Two Teams, One City, the Subway Series
Subway Series Art via Gary Longordo
The Empire State is home to two Major League Baseball teams. Over In Queens, are the New York Mets. Founded in 1962 as a part of the National League, becoming the league’s first expansion team of the 20th century. Since 1962, the Mets have won two World Series championships, as well as five National League pennants. Just a borough away, is the Bronx. Home of the New York Yankees. The Yankees entered the league in 1901 as the Baltimore Orioles, which was short lived. Just two years later, the team packed up to New York City and became the New York Highlanders. Since 1903, the Yankees have won 27 World Series championships, as well as 40 American League pennants.
The term Subway Series was always a term put to use when two New York teams would meet in the World Series. Teams such as the New York Yankees, New York Giants, and the Brooklyn Dodgers, with the Yankees appearing in all modern-day Subway Series games due to being the only American League New York team. Since 1997, the term has been dedicated to interleague play between the Yankees and the Mets. The term applies tremendously to the two teams due to being only a borough away from each other. There are two trains dedicated to each team, the 7 train which is the subway line one would take to get to Citi Field in Queens, and the 4 train which is the subway line one would take to get to Yankee Stadium in the Bronx. To give another example on how close the teams are, Citi field is located on 126th Street while Yankee Stadium is located on 161st Street.
Where it All Started
The first meeting between the Yankees and the Mets took place on June 16th, 1997, at Yankee Stadium. The starting pitchers in this historic meeting were Dave Mlicki for the Mets and Andy Pettitte for the Yankees. The game was well publicized and for good reason. That first meeting between these two teams started a historic matchup with plenty of memorable moments that we still see today. The first series ended with a 2-1 series win for the Yankees with the Mets winning the first game with a score of 6-0.
Greatest Subway Series, Series
Perhaps the most memorable Subway Series matchup came in the year of 2000. Coming off an historic run, the New York Yankees won three World Series championships in four years bringing their team’s total to 25. They were looking to continue that streak just a year later. Little did they know, the Mets were cutting a path to a classic confrontation. One city, two teams, it seemed like destiny. The Mets, led by the monster, Mike Piazza, finished with a 94-68 record. The Yankees, led by Derek Jeter, finished with an 87-74 record. The Yankees and Mets each won their own respective pennants and made it to the fall classic. After 44 years, two teams playing in the Big Apple would once again meet in the World Series. With the Mets and Yankees making it to the October classic, the state of New York was in a frenzy. The state itself even pitched in by decorating the 7 and 4 train with each team’s logo. The 7 train was blue and orange with the Mets “NY” logo and the 4 train was white with blue pinstripes with the Yankees “NY” logo. If that wasn’t enough, the city offered free subway rides home for those in attendance. Not only was New York going crazy, it seemed the rest of the world was put on hold for America’s Pastime. The Yankees won this monumental clash in 5 games and was the first team to “3-peat” in over 25 years. Derek Jeter ended the series with the World Series MVP while slashing a .409 BA, 1.344 OPS, with 2 HR in the series. As many predicted the Yankees to have a cake walk in the 2000 World Series, the Mets kept each game very close. Not one game did the Yankees win with more than 2 runs over the Mets.
Good for the game
Just one year after the greatest series in Subway Series history, tragedy struck New York City. The unspeakable acts that were 9/11, happened. Two airplanes struck the World Trade Center during a terrorist attack. A total of 2,996 people lost their lives that morning in New York City. America was at a loss for words. With almost nothing able to heal those wounds, Americans looked for distractions to keep their mind off that nightmare of a morning. There was baseball, America’s Pastime. The games played for the New York teams after 9/11 brought the country together. Mike Piazza’s homerun against the Braves and George Bush’s speech at Yankee Stadium stood out. As we fast forward almost 21 years later, New York baseball honors those we lost. Most recently, the Yankees and the Mets met in Queens for another Subway Series on the 20th anniversary of 9/11. This game was sold out and it didn’t matter who won, this was for the city of New York and for baseball.
Each year fans of both the Yankees and the Mets look forward to this iconic series and the games never seem to disappoint; it’s become a tradition to fans. With baseball’s popularity lower than the other major sports, the Subway Series is a great way for baseball to gain more fans and expand the game.