Mets fan freedom ring from the Guidovilles of Staten Island and the Jersey Shore.
Let Mets fan freedom ring on WFAN, SNY and Michael Kay’s pro-Yankees ESPN show.
From every newspaper, magazine and website, let Mets fan freedom ring.
And when this happens, when the Wilpons sell this club and allow Mets fan freedom to ring, we will be able to speed up that day when all Mets fans, TV couch potatoes and stat geeks, web bloggers and Joe Benigno, transplanted New Yorkers in Miami and Jerry Seinfeld, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the great old theme song:
East Side, West Side, Everybody’s Comin’ Down
To Meet the M-E-T-S METS,
Of New York Town!
About the Author: Stephen Hanks
Stephen Hanks (Tom Terrific) is a magazine editor and writer based in Brooklyn, NY, who has been the publisher and editorial director of publications ranging in subjects from sports to health to archaeology. Hanks began his career at the late, great SPORT Magazine in 1977 and in 1983, he co-founded NEW YORK SPORTS Magazine (which ceased publication in 1985). He has written and edited coffee table books on baseball history, penned unauthorized biographies of Bo Jackson and Wayne Gretzky, and in 1990 authored "The Game That Changed Pro Football," an oral history of the 1969 New York Jets Super Bowl Season. Stephen has also played baseball for 45 years and currently plays in an Over-40 hardball league based in Northern New Jersey. Even though he grew up near Yankee Stadium, he loathes the team from the Bronx and has been a die-hard Mets fan since attending his first game at the Polo Grounds in 1963.
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NL East Standings
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Braves | 23 | 18 | .561 | - |
| Nationals | 23 | 19 | .548 | 0.5 |
| Phillies | 20 | 22 | .476 | 3.5 |
| Mets | 16 | 23 | .410 | 6.0 |
| Marlins | 11 | 31 | .262 | 12.5 |
Last updated: 05/18/2013
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To compare baseball to the Civil Rights movement where many died and many other were inprisoned fighting for equality and human decency is horrid. This is the absolutely worst post ever. I’m sure you were trying to be funny, but you failed. Delete your article.
Lighten up. Nobody was trying to demean the human rights movement.
Bad choice of comparison…. ever consider MLK3 is likely a lifelong Braves fan?
u should just apologize, take the blame for extremely IMPROPER BAD TASTE & be gone, leave the prose to those with the proper perspective & life experiences.
Ya, because Atlanta and the South were so good to his family, what with the dogs and the hoses and the beatings and the arrests and the EXPLOSIVES THROWN THROUGH THE LIVING ROOM WINDOW!
How about you appologize for acting like you know what is going through the mind of a man you never met? Or maybe read the articles where MLK III has publically expressed itnerest in purchasing a share of the Mets.
Donal, I believe the city where u are borm,lived bears more on team fandom preference than how a city treats u. Atlanta’s behavior in the 60s was not worse than Mobile,Selma or other Southern cities. As Atlanta was the singular baseball city below the Maso-Dixon, the liklihood of altyernative choices for a kid to root was his hometown one esp in such proximity to Aaron’s career.
You might think that, but you don’t know what is going on in his head. He’s publically expressed interest in the Mets. He may have in fact grown up a Braves fan, but he may see this as an opporunity to get in on a big league team.
Let’s read his actions and not his mind.
Are you retarded or something? Where did you see anything mean spirited here? I applaud him for reminding everyone that february is back history month and doing it in a respectful and clever way.
Thank you, Stache, for pointing out the BHM connection. Obviously Harry doesn’t know me but you won’t find anyone more supportive of the rights of African Americans than I am. That MLK speech is one of the greatest ever delivered and if I thought I was being disrespectful, I would never have written that or posted it.
Harry, wow, really? I was actually enjoying the post and had a good laugh and then I read your comment about death and destruction and armageddon. Do you have sensitivity issues? Go grab a Kleenex you jackwagon!
You’re really not one to tell people about perspective, given some of thelanguage you’ve used to describe the events of the last few months.
Another bad day for Harry C. Did you forget your prune juice, Harry?
I wanted say some more because I thought you did an excellent job, but for now let me just say great post. Some people take the fun out of things.
