Bob Reid, the president of the Bayside Little League, was upset when he had to break the news to parents that their traditional Met game and on-field parade was a thing of the past now that the team had moved into their new home in Citi Field.
“We’d been having a Little League Day with an on-field parade for the last four years,” Reid explained. “But with fewer seats in the new stadium, they said they couldn’t swing the same deal. They said they hoped to ‘work out the logistics’ for a Citi Field parade in the future.
Despite repeated entreaties to the Mets, including an appeal from State Senator Frank Padavan, Reid was only able to secure a very limited number of full-price tickets, and no word on the child-players being allowed on the “field of dreams.”
“They never got back to me,” Reid said. “Parents were upset – for a lot of kids, this is the only game they get to in a season.”
Then, on Thursday, April 16, he got a call from an unexpected source – the Long Island Ducks – a Central Islip, Long Island baseball team in the independent Atlantic League.
“Some parents had called them,” Reid explained. “Jay [Jason Randall] from their office reached out to me.” After a brief discussion, Reid not only got as many tickets as he needed, but the parade as well.
“He asked if we could buy 250 to 350 tickets. When I told him I needed at least 500, he said ‘hold on,’ and a minute later came back and said, ‘You’ve got your parade’.”
Met fans may remember hearing of the team for signing former Atlanta Brave closer John Rocker, and nothing else. “We [are] in our 10th year,” Randall said. “We’re not affiliated with any major league team; the Atlantic League is independent.”
“Our tickets are $10 and $11; we have free parking and promotions every night,” Randall explained. “We’ve even got luxury boxes,” he said. The ballpark seats just 6,000 and it harkens back to a bygone era of small-town baseball, Randall said.
The team’s motto for their anniversary year is “Quack to the Future.”
Two World Champion Mets are currently Ducks; Gary Carter manages the team and Bud Harrelson is the third base coach, he said.
The Ducks will play their 70 home games against such rivals at the Bridgeport [CT] Bluefish and Jersey rivals the Somerset Patriots and Newark Bears.
Their home opener is on Friday, May 1 at 7:05 p.m. against Somerset; it’s “Gary Carter bobble head night” for the first 2,000 fans. The following night, fans will get a Grucci Fireworks extravaganza, courtesy of New York Community Bank.
Reid couldn’t be happier with the response from the Ducks. “We bought the 500 tickets right away, and they offered to hold another 500 aside in case we needed more,” he said.
The kids will have their night on Saturday, May 16, when instead of parading around Citi Field, they march in what may be their new home field.
Citibank Park, home of the Ducks.
