With hot stove simmering at the moment, let’s take a walk down Mets Memory Lane, and have a look at a man who wore a Mets uniform for both of the team’s championships, Bud Harrelson.

Darrel McKinley “Bud” Harrelson, from Niles, CA, made his Mets debut at shortstop in 1965 at the age of 21. The speedy defensive whiz played his first full season in the major leagues in 1967, when he slashed .254/.317/.304 with one home run and 12 stolen bases. Harrelson’s Total Zone (TZ) rating in 1967 was 3, a figure that jumped to 10 in 1969 and 17 in 1971. This guy was quite the glove man.

Offensively, Harrelson was never much of a hitter, though he was a switch hitter and a skillful bunter. Over 13 years with the Mets, Bud hit .234, with an OBP of .324 and an OPS of .616. He stole 115 bases with New York, and was caught 51 times.

Harrelson was a two-time All-Star, in 1970 and 1971. He hit just .243 and .252 respectively in those seasons, once again a statement on just how good he was defensively. He won the Gold Glove in the National League in 1971. That year, his defensive WAR was 3.1, which led all NL shortstops.

Harrelson’s best offensive season as a Met was 1973 (.258/.348/.309). As mentioned above, one of Bud’s trademark skills was his bunting ability. He was among the league leaders in sacrifices in both 1970 and 1971. Position players bunting is largely frowned upon in today’s game. However, it was a big part of National League baseball in the 1960s and 1970s, and Harrelson was a master of the craft.

When thinking about Harrelson, a few things come to mind. I have a permanent vision of him racing down the third base line, almost beating Ray Knight home when Knight scored the winning run in game six of the 1986 World Series. Kevin Mitchell tells the story of Harrelson telling him, when Mitchell was the tying run on third base in game six, to be aware of Bob Stanley potentially throwing a wild pitch. Stanley did just that; Mitchell was ready, and easily scored the tying run.

Harrelson, though not a big man at 5′ 11″ and 160 pounds, was not afraid to mix it up with the big boys. When Don Buford led off game one of the 1969 World Series with a home run, Harrelson said something to him (to the effect of “take it easy, it’s early”) as he rounded second base. Buford responded with, “you ain’t seen nothing yet.” As the story goes, Buford told the bench what had happened, which angered the Orioles.

Harrelson’s legendary moment came in the 1973 NLCS. He famously got into a brawl with Pete Rose in game three, after Rose slid into him at second base. But he there’s more to the story. Apparently, the ill will began in game two, when Jon Matlack shut the Reds out on two hits. Harrelson reportedly  said that Matlack made the Reds hitters all look like him at the plate. This infuriated the Big Red Machine, and Rose in particular, who took the opportunity to express his feelings directly to Harrelson.

Another “Buddy” moment came in the 1973 World Series, when he was thrown out at the plate on a Felix Millan fly ball in the tenth inning of game two. It appeared that eluded the tag by Ray Fosse, and he argued his point vociferously. When he was ejected, he screamed at umpire Augie Donatelli, “You can’t throw me out because of your incompetence!”

Bud Harrelson was a fiery competitor.

The Mets traded Harrelson to the Phillies during spring training in 1978. He was a part-time player with the Phillies in 1978 and 1979, and ended his playing career with the Texas Rangers in 1980.

Harrelson coached in the Mets organization 1984 and 1985, and joined the big league coaching staff as third base coach during the 1985 season when Bobby Valentine accepted the role of manager of the Rangers. Harrelson replaced Davey Johnson as manager 42 games into the 1990 season. The Mets finished 91-71 that year, and Bud retuned as skipper for the 1991 season. With the team out of contention, he was fired with a week to go in the 1991 season, replaced by coach Mike Cubbage.

Harrelson became part owner of the Long Island Ducks in 2000. He was diagnosed with dementia in 2016, and resides in Long Island.

We wish Bud Harrelson the best as he continues his battle with dementia, and we thank him for being a feisty New York Met, who showed fortitude transcending his physical size on the field.