I think most Mets fans have a dream of a Wilpon free future. It has become absolutely clear either, A, the Wilpons are complete imbeciles who were clueless to the goings on of Bernie Madoff or, B, that they willfully participated in a scheme which ruined hundreds, if not thousands, of lives. While their Madoff investments “technically” were completely separate from the Wilpons’ “Family” business (the Mets) at the time, because of the lawsuit, the franchise, the players, and the fans are now suffering the consequences of Wilpon indiscretion. The first real victim would appear to be Jose Reyes whom it would now appear to be too expensive for the Mets to re-sign. A team playing in the biggest market on the planet cannot afford to keep one of their more popular players because the owners are embroiled in off the field controversy that is sapping funds from the team, even though the team had NOTHING to do AT ALL with the controversy to start with. Given the fact that they play in NY, with a brand new beautiful stadium, and TV revenues one would think that the NY Mets could afford to retain Reyes and keep him from moving elsewhere in 2012.
Sadly, with ownership in shambles and a new GM who values OPS (+walks, walks, and more walks) more than true 5 tool talent, the formula is just right to watch one of the Mets most talented and entertaining players ever walk out the door. And the consolation for this is either A-two compensation picks in the June 2012 amateur draft, or B- a couple of worthless minor league players in July if the Mets are out of the race. Mets fans, this is what the Wilpon family has handed us for the 2011 baseball season. No hope, no joy, just lawsuit settlements, the spector of watching Reyes play his last ever season with the Mets, and DJ Carrasco. What more evidence needs to be presented that the Wilpon regime needs to be overthrown? Is David Wright the next Mets star to be shown the door because the Wilpons will end up spending Mets money to settle the lawsuit that should have NOTHING to do with the Mets? Let me be the first to say “THANK YOU” Fred and Jeff Wilpon for making life as a Mets fan absolutely miserable.
Well said, 86, but I really don’t think the financial situation is what will determine Reyes’s fate. If he has an unbelievable first half, I think he’ll either be signed or traded for top prospects, especially if the team is out of the race. Frankly, I think his fate may already be sealed based on baseball decisions, not financial ones. If Alderson, Riccardi and company want Reyes out because he lacks discipline and focus and isn’t an ideal leadoff hitter, I agree with them. I’ve wanted Reyes out for a couple of years now and I might get my wish now that we have a management team that really knows how to assess talent. Reyes is an exciting player who has bouts of greatness, but he’s inconsistent, doesn’t have a great baseball IQ and will only diminish in value once he can’t steal bases on a consistent basis. I won’t be sorry to see him go.
trust me the wilpon mob doesn’t need any encouragement to delete reyes or anybody else that could generate monies for their ill gotten debt!tt u should hope the wilpons keep whatever playas they still have. understand the wilpon mob is now in ravage mode…this baseball season is now a wilpon rummage sale and the playas are the items to be sold.some day u possibly will realize that alderson was hired to try to give substance to the wilpon mob lies.so ya want prospects do ya! u fellas give me a good laugh!freddye lasted 30 years because of guile and fans such as yaself.and then there was Picard!!!!!!!!
Hi baby al — I see we can expect a full season of your views. Keep it up, though I don’t always reach the same conclusions you do. Will Irving Picard be able to do more than a salvage operation to support some of his own fees? Picard claims Sterling Equities ignored warnings of the fraud because they were “in too deep” financially.
Much Depends on the standard of proof required. Is it a civil standard or a criminal standard? The facts are going to be elusive so stay tuned. I don’t think any conclusion being more likely than any other until all the facts come out. We’ll all see.
des, freddye wilpon will be a topic of conjecture the enire season. he will try to dump players at the same time blaming picard. hey des did you happen to see yesterdays ny post? did you happen to catch all the wilpon mob hooked up with madoff?if there was any chance that freddye was clean he would never have tried to settle.so,as the fans on this site cheer met victories and talk trades beware the baby will continue to monitor the wilpon mob as these deceivers break our collective hearts…. while picard bounces them out the door!the other day i posed a question to you des …how did freddye end up in T W O ponzi scams…not one but T W O?by the way picard in earning clean money unlike the wilpon mob and their sisters,wives,children,brothers etc.please des address T W O ponzis not one but T W O.
baby al, I missed but will try to check it out online. Thanks.
des it seems according to one arthur friedman,vice president of sterling equities,madoff was pissed because saul(uncle fester) katz kept braggiing to his buddies about madoff.katz would in turn send unsophisticated investors to madoff.a quick summary of wilpon mob accounts:freddye 57 accounts 52 mil,saul 68 acc 45mil,sauls wife 6 acc 35mil, freddyes wife 6 acc 24 mil, jeffye 62 acc 37mil,ritchie wilpon 60 acc 23mil,katz brother 59 acc 19mil,katz daughter 44 acc 33mil.the other katz and wilpon children had equally large accounts as pointed out in the post.methinks the wilpon fortune is tied totally to bernie madoff…plain and simple.
