Going to the Ball Parks |
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There is no monopoly on a Field of Dreams. Bob Feller and his dad built theirs in Iowa. Kevin Costner cleared his cornfield. Sheepshead Bay High School through the 1970s had real grass, and a baseball diamond. Roger Maris, Mickey Mantle the M&M boys were uptown, and so were many mediocre Yankee teams for the empty years, one of the two streaks of futility that present Yankee dissenters dismiss. When your first real baseball knowledge came in 1965, stories of years past were a way of growing up as a Yankee fan. In 1964, corresponding with the New Yorks World Fair, Shea Stadium opened. They called them the Amazins, and in 1969, just about when I’d finally received permission to navigate the wonders of the New York City transit system, the Mets played in a World Series. As they went into Chicago, still trailing the Cubs by five games on August 9th, 1969, pennant fever gripped New York. After all, we saw a man walk on the moon three weeks before, why couldn’t the Mets win a pennant? Hodges platooned Shamsky and Swoboda, Tom Seaver was on his way to the Cy Young award, Koosman, Ryan and McGraw boosted a great pitching staff, and I was transferring in Manhattan to the "7" train. Coney Island, now a part of the same landmass, has it’s own legacy for sure, and shows up in every nook and cranny of this country — especially when proprietors want to sell more hot dogs. From Bend Oregon through San Francisco to St. Louis and into Worcester Massachusetts, there are Coney Island Hot Dog signs. Nathan’s Famous Delicatessen of Coney Island made this accessible and delectable, and the quality of their frankfurters on a bun created at first a revolution and then an institution in our culinary habits. An institution which crossed over to baseball. It seems fitting that the new baseball stadium Keystone Park is in close walking distance to Nathan’s. (And by the way, the french fries and hamburgers there were serious delights as well.) There was much baseball in Sheepshead Bay and there were places to play. The Police Athletic League offered softball and road trips to Coney Island. A great game was played there once, and though our team didn’t win that game, we had a blast in Nathan’s eating hot dogs, hamburgers, and french fries soon after. In that heat, the ice cold Cokes rejuvenated, and the sea breezes carrying amusement park laughter brought a fun day long ago. Madison Square Garden was also a stop on the "D" train. The 1969 Knicks were a classic for the ages, and playing in a new arena. There was innocence and magic, a courageous MVP performance by Willis Reed in the final game, and great coaching by Red Holzman, all near the 34th Street stop. Further uptown in the Bronx, that same "D" train stopped at Yankee Stadium. Though the Yankees were in between dynasties when my generation matured, these were classic destinations and adventures in waiting, all for the cost of a subway token. The Yankee members that paraded by and grew to a World Championship team in the 1970s always inspired and excited fans who would take it all in with either agreement or disagreement, but never boredom. The"D" train meant freedom. Riding that express through Brooklyn, walking out from the underground in a subterranean city near the Empire State Building, seriously expanded our borders. That train line delivers New York City. I regret not having sailed from that harbor. My borders were to be of land. When bikes were inaccessible, there were trains to take us somewhere. But there was always that water view from Emmons Avenue with perhaps songs of the sea to fuel dreams of distant places. Standing on that dock countless times, I watched the fishermen come in. And the fish they sold were big and plentiful. One lucky day, far out from a different Long Island dock and into a sweeping sea, the glory of the Atlantic surrounded our boat, and it was boundless. From NY Harbor, on the old Brooklyn to Manhattan ferry, the view of the Statue of Liberty, with her beacon shining bright, our old friend the World Trade Center the backdrop behind her, the view of New York from the water has always been majestic. I wish I could have seen more of her from the decks of seagoing vessels. The Sheepshead Bay Train Station is a short walk from the water, up the curvy shop-lined thoroughfare named Sheepshead Bay Road. Things have changed since the ’60s. There’s a beautiful mural up now, and the "D," which used to run express, now goes local. For just a token, the stops on that line read off like the pages of a New York guidebook. Easily accessible and traffic-free from the Bay include Wall Street, Greenwich Village, the Empire State Building, Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade, Yankee Stadium, Madison Square Garden, Shea, Central Park, Queens, and, with creative transfers, on and on through New Jersey and Long Island. That’s just by train. next: Chapter 8: |
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New York Around 1600 and Brooklyn Names |
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Copyright © 2003 Ira Leitner