On how Yogi Berra missed being a career Yankee back in 1965

One baseball player trait fans admire is “played their whole career with the same team”. It is standard trivia to know Brooks Robinson and Carl Yastrzemski both spent their entire 23-year careers with the same team – that’s the record. There are 11 players, all in the Hall of Fame, that played in 20 or [...]

The worst trade in Mets history – That almost wasn’t

Inarguably, the worst trade in New York Mets history grew out of the Amazin’s need for more offense out of their third baseman and their ability to trade from the strength of surplus young starting pitching.  It was the winter of 1971.  Then General Manager Bob Scheffing surveyed the trade market and set his sights [...]

Justin Verlander and pitchers who qualified for the leaderboards in their 40s

There’s been a lot of worry about the age of the Mets’ rotation, especially with newly acquired Justin Verlander getting ready to embark on his age-40 season. But while it’s a good idea to avoid hitters this age – and frankly quite a few years earlier than that – there’s no reason to fret about [...]

It’s been hard for the Mets to fill the hot corner

Filling the third base position has always been a challenge for the Mets as demonstrated by the fact that they have trotted out 182 different players to try and handle the hot corner since their 1962 inaugural season.   Of those 182 players, only 25 have played more than 100 games.  112 players appeared at 3B [...]

The Mets legacy of Vin Scully

Vin Scully passed away last August at the age of 94, after a baseball broadcasting career with the Dodgers that lasted from 1950-2016. He was a man who was probably the best at his profession of anyone who ever lived. But, what’s this about his Mets legacy? It's true that Scully never was a play-by-play [...]

Mets Hall of Fame adds Howard Johnson and Al Leiter

The New York Mets have their own Hall of Fame with plaques and stories in Citi Field. Mind you, these are not retired numbers; they are Mets Hall of Fame members. When Nelson Doubleday purchased the Mets (including the Wilpons), they created the Mets HOF. And of course, Joan Payson was the first inductee. The [...]

Holiday Gift: A look back at the Mike Hampton trade

It was this week in the year 1999 that the New York Mets executed a trade that gave them two of the final pieces of their pennant-winning 2000 squad: acquiring NL Cy Young Award runner-up Mike Hampton and outfielder Derek Bell from the Houston Astros for Roger Cedeno, Octavio Dotel and minor league pitcher Kyle [...]

When the early Mets nearly upended the baseball world

It was a transition year for the Mets in 1964. The team, in its third season of operation, moved into shiny, brand-new Shea Stadium, and even hosted the All-Star game. However their record only improved slightly, and they were doomed to yet another 10th-place season with a final record of 53-109. However, as the regular [...]