Being A Mets Fan: Slightly Less Terrible with The 7 Line
Being a Mets fan has never been easy. The Mets have only won two World Series championships in 54 years. Sometimes they get close, and clinch the National League Pennant, but then — like last year for example — they implode, rip your heart out of your chest and smash it to smithereens. Loving the Mets is a burden I’ve borne my entire life, as my dad and grandma did before me. Don’t get me wrong, I do love them. Probably a little bit too much. Nothing on planet Earth would make me happier than a Mets World Series victory. I know they can do it. And I’ll support them till kingdom come. But anyone who considers themselves a Flushing Faithful knows the emotional turmoil a Mets fan endures from April to September.
However, recently, things have been looking up for us beleaguered Mets fans. The first thing is that the Mets have been playing better baseball. With arguably the best starting pitching rotation in baseball and some decent power hitters, they’ve finally got a shot. The second thing is The 7 Line. For those unfamiliar with The 7 Line, it is an independently owned clothing and lifestyle brand created by Darren Meenan in 2009 that produces apparel to support the players and the team, and has a section of Citi Field, the Mets home stadium, reserved for them at certain home games.
The initial idea Meenan had was to create a funny t-shirt to wear during the last week of the 2009 baseball season. That shirt read “I Survived” and was in reference to another losing Mets season. The 7 Line also has a fairly large presence on social media.
Every member of this community is connected, most prevalently through The 7 Line’s social media platforms. Prior to 2009, and even prior to 2011 when the movement began to gain traction, being a Mets fan was a burden fans often had to suffer alone. Solidarity in supporting the almost-always losing team was found only at games, or with close friends who were also die-hards. The 7 Line and their social media platform provides an outlet for fans to commiserate and, more recently, celebrate their favorite team. On social media, this includes Twitter chats, Facebook conversations and Instagram pictures and comments. But it also includes the company’s apparel line and outings to Citi Field, which it plans and promotes through its social media and email list. Prior to The 7 Line, fans could only purchase relatively standard apparel through the official Mets team store. The 7 Line apparel is more creative, unique and funny, and allows fans to bond with each other over it.
Additionally, prior to the rise of The 7 Line, Mets fans might happen to meet and connect with other, previously unbeknownst, Mets fans at games, but it was unlikely. Everyone went to the game and cheered on their team with their respective friends, but that was it. Then they went home. The 7 Line organizes scheduled outings with The 7 Line Army, where the entire group tailgates together, wears matching The 7 Line t-shirts and then sits together in the outfield with huge banners and signs. This experience, which the group plans and promotes through their social media platforms, allows Mets fans to be a part of something bigger. They can form new bonds and experience a game in a way they never have before.
A game with The 7 Line is absolutely on my bucket list. They also do away games, and spring training games in March. This year, I was lucky enough to attend spring training in Port St. Lucie, Florida with my dad. It was one of the most incredible weekends of my life. Being that up close and personal with my favorite team was unreal. The weekend my dad and I went also happened to be the weekend The 7 Line Army made their spring training outing. Although we did not sit with them, I was able to see first hand the camaraderie and passion among the group. There is a core group of The 7 Line Army that attends almost every outing, but there are also new faces each time. The sense of kinsmanship that comes from bonding over the pure love of baseball and the Mets is something truly special.
The 7 Line’s motto is “For Mets fans, by Mets fans”, and I think that’s a great reflection on the attitude that everyone in the community has. Being a Mets fan can be tough sometimes. Really tough. Carlos Beltran striking out looking in game 7 of the 2006 NLCS with two outs and the bases loaded, down by two runs, tough. But honestly? I wouldn’t trade it for the world. The memories I have with my family and friends going to and watching games are worth more than 27 World Series rings. (Alright, almost worth more). The 7 Line has captured that underdog, gritty, raw passion that Mets fans have for their players and team and has transformed the way many Mets fans enjoy the game. And since the whole thing came out of losing season after losing season, I guess, in a way, we have to be thankful for the Mets performing so terribly for so long. But not too thankful. This season is ours.
#UnfinishedBusiness
