We continue along with our ranking of the most Metmorable home runs among the 6,000+ hit in team history with a look at #50-41.
For those who may have missed our first piece in this series, you can find it here:
http://www.metswalkoffs.com/2009/09/sixty-count-em-sixty-most-metmorable.html
We'll continue to rate them every Monday until we complete our list of 60. Your thoughts and feedback are welcomed in the comments section.
50- Robin Ventura, May 20, 1999 (#4,241, 4,245)
Let's talk Robin Ventura grand slams, and I'm referencing home runs, not singles. Ventura hit 18 grand slams in his major league career, including five for the Mets. A pair came on the same day, one in each end of a doubleheader against the Brewers.He became the first player ever to hit a grand slam in both ends of a doubleheader.
The common thread is that they both came on 3-2 pitches from lefties with two outs- the first in the first inning against Jim Abbott, the second in the fourth inning of the nightcap against Horacio Estrada. Newspaper accounts note that both were hit basically to the same spot.
Said Ventura afterwards: “Sometimes you get a little lucky.”
True Mets home run historians know...Hitting grand slams in each game of a doubleheader was nothing for Ventura, who hit two grand slams in one game for the White Sox in 1995.
49- David Wright, April 13, 2009 (# 5,920), Gary Sheffield, April 17, 2009 (#5,924), Omir Santos, May 23, 2009 (#5,943), David Wright, September 12, 2009 (#5,999)
I'm going to cheat here (a subtle reference to accusations regarding Sheffield's past) and lump the best of the 2009 home runs into one slot (it's my list...I can do that), because I feel it's a bit of a disservice to Msrs Wright and Santos to honor only Sheffield's 500th home run. That said, the latter did make for a pretty cool moment, mainly because of its significance to the game.
The Wright home run was the first in the new ballpark, and we should have known than that this was going to be an f-d up season when the Mets lost their Citi Field opener on a balk.
As my dad said to me after the Santos home run, which stunned the Red Sox and closer Jonathan Papelbon: “You're going to remember being at that one for a long time.”
Wright's homer to beat the Phillies made for a nice F-U moment, but given the way that our season has gone, and the Phillies season has gone, it was of little consequence otherwise.
True Mets home run historians know...The other two 500 home run club members to play for the Mets are Willie Mays and Eddie Murray.
48- Frank Thomas, July 9, 1964 (#281)
The closest thing the Mets have to a moment out of The Natural was this walk-off pinch-hit home run by Frank Thomas. The Mets trailed the Cardinals by a run with two outs in the ninth at the time and Thomas had not batted in six weeks, having missed time with a glandular infection. He hit a two-run shot against Curt Simmons to give the Mets an improbable victory.
To illustrate the general feeling of pessimism of the time: Thomas was asked by reporters after the game if he thought the ball was a home run when it left the bat.
“I thought it would go foul, as usual,” Thomas said.
True Mets home run historians know...Frank Thomas had the longest hold on the Mets single-season home run record. He hit 34 home runs in 1962, and that mark wasn't surpassed until Dave Kingman hit 36 in 1975.
47- Rod Kanehl, July 6, 1962 (#70)
Rod Kanehl got 50,000 King Korn trading stamps for hitting the first grand slam in Mets history, a pinch-hit blast in a 10-3 rout of the Cardinals.
Trading stamps, for those as unfamiliar as I was, were used as an enticement for customers, based on how much money they would spend. You could then put the trading stamps into a book and redeem them for fun prizes. I hope he bought something nice.
True Mets home run historians know...The Mets first six grand slams were all hit in their home ballpark. They didn't hit a grand slam on the road until Joe Christopher against the Milwaukee Braves on June 26, 1964.
46- Todd Hundley, September 8, 1996 (#3,893)
Say what you will about the legitimacy of Todd Hundley's numbers, and though I won't say much, I'll honor it in this position. He's still the first Met to reach the 40 home run mark, which he did with a home run off Joe Borowski in a Mets win in Atlanta. His 41st, hit six days later against the Braves would set the bar for all other Mets that followed.
There's a nice story with this one, which I learned of thanks to reading newspaper accounts of the game. The home run ball was caught by a fan named Marty Wannemacher, a lifelong Mets fan, who was living in South Carolina. Wannemacher got to meet Hundley after the game and was able to present him with his record-breaking baseball.
True Mets home run historians know...The Mets all-time home run leaders, among those whose main position was catcher: Mike Piazza: 220, Todd Hundley 124, Gary Carter 89, John Stearns 46, Jerry Grote 35, Ramon Castro 33.
45- Bobby Bonilla, April 6, 1992 (#3,268, 3,269)
I cringe to include any home runs by Bobby Bonilla on this list (much like I cringed when the first face I saw when entering my hotel at the All-Star Game in Pittsburgh was Bobby Bo...I didn't say anything). But for what it was at the time, this was a pretty big deal- Gary Carter-esque in nature.
There were great expectations for this 1992 Mets team, and foolishly so, as it turned out. But for one day, we couldn't wipe the smile of Bonilla's face. His second of two homers, in the 10th inning against Cardinals closer Lee Smith, gave the Mets an Opening Day victory to remember in St. Louis.
True Mets home run historians know...Five Mets have had a multi-homer game on Opening Day: Robin Ventura (2001), Bobby Bonilla (1992), Darryl Strawberry(1988), Kevin McReynolds (1988) and Cleon Jones (1973).
