People began lining up outside the crumbling old baseball temple around 7 a.m., even though they knew the doors wouldn't open for another two and a half hours. And they kept coming. It was Wednesday, May 30, 1962, Memorial Day (for nine years, Memorial Day was not permanently moved to the last Monday in May). They all had the day off.
But at the Polo Grounds at 155th Street and Eighth Avenue, Coogan's Bluff in Upper Manhattan, it was a different kind of holiday.
The Dodgers were in town.
It was the first time the Dodgers had been in New York City since September 24, 1957, the last day of operation at Brooklyn's Ebbets Field. It was their first time at the Polo Grounds, once treated like infidels, invaders and suburban blighters, since losing 3-2 to the Giants 16 days earlier.
Shortly after, Walter O'Malley announced he was bringing the Dodgers to Los Angeles, and in doing so broke the hearts of millions and earned the eternal enmity of millions of people who once lived in New York. . Now they will come home again. This Memorial Day, they will play a doubleheader against the Mets, who were present for 39 games.
The Dodgers have won eight in a row, and the Mets have lost eight in a row. But it was the hottest ticket in town. It was even bigger than the two recently opened Broadway masterpieces, “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum'' and “I Can Get It for You'' starring Zero Mostel at the Alvin Theater. . “Wholesale” starred a 19-year-old prodigy named Barbra Streisand.
On this day, the Mets vs. Dodgers were stronger than both teams. By noon, the bleachers were full. By 1 o'clock, 30 minutes before the first pitch, it was announced that only standing room remained. The crowd of 55,704 was the largest crowd of a baseball year up to that point, the largest crowd at the Polo Grounds since 1942, and the largest crowd in the two years the Mets played at the Polo Grounds. .
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“If they had come out like they did before, they probably wouldn't have left,'' said Leo Durocher, the 1962 Dodgers coach and former manager of both the Dodgers and Giants. I joked.
Several notable events occurred that day. Former Dodger Gil Hodges hit three home runs in a doubleheader, one of the last hurrays of a career that ended up in Cooperstown. Hodges was also the last part of the first triple play in team history. Willie Davis' liner caught shortstop Helio Chacon in the air, reversed to Charlie Neal to double Maury Wills, then hit Hodges to double Jim Gilliam. Wills hit an inside home run.
It was a schizophrenic crowd. There were a lot of Dodgers fans in the house, so they habitually rooted for LA. But they were also charter members of what was known as the “New Breed,” setting a futile baseball record that would stand for 62 years and pledging loyalty to a team that would lose twice that day. I was a fan.
But only Post writer Leonard Koppett noticed something late in the second game. The Mets and Dodgers tied with five wins and five losses. Then, suddenly and spontaneously, 55,704 people began chanting, first quietly, then louder, then deafeningly, for the rest of the Mets game at similar moments.
“Let's go, Mets!”
“Let’s go, Mets!!”
“Let’s go, Mets!!!”
Yes, that chant was born at a Dodgers-Mets game on May 30, 1962.
Years later, when the Dodgers returned to New York, there was no such ambiguity. Almost all of the few remaining Brooklyn Dodgers fans have completely converted to the Mets (or elsewhere). Dodgers are no longer hailed like conquering heroes. And even if there were anyone who actually remembered who Walter O'Malley was, there would still be very few people left who would spit on the ground upon hearing his name.
The Mets and Dodgers will play Game 1 of the National League Championship Series on Sunday at Dodger Stadium. Dodger Stadium remains one of the sports showcases, and O'Malley still has that spark in his eyes.
This will be the fourth time the two sides will meet in the playoffs. And while many Mets fans still yearn for revenge for the upset of Kirk Gibson, Orel Hershiser and others in the 1988 NLCS, the reality is that the Mets had already tied the game and then They tied the game and dominated the Dodgers. They shocked the 2006 NLDS by winning Game 5 at Chavez Ravine at the same point nine years later.
The Dodgers, with 98 wins, have nine more wins than the Mets this year, winning four of six games, and witnessed the Mets' lowest point on May 29, when Jorge Lopez was ejected and the Dodgers won 10-3. He may or may not have thrown his glove into the stands and later called the Mets “the worst team in all of MLB,” but in hindsight, that statement may not have been wrong. , which may have been a little inappropriate.
Since then, the Mets have been on a roll, going 73-42 and defeating the Phillies by four points. The Dodgers are 65-45, winning two elimination games against the Padres, and are on a roll. When they come to Citi Field on Wednesday, there won't be anything out of place in the building, even if a few Dodgers fans sneak in.
However, there are ubiquitous chants. This phrase was first heard here during a Mets-Dodgers game on May 30, 1962, and it's been with us ever since. And it will continue to be so.
