One of the greatest collisions of baseball and pop culture occurred when Keith Hernandez appeared on Seinfeld in 1992. The former Mets first baseman was a guest-star on a one-hour episode titled “The Boyfriend,” in which Jerry meets Hernandez and the two strike up a friendship (fueled by Seinfeld’s man-crush).
To commemorate the 25th anniversary of Seinfeld‘s TV debut, the Brooklyn Cyclones are having “Salute to Seinfeld Night” on July 9, the date The Seinfeld Chronicles first aired. In keeping with the theme of the evening, MCU Park will rename itself Vandelay Industries Park, the foul poles will be called Festivus Poles, and anyone named George Costanza gets to join the team’s radio broadcast for an inning.
If you were thinking, “At least the players don’t have to wear themed jerseys like the Fresno Grizzlies and Durham Bulls,” those young men didn’t get off that easy. The Cyclones will be wearing puffy shirts during batting practice.
Festivities planned for the evening include Cyclones players wearing puffy shirts during batting practice, MCU Park renaming itself Vandelay Industries Park, and anyone named George Costanza getting to join the team’s radio broadcast for an inning.
But the centerpiece of the promotion is a Keith Hernandez “Magic Loogie” bobblehead, capturing the moment when he explained what really happened in “the spitting incident” with Kramer and Newman. The first 2,500 fans through the gates will land that prize.
Unfortunately, the Cyclones only released an illustration of the bobblehead with the announcement. But the team will presumably release a photo of the finished product soon, which will surely be real — and spectacular.