May 18th, 2012 by metfansince65
Shea Stadium circa 1964
Wednesday, the Mets and the city of New York announced that the 2013 All Star Game (ASG) will be played at Citi Field in Flushing Queens, New York. It will be the second ASG in New York since 2008 when the classic was held at Yankee Stadium, the final year of the storied ballpark in the Bronx.
Prior to 1964, New York hosted the ASG five times starting in 1934 at the Polo Grounds. It was held for the first time at Yankee stadium in 1939. Then in 1942 the ASG went back to the Polo Grounds. Ebbets Field in Brooklyn hosted its only ASG in 1949 and then in 1960 the midsummer classic went back to Yankee Stadium.
It is only the second time in history that the Mets will host an ASG. The first one was hosted in 1964 when the Mets moved into brand new Shea Stadium. That was on July 7, 1964 when the ASG actually meant something. The players on both sides took great pride in winning and played the game as if it were their last.
How so much has changed since 1964.
There was no free agency, the reserve clause was still alive and well. There was no divisional play and certainly no interleague play. The most baseball you saw on TV was the local teams. In New York, the Mets were on WOR channel 9 and the Yankees were on WPIX channel 11. Today, those designations are reversed with each station carrying a limited number of games. There was no SNY or YES. NBC was the only network that covered baseball on a national level. Their Saturday afternoon Game of the Week telecast was the only way you had a chance to see other teams play not involving the locals. Although there were color telecasts as early as the 1950s most viewers did not have a color TV. That’s likely why that first vision of the bright green grass at one’s first ballgame is so memorable.
Typically the Mets televised about 100 games with the Yankees airing slightly less. All games were on radio. There was no cable, satellite, or FIOs. No Internet, cell phones, iPhones, droids, or iPads.
If you missed the game and wanted to know what happened, your choices were few. You could wait for the morning papers and peruse the box scores unless the Mets or Yankees were on the west coast. Then you had to wait for the later editions. You could get some information about the games on the local radio but there was no sports talk radio. Believe it or not, back then there was no outlet for fans and sports hosts to beat a dead horse for hours. Not sure that was so bad in retrospect.
The eleven o’clock news, before Johnny Carson came on the air, would show highlights of the game. But the clips you saw were on film, not video lifted directly from the game broadcast. Often the film was shot with one 16 millimeter camera from the press level and there was no sound. Imagine the process. The film had to be brought back to the studio in Manhattan, chemically developed then edited in time for the sports that aired around 11:20. And usually it was ready because games did not last three hours on average as they do today. In fact, night games in 1964 for both the Mets and Yankees began at eight-oh-five in the evening, not seven but still managed to get over at the same time the games end today. The DH, batters stepping out on almost every pitch, pitchers waiting an eternity between pitches, and more advertising has had a lot to do with the lengthening of the game today.
The broadcasts themselves were more simplistic as well. The Mets had three play by play announcers who rotated on both radio and TV. Of course you don’t need me to tell you that Lindsey Nelson, Bob Murphy, and Ralph Kiner brought you all the action. What is really remarkable is that Kiner still does, although for only a couple of innings on selected broadcasts. For the Yankees, it was the great Mel Allen (’64 would be his final season as Yankee announcer although he stayed around for many years and eventually became the voice of This Week in Baseball), Jerry Coleman (who still broadcasts games for the Padres) and Red Barber who was a Dodger broadcaster in Brooklyn for many years.
The announcers then did not talk incessantly like they do today. Tim McCarver, who fostered the modern analytic color commentary and will rightfully be inducted into the broadcast wing of the Hall of Fame this summer, was still in uniform, catching for the Cardinals in 1964.
There were far fewer cameras used as well. One was up high behind the plate, one behind third base and one on the first base side. NBC employed a center field camera before all the locals did but I do not recall when that started. The Mets also used a camera right behind home plate at field level, a great camera angle I sorely miss.
There were few graphics used during the broadcast, usually just the players name when they strode up to bat or when a new pitcher came in to relieve. The technology of instant replay, although crude at the time, was available but little used in 1964 for baseball, at least as I recall.
Fans showed up to games back then wearing fairly nice clothes. At that time no one wore team paraphernalia, tee shirts with ripped up genes or other casual outfits. Some fans even wore ties with sports jackets. Hot Dogs, not sushi, was the commonly consumed food at the ballpark, and along with bear and soda, were reasonably priced. There was no Blue Smoke, Shake Shack, or Momma’s of Corona. People went to the game to actually watch the game. They didn’t go to wander around aimlessly for three hours in fan friendly zones, sports bars, or merchandise shops worthy of being in your local shopping mall. On the dark side, people did smoke and the smell of cigar permeated the air at the ballpark. So some things have changed for the better.
The ASG in ’64 was played in the afternoon as all ASGs and World Series games were at that time. Shea Stadium was brand new, in its first season. The seats were made of wood, colored yellow, beige, blue, and light green from the bottom deck to top respectively. The big right field scoreboard actually worked and images of each batter were displayed on that rear projection screen at the top which got covered up in later years by advertisement. And of course, there was the Rheingold sign (the dry beer) underneath the scoreboard. Diamond Vision was still more than a decade off into the future. There was no picnic area, Home Run Apple, and the batters eye was much smaller than what it became years later. In fact the outfield looked rather naked in those early years of Shea. Oh, and the fence was painted green, not blue. It was not painted blue until the 1980s.
Even with the Yankees across the river, still getting to the World Series year after year (they had lost to the LA Dodgers in the 1963 fall classic), the Mets were becoming the darlings of New York in 1964. With the World’s Fair across Roosevelt Avenue, Shea became a happening place to be, even with the team losing consistently. Little did those diehards know in ’64 that the impossible would occur in just five seasons.
Back then, the players on the All Star team were not elected by the fans but by the coaches and players. In 1964, a Met was elected to the All Star Team for the first time. His name was Ron Hunt, still a memorable favorite in the minds of Mets fans old enough to recall the team’s origin. He was in the starting lineup at second base.
