Wrapping up the first round of the “Which Mets season was the best” bracket, this matchup will feature the Cy Young seasons of both Tom Seaver, in 1969, and R.A. Dickey in 2012. Last week, there was a surprising blow out between David Wright and Darryl Strawberry, in which Wright beat Strawberry by just north of 20 votes. Wright will now face Olerud in the second round of the bracket, and the winner of this matchup will face Dwight Gooden. So, without any further ado, it is time to compare the man they call “Tom Terrific,” and the greatest knuckleballer to ever wear a Mets uniform.
Tom Seaver, 1969: 1969 was more than just an ordinary year for the New York Mets. In ’69, the Mets played their eighth season, and finished with a record above .500 for the first time in their history. But 1969 also marked the first time a Mets pitcher won a Cy Young Award…and that man was Seaver. Seaver finished the season with a record of 25-7 and a 2.21 ERA. He also pitched 273.1 innings and led the league with a 6.7 H9 ratio. Seaver had a 7.2 WAR, and allowed just 75 runs. Seaver finished the season with more than just a Cy Young Award though; he also made an All Star Game appearance, and finished second in the National League’s Most Valuable Player voting. And, just as icing on the cake, Seaver went 2-1 with a 4.72 ERA in the 1969 post season.
R.A. Dickey: 42 years after Seaver won his first Cy Young Award, Dickey won his first. In 2012, Dickey went 20-6 with a 2.73 ERA, and became the first ever knuckleballer to win the Cy Young Award in either league. Dickey made an All Star appearance in 2012, and even finished in the top 15 in the National League’s Most Valuable Player Award voting, largely in part due to the 233.2 innings he pitched while hitting just one batter. Dickey pitched two straight one-hit shutouts in 2012, one of which was almost a perfect game if not for a fielding blunder by David Wright (which should have been called an error…but no grudges here). Up until the All Star game, Dickey also did not allow a single runner to steal a base off of him, but did allow Mike Trout to do so during that game. Dickey had five complete games in 33 starts, and even came out of the bullpen during an extra inning game in which he allowed a walk off homer (because starting pitchers can still come out of the bullpen in this day and age). Voting for a knuckleballer as having the best season as a Met may seem difficult at first, but when considering his 5.8 WAR and 3.9 WAA, the decision may not seem as difficult as one may think.
Two amazing pitchers, two amazing seasons, and only one can win the matchup. Whether it be Seaver in his 1969 Cy Young season, or Dickey in his 2012 Cy Young season, this decision could not be more difficult. Whoever wins this matchup will be the fourth and final competitor in the second round of the bracket, which will continue next week when David Wright will go up against John Olerud to see who will make it to the finals.
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Easily the hardest choice so far.
I thought that most of the numbers were similar, once you factored in different time periods. Seaver gets the slight edge in ERA. I’d give Dickey the edge in innings, because he led the league and while Seaver had more innings, he was pitching during a time when people were still putting up 300+ innings.
Dickey had the better K-rate, but strikeouts are also up in the entire league.
I chose Dickey overall for the sheer dominance he had from late May to mid-June when he rattled off 43.2 innings and didn’t give up any earned runs, and that included 2 straight 1-hit shutouts.
I’m shocked people are voting for Dickey.