Shea Stadium

David Hegler
13 minutes ago
8 min read

It was one of the first dual purpose stadiums, yet always seemed to be a step behind. Still, while other stadiums enjoyed much more success, Shea Stadium provided the backdrop for some of sport's most endearing teams: the 1968 Jets, the 1969 "Miracle" Mets and the 1986 Mets. As it slowly wove its way into the national conscience, Shea Stadium became a beacon of hope in troubled times, for while its teams often struggled, one never knew when they just might shock the world.

The Conception

Renowned city planner Robert Moses had talked about completely revitalizing the former Long Island dump site of Flushing Meadows since before the 1939 World's Fair. when he learned that Dodgers owner Walter O'Malley was looking to move out of Ebbets Field, he suggested the vacant plot of land in Flushing Meadows. O'Malley declined and promptly broke the hearts of Brooklyn fans everywhere when he moved the Dodgers to California.

So Moses went back to the drawing board, gathering support for a new ballpark at Flushing Meadows that would draw an expansion team. Baseball luminaries Branch Rickey and Casey Stengel both voiced their support and helped garner public interest, yet New York Yankees general manager George Weiss was not too keen on public funds being used in that manner. However, by the time ground broke on the site in October 1961, he had come around to the idea.

Under the guidance of the same architectural firm that had recently finished Dodger Stadium, Praeger, Kavanaugh, Waterbury, the massive 57,333 seat stadium rose while major league baseball confirmed that an expansion team would indeed be coming to New York. Originally, the new structure was going to be named after Flushing Meadows, but by the time it was finished, a new name had emerged. Inspired by his efforts to bring a ballclub to New York, the new stadium's operators named it after the chairman of the expansion committee, William A. Shea.

The Glory Years

Although Shea Stadium was spacious, much of its factors were less than inviting. Standing just 1.3 miles from LaGuardia Airport, it was constantly loud and being so close to the shore it was constantly windy. Its dank concrete tunnels and concourses and steep upper deck could only sway one's attention from its cramped seats for so long. still, it was the first stadium to have each seat pointed towards midfield with no impeded view.

Having spent their first two years chasing their own tails in the crumbling Polo Grounds, the New York Mets were eager for a fresh start when they began their stay at Shea Stadium on April 17, 1964. However, despite their new surroundings, they were still the same old Mets and they couldn't get out of their own way in a painful 4-3 loss to Pittsburgh in front of 48,736. Still, that opening series drew quite a crowd as none of the first three games drew less than 30,000.

The Mets eventually rewarded their fans with their first victory two days later on April 19, beating the Pirates 6-0. Led by famed Yankees manager Casey Stengel, the Mets would stumble their way to a 53-109-1 finish that year and would bid farewell to their beloved manager the following year when he retired in the middle of the season.

Still, from the box office's point of view, it was a successful season at Shea Stadium. 1.7 million fans went through its turnstiles that year and an additional 50, 850 attended that year's All-Star Game.

Arguably the first event that really got the nation's attention at the new ballpark was not sports related at all. It was the Beatles. Starting off their third tour in America, the bowl cut crew of rockstars attracted 55,600 to Shea Stadium on August 15, 1965 for what is regarded as the first ever rock concert at a stadium, beginning a long string of musical success at Shea Stadium.

When it first opened, Shea Stadium was just the second dual-purpose stadium, following in the footsteps of the soon-to-be-named Robert F. Kennedy Stadium in Washington D.C. As a result, the newly named Jets of the AFL moved in from the Polo Grounds. However, the motorized wheels that moved the bleachers back and forth to give Shea the added capacity of nearly 7,000 extra seats for football wrecked havoc on the field.

In those days, both the Mets and the Jets were the dregs of their respective leagues, but by 1968 that all changed when Joe Namath led the Jets to a resounding victory over the Oakland Raiders in the face of a swirling wind at Shea Stadium in the AFL Championship Game. Two weeks later, Namath led the Jets to one of the biggest upsets in NFL history when they beat the heavily favored Baltimore Colts in the Super Bowl.

Not to be outdone by their roommates, the Mets clawed their way back from a 10 game deficit in August to take the National League crown and stamp their ticket to their first World Series against, of all teams, the Baltimore Orioles. While the Orioles took Game 1, the Mets won the final four, including the clincher at home. Following the Mets resounding 5-3 victory, their fans stormed the field and began a sort of tradition by ripping out the bases and the ground around them. When the players emerged from the clubhouse after an extensive celebration of their own, the field looked like a war zone.

