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Mets Visit Firehouse Across From Ground Zero to Say Thanks

By Julie Shapiro | September 10, 2010 2:29pm

By Julie Shapiro

DNAinfo Reporter/Producer

FINANCIAL DISTRICT — Mets third baseman David Wright thinks firefighters, not baseball players, are the real heroes of New York.

Wright spoke Friday afternoon, one day before the ninth anniversary of 9/11, at the Engine 10/Ladder 10 firehouse across the street from Ground Zero.

Wright joked with firefighters about the Mets’ season — “You guys are gonna make a run for it,” one firefighter assured him — and he thanked Bravest for their service.

“These guys’ everyday jobs go under the radar,” said Wright, whose father is a firefighter. “On a daily basis these guys should get more credit — not just on 9/11, but throughout the year."

Mets owner Jeff Wilpon and pitcher Mike Pelfrey, along with FDNY Commissioner Salvatore Cassano, also stopped by to thank the firefighters.

Wilpon said thinking about 9/11 helps put the Mets’ ups and downs in perspective.

“People lost their lives,” he said. “Yes, it’s tough to win and lose, but it doesn’t compare.”

Five active members and one retired member of the 10/10 house were killed on 9/11, and their names are now emblazoned in gold lettering on the side of the company’s trucks.

Mitchell Castiglione, a former 10/10 firefighter who responded to the attacks, returned to the firehouse Friday to introduce his 20-month-old son Joseph to the Mets.

Joseph is showing early signs of being a lefty, and Castiglione, 47, has big hopes that his son could pitch for the Mets someday. Joseph liked climbing aboard the fire truck parked in the station but was shy about meeting Wright and Pelfrey.

Castiglione, a Brooklyn resident, developed asthma and post-traumatic stress disorder after 9/11. He retired two years ago.

“That’s my life now,” he said Friday, gesturing to his wife and son.

FDNY Commissioner Cassano, a longtime Mets fan, said the team helped New York recover from the attacks. Cassano particularly remembers Mike Piazza’s emotional homerun in Shea Stadium just 10 days after the attacks.

“When I look at it today, I still get chills,” Cassano said. “I still get tears. It really got us going again.”