Citi Field Wall Will Come Crumbling Down

I meant to write about this last week, but I got bogged down in… uh… well… something, but it appears the long-desired changes to the outfield wall at Citi Field will finally happen next season. And this won’t be along the lines of slicing that sliver of wall in front of the Home Run Apple. “(It) won’t be subtle,” Sandy Alderson warned according to ESPNNewYork.com.

This is good news for all concerned — the players (except maybe the pitchers!) the fans and the Wilpons. The latter because home runs sell tickets, and that is what the cash-strapped owners need right now.

Mets Blog reports that the unnecessary 16-foot left field wall is likely to come down to a more human eight feet. Alderson said a secondary wall could be be built about four feet from the current wall.

Alderson said right-center could be made shorter from its current 415 feet and the ridiculous Mo Zone could be straightened out.

He also said he was unaware of fan sentiment to have the wall blue (a Mets color) instead of black (not a Mets color). Clearly, Alderson doesn’t read Blogging Mets, which mentioned such sentiment here and here.

Alderson said in addition to making the stadium more fair for the home team, he is thinking of the fans as well.

“To some extent it’s a question of entertainment,” Alderson said. “The hardcore baseball fan enjoys the 2-1, the 3-2 (score). We’re appealing to a little broader segment. I think offense is appealing. Offense sells.”

Offense also wins games. Let me rephrase that. Pitching wins games, but since Alderson has suggested the rotation in 2012 will look much like the rotation in 2011, the Mets might have to club their way to wins. And home runs can’t hurt. The Brewers, Braves and Diamondbacks are second, third and fourth in the National League in homers, and they are going to the playoffs (although the Braves are in a fight for their playoff lives against the Cardinals, sixth in homers). In the American League the Yankees, Rangers and Red Sox are one, two, three (the Sox in a similar fight for the Wild Card against the Rays, also sixth in homers).

The Mets, by the way, are 14th in homers, besting only the cellar-dwelling Astros and Padres.

Alderson said a decision will likely be announced in October. David Wright can’t wait.

“I don’t know if relief is the right word,” Wright said. “I think it’s a great idea. I think when you go play in a park, you’d like for it to be fair. So I’m excited that’s going to happen.”