Hunt was not an original 1962 Met but he came up through their system and debuted with the big club in 1963. Hunt singled in his first at bat that Tuesday afternoon. In total, Hunt played four seasons with the Mets before moving on to LA, San Francisco, Montreal then the Cardinals, ending his career in 1974. Hunt’s greatest asset was the ability to get on base—any way he could. In his career, Hunt was hit by a pitch 243 times, 41 times while with the Mets. Hunt was hit 50 times in one season with Montreal in 1971. Hunt is sixth on the all time hit by pitch list over his career and second for a single season. Hughy Jennings got bonked 51 times in 1896.
As for the game, the AL scored a run in the first inning when Harmon Killebrew singled in Jim Fregosi. It stayed that way until the bottom of the fourth when Billy Williams and Ken Boyer homered to give the NL a 2-1 lead. The NL added a run in the 5th when Dick Groat doubled in Roberto Clemente.
With the NL leading 3-1, the AL rallied in the sixth. With one out, Mickey Mantle (Yes, Mantle played at Shea) singled to center followed by another Killebrew single. With two outs, Brooks Robinson hit a liner that Willie Mays almost made a great diving catch. Robinson ended up on third having driven in the tying runs (In five seasons, Robinson would be back at Shea in the World Series).
In the 7th, NL pitcher Turk Ferrell (any relation to Turk Wendell?) hit Elston Howard. Howard went to third on a Rocky Colavito double then scored on a Jim Fregosi sac fly. The AL took a 4-3 lead.
It stayed that way until the bottom of the ninth.
Willie Mays walked then stole second. Orlando Cepeda singled but first baseman Joe Pepitone made a throwing error on the play allowing Mays to score the tying run and Cepeda to end up on second. The NL sent in Curt Flood to run for Cepeda. The AL countered by intentionally walking Johnny Edwards. Henry Aaron then struck out before Philadelphia’s Johnny Callison homered to give the NL a walk off 7-4 win (even though the terminology “walk off” was not used then).
The NL won its second ASG in a row. The senior circuit would win another six before the AL finally beat them in 1971. The NL would go on to win another 11ASGs in a row before AL dominance began to take over.
It was the second time in the short history of Shea Stadium that a Philadelphia Phillie did something significant. A month earlier, Philadelphia’s Jim Bunning pitched the first and only perfect game in the history of the old ballpark.
Here’s another thing to consider about that 1964 ASG. Mickey Mantle (1974), Harmon Killebrew (1984), Brooks Robinson (1983), Roberto Clemente (1973), Juan Marichal (1983), Billy Williams (1987), Willie Mays (1979), Orlando Cepeda (1999), Hank Aaron (1982), Don Drysdale (1984), Willie Stargell (1988), and Jim Bunning (1996) played in the 1964 ASG and all were eventually elected to Baseball’s Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York. (The dates indicate year of election.) Another player, Joe Torre, a great player in his own right will make it to the Hall one day as well on his accomplishments as manager.
The 1964 ASG was a classic, held in a beautiful brand new stadium, the likes of which no one had ever seen at the time. Surely, in the not too distant future it was thought, MLB would tap the Mets and Shea to host another ASG. It never happened.
The ASG returned to New York in 1976, only 12 years later but this time it was held in the newly renovated Yankee Stadium. It returned again in 2008, the last year of the original/renovated Yankee Stadium.
Many new ballparks were built between 1964 and today, starting with the Astrodome (now defunct) in 1965. Shea became run down by an organization that forgot its roots in the late 1970s. And even though it was spruced up by the new ownership group in the early 1980s, its reputation of a dump became hard to dismiss. Once Oriole Park at Camden Yards set off the next wave of stadium construction, it was clear Shea would never get a shot at another ASG.
But next year, on July 16, 2013, the ASG does return to Flushing. However Shea is gone and gleaming Citi Field stands in its place. It should be a glorious five days starting with the futures game on the Sunday of All Star week, Home Run Derby on the Monday evening then the game itself on Tuesday. There will be an All Star Fan Fest as well but the site has yet to be determined.
What’s important is that the Mets continue to improve so that when the country watches the ASG from Citi Field, they will know that the host team is as good and classy as the ballpark they play in.
May 17th, 2012 by metfansince65
The Mets will play in Toronto tomorrow evening. It will be the first time the Mets have played on an artificial surface since June 28-3o, 2010. On those dates the Mets played the Florida Marlins at Hiram Bithorn Stadium in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The Mets lost the first two games of the series salvaging the finale. Also of note, Jose Reyes tweaked his hammy during that series causing him to miss a few games.
The surface in Toronto is Field Turf, an updated and much better surface than the old Astroturf field. Field Turf uses simulated blades of grass that have a rubber pellet base that is much more shock absorbent and does a much better job of protecting the legs from injury. The Rogers Centre field is the only one left in MLB with the turf covering the infield with the sliding boxes around the bases. Boo I say to that. At least do what Tampa does, have dirt base paths.
The last time the Mets played in Toronto was in 2006 when they took two of three. Overall the Mets are 5-4 at Rogers Centre formally known as Skydome. Over the six seasons the Mets have played inter-league games with the Blue Jays, the Mets hold a 14-4 advantage, the best percentage (.778) against their inter-league opponents.
The Mets have never lost to the Jays at home. The Mets have swept all three series held at Shea Stadium, the last one in 2001. The Jays have never played at Citi Field.
The Mets will play again on an artificial surface in June when they travel to Tampa.
With today’s win against Cincinnati at Citi Field, the Mets move to 21-17. If the Phillies win this evening at Wrigley Field, their record will be a game over .500 meaning all National League East teams will have a better than .500 record. When all is said and done, the Mets could have the best win-lost record in five seasons this year and still finish in last place.
