A general view of the exterior of Citi Field on March 25, 2009 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City. (credit: Mike Stobe/Getty Images)

NEW YORK (CBS SPORTS) - Mr. Met stood near the podium with baseball commissioner Bud Selig, Mets owner Fred Wilpon and New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg. “Thanks for bringing your boss along,” Bloomberg said to the mascot. “Does he pay you well?”

After more than three years of trouble on and off the field, the Mets feel things are looking up. Major League Baseball finally announced Wednesday that the 2013 All-Star Game will be hosted by the New York Mets at Citi Field on July 16 — the latest date for the game since 1985.

The Mets last hosted the All-Stars in 1964, the year Shea Stadium opened, when Johnny Callison’s three-run homer capped a four-run ninth inning and gave the NL a 7-4 win. The game was last in New York in 2008, the final season of the old Yankee Stadium, when the AL won 4-3 in 15 innings.

“I think we are headed in the right direction,” Wilpon said, using a cane following left hip-replacement surgery two weeks ago. “I know Major League Baseball believes in the Wilpons and the Mets.”

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