44- Duke Snider. June 14, 1963 (#177)
Duke Snider's return to New York didn't get quite the fanfare that Willie Mays did, at least from what I understand, but it still made for a few nice moments for the twilight of Snider's career. This one, was a home run hit at Crosley Field in the first inning of a Mets win in Cincinnati, which made Snider the ninth member of the 400 home run club. That group numbers 45 strong today, though only one bears Edwin Charles Snider's nickname.
True Mets home run historians know...Duke Snider's 399th career home run was a 3-run walk-off home run to beat the Cardinals, 3-2 on June 7, 1963.
43- Mike Piazza, April 28, 1999 (#4,218)
There's no evidence to support that the momentum of a walk-off home run can carry a team through an extended period of time. But Mike Piazza's two-run, come-from-behind game-winning blast against Padres closer Trevor Hoffman was a major propellant for the 1999 Mets. The Padres had won 181 straight games when leading after eight innings. This home run would end that streak and start another.
It started a string of six straight wins, which improved the Mets record to 17-9 and allowed them to withstand the struggles that would follow for a time.
True Mets home run historians know...The first walk-off home run allowed by Trevor Hoffman was to the Mets Chris Jones, on May 31, 1995. The second was to Dodgers catcher Mike Piazza, on June 26, 1995. Piazza is the only player with two walk-off home runs against Hoffman.
42- Mike Piazza, June 17, 2001 (#4,641)
Mike Piazza never hit a walk-off home run against the Yankees. This one was as close as he came. The Mets entered the home eighth trailing 7-2, but staged a rally similar to the 10-run comeback against the Braves the year prior. This one netted only six runs instead of 10, but was capped in similar fashion, by a Mike Piazza home run, this one a two-run shot against Carlos Almanzar.
We thank Joe Torre as well for choosing not to try Mariano Rivera for a four-out save, as Rivera had earned saves in the first two games of this series.
True Mets home run historians know...Mike Piazza hit 78 go-ahead home runs in his Mets career. Four of those came against the Yankees. Piazza had 12 go-ahead home runs for the Mets against the Phillies, his most against any team by a good margin (the Giants and Braves rank second with 7).
41- Shawn Estes, June 15, 2002 (#4,772)
Winning is the best revenge. In the game in which all the attention was on whether Shawn Estes would retaliate against Roger Clemens' repeated issues with Mike Piazza, Estes got the last laugh, in the form of a home run against Clemens. His aim with his bat was better than his aim with his arm, as his attempt to plunk Clemens was rather pathetic.
I have to admit taking a little pleasure in making a few members of the media laugh. I was in the press box when the final pitching line was announced for Estes- 7 innings, no runs, 5 hits, 11 strikeouts, 1 walk.
“And no hit batsmen!” I said, loud enough for a decent-sized group to hear.
True Mets home run historians know...Estes, Mike Piazza and John Olerud are the three Mets to hit go-ahead home runs against Roger Clemens.
Monday, September 21, 2009
Friday, September 18, 2009
Angels and Demons
Some leftovers from a Friday ...
* The Mets had it just as bad, walk-off error-wise, in 1971. Over a one-month span, they lost 3 games due to miscue.
- On July 17, they lost when Ken Boswell misplayed a Cesar Cedeno infield hit, and the subsequent error made Tom Seaver a loser when Roger Metzger scored the run that ended a 2-1 Astros win.
- On August 11, they fell 1-0 in 12 innings to the Padres, spoiling a great effort by Tom Seaver when catcher Jerry Grote made an errant throw to third trying to nail Larry Stahl, who was completing a double steal. Stahl would score the winning run.
- Three days later, they lost to the Giants, 6-5 in 10 innings, blowing a 5-4 edge in the ninth and dropping the game when centerfielder Don Hahn dropped a fly ball hit by Jimmy Rosario with the bases loaded (the play was scored SF-E8). It was one of three errors in the loss, which dropped the Mets to 13-30 over a 43-game span (sound familiar???)
* One quick note for those of you who remember 1980 fondly (and for 113 games, there was good reason to), keep this in mind: The team went a 2009-esque 11-38 over its last 49 games.
* Lastly, let's talk about the number 10, and I'm talking triples, not home runs.
Angel Pagan hit his 10th triple on Wenesday and is assured of being the 12th player since 1900 to hit 10+ triples in a season in which he played fewer than 90 games.
In fact, he's going to be only the 5th player to hit 10+ triples in 90 games or fewer since 1932 (the first since Juan Uribe in 2001). Quite impressive, though not enough for me to commit to him as an everyday player in 2010.
Also on this list. None other than Casey Stengel, who had 10 triples in 89 games in 1919 and 10 triples in 84 games in 1922. Amazin'
* The Mets had it just as bad, walk-off error-wise, in 1971. Over a one-month span, they lost 3 games due to miscue.
- On July 17, they lost when Ken Boswell misplayed a Cesar Cedeno infield hit, and the subsequent error made Tom Seaver a loser when Roger Metzger scored the run that ended a 2-1 Astros win.
- On August 11, they fell 1-0 in 12 innings to the Padres, spoiling a great effort by Tom Seaver when catcher Jerry Grote made an errant throw to third trying to nail Larry Stahl, who was completing a double steal. Stahl would score the winning run.
- Three days later, they lost to the Giants, 6-5 in 10 innings, blowing a 5-4 edge in the ninth and dropping the game when centerfielder Don Hahn dropped a fly ball hit by Jimmy Rosario with the bases loaded (the play was scored SF-E8). It was one of three errors in the loss, which dropped the Mets to 13-30 over a 43-game span (sound familiar???)
* One quick note for those of you who remember 1980 fondly (and for 113 games, there was good reason to), keep this in mind: The team went a 2009-esque 11-38 over its last 49 games.
