ST. LOUIS — The Mets buckled under to a heavy fan outcry yesterday and decided to preserve Dwight Gooden’s Citi Field autograph after all.
After insisting for the better part of two days that Gooden’s signature inside the exclusive Ebbets Club would be wiped away, the club announced it will move it to a more public part of the stadium.
“We got a lot of calls on this and it was a topic on [sports radio] all day, so we’re going to listen to the fans,” Mets PR chief Jay Horwitz said last night.
According to Horwitz, the section of the Ebbets Club wall with Gooden’s autograph will be removed and put behind fiberglass at a to-be-determined spot in the park more accessible to fans.
The Mets also will cut out a large enough section of the wall for other former stars such as Mike Piazza, Tom Seaver and Jerry Koosman to add their signatures to Gooden’s or create other formats for them to do so.
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“This is a way for us to honor our past,” Horwitz said.
The controversy erupted yesterday morning when the Post’s George Willis reported exclusively the Mets planned to erase the signature.
The club insisted throughout the day yesterday it would stick by its decision, but Horwitz said the outcry was too great.