NEW YORK — Jay Horwitz's first interaction with the New York Mets was in January 1980. He spilled orange juice on newly hired general manager Frank Cashen minutes into a job interview about working for the team's public relations department.
Horwitz never envisioned 42 years later he would be honored by the team for his media relations career. He recounted that story along with other memories on Sunday when the Mets had the press box at Citi Field dedicated in his honor before their game with the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Horwitz, 76, joined the team in '80, the first year it was owned by Fred Wilpon and Nelson Doubleday, after serving as the sports information director at Farleigh Dickinson University in Teaneck, New Jersey.