* Lastly, let's talk about the number 10, and I'm talking triples, not home runs.
Angel Pagan hit his 10th triple on Wenesday and is assured of being the 12th player since 1900 to hit 10+ triples in a season in which he played fewer than 90 games.
In fact, he's going to be only the 5th player to hit 10+ triples in 90 games or fewer since 1932 (the first since Juan Uribe in 2001). Quite impressive, though not enough for me to commit to him as an everyday player in 2010.
Also on this list. None other than Casey Stengel, who had 10 triples in 89 games in 1919 and 10 triples in 84 games in 1922. Amazin'
Thursday, September 17, 2009
The Misery Is In The Details
True Metsochists know...The Mets have one more walk-off loss than they did entering Wednesday.
That's all you need to know.
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Straw Seems Safe
Given David Wright's performance this season, it would seem that Darryl Strawberry's Mets record of 252 home runs is a little more safely positioned than we initially thought.
Wright ranks 5th in Mets annals with 140 home runs. He's 14 behind Dave Kingman, and it seems reasonable to expect him to bounce back and sky King next season, but after that, it's a bigger climb to the No. 3 spot and Howard Johnson's 192.
Carlos Beltran ranks sixth with 126 home runs. He's chasing Wright and Kingman. Given that he's only got two more years on his contract, and that he's only halfway to Strawberry, an ideal finish for him would be right alongside Johnson.
Carlos Delgado ranks 11th with 104 home runs and I get the feeling that's where he'll sit. He needs 14 to match Ed Kranepool's total and crack the top 10. That ain't happening unless he gets thrown a one-year invite to return next season, and I don't think he will.
Jose Reyes and John Olerud share the 25 spot on the Mets home run list with 63 dingers. A healthy Reyes could hit 14 and get to 77, which would match Robin Ventura for 20th place. An unhealthy version, and he's struggling to meet Jeff Kent's 67, which stand 24th.
It's a long plummet after that among current Mets, as we drop to the 73rd spot and Fernando Tatis's 18 home runs for the club, the same number as (among others) Ray Knight, Ken Singleton and Timo Perez. If he can hit two home runs, Tatis would become the 71st Met with 20, and match Ron Hunt and Johnny Lewis' team totals.
Brian Schneider is locked in a seven-way tie for 109th with a dozen home runs, and with his lack of competence with the bat this season, it's fair to surmise he finishes even in total with the likes of Kevin Mitchell, Rickey Henderson, and Joe Torre.
Gary Sheffield is one of 132 Mets to hit the double figure mark in home runs with the team. His 10 home runs put him in the same company as (again, among others) Bruce Boisclair and Richie Hebner.
I'll close this out with two others, which I find amusing at a time in which little about the Mets intrigues me. Jeff Francoeur is now the 147th-most prolificic home run hitter in Mets history. His tally of 7 stands even with Dwight Gooden. That's one better than Omir Santos, whose half-dozen home runs locks him into 163rd place, right along with The Franchise, Tom Seaver.
Wright ranks 5th in Mets annals with 140 home runs. He's 14 behind Dave Kingman, and it seems reasonable to expect him to bounce back and sky King next season, but after that, it's a bigger climb to the No. 3 spot and Howard Johnson's 192.
Carlos Beltran ranks sixth with 126 home runs. He's chasing Wright and Kingman. Given that he's only got two more years on his contract, and that he's only halfway to Strawberry, an ideal finish for him would be right alongside Johnson.
Carlos Delgado ranks 11th with 104 home runs and I get the feeling that's where he'll sit. He needs 14 to match Ed Kranepool's total and crack the top 10. That ain't happening unless he gets thrown a one-year invite to return next season, and I don't think he will.
Jose Reyes and John Olerud share the 25 spot on the Mets home run list with 63 dingers. A healthy Reyes could hit 14 and get to 77, which would match Robin Ventura for 20th place. An unhealthy version, and he's struggling to meet Jeff Kent's 67, which stand 24th.
It's a long plummet after that among current Mets, as we drop to the 73rd spot and Fernando Tatis's 18 home runs for the club, the same number as (among others) Ray Knight, Ken Singleton and Timo Perez. If he can hit two home runs, Tatis would become the 71st Met with 20, and match Ron Hunt and Johnny Lewis' team totals.
Brian Schneider is locked in a seven-way tie for 109th with a dozen home runs, and with his lack of competence with the bat this season, it's fair to surmise he finishes even in total with the likes of Kevin Mitchell, Rickey Henderson, and Joe Torre.
Gary Sheffield is one of 132 Mets to hit the double figure mark in home runs with the team. His 10 home runs put him in the same company as (again, among others) Bruce Boisclair and Richie Hebner.
I'll close this out with two others, which I find amusing at a time in which little about the Mets intrigues me. Jeff Francoeur is now the 147th-most prolificic home run hitter in Mets history. His tally of 7 stands even with Dwight Gooden. That's one better than Omir Santos, whose half-dozen home runs locks him into 163rd place, right along with The Franchise, Tom Seaver.
Monday, September 14, 2009
Sixty, Count Em, Sixty! (The Most Metmorable Regular Season Home Runs, Part I)
Go figure that it was Anderson Hernandez that hit the Mets 6,000th regular season home run, probably the least likely source to hit the milestone marker in a season in which lunacy has become normalcy.
We wanted to commemorate that number and figured that the appropriate way to do so would be to rate the favorites of the bunch. But how many to count in our top grouping?
We settled on honoring the top 1 percent, which comes out to 60, and rather than say they're the greatest, let's just say they're the "most Metmorable," which seems like the right way to put it.