Minor note…
The Binghamton Mets destroyed the Trenton Thunder (Yankees) this evening by a score of 12-3. The good news is that Mets top pitching prospect Zach Wheeler pitched for the B-Mets allowing 2 runs on 2 hits with 8 strikeouts over seven innings. He did give up 4 walks and a home run. However, the two hits were given up with two outs in the first inning. Wheeler no-hit the Thunder the next 6 innings.
The vastly improved Mets minor league system continues to do well. The International League (AAA) Buffalo Bisons are 23-17 in 3rd place, 3.5 games back. The Eastern League (AA) B-Mets are 19-19 in fourth place 4 games back. The Florida State League (A+) St. Lucie Mets are an amazing 31-8, 12 games ahead in the Southern Division. Finally the South Atlantic League (A) Savannah Sand Gnats are 24-14, in 2nd place 2 games back.
May 14th, 2012 by metfansince65
Last Friday evening the Mets as a franchise played their first game in another major league ballpark. That makes a total of 57 different ballparks the Mets have played in over the past 50 years. On the broadcast, the crew said it was the Mets 56th ballpark. That could be because UltimateMets.com does not list Memorial Stadium in Baltimore where the Mets played the first two games of the 1969 World Series. I think that should count even though the Mets never played a regular season game there. What counts more than a World Series game?
What I find astonishing after compiling the list (thank to UltimateMets.com and Retrosheet.org), is the number of times the Mets have lost a game when playing in a ballpark for the first time. The Mets record for playing their first game in a ballpark is 21-36 (.368).
The Mets have never won the first game in the three ballparks they have called home. They lost to the Pirates in both the Polo Grounds and Shea Stadium. In 2009, they lost to San Diego when they opened Citi Field. The only New York ballpark they won in for their first game was Yankee Stadium when Dave Milicki shut them out in 1997, the first year of interleague play. The Mets lost their first game in the new Yankee Stadium in 2009 when Luis Castillo dropped a pop up off Alex Rodriguez that should have won the game. Instead the Mets suffered a devastating loss as the tying and winning runs scored.
The Mets had a chance to win their first game ever in the Marlins new ballpark Friday evening but Frank Francisco couldn’t hold the lead.
There are no new ballparks on the horizon. But the Mets have still to play at Target Field in Minneapolis/St. Paul. Target field is not on the schedule this season and it is unclear when the Mets will head back to Minnesota in the future. Oakland desperately wants a new ballpark. Eventually they will get one and at some point in time, the Mets will play there. Perhaps Tamp will get a new park too in the not too distant future.
I listed the ballparks by their current names in most cases. An exception is Joe Robbie Stadium which seemed to change names every year. Also Busch Stadium I was known as Sportsman’s Park but that was earlier than when the Mets debuted there in 1962. Likewise for Connie Mack Stadium, aka Shibe Park. I used the latest corporate sponsor names even though they changed from when the Mets first played there. For example, Minute Maid Park was originally Enron Field and AT&T Park was originally Pac Bell Park.
The list below shows the 57 ballparks the Mets have played in chronological order including the game result.
1) Busch Stadium I, St. Louis, April 11, 1962 vs. Cardinals, Loss 4-11
2) Polo Grounds, New York, April 13, 1962 vs. Pirates, Loss 3-4
3) Forbes Field, Pittsburgh, April 21, 1962 vs. Pirates, Loss 4-8
4) Crosley Field, Cincinnati, April 24, 1962 vs. Reds, Loss 3-7
5) Connie Mack Stadium Philadelphia, May 4, 1962 vs. Phillies, Loss 5-6
6) Wrigley Field, Chicago, May 8, 1962 vs. Cubs, Win 3-1
7) County Stadium, Milwaukee, May 18, 1962 vs. Braves, Loss 2-5
8 ) Colt Stadium, Houston, May 21, 1962 vs. Colt 45s, Loss 2-3
9) Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles, May 23, 1962 vs. Dodgers, Loss 1-3
10) Candlestick Park, San Francisco, May 26, 1962 vs. Giants, Loss 6-7
11) Shea Stadium, New York, April 17, 1964 vs. Pirates, Loss 3-4
12) Astrodome, Houston, April 27, 1965 vs. Astros, Loss 2-3
13) Atlanta Fulton County Stadium, Atlanta, April 22, 1966 vs. Braves, Loss 4-8
14) Busch Stadium II, St Louis, June 20, 1966 vs. Cardinals, Loss 2-4
15) Jarry Park, Montreal, April 29, 1969 vs. Expos, Win 2-0
16) Jack Murphy Stadium (San Diego Stadium), San Diego, June 6, 1969 vs. Padres, Win 5-3
17) Memorial Stadium, Baltimore, October 11, 1969 vs. Orioles, Loss 1-4
18) Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, August 7, 1970 vs. Pirates, Loss 1-6
19) Riverfront Stadium, Cincinnati, August 11, 1970 vs. Reds, Loss 1-8
20) Veterans Stadium, Philadelphia, May 19, 1971 vs. Phillies, Loss 1-4
21) Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, Oakland, October 13, 1973 vs. Athletics, Loss 1-2
22) Olympic Stadium, Montreal, June 1, 1977 vs. Expos, Win, 6-4
23) Fenway Park, Boston, October 21, 1986 vs. Red Sox, Win 7-1
24) Hiram Bithorn Stadium, San Juan, April 11, 2003 vs. Expos, Loss 0-10
25) Mile High Stadium, Denver, April 13, 1993 vs. Rockies, Win 8-4
26) Joe Robbie (Dolphin) Stadium, Miami, June 29, 1993 vs. Marlins, Win 10-9
27) Coors Field, Denver, April 26, 1995 vs. Rockies, Loss 9-11
28) Monterrey Stadium, Monterrey, August 16, 1996 vs. Padres, Loss 10-15
29) Yankee Stadium, New York, June 16, 1997 vs. Yankees, Win 6-0
30) Tiger Stadium, Detroit, June 30, 1997 vs. Tigers, Loss 0-14
31) Turner Field, Atlanta, July 10, 1997 vs. Braves, Win 10-7
