9/11 Remembrances Planned Across MLB Tuesday; Gies Family Gets Mets' First Pitch
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Major League Baseball will stage on-field tributes prior to every game on Tuesday, 11 years after the 9/11 attacks on the the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.
An American flag patch will be on the caps of players, coaches, umpires and all other on-field personnel, MLB announced. The Mets will continue their tradition of wearing New York City first responder hats before their game against Washington at Citi Field.
As was the case last season, New York will be required to wear their standard caps once the game gets under way.
"We want to thank Major League Baseball, Commissioner (Bud) Selig and Joe Torre for their support of honoring these agencies for their heroic actions that day," Mets COO Jeff Wilpon said in a statement.
The Gies family will to throw out the first pitch at Citi Field in honor of Ronnie Gies, a firefighter based in Queens who was among those tragically killed on Tues., Sept. 11, 2001. Ronnie's wife, Carol, and her three sons — Tommy, Ronnie and Bobby — will take the hill for the ceremonial toss.
The Mets will also hold a pregame meet-and-greet for the non-profit organization Tuesday's Children. On Monday, Mets third baseman David Wright met with firefighters at Squad 18 in Greenwich Village, which lost seven members on 9/11.
"We have the utmost respect for what these men and women do on a daily basis," Wright told WCBS 880′s Peter Haskell.
At Fenway Park in Boston, where the Yankees are set to open a crucial three-game series, the Red Sox will host a National Day of Remembrance blood drive.
"People always look at us as being heroes, and to have an opportunity to meet those families and firefighters and EMS workers, those were the true heroes at the time," Yankees shortstop Jeter told MLB.com of the days after 9/11. "What do you say to them? It was an uncomfortable position for me. It probably benefited us probably even more so than the families themselves, because we had an opportunity to hear how much we meant to these families and giving them something to cheer for at least three hours a day. It was an experience that I'll always remember, but it was uncomfortable.
"I understand that we're looked up to as being a hero by some people, but what I meant was those are the real heroes that really deserved to be looked at placed on a pedestal."
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