We'll present them, in reverse order here, 10 at a time and each Monday for the next 6 weeks, we'll continue the list along. Here is our inaugural compilation, from 60 to 51.
If you're wondering about the title, when you're talking home runs, there's no better person to reference than Babe Ruth. When Ruth hit 60 in 1927, he was quoted after his last as saying
"Sixty, count em, 60! Let's see some son-of-a-bitch match that."
We'll try to do the Babe proud here.
The Most Metmorable Regular Season Home Runs
60-51
60- Gil Hodges, April 11, 1962 (#1)
The Mets best leader was also their first home run leader. There's something appropriate about Gil Hodges hitting the first home run in Mets history, given what happened both to Hodges and the Mets, after the fact.
As for the details on this one, it was admittedly of little consequence to the game itself. It came leading off the fourth inning of the Mets first game, with the visitors trailing the host Cardinals, 5-2 (they would lose, 11-4). With his 362nd career home run, Hodges passed Joe DiMaggio on the career home run list.
True Mets home run historians know...The first Met to have more than one home run: Jim Marshall, who hit his first home run on April 14 and then hit another one on April 15, also making him the first Met to homer on consecutive days.
59- Jimmy Piersall, June 23, 1963 (#182)
This was a home run that was Metmorable for its silliness, and we like silly, so it earns a spot here.With the Mets leading the Phillies, 1-0 in the fifth inning, Piersall clubbed his only Mets home run off future manager Dallas Green. In order to ensure that the 100th home run of his career would be thought of historically, Piersall did something unique. He ran backwards around the bases (he touched the bases in order, but jogged backwards as he did so).
Lost in the humor: This was actually one of the finest pitched games in Mets history- a two-hit, no-walk shutout by Carlton Willey. And of course, the pronunciation of that last name rhymes with “silly.”
True Mets home run historians know...Entering play on September 14, 346 different Mets had hit at least one home run. The man who hit the 6,000th, Anderson Hernandez, has hit two.
58- Benny Ayala, August 27, 1974 (#1,307)
The 1974 Mets Media Guide describes Benny Ayala rather lustily: “Signed out of third Puerto Rico winter league campagign and into first major league training camp with label of superstar potential … his mid-December chart represented an eye-popping sweep of offensive stats ...defensively he earned respect for “a throwing arm that compares with Clemente's.”
Ayala would make headlines again on August 27, 1974, superseding the first start by Tug McGraw in more than a year, when he became the first Met to homer in his first at-bat. That surely was a sign of big things ahead.
On second thought...Benny Ayala's best minor league season consisted of 19 home runs. His best in the majors was just more than half of that. Don't believe everything you read.
True Mets home run historians know... The other three Mets to homer in their first major league at-bat are Mike Fitzgerald (1983), Kaz Matsui (2004) and Mike Jacobs (2005).
57- Cleon Jones, July 25, 1971 (#1,000)
I decided to include one “round-number” home run on this list, and picked the 1,000th since it was the first of the bunch. It was also a difference-maker. Leading off the bottom of the fourth inning, with the Mets trailing the Astros, 1-0, Jones homered against Astros starter Ken Forsch. That began a four-run inning, and held up in a big way, as the Mets won, 7-6.
True Mets home run historians know...Dave Kingman hit the 2,000th Mets home run, Howard Johnson the 3,000th,, Bernard Gilkey the 4,000th and Jason Phillips the 5,000th.
56- Dave Kingman, June 4, 1976 (#1,464, 1465, 1,467)
I don't like Dave Kingman very much, even though he's the first baseball player I ever got an autograph from. I was actually surprised at Kingman's popularity at Shea-Closing day last season, as I only remember him as the over-the-hill strikeout king who preceded Keith Hernandez.
Those who are a little older appreciate days like these, when it looked like Kingman had an outside shot at a 60-home run season. On this day, he hit three home runs on three swings in an 11-0 rout of the Dodgers.
True Mets home run historians know...The eight Mets to hit 3 HR in a game (Jose Reyes, Edgardo Alfonzo, Gary Carter, Darryl Strawberry, Claudell Washington, Dave Kingman, and Jim Hickman) all did so on the road.
55- Dwight Gooden, September 21, 1985 (#2,328)
This is the beginning of the pitchers home run section of this blog, and I like starting with Dwight Gooden's first major league home run. I was at the game against the Pirates when he hit it (in the first inning, as part of a seven-run burst against Rick Rhoden), and it was one of those moments that brought about the Superman myth that preceded Gooden at that time.
Everything he touched seemed to turn to gold, and that held true even for those who batted in his spot. Rusty Staub pinch-hit for Gooden later in the game and notched his 100th career pinch-hit.
This quote, from the next day's Bergen Record made me laugh:
“I think I'd take a home run even over a no-hitter,” Gooden said.
True Mets home run historians know...Twenty five Mets pitchers have homered in a game. Dwight Gooden is the team leader with seven.
54- Jack Hamilton, May 20, 1967 (#564)
This is the way it was for those early Mets. Their pitcher could hit a grand slam, as Jack Hamilton did against the Cardinals, and former Met hurler Al Jackson, and they'd still find a way to lose (for the record, a pitcher hasn't had his team lose a game in which he hit a grand slam in 32 years- since Don Stanhouse in 1977). In this one, they blew a 9-4 lead. Hamilton, a reliable reliever for the Mets in 1966, relied on his bullpen for help and didn't get it.
The good news: The Mets haven't lost a game in which their pitcher hit a grand slam since. The bad news: A Mets pitcher hasn't hit a grand slam since.
