The Mets and the city of Port St. Lucie held on a press conference on Thursday to change the address of the Mets Spring Training home to 31 Piazza Drive. The change is to honor former Mets catcher and Hall of Famer Mike Piazza.
Piazza was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 2016 and the Mets retired his No. 31 later that year.
Long-time radio voice of the Mets, Howie Rose was the master of ceremonies for the event at recently renamed Clover Park. Mets COO Jeff Wilpon was also at the event, talking about his relationship with Piazza and what Mike meant to the Mets franchise. He declined to talk about the status of Carlos Beltran.
Piazza became very emotional when talking his dad and his unfortunate poor health currently.
“Port St Lucie will always hold a special place in my career as the place where I prepared for some of my most memorable seasons, with teammates, staff and of course fans. Florida has been my home for the past thirty years so it’s great tribute for my family and for future generations. I am truly touched and blessed. My sincere thanks to the Mets, Fred and Jeff Wilpon, St. Lucie County and Mets fans everywhere!”