In 1973, Shea Stadium was at the center of two major milestones in the dual pastimes of America. After acquiring Giants legend Willie Mays, the Mets made it all the way to the World Series where they lost in seven games to the A's. Later that same year, O.J. Simpson rushed for the final 200 yards (in the snow) of his season long campaign to become the firs running back in NFL history to eclipse 2,000 rushing yards.

In 1974, the Yankees moved into Shea Stadium while their ballpark underwent much-needed renovations. For the next two years, the Yankees dressed in the Jets locker room, never feeling at home as their fans were often outnumbered by the opponent's. Having shared Yankee Stadium for more than a decade, the Giants faced the same dilemma as the Yankees, yet they decided to spend 1974 in the Yale Bowl. It did not turn out well and they returned to New York in 1975 to share Shea Stadium with the Mets, Jets and Yankees. Not one of those teams made the playoffs that year.

By the late 1970s, Shea Stadium had gone into disrepair as the Mets original owner, Joan Payson, became less and less involved with the organization. At one point, her granddaughters had acquired a pony that they named either "Met-Al" or "Mettle", who lived in the stadium. When he wasn't grazing on the grass beyond the outfield fence during games, he often pulled one of the girls around the park in a small carriage before games. Since the Mets really couldn't afford him, Payson fired the chief press box attendant to pay for Mettle's keep.

In 1980, Doubleday & Company bought the Mets and immediately began making meaningful changes to the club's longtime home. They added a massive full color instant replay screen beyond left-center field and "fired" Mettle as the team's unofficial mascot. Perhaps the most meaningful change was the addition of the Home Run Apple in May of that same year. Whenever a homer was crushed, a nine-foot replica of an apple would pop out of a ten-foot plywood upside down black top hat.

Despite all of the changes to Shea Stadium, the Mets still were not a very good team. That slowly began to change on June 14, 1980 when the Mets stormed back from a six run deficit to beat the Giants 7-6 at Shea Stadium. While it took them another five years before the club began to sniff relevancy, it was the first step in the turning of the tide.

Meanwhile, the Jets were looking to move out of Shea Stadium and into Giants Stadium. Their last game at Shea Stadium on December 10, 1983 was a horrid affair that their fans could only hope to forget as the Pittsburgh Steelers vanquished the Jets to the tune of 34-7.

Three years later, the Mets made another memorable run at the World Series where they clashed with Boston in one of the most memorable Fall Classics of all time. Back and forth the two teams went, battling for ultimate supremacy until it all came down to one fateful moment on October 25, 1986. It was the bottom of the tenth in Game 6 and the Mets were down to their last out. Seeing that the Red Sox were ahead by two at that point, champaign and the World Series trophy had both entered Boston's clubhouse when Red Sox closer Calvin Schiraldi began to melt under the pressure.

Suddenly, the Mets' bats came to life and a tidal wave of good fortune was bestowed upon them as they just couldn't stop hitting. Finally, Mookie Wilson blasted a grounder towards first base that rolled between Bill Buckner's legs to drive in the winning run. In an instant, Shea Stadium was in utter hysteria as the champaign and the World Series trophy quickly made their way out of the Red Sox clubhouse. A day later, the Mets won the World Series and in a moment reminiscent of 1969, Mets fans tore up the field as they reveled in the moment.

The Final Years

While Shea Stadium was at the forefront of stadium designs when it was first constructed, it was soon outdated as newer dual purpose stadiums such as Veterans Stadium and the Astrodome opened their doors to the masses. Since the Mets original 30-year lease with the city called for no more than $550,000 in annual rent, the city lost money on the deal every year as inflation continued to rise. It always felt like the clock was ticking on Shea Stadium, no matter how many magical moments it produced.

Just ten days after the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in 2001, the Mets returned home for one last magical moment. It was the first sporting event in New York since the towers fell and the nation was still reeling. Up to the plate stepped catcher Mike Piazza. In that moment, he wasn't thinking about leading his team back to the World Series, having lost the previous year to the Yankees in the Subway Series, he was only thinking about getting his team out of a 2-1 deficit to the powerful Braves and maybe, just maybe, bring a little bit of hope back to the big Apple.

In the bottom of the eighth, he blasted a Steve Karsay pitch in to deep left-center for a two-run blast, at once lifting the voices of the more than 41,000 fans who had gathered at Shea Stadium that evening and lifting the spirits of every New Yorker. It was the last truly magical moment in Shea Stadium's history.

The Mets built a new ballpark in their old home's parking lot and prepared to bid a fond farewell. On September 28, 2008, the Mets ended their stay at Shea Stadium in the same manner as the Jets 25 years earlier, losing to the Miami Marlins 4-2 in front of 56,000. Today, plaques commemorating each of Shea Stadium's bases are strewn throughout the parking lot that has taken the stadium's place.

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