Sadly Hamilton is better known for something else he did in 1967. Hamilton was traded to the Angels and on August 18, he beaned the great young slugger, Tony Conigliaro, greatly limiting the prospect's capabilities for the rest of his career. Conigliaro would struggle to recover and so would Hamilton. He was done with major league baseball two years later.
True Mets home run historians know...Jack Hamilton hit .140 as a Met. The lowest Mets batting average by a Mets pitcher who homered is .045 by Mark (5-for-112) Clark.
53- Walt Terrell, August 6, 1983 (#2,061, 2,062)
The only pitcher in Mets history to hit two home runs in a game did so against a Hall of Famer, Ferguson Jenkins. He admits to being a little lucky.
“It was a fluke,” Walt Terrell said in a story in Inside Pitch a couple of years ago, acknowledging that the wind was blowing out at Chicago's Wrigley Field that day.
For someone who was only with the team for three seasons, Terrell has a lot of claims to fame. Besides the home run, he was the first Met pitcher to get a win against Nolan Ryan, and was involved in two of the most important trades the team made in the last 30 years (Ron Darling and Terrell from the Rangers for Lee Mazzilli; Terrell to the Tigers for Howard Johnson).
True Mets home run historians know...Walt Terrell hit more home runs against Ferguson Jenkins then, among others, Jim Rice, Joe Morgan, Keith Hernandez, and Gary Carter.
52- Carlton Willey, July 15, 1963 (#194)
Carlton Willey actually makes Jack Hamilton look like a pretty good hitter. Willey hit .099 in his major league career. To hit .099 isn't easy. Willey pulled off the mathematically difficult feat by going 26-for- 263 with 143 strikeouts (helped by a 1-for-54 in 1961).
This Willey was no Mays. His grand slam against Houston barely cleared the fence, according to newspaper accounts. But it was heralded by fans who not only got to see the first home run by a Mets pitcher, but to watch the home team snap a 15-game losing streak.
True Mets home run historians know..Willey, Jack Hamilton, George Stone, Walt Terrell and Dwight Gooden share the Mets record for most RBI in a game by a pitcher, with four.
51- Ron Hunt, April 23, 1964 (#237)
The 1964 Mets hit 58 home runs in their first season in the place they would call home for the next 44 years. In fact, that team had more home runs at Shea Stadium than they did on the road (58-45), which doesn't seem like a likely accomplishment.
The first of the Mets home runs there was hit by Ron Hunt, in the eighth inning of a rather unimpressive, 5-1 loss to the Cubs. It was rather non-descript, so we'll keep it that way as well, though we honor it here for being No. 1. Two thousand, seven hundred fifty seven more would follow. A few others will be on this list.
True Mets home run historians know...The 2nd Mets home run at Shea Stadium was hit by George Altman on May 6, 1964.
Next Monday, We reveal numbers 41-50.
We wanted to commemorate that number and figured that the appropriate way to do so would be to rate the favorites of the bunch. But how many to count in our top grouping?
We settled on honoring the top 1 percent, which comes out to 60, and rather than say they're the greatest, let's just say they're the "most Metmorable," which seems like the right way to put it.
We'll present them, in reverse order here, 10 at a time and each Monday for the next 6 weeks, we'll continue the list along. Here is our inaugural compilation, from 60 to 51.
If you're wondering about the title, when you're talking home runs, there's no better person to reference than Babe Ruth. When Ruth hit 60 in 1927, he was quoted after his last as saying
"Sixty, count em, 60! Let's see some son-of-a-bitch match that."
We'll try to do the Babe proud here.
The Most Metmorable Regular Season Home Runs
60-51
60- Gil Hodges, April 11, 1962 (#1)
The Mets best leader was also their first home run leader. There's something appropriate about Gil Hodges hitting the first home run in Mets history, given what happened both to Hodges and the Mets, after the fact.
As for the details on this one, it was admittedly of little consequence to the game itself. It came leading off the fourth inning of the Mets first game, with the visitors trailing the host Cardinals, 5-2 (they would lose, 11-4). With his 362nd career home run, Hodges passed Joe DiMaggio on the career home run list.
True Mets home run historians know...The first Met to have more than one home run: Jim Marshall, who hit his first home run on April 14 and then hit another one on April 15, also making him the first Met to homer on consecutive days.
59- Jimmy Piersall, June 23, 1963 (#182)
This was a home run that was Metmorable for its silliness, and we like silly, so it earns a spot here.With the Mets leading the Phillies, 1-0 in the fifth inning, Piersall clubbed his only Mets home run off future manager Dallas Green. In order to ensure that the 100th home run of his career would be thought of historically, Piersall did something unique. He ran backwards around the bases (he touched the bases in order, but jogged backwards as he did so).
Lost in the humor: This was actually one of the finest pitched games in Mets history- a two-hit, no-walk shutout by Carlton Willey. And of course, the pronunciation of that last name rhymes with “silly.”
True Mets home run historians know...Entering play on September 14, 346 different Mets had hit at least one home run. The man who hit the 6,000th, Anderson Hernandez, has hit two.
58- Benny Ayala, August 27, 1974 (#1,307)
The 1974 Mets Media Guide describes Benny Ayala rather lustily: “Signed out of third Puerto Rico winter league campagign and into first major league training camp with label of superstar potential … his mid-December chart represented an eye-popping sweep of offensive stats ...defensively he earned respect for “a throwing arm that compares with Clemente's.”
Ayala would make headlines again on August 27, 1974, superseding the first start by Tug McGraw in more than a year, when he became the first Met to homer in his first at-bat. That surely was a sign of big things ahead.
On second thought...Benny Ayala's best minor league season consisted of 19 home runs. His best in the majors was just more than half of that. Don't believe everything you read.