32) Oriole Park at Camden Yards, Baltimore, August 29, 1997 vs. Orioles, Loss 3-4
33) Rogers Centre, Toronto, June 30, 1998 vs. Blue Jays, Loss 3-6
34) Chase Field, Pheonix, August 14, 1998 vs. Diamondbacks, Win 3-2
35) Tropicana Field, Tampa, July 15, 1999 vs. Devil Rays, Win 8-7
36) Tokyo Dome, Tokyo, March 29, 2000 vs. Cubs, Loss 3-5
37) AT&T Park, San Francisco, May 1, 2000 vs. Giants, Loss 3-10
38) Minute Made Park, Houston, May 7, 2000 vs. Houston, Win 6-5
39) Miller Park, Milwaukee, April 24, 2001 vs. Brewers, Loss 4-6
40) PNC Park, Pittsburgh, September 17, 2001 vs. Pirates, Win 4-1
41) Progressive Field, Cleveland, June 7, 2002 vs. Indians, Win 4-3
42) US Cellular Field, Chicago, June 10, 2002 vs. White Sox, Win 3-1
43) Rangers Ballpark, Arlington, June 10, 2003 vs. Rangers, Loss 9-7
44) Angels Stadium, Anaheim, June 13, 2003 vs. Angels, Win 7-3
45) Great American Ballpark, Cincinnati, July 4, 2003 vs. Reds, Win 7-2
46) Petco Park, San Diego, April 30, 2004 vs. Padres, Loss 6-7
47) Citizen’s Bank Park, Philadelphia, May 31, 2004 vs. Phillies, Win 5-3
48) Metrodome, Minneapolis/St. Paul, June 8, 2004 vs. Twins, Loss 1-2
49) Kauffman Stadium, Kansas City, June 11, 2004 vs. Royals, Loss 5-7
50) RFK Stadium, DC, April 29, 2005 vs. Nationals, Loss 1-5
51) Safeco Field, Seattle, June 17, 2005 vs. Mariners, Loss 0-5
52) Busch Stadium III, St. Louis, May 16, 2006 vs. Cardinals, Win 8-3
53) Comerica Park, Detroit, June 8, 2007 vs. Tigers, Win 3-0
54) Nationals Park, DC, April 23, 2008 vs. Nationals, Win 7-2
55) Citi Field, New York, April 13, 2009 vs. Padres, Loss 5-6
56) Yankee Stadium II, New York, June 12, 2009 vs. Yankees, Loss 8-9
57) Marlins Park, Miami, May 11, 2012 vs. Marlins, Loss 5-6
May 11th, 2012 by metfansince65
7999 and counting.
On Wednesday evening, the Mets won game number 7,999. That is how many games the New York Mets have played since they began their existence fifty years ago. Tonight in Miami, the Mets will play their first game ever in brand new Marlins Park. While it will be their first game there it will be the 8,000th in the history of the team.
As a franchise, the Mets have a record of 3829-4162 with 8 ties . They have made 7 post season appearances, winning four National League pennants and two world championships. Their best season ever was 1986 when they won a franchise record 108 regular season games culminating with a World Series victory. The worst season ever was 1962, their inaugural, having won just 40 games while losing 120, still a major league record.
Their greatest game of all time was likely game six of the 1986 Series with game six of the ’86 NLCS a close second. Their worst, arguably, was the season finale of 2007 when the Mets completed the worst collapse in baseball history until last season’s Red Sox and Braves took that dubious honor.
There have been many ups and downs over the last fifty years. But when you think of the number of games the Mets have played, one thing comes to mind. In the first 7,999 games the New York Mets have played, not one Met pitcher has ever thrown a no-hitter. Not one. No perfect game, no no-hitter.
Tom Seaver came close. Forty-three years ago this July 9th, Seaver pitched eight and a third perfect innings of baseball retiring the first 25 batters he faced until a clean base hit broke it up. Jimmy Qualls, a journeyman player with the Chicago Cubs, now 65, can still tell his friends and family of how he broke up Seaver’s gem that Wednesday evening so long ago. It was the greatest accomplishment of Qualls’ short career. Jim who?
As for Seaver, that performance remains the greatest pitched game in Mets history. Seaver would eventually pitch a no-hitter but it was with the Reds years later. The July 9th game was not the only time Seaver flirted with history. Others Mets pitchers have come close too.
While no Met has ever pitched a no-no, there have been twenty-five one-hitters thrown and some of them pretty memorable. The first one-hitter occurred on June 22, 1962.
It was the first game of a twi-night doubleheader. Those were the days when doubleheaders were a common event–one ticket price, two games. The second batter of the game for Houston, Joey Amalfitano, singled off Jackson. Except for two walks issued later during the complete game effort, that was all Jackson gave up as the Mets won the game 2-0. (They lost the nightcap 16-3.) Had Jackson prevented that first inning hit, the long lore of the no-hitter-less Mets would have been thwarted in the third month of their existence.
In 1996, Jack Hamilton pitched a gem in St. Louis. He gave up a single and a walk in the third inning and that was it. He retired the Cardinal hitters 1-2-3 in all other innings. Oh and the hit was by Cardinal pitcher Ray Sadecki. Can you imagine? The Mets won the game 8-0.
Seaver’s stellar performance in ’69, referred to above, would be the next one-hitter in the short history of the team before Nolan Ryan pitched a one-hitter in 1970.
On April 18, 1970, the Mets defeated the Phillies at Shea Stadium by a score of 7-0. Ryan gave up a single to Denny Doyle to lead off the game but that was it as he completed the shutout. Ryan did walk six batters but he struck out 15! With the first batter getting a hit, the thought of a no-hitter was not on anyone’s mind. It was only afterward when people realized what a dominating performance Ryan had turned in.
There are a couple of ironies to Ryan’s one hitter. One of course is that he would leave the Mets and go on to pitch seven no-hitters during his illustrious Hall of Fame career. The other is that in the game, the losing pitcher was Jim Bunning who had thrown a perfect game against the Mets on Father’s Day, 1964.