T W O beats T H R E E. lol.
Thanks for this upbeat and creative article. I agree with you that the Wilpons need to sell the team in its entirety. It has become an embarrassment to be a Mets fan with the Wilpon cloud overhanging the team. I believe we need to see the end of the Wilpon ownership era because the team will never prosper again unless they are gone. New ownership is sorely needed. Your Dream can become the dream of all Mets fans to restore the fun of former days and the true heritage of this franchise. The gloom of the Wilpon era needs to be dispelled and the sooner the better.
“As more and more information is released about the connection between the Wilpons, Saul Katz and their families to one of the greatest scammers of all time, it is becoming clear that it is not just a minority partner that the club needs, but totally new ownership.”
I couldn’t read past the above first paragraph of the article. My lifelong friend opened an investment, years go by I have become a long time investor. It turns out my lifelong friend has been swindling/stealing the money that people have invested.
So now I am obliged to have a Black person in my to make amends to society?
How does new minority ownership make the Wilpon’s any less culpable?
I don’ think that is what is meant by “minority ownership”.
MLK III is simply being brought up because a) he is apparently serious about buying a stake in the Mets b) it’s February c) his father’s speech is one of the most famous in American history
Thanks, Donal. I don’t think I could respond to that because I couldn’t really follow it.
Dear Abby: My childhood friend was arrested for robbing a bank. I didn’t know. I made several investments with him. I had no idea but he used the money that he had stolen in the investments made with me. What do I do now? Please help me Abby!
Desperate in New York
Dear Desperate in New York,
Hire Black people or other minorities.
Sincerely,
Abby
have no idea what your point is. but if u are comparing the wilpons with bank robbing i can dig it.hopefully an arrest will follow here to.other than that your point seems well …..pointless.
I find the suggestion made by this article that if a minority should purchase 25% of the Mets suddenly everything is “ok” offensive. I thought my “Dear Abby” post illustrated this point quite clearly.
“Minority” in this case refers to the fact that the person purchasing shares would have less than 50%. Like a numerical minority, not the ethnic or racial minority.
I know. I was being sarcastic. It’s all a game. Anything coming from anyone associated from the Mets means nothing. We the Met fans get screwed and are doomed for the next 3-5 yrs.
I intend to write posts like the Wilpon’s and Sandy Aladerson talks. Everything I write is either a lie, truthful or somewhere in between depending on the outcome I need. Basically, I’m a dishonest prick.
i cosider u a brother in arms.your point about wilpon and alderson is…well on point.
So now we’ve got the skinny on Lifelongmetsfan and baby al. I thought only Bayonne was a screwball.
What day was it that Jerry took a flight to Sacramento? You mentioned it twice but I couldn’t find anything on it.
i may plead guilty to being a screwball but this scewball would love for u to xplain,kind sir,how the wilpon mob managed to hook into T W O ponzi scams innocently?give me the skinny on that.
Ya, your joke is falling flat. It just doesn’t line up with the point you’re claiming to make.
All you are illustrating is what an ingnoramus you are and that you are incapable of being objective because you got your head up your ass. What is your problem are you really that ignorant? Give me your address and I’ll send you some money to buy yourself a clue. And some class.
send your money to the wilpon mob trust me they will take it.lifelong has enough mental capacity to understand the wilpon mob.he has enough class to go after them and their front man alderson.
Besides it’s a mute point. The Wilpon’s have stated and been quoted many times as saying that their personnel money invested in the scandal is separate from New York Met monies. In addition Met GM Sandy Alderson has stated over and over again that the Wilpons have not placed any financial restraints on him in terms of signing or obtaining players. Every time I write otherwise everyone jumps all over me, so I am saying now; ok Lets take the Wilpon’s and Sandy Alderson at their word.
I mean really.. why all this speculation? The Mets are in fine financial shape! The Wilpons say they are! The Mets WILL be comepteive in 2011 Sandy Alderson says they will be! I mean really! Why would the Wilpons and Sandy Alderson be dishonest to their fans?