True Mets home run historians know... The other three Mets to homer in their first major league at-bat are Mike Fitzgerald (1983), Kaz Matsui (2004) and Mike Jacobs (2005).
57- Cleon Jones, July 25, 1971 (#1,000)
I decided to include one “round-number” home run on this list, and picked the 1,000th since it was the first of the bunch. It was also a difference-maker. Leading off the bottom of the fourth inning, with the Mets trailing the Astros, 1-0, Jones homered against Astros starter Ken Forsch. That began a four-run inning, and held up in a big way, as the Mets won, 7-6.
True Mets home run historians know...Dave Kingman hit the 2,000th Mets home run, Howard Johnson the 3,000th,, Bernard Gilkey the 4,000th and Jason Phillips the 5,000th.
56- Dave Kingman, June 4, 1976 (#1,464, 1465, 1,467)
I don't like Dave Kingman very much, even though he's the first baseball player I ever got an autograph from. I was actually surprised at Kingman's popularity at Shea-Closing day last season, as I only remember him as the over-the-hill strikeout king who preceded Keith Hernandez.
Those who are a little older appreciate days like these, when it looked like Kingman had an outside shot at a 60-home run season. On this day, he hit three home runs on three swings in an 11-0 rout of the Dodgers.
True Mets home run historians know...The eight Mets to hit 3 HR in a game (Jose Reyes, Edgardo Alfonzo, Gary Carter, Darryl Strawberry, Claudell Washington, Dave Kingman, and Jim Hickman) all did so on the road.
55- Dwight Gooden, September 21, 1985 (#2,328)
This is the beginning of the pitchers home run section of this blog, and I like starting with Dwight Gooden's first major league home run. I was at the game against the Pirates when he hit it (in the first inning, as part of a seven-run burst against Rick Rhoden), and it was one of those moments that brought about the Superman myth that preceded Gooden at that time.
Everything he touched seemed to turn to gold, and that held true even for those who batted in his spot. Rusty Staub pinch-hit for Gooden later in the game and notched his 100th career pinch-hit.
This quote, from the next day's Bergen Record made me laugh:
“I think I'd take a home run even over a no-hitter,” Gooden said.
True Mets home run historians know...Twenty five Mets pitchers have homered in a game. Dwight Gooden is the team leader with seven.
54- Jack Hamilton, May 20, 1967 (#564)
This is the way it was for those early Mets. Their pitcher could hit a grand slam, as Jack Hamilton did against the Cardinals, and former Met hurler Al Jackson, and they'd still find a way to lose (for the record, a pitcher hasn't had his team lose a game in which he hit a grand slam in 32 years- since Don Stanhouse in 1977). In this one, they blew a 9-4 lead. Hamilton, a reliable reliever for the Mets in 1966, relied on his bullpen for help and didn't get it.
The good news: The Mets haven't lost a game in which their pitcher hit a grand slam since. The bad news: A Mets pitcher hasn't hit a grand slam since.
Sadly Hamilton is better known for something else he did in 1967. Hamilton was traded to the Angels and on August 18, he beaned the great young slugger, Tony Conigliaro, greatly limiting the prospect's capabilities for the rest of his career. Conigliaro would struggle to recover and so would Hamilton. He was done with major league baseball two years later.
True Mets home run historians know...Jack Hamilton hit .140 as a Met. The lowest Mets batting average by a Mets pitcher who homered is .045 by Mark (5-for-112) Clark.
53- Walt Terrell, August 6, 1983 (#2,061, 2,062)
The only pitcher in Mets history to hit two home runs in a game did so against a Hall of Famer, Ferguson Jenkins. He admits to being a little lucky.
“It was a fluke,” Walt Terrell said in a story in Inside Pitch a couple of years ago, acknowledging that the wind was blowing out at Chicago's Wrigley Field that day.
For someone who was only with the team for three seasons, Terrell has a lot of claims to fame. Besides the home run, he was the first Met pitcher to get a win against Nolan Ryan, and was involved in two of the most important trades the team made in the last 30 years (Ron Darling and Terrell from the Rangers for Lee Mazzilli; Terrell to the Tigers for Howard Johnson).
True Mets home run historians know...Walt Terrell hit more home runs against Ferguson Jenkins then, among others, Jim Rice, Joe Morgan, Keith Hernandez, and Gary Carter.
52- Carlton Willey, July 15, 1963 (#194)
Carlton Willey actually makes Jack Hamilton look like a pretty good hitter. Willey hit .099 in his major league career. To hit .099 isn't easy. Willey pulled off the mathematically difficult feat by going 26-for- 263 with 143 strikeouts (helped by a 1-for-54 in 1961).
This Willey was no Mays. His grand slam against Houston barely cleared the fence, according to newspaper accounts. But it was heralded by fans who not only got to see the first home run by a Mets pitcher, but to watch the home team snap a 15-game losing streak.
True Mets home run historians know..Willey, Jack Hamilton, George Stone, Walt Terrell and Dwight Gooden share the Mets record for most RBI in a game by a pitcher, with four.
51- Ron Hunt, April 23, 1964 (#237)
The 1964 Mets hit 58 home runs in their first season in the place they would call home for the next 44 years. In fact, that team had more home runs at Shea Stadium than they did on the road (58-45), which doesn't seem like a likely accomplishment.
The first of the Mets home runs there was hit by Ron Hunt, in the eighth inning of a rather unimpressive, 5-1 loss to the Cubs. It was rather non-descript, so we'll keep it that way as well, though we honor it here for being No. 1. Two thousand, seven hundred fifty seven more would follow. A few others will be on this list.