A month later on May 13th, Gary Gentry, another highly talented Mets pitcher from the farm system, threw a one hitter against the Cubs at Wrigley Field. Gentry pitched to 29 batters, walking one in the fifth who was caught stealing, giving up his first hit with two out in the eighth, and hitting a batter in the ninth. The Mets won this one by a score of 4-0.
Two days later, Seaver pitched his second one hitter as a Met, this time in Philadelphia. He gave up a single in the third and walked three along the way to a 4-0 complete game shutout.
On April 18, 1971, Gentry pitched his second one hitter, this time against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Gentry retired the first 13 hitters to face him before walking Al Oliver. He then hit first baseman Bob Robertson then retired the next two batters to get out of trouble. In the sixth, Gentry gave up the only hit to the great Roberto Clemente, a triple that scored Richie Hebner who had walked. Clemente scored the second run on a sac fly. Gentry shut the door retiring the last eleven Pirates to come up. The Mets beat the Pirates 5-2.
Later that same year in September, Tom Seaver did it yet again. Tom retired the first 18 Pirates he faced. Then in the seventh he walked Dave Cash before Vic Davilillo singled. Within the course of two batters, Seaver lost the perfect game and the no hitter. A sac fly scored the Bucs only run as Seaver retired the last eight batters to face him as the Mets won the game 3-1. Seaver struck out ten.
Less that a year later, Seaver came close again. On the 4th of July, 1972, the Mets faced the Padres at Shea Stadium. (btw, the Padres are the only other club in the Majors to never have one of their pitchers throw a no-hitter.) It was not as glorious as the “Near Perfect Game” of 1969 as it had become to be known, but it was close.
Seaver retired the first eleven hitters he faced then walked two in a row. There went the perfect game. But the no-hitter continued into the ninth inning. With one out, Padres left fielder Leron Lee singled. Seaver hit the eight and a third inning wall again as he did in 1969. A 6-4-3 double play erased Lee and ended the game. The Mets defeated the Padres 2-0 as Seaver struck out eleven.
The Mets faced Houston at Shea on July 10, 1973. Lefty Jon Matlack was on the mound. Matlack had great stuff and with Seaver and Jerry Koosman, they formed an awesome 1-2-3 punch. Matlack retired 15 consecutive Astros. In the 6th, Tommy Helms doubled to lead off the inning. That was it however as Matlack retired the Astros the rest of the way only giving up single walks in the 7th and 8th inning. Matlack ended the 1-0 win by striking out the side in the 9th. (Tommy Agee played center field for Houston that day.)
Matlack crafted another one-hitter in 1974. This one will break your heart.
On June 29, 1974, Matlack did walk three but the only hit delivered by a Cardinal that day was from the starting pitcher, Jack Curtis–ouch! Like Jack Hamilton back in ’66, a pitcher getting the only hit was yet another reason why no Met pitcher has ever thrown a no-hitter. The Mets defeated St. Louis 1-0.
1977 would be the last season Tom Seaver would wear a Mets uniform, at least until he came back for the 1983 season. Before Seaver would be sent to Cincinnati in the worst trade of Mets history, he would come close to a no-hitter one more time.
On April 17th at Shea, Seaver one hit the Cubs. He gave up a walk in the second inning, a single to Steve Ontiveros in the 5th and two walks in the 8th. The Mets won 6-0 as Seaver won his 3rd game of the season.
By the time the Mets would come close to a no-hitter again, Seaver, Koosman, Gentry, and Matlock were long gone. The old regime of M. Donald Grant was gone too. A new era of Mets baseball had begun as general manger Frank Cashen had begun the work of rebuilding the storied franchise. While the Mets struggled in the early 80s before reaching prominence again, another flirtation with a no-hitter occurred.
Terry Leach was a side armed throwing right hander signed by Cashen in 1980. He had been drafted by the Braves. Leach was a serviceable pitcher, I’m sure one that Cashen figured could at least hold the fort as the organization worked hard to grow front of the rotation pitchers.
Leach’s moment came on October 1, 1982 in Philadelphia. Leach gave up a hit in the fifth inning, a triple to second baseman Luis Aguayo. But Leach was able to get out of the inning without the Phillies scoring. Leach would get into trouble in the 7th walking the bases loaded but again, working out of trouble. In fact Leach walked six in the game. But what was really remarkable and unique about this particular one-hitter is that while allowing the one hit and six walks, Leach pitched a shutout over ten innings. And even more remarkable is that the Mets were one hit as well until the 10th when a walk, a single, and a sac fly produced the only run of the game. Leach pitched a 10 inning one hit 1-0 win.
By 1984, an entire new crop of young talented pitchers had taken the place of the great Mets pitchers from the past. One, a nineteen year old phenom nicknamed Doc would surely be the first Met to ever pitch a no-hitter. At least that is what everyone thought.
In Dwight Gooden’s rookie season, he came close. On September 7, 1984, Gooden squared off against the Cubs at Shea. He walked the very first batter he faced then he retired the next 12 batters in a row. In the top of the 5th, right fielder Keith Mooreland singled. It would be the only hit of the game. Through the course of the rest of the game, Gooden walked three more but the Cubs never posed a threat as Doc and the Mets easily defeated Chicago 10-0.
Doc never did pitch that elusive no-hitter for the Mets. In fact, he never even pitched another one-hitter while wearing the orange and blue. However, David Cone who the Mets obtained from Kansas City for the 1987 season was another candidate that was thought might finally do what no other Met pitcher had done so far.
On August 29, 1988 against San Diego at Shea Stadium, Cone became the next Met pitcher to come close. Cone walked two Padres but the only hit came off the bat of Tony Gwynn when he doubled in the 4th inning. The Mets won the game easily by a score of 6-0. Cone struck out eight.
