Appearance by Mets Legend Mookie Wilson Highlights Fan Experience at East-West Classic Weekend
Appearance by Mets Legend Mookie Wilson Highlights Fan Experience at East-West Classic Weekend
2024-02-20
(COOPERSTOWN, NY) – Mookie Wilson was at the center of the action in perhaps the most famous moment in New York Mets annals.
Almost 40 years later, Wilson and history will cross paths again – this time in Cooperstown as part of The Hall of Fame East-West Classic on Memorial Day Weekend.
Wilson, whose game-turning at-bat in Game 6 of the 1986 World Series helped the Mets force Game 7 and led to their most recent championship, will bring his Legacy catering business to Doubleday Field as part of the fan experience at The Hall of Fame East-West Classic on May 25 in Cooperstown. Legacy, which features barbeque, sausage and chicken, will be one of several food and beverage options available during what will prove to be a historic afternoon, including local favorites Brewery Ommegang, Gilligan’s Ice Cream, Sarchioto’s Concessions and Ty’s Taco-ria.
“My brothers and I are honored to bring Legacy to The Hall of Fame East-West Classic,” said Wilson, who will join the Classic roster that day as an honorary team member. “The players who made the original East-West Classic such an incredible event paved the way for those of us who followed to the major leagues, and we are grateful to have the opportunity to celebrate this legacy in Cooperstown. Plus, what’s Memorial Day Weekend without a little barbeque, right?”
In addition to food and beverage options, fans at The Hall of Fame East-West Classic will also be treated to music, giveaways, including a commemorative program, and a special appearance by Chicago Cubs voice Jeremiah Paprocki, the team’s first Black public address announcer, who will serve as the guest PA announcer for the Classic.
The Hall of Fame East-West Classic: A Tribute to the Negro Leagues All-Star Game will feature Hall of Famers Harold Baines, Ken Griffey Jr., Fergie Jenkins, Jim Kaat, Fred McGriff, Eddie Murray, Jim Rice, Lee Smith, Ozzie Smith and Dave Winfield as managers and coaches.
Fueled by assistance from Major League Baseball, the East-West Classic rosters will consist of more than two dozen former big leaguers, team captains CC Sabathia and Chris Young along with players Josh Barfield, Tim Beckham, José Contreras, Ian Desmond, Prince Fielder, Dexter Fowler, Curtis Granderson, Tony Gwynn Jr., Jerry Hairston, Scott Hairston, LaTroy Hawkins, Ryan Howard, Edwin Jackson, Jeremy Jeffress, Adam Jones, Howie Kendrick, Russell Martin, Darrell Miller, Melvin Mora, David Price, Tony Sipp, Dee Strange-Gordon, B.J. Upton, Justin Upton and Dontrelle Willis.
Harold Reynolds of MLB Network will join Mookie Wilson as honorary team members.
The game will be part of a weekend celebration as the Museum opens its new exhibit The Souls of the Game: Voices of Black Baseball.
Tickets for the Hall of Fame East-West Classic are on sale now at baseballhall.org/east-west or at 1-888-325-0470 Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. ET.
The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum has teamed up with Sports Travel and Tours to offer baseball fans a one-stop opportunity to purchase Classic Weekend travel packages. For more information or to plan a trip to Cooperstown, please call 1-888-310-HALL (4255). Membership participants receive a 5% discount on all their baseball travel packages.
Located on the Museum’s second floor in the Yawkey Gallery, The Souls of the Game: Voices of Black Baseball will cover stories of early Black baseball, the Negro Leagues era, the complexities of reintegration, Jackie Robinson, post-reintegration progress and retrogress, and calls for change in today’s game while celebrating the newest superstars of the era. Meaningful stories from Black baseball are also being added to other exhibits throughout the Museum.
The exhibit is part of the Hall of Fame’s Black Baseball Initiative that includes additional outreach programs, educational materials and virtual programming and is made possible by the Yawkey Foundation with additional support from Bill Janetschek in honor of his siblings Robert and Ann, the Anthony A. Yoseloff Foundation and the Bisignano Family. The initiative will also enhance Black Baseball stories found throughout the Museum.
The Souls of the Game, a title that pays tribute to W.E.B. Du Bois’s seminal 1903 book “The Souls of Black Folk”, will explore the Black baseball experience of those men, women and children who were and are an integral part of our National Pastime.
Subtitled “Voices of Black Baseball”, the exhibit will highlight first-person accounts by the many individuals whose experiences shaped them, their community, baseball and America at large. Featuring historically significant artifacts, documents and photographs, and utilizing audio, video, and interactive elements, the exhibit will tell a more inclusive story of baseball, shine a light on and correct misconceptions about Black baseball.