True Mets home run historians know...The 2nd Mets home run at Shea Stadium was hit by George Altman on May 6, 1964.
Next Monday, We reveal numbers 41-50.
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Long Time Coming
Fistbumps, and lots of them, for David Wright. And I guess we should give one to Pedro Feliciano too.
* This was the 137th time in Mets history in which the Mets won a road game by scoring to win in the 9th inning. It was the fourth such win of the season, the first since May 23, 2009, when Omir Santos hit a two-run home run to beat Jonathan Papelbon and the Red Sox.
* It's the first time they've won in that fashion in Philadelphia since a 1-0 win on May 23, 2002, on Mark Johnson's ninth-inning double.
* It's the seventh time that the Mets came from behind in the 9th inning to win IN THE 9th inning in Philadelphia, the first since September 3, 2001, when they scored five runs in the 9th inning to beat the Phillies, 10-7.
* It's the second straight year that the Mets beat the Phillies, 10-9, in Philadelphia. They also won in Philly on July 7, 2008, and July 25, 1990. The latter is best known for being the game in which Bob Murphy yelled "They win the damn thing!" after the Mets got the last out.
* It's only the second time in David Wright's career that he hit a go-ahead, deficit-erasing home run in the eighth inning or later. His other was a three-run home run in the eighth inning against the Marlins on July 9, 2006. The Mets trailed 5-4 at the time, and ended up winning, 7-6.
* Wright's eighth-inning homer vs Brett Myers gave him four against Myers, matching his most against any pitcher. He also has four against Livan Hernandez, Brad Penny, and Horacio Ramirez.
* Wright's two home runs were the 5,998th and 5,999th in Mets regular season history. Wright has 140, 5th-most in Mets history, 14 behind Dave Kingman for fourth.
* Wright's six RBI gave him a trio of six-RBI games. Wright, Dave Kingman, and Robin Ventura share the Mets record for 6+ RBI games, with three.
* The six RBI also tied the Mets record for most RBI by a Met against the Phillies. Frank Thomas (1962) and Mike Piazza (2002) shared that mark, though both occurences came in Mets losses.
True Metscreants know...This was the fourth game in Mets history in which they went an entire game without striking out or walking. The other three, all losses, came in 1980 (at Expos), 1982 (at Pirates), 1993 (at Braves).
* This was the 137th time in Mets history in which the Mets won a road game by scoring to win in the 9th inning. It was the fourth such win of the season, the first since May 23, 2009, when Omir Santos hit a two-run home run to beat Jonathan Papelbon and the Red Sox.
* It's the first time they've won in that fashion in Philadelphia since a 1-0 win on May 23, 2002, on Mark Johnson's ninth-inning double.
* It's the seventh time that the Mets came from behind in the 9th inning to win IN THE 9th inning in Philadelphia, the first since September 3, 2001, when they scored five runs in the 9th inning to beat the Phillies, 10-7.
* It's the second straight year that the Mets beat the Phillies, 10-9, in Philadelphia. They also won in Philly on July 7, 2008, and July 25, 1990. The latter is best known for being the game in which Bob Murphy yelled "They win the damn thing!" after the Mets got the last out.
* It's only the second time in David Wright's career that he hit a go-ahead, deficit-erasing home run in the eighth inning or later. His other was a three-run home run in the eighth inning against the Marlins on July 9, 2006. The Mets trailed 5-4 at the time, and ended up winning, 7-6.
* Wright's eighth-inning homer vs Brett Myers gave him four against Myers, matching his most against any pitcher. He also has four against Livan Hernandez, Brad Penny, and Horacio Ramirez.
* Wright's two home runs were the 5,998th and 5,999th in Mets regular season history. Wright has 140, 5th-most in Mets history, 14 behind Dave Kingman for fourth.
* Wright's six RBI gave him a trio of six-RBI games. Wright, Dave Kingman, and Robin Ventura share the Mets record for 6+ RBI games, with three.
* The six RBI also tied the Mets record for most RBI by a Met against the Phillies. Frank Thomas (1962) and Mike Piazza (2002) shared that mark, though both occurences came in Mets losses.
True Metscreants know...This was the fourth game in Mets history in which they went an entire game without striking out or walking. The other three, all losses, came in 1980 (at Expos), 1982 (at Pirates), 1993 (at Braves).
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Worthwhile flashback
http://www.metswalkoffs.com/2005/09/boswell-that-ends-well.html
40 years ago today, Mets move into first place to stay...
40 years ago today, Mets move into first place to stay...
Tuesday, September 08, 2009
The Beltran Tolls (or Tholes) for Thee
Carlos Beltran is returning just in time.
Beltran, who had a walk-off hit for the Brooklyn Cyclones on Saturday, comes with the Mets closing in on 6,000 home runs (4 away!), and with the Mets lacking in one statistical category for the 2009 season.
The Mets do not have a walk-off home run. They are one of six teams in baseball without one. They've had a walk-off home run in all but three seasons in their history (1973, 1979, and 1994), and we're closing in on a fourth.
Carlos Beltran has five career walk-off home runs. Considering how much David Wright's power has been lacking, how Gary Sheffield figures to be absent the rest of the season, and how the rest of the lineup is basically bereft of walk-off capability, Beltran is our best hope.
Beltran, who had a walk-off hit for the Brooklyn Cyclones on Saturday, comes with the Mets closing in on 6,000 home runs (4 away!), and with the Mets lacking in one statistical category for the 2009 season.
The Mets do not have a walk-off home run. They are one of six teams in baseball without one. They've had a walk-off home run in all but three seasons in their history (1973, 1979, and 1994), and we're closing in on a fourth.