Cone would come close again in 1991 but 10 days earlier in that season, Pete Schourek came mighty close too. On September 10th, Schourek gave up a walk and a hit in the fifth and a walk in the sixth. But that was all as he shut out the Expos by a score of 9-0. On the 20th of the month, Cone shut out the Cardinals 1-0 striking out 11, giving up a walk in the fifth to end the perfect game attempt. Cone lasted till the 8th when Felix Jose led off with a double. A no-hitter, once again, did not happen. It would be the last time a Mets pitcher came close for nine seasons.
Some could argue that the next time a Met pitcher came close to no hitting another team would be the greatest of all, even better than Seaver’s near perfecto. This of course would be Bobby Jones’ division series clinching masterpiece against the Giants in 2000.
Jones was no Seaver. He was a good pitcher but by no means close to an ace. He had his moments but none was bigger than October 8, 2000. First off, it was the only near no-hitter ever pitched in the post season for the Mets. Secondly, Jones simply dominated the Giants led by Barry Bonds.
Jones was perfect for eight innings but not in a row. He retired the side in order in innings one through four and six through nine. In the fifth, Jones gave up the only hit to Jeff Kent, a double (prior to the double, Kent hit won just foul over the wall). With one out he walked J.T. Snow then with two outs he walked Doug Mirabelli to load the bases. But Jones got pitcher Mark Gardner to pop out to second to end the threat. The Mets moved on to the NLCS and almost finally made history in the process.
There are more one hitters but I grow weary. Sean Estes did it in 2002, Steve Trachsel did it twice in 2003, yes twice. And the second one, the only hit was by the pitcher, just like Jack Hamilton and Jon Matlack’s efforts mentioned above.
Then there was Tom Glavine’s masterpeice in 2004. This was probably the best one hitter performance next to Seaver’s “Near Perfect Game”. Glavine walked no one allowing one hit after seven and two thirds, a double to Rockies first baseman Kit Pellow. Huh? Glavine of course will be remembered for his ultimate meltdown that concluded the 2007 travesty, however, he really was a great pitcher and pitched some gems for the Mets.
Aaron Heilman did it in 2005 and two current Mets starters, Jon Niese and R.A. Dickey did it too. Yes, they all pitched one-hitters. Niese and Dickey continue to be an important part of the Mets current rotation and either could still be the one to finally pitch that first Mets no-hitter. Tonight in game number 8000. Johan Santana, pitching better than anyone could have ever predicted after returning from shoulder surgery, could set things straight simply by not allowing a Marlin to reach base via a hit. What are the odds? Indeed, what are the odds?
May 8th, 2012 by metfansince65
Jordany Valdespin, from San Pedro de Macoris, D.R. got his first hit as a Met last evening. It was not his first at bat but it was his first Major League hit. He becomes the fifth Met, so far as I can tell, who has hit a dinger for his first big league hit.
There are four other Mets whose first hit was a home run the first time up with the team. They include…
Benny Ayala – August 27, 1974. The Mets defeated Houston 4-2 at Shea Stadium. Ayala’s homer, a solo shot, came in the second inning.
Mike Fitzgerald – September 13, 1983. Like Valdespin’s, this one happened in Philadelphia too. Fitzgerald got his first hit, a solo home run, in the second inning en root to a 5-1 victory.
Kaz Matsui – April 6, 2004. Kaz made the Mets hierarchy at the time look like geniuses when he hit a home run to lead off the game. Matsui was a star in Japan but his first Major League hit was this home run at Turner Field in a 7-2 opening day win.
Mike Jacobs - August 21, 2005. In a game the Mets lost 7-4 to Washington, Mike Jacobs made his major league debut by hitting a home run in his first major league at bat as a pinch hitter in the 5th inning. Jacobs went on to hit a flock of them in ’05 setting up the trade the following November that brought Carlos Delgado to the Mets. Jacobs could hit a fast ball out of site but his limitations were exposed over time. Jacobs has a total of 100 home runs and last played in the Majors in 2010 with the Mets.
Again, Valdespin did not hit a homer in his first at bat. His homer was his first major league hit. Not sure if there are other Mets whose first hit was a homer after several at bats. But I’ll keep looking.
May 7th, 2012 by metfansince65
It is a year when you think the other shoe is about to drop, the Mets rebound and move forward.
After Friday night’s blow up by the bullpen loss to the Diamondbacks, I had not much hope for the rest of the weekend. Then on Saturday, the Mets scored 4 runs in the fourth inning again as they did on Friday night. I had to go out so I would I knew I would not see how the Mets bullpen would blow the game this time. When I checked my At Bat 12 app on my smart phone later in the day, I was stunned to see that the Mets held on for a one run win.
Yet again on Sunday, it appeared that all the magic generated by R.A. Dickey’s wonderful eight innings would come undone in the top of the ninth. Thankfully Sandy Alderson did not have the left field and right field fences pulled in any further or it would have been another one for the blown save column. But a win is a win and the Mets once again survived by not falling below the .500 mark.
At 15-13, the Mets remain respectable and let’s not forget the Mets have already suffered their share of injuries including the loss of Mike Pelfrey for the entire season. Jason Bay is still out, not that he was lighting the world on fire anyway but he does pose a presence in the lineup. Also, Ike Davis is acting as if he has never seen a breaking pitch in his life and Lucas Duda has struggled to be consistent. So between a bullpen that loves to give up runs and an offense that isn’t very offensive, we should not be complaining too much after this very brief three game home stand.
Where to next…
The schedule makers, those Mensa candidates that work for MLB, have the Mets back in Philadelphia for a three game set starting tonight, only a month after they were there last. The Phillies have yet to make a trip to Citi Field but they finally will come in at the end of the month. The Mets will not return to Philly after this series concludes until the end of August.
How about those O’s…
There is a great baseball story going on and it could not be happening to a better baseball city. That would be the Orioles of Baltimore whose Camden Yards facility is still one of the tops in baseball. The Orioles just completed a sweep of the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park no less. The O’s completed the feat by winning a 17 inning game yesterday when the only pitchers left for each side were position players.
