Statue of Tom Seaver
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| Statue of Tom Seaver | |
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| Artist | William Behrends |
| Year | 2022 |
| Medium | Bronze sculpture |
| Subject | Tom Seaver |
| Location | Citi Field Queens, New York, U.S. |
| 40°45′25″N 73°50′45″W / 40.75694°N 73.84583°W | |
On April 15, 2022, at their season home opener, the New York Mets unveiled a statue of Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher Tom Seaver. Created by sculptor William Behrends, the statue is located just outside Citi Field.[1]
The statue is notably the first one to be erected outside one of New York City's major sports stadiums in honor of one of the city's iconic sports figures.
The statue was announced in June 2019, a few months after it was revealed that Seaver was withdrawing from public life due to dementia. The Wilpons, then owner of the Mets, also announced that the address for Citi Field was being changed to 41 Seaver Way. Initially meant to be unveiled in 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic delayed the ceremony. In August 2020, Seaver died due to complications from dementia and COVID-19, much to the dismay of fans who had long asked for Seaver to be honored during his lifetime.[2]
Being on the most iconic figures in New York City sports, and arguably the greatest player in New York Mets history, there was considerable push for Seaver to be honored during his life. The announcement of the statue only after Seaver's diagnosis caused disappointment and arguments that the event should have taken place a lot sooner. Seaver's ex-teammates Ed Kranepool and Ron Swoboda both noted it should have been done sooner: "It's good that it was finally done. We could say it should've been done years before that."[3]