Carlos Beltran has five career walk-off home runs. Considering how much David Wright's power has been lacking, how Gary Sheffield figures to be absent the rest of the season, and how the rest of the lineup is basically bereft of walk-off capability, Beltran is our best hope.
Monday, September 07, 2009
It's A Celebration!
I don't know if you got to see Prince Fielder's walk-off home run celebration on Sunday, but I found it terrificly entertaining.
If you didn't see it, imagine Fielder stomping on home plate as hard as he could. Rather than swarm him, his teammates all toppled over, as you might see a child do during a game of Ring Around The Rosie.
Fielder than raised his arms in triumph, and everyone (at least on the Brewers) got up and had a good laugh.
This was clearly a play on the Yankees recent helmet bouquet toss following a walk-off home run, and the variety of things that LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers do during pre-game introductions.
I liked it. It didn't interfere with the game. It was funny. It was memorable.
It got me to wondering how some of the Mets teams might celebrate a walk-off home run.
The 1962 Mets would probably all fall down too, except they'd trip over themselves, accidentally.
The 1969 Mets would probably all bow and pray in tribute to the great Miracle that was.
The 1973 Mets would all slap their thighs and scream, a la Tug McGraw after his game-ending strikeout in Game 5 of the World Series.
The 1986 Mets would all pour a beer and raise a toast (or snort a line of cocaine, but that's not quite as family friendly.
The 2007 and 2008 Mets would all jump up and down with their hands wrapped around their throats (It sucks, but it's true).
And the 2009 Mets would all grab various body parts and pantomime pain and suffering, and the home run hitter would probably break his leg jumping on home plate.
Kudos, by the way, to the Mets fan at Saturday's game, sporting a jersey, on which one sleeve had band aids, with the uniform numbers of all the currently injured players.
If you didn't see it, imagine Fielder stomping on home plate as hard as he could. Rather than swarm him, his teammates all toppled over, as you might see a child do during a game of Ring Around The Rosie.
Fielder than raised his arms in triumph, and everyone (at least on the Brewers) got up and had a good laugh.
This was clearly a play on the Yankees recent helmet bouquet toss following a walk-off home run, and the variety of things that LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers do during pre-game introductions.
I liked it. It didn't interfere with the game. It was funny. It was memorable.
It got me to wondering how some of the Mets teams might celebrate a walk-off home run.
The 1962 Mets would probably all fall down too, except they'd trip over themselves, accidentally.
The 1969 Mets would probably all bow and pray in tribute to the great Miracle that was.
The 1973 Mets would all slap their thighs and scream, a la Tug McGraw after his game-ending strikeout in Game 5 of the World Series.
The 1986 Mets would all pour a beer and raise a toast (or snort a line of cocaine, but that's not quite as family friendly.
The 2007 and 2008 Mets would all jump up and down with their hands wrapped around their throats (It sucks, but it's true).
And the 2009 Mets would all grab various body parts and pantomime pain and suffering, and the home run hitter would probably break his leg jumping on home plate.
Kudos, by the way, to the Mets fan at Saturday's game, sporting a jersey, on which one sleeve had band aids, with the uniform numbers of all the currently injured players.
Friday, September 04, 2009
Parnell for the Course
Fistbump to Bobby Parnell since he doesn't get credit for anything else from a seven-inning gem.
* Mets Walk-up Win (bottom of the 8th) #172 was the Mets fourth of the season, their first since August 1, when Angel Pagan hit a walk-up grand slam to beat the Diamondbacks.
* The four walk-up wins matches their total from the 2008 season.
* It was the Mets first walk-up win over the Cubs in 15 years. Their last was April 14, 1994, when Jeff Kent hit a two-run eighth-inning homer to beat the Cubs, 10-9.
* It was the third time the Mets got a walk-up win by a 6-2 score, the first since beating the Dodgers on July 19, 1991.
* It was the second time this season that Fernando Tatis had the game-winning walk-up RBI. He also had the walk-up grand slam against the Rockies on July 27.
* Cory Sullivan became the 346th different player in Mets history to hit a home run. It was regular season home run #5,994.
* The Mets have won their last 17 games in which their starting pitcher has pitched at least 7 shutout innings.
* This was the 11th time that a Mets starter pitched 7+ shutout innings, allowing 3 or fewer hits, against the Cubs. That's a list that includes one-hit shutouts by Dwight Gooden, Tom Seaver, and Gary Gentry.
* Mets Walk-up Win (bottom of the 8th) #172 was the Mets fourth of the season, their first since August 1, when Angel Pagan hit a walk-up grand slam to beat the Diamondbacks.
* The four walk-up wins matches their total from the 2008 season.
* It was the Mets first walk-up win over the Cubs in 15 years. Their last was April 14, 1994, when Jeff Kent hit a two-run eighth-inning homer to beat the Cubs, 10-9.
* It was the third time the Mets got a walk-up win by a 6-2 score, the first since beating the Dodgers on July 19, 1991.
* It was the second time this season that Fernando Tatis had the game-winning walk-up RBI. He also had the walk-up grand slam against the Rockies on July 27.
* Cory Sullivan became the 346th different player in Mets history to hit a home run. It was regular season home run #5,994.
* The Mets have won their last 17 games in which their starting pitcher has pitched at least 7 shutout innings.
* This was the 11th time that a Mets starter pitched 7+ shutout innings, allowing 3 or fewer hits, against the Cubs. That's a list that includes one-hit shutouts by Dwight Gooden, Tom Seaver, and Gary Gentry.
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