Chris Davis, the Orioles first baseman, became the first position player since the 1970s to get a win. Many have taken a loss or no decision. With two on and the tying run at the plate, Davis struck out Adrian Gonzales then got Darnell McDonnell (DH who was the losing pitcher) to ground into a game ending double play. The Orioles have now won five in a row, including two out of three from the Yankees.
Are the Orioles for real? Well last year after 28 games, they were 13-15. This season, they are a division leading 19-9, a half game ahead of the Tampa Bay Rays.
Baltimore was one of the great baseball franchises in the late 60s and early 70s. It is good to see them playing so well after so many years of futility. Maybe in a couple years, we will see a rematch of the 1969 World Series. Now wouldn’t that be something.
May 4th, 2012 by metfansince65
Last night in Kansas City while shagging fly balls, Mariano Rivera turned his knee tearing his ACL and meniscus. He is finished for the 2012 season. In fact it’s possible his injury could end his career.
Now before you start thinking I am jumping up and down, excited that something bad has happened to the Yankees, guess again. I do not waist energy in rooting against the Yankees. To me, that’s just as hopeless as rooting for the Mets. Okay, I am hopeless, and I do root for the Mets season after season, but honestly I do not care what the Yankees do. So no, I do not take delight in the misery of another team, even the Bronx Bombers. To do so would only diminish who I am. I root for the Mets through thick and thin (mostly thin). That enough defines my character.
On the other hand, do I feel sorry for the Yankees? No, I do not. They and their fans have experienced more winning then every other Major League team combined. Even during the 80s, when the Mets owned New York, the Yankees racked up more wins than any other club during the decade. The Yanks are a winning machine. Their fans should kiss the Yankee Stadium concrete below their seats every single time they go to a game.
I do feel bad for Mariano though. If you are a baseball fan, how could you not? He is the Babe Ruth of closers with 608 saves, more than anyone in the history of the game. One of the reasons the Yankees have been so good since the late 1990s is because of Mariano. With the Yankees holding a lead in the ninth inning, no matter how slim, when Mariano was brought in, game over—simple as that. The game will miss him. The Yankees will miss him. But if there is one team that has the wherewithal to recover from such a loss, it’s the Yankees. So again, I do not feel sorry for the team, I do feel sorry for the man.
But this is a Mets blog so how do I parley this horrible Yankees development into a Mets port? Actually it’s pretty easy. To demonstrate the greatness of Mariano Rivera, let’s take a look at the closers the Mets have had while Mariano has been throwing his singular pitch, that cutter that crosses the plate always so deceptively and unpredictably.
Rivera came up in 1995 but did not save any games until 1996. That year he saved 5 games only because John Wetteland was the team’s closer at the time. After the Yankees first World Series win since 1978, Wetteland left for Texas, the Yanks handed the ball to Rivera and told him “close the games kid”. And close them he did. He had 43 saves in ’97, his first year as closer and has continued to rack them up since, breaking the all time record last season. But while this was going on in the Bronx, from then until last evening, who was closing for the Mets.
In 1997, Rivera’s first season, the Mets closer was a good one too. His name was John Franco, a New York born left hander that was drafted by the Dodgers organization then later traded to the Reds where he became a dominant NL closer. He was traded to the Mets for Randy Myers after the 1989 season.
Franco came home to New York and his favorite team growing up at the tail end of the great run of the late 1980s. He played through some awful years then was a big part of the Bobby Valentine resurgent Mets. In 1997, Franco saved 36 games in ’97, not the 43 Mariano converted but still a very respectable number. The Mets won 88 games that season and became relevant after several years of futility. In ’98, Franco saved 38 games, actually 2 more than Rivera. However that was likely due to the fact that the Yankees did not need to call on their ace closer as often because the Yankees were blowing out everybody on their way to a 114 win season and another world championship.
While Mariano was recording 45 more saves in 1999, John Franco had racked up 19 before a finger injury sidelined him for over two months of the season. During that time, Armando Benitez, acquired from the Orioles the previous winter, became the closer, a role he would not relinquish while Franco remained on the team. In 77 games, Benitez, who could drive Mets fans to the brink of jumping off the Whitestone Bridge as easily as Franco would often do, managed to save 22 games. He and Franco combined to save 41 games as the Mets shoehorned their way into the playoffs via a play-in game against the Reds a day after the season ended.
The following season, the Mets would win the wild card again with Benitez remaining the fulltime Mets closer. He saved 41 all by himself this time as the Mets made it all the way to the World Series. For the Yankees who would win their third consecutive world championship, Rivera once again was the dominant closer, saving 36 games during the regular season.
The difference between the two closers, Rivera and Benitez, became obvious during the series. They both had good stuff but Rivera was so much more consistent and exuded so much more confidence. The 2000 World Series turning point occurred in game one. The Mets held a 3-2 lead in the bottom of the ninth. Benitez got Jorge Posada to fly out for out number one. But then Paul O’Neil had the at bat of the series, fouling off pitch after pitch until eventually working out a walk. Benitez’s inability to retire O’Neil cost the Mets as he eventually scored the tying run. The Yankees ultimately won game one in the 12th. Had Benitez saved that game, who knows what would have happened?
Rivera saved two games in that series, including the clinching game five at Shea Stadium. Benitez saved game three, the only game the Mets won. But at least the Mets stopped the Yankees World Series game winning streak at 12.
Rivera for the Yanks, Benitez for the Mets, continued as team closers for three more seasons. Rivera saved 50, 28, 40 with Benitez saving 43, 33, and 21 respectively. But the Yankees continued to get to the post season while the Mets began another downward slide.
For 2004, the beginning of the Art Howe era, (you remember Art, the man that could light up a room), the Mets signed free agent closer Braden Looper who had been the closer for Florida. Looper was no Rivera. He had compiled 46 saves for Florida in four seasons but 28 of them came in ’03. Mind you, John Franco was still with the club having recovered from Tommy John surgery in ’02. He managed to save one game that season already having set the all time save record for lefties. Franco would end his career in Houston the next season.
