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Yankees, Mets get green light from MLB to wear first-responder caps on 9/11 anniversary

A year after Pete Alonso sparked renewed interest in the Mets’ desire to wear first responder caps on Sept. 11, Major League Baseball granted permission for both the Mets and Yankees to wear the caps on the 19th anniversary of the World Trade Center attacks.

Mets and Yankees players took the field wearing caps from the NYPD, the FDNY, the Port Authority Police Department, the Office of Emergency Management and the Department of Sanitation — not just during batting practice, as had become customary in recent years, but during their games against the Orioles and Blue Jays, respectively.

“I love this city,” Alonso said. “I love everything that New York has to offer. … This is not just a dark spot for New York City, but for the entire country as a whole. This is probably one of the worst days in our country’s history. Even today, we’re still being impacted by it.

“I’m not saying I completely understand it, because I didn’t live through that day in New York. But for me, I think that seeing how this thing has affected fellow New Yorkers, honestly, it’s incredible in the worst way. I just want to represent those and just recognize everybody that contributed to help save lives and impact and make incredibly selfless decisions.”

The Mets famously wore the caps for the first time when they faced the Braves on Sept. 21, 2001, after several of their players traded Mets hats for first responder caps during visits to Ground Zero. They wore them sporadically during games over the next six seasons, but did not do so after 2007.

Last year, Alonso expressed interest in again donning the caps in a game. When he was told the Mets would wear them only during batting practice, he instead designed and purchased commemorative Sept. 11 cleats for himself and each of his teammates. Alonso subsequently donated those spikes to the National September 11 Memorial & Museum, all while continuing to express interest in wearing first responder caps during future Sept. 11 games.

Categories: New York YankeesNew York MetsSportsProfessional

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