While the Mets greatly disappointed in 2004, like the sun coming up each day, Rivera continued to do his thing over in the Bronx. In 2004, Mariano saved a career single season personal record of 53 games. But in the post season, Mariano experienced his worst moment as a closer, even worse than when he threw the ball into centerfield in the 2001 World Series which ultimately led to the Diamondbacks scoring the walk off run.
With the Yankees poised to sweep the Red Sox at Fenway Park in the league championship series, Rivera was unable to close the door allowing the Red Sox to tie the game. The Sox eventually went on to win in extra innings. Boston then became the first major league team in history to come back from a 3-0 deficit to win a seven game series. The Sox then swept the Cardinals to win their first World Series since 1918. While the Yankees continued to reach the post season year after year, the World Series became elusive. But through it all, Mariano continued to be the most consistent closer in the game.
Omar Minaya came on the scene as Mets GM in 2005. He made some big moves, most notably signing Pedro Martinez and Carlos Beltran. He also hired Willie Randolph to be the first black manager in New York baseball history.
Things got off to a rough start. With the Mets leading in Willie’s first game as Mets manager in Cincinnati, Braden Looper was poised for the save on opening day. Looper did not retire a batter. With the Mets leading 6-4, Looper gave up a single to Austin Kerns then a homerun to Adam Dunn. The next batter, Joe Randa, a former Met on paper, homered to win it. Looper blew his first save opportunity of the season.
In 2005, Rivera saved 43 games, business as usual. Looper saved 28, one less than he saved in his previous season. The Mets did improve under Randolph finishing over .500 for the first time in five seasons. Roberto Hernandez and Aaron Heilman combined for 9 saves late in the season for the Mets when Looper was struggling with a sore shoulder. Looper underwent surgery at the end of 2005. The Mets declined his option for 2006. Looper signed with the Cardinals and became a starter. The Mets signed free agent Billy Wagner, an outstanding closer for Houston and Philadelphia, as their new closer.
2006 was the best season the Mets had since 2000. They made the playoffs easily as they dominated the NL East. Their new closer, Wagner, was a big part of the reason saving 40 games. But a memorable blown save came in game two of the first Subway Series.
The Mets took game one dramatically when David Wright hit a rocket off of Mariano Rivera that went over Johnny Damon’s head for a nice walk off win. The next day, the Mets took a 4-0 lead to the ninth inning. Billy Wagner had his worst outing of his brief Mets career up that point. He allowed the Yanks to tie the game. The Bombers eventually won in the 11th inning. In the course of two games, both New York closers, one great, the other very good, blew saves for their respective teams. Rivera went on to save 34 games that year, 6 fewer than Wagner. It was also a strange season in that it was the third time the Yankees and Mets were both in the post season (1999, 2000, 2006) but it was the first and only time the Mets stayed in the dance longer than the Yanks. Detroit ousted the Yankees in the ALDS and the Mets made it to game seven of the NLCS.
Wagner saved 34 in 2007, the year of the great collapse and 27 in 2008, the year of the not so great collapse. At the end of 08, Wagner required Tommy John surgery virtually ending his tenure as Mets closer. Mariano continued on like a steam locomotive in ’07 and in ’08 saving 30 and 39 games respectively.
Both the Yankees and Mets moved into their new homes in 2009. Wagner remained on the payroll but would not see any action till very late in the season and no more as a closer. He eventually signed with Atlanta, enjoyed some mild success then went home to raise Alpacas.
For 2009, the Mets signed Francisco Rodriguez or K-Rod as he was known, to be their new closer. K-Rod saved a record 62 games the previous season for the Angles. With the Mets, he would save 35 in his inaugural season but the Mets devastated by injuries and many over paid and over the hill players had a terrible season. The Yankees on the other hand would win another World Series. As they had done in 1923 when the original Yankee Stadium first opened, the Yanks once again christened a new home with a World Championship. Rivera saved 44 games that season and was on the mound when the Yankees celebrated again.
In 2010 Mariano would save 33. K-Rod saved 25 for the Mets, 10 fewer than his first season. That’s because the Mets were just as dreadful as the season before, not able to offer K-Rod many opportunities. And also because late in the season, Rodriguez decided to punch out his father-in-law in front of horrified teammates and family in the Mets locker room. K-Rod spent the night in the Citi Field clink and was arraigned the next morning. Plus during the rumble, he tore a tendon in his thumb that put him on the restricted list meaning the Mets did not have to pay the volatile closer.
Last season, Rodriguez cleaned up his act, saved 23 games then was shipped to Milwaukee by Sandy Alderson, the Mets new GM. The Mets who had played well up to the trade began to use a closer by committee philosophy. The Mets faltered down the stretch finishing below .500 because they really had no closer or anyone else in the bullpen that could get anyone out. Across the river, Mariano continued against all the odds as he saved another 44 games for the Yankees.
What little money Alderson had over this past winter was spent on the bullpen. The new closer Frank Francisco who had mixed results elsewhere is having mixed results with the Mets so far this year. Mariano had already saved 5 games in this young season before he went to shag fly balls yesterday in Kansas City.
When you think of the different histories these two New York clubs have had over the past 15 seasons, its’ really amazing one team has had one closer be so good for so long. No team has had a closer that has come close to this streak. There have been some great closers but no one compares to Mariano Rivera who simply has one amazing pitch that continues to baffle hitters.
John Franco, Armando Benitez, Braden Looper, and Billy Wagner are all retired from baseball now. K-Rod is in Milwaukee but not a closer and unless the experts are proven wrong, Frank Francisco is not the long term answer for the Mets closing needs. Their hope lies in the future with maybe someone like Bobby Parnell or Jeurys Familia who some feel would be better suited to close than to start.
The Yankees will miss Rivera but he could be back next season. His injury is serious but is completely repairable. I find it hard to believe this no doubt first ballot Hall of Famer will let his career end on the warning track of Kaufman Stadium. He’s still too good. He still has more in his right arm then some closers half his age. He’ll be back and the Yankees will welcome him with open arms.