The sights and sounds of baseball are back, though what usually happens in March is happening in July.
The 2020 baseball season is set to begin on July 23rd, almost four months to the day after it was originally was planned to start. It’s not unprecedented for a baseball season to experience a late opening, though nothing of this magnitude has happened in history. Let’s take a look at past seasons that have not gone off as planned, and where applicable, see how the Mets fared in them.
In 1919, the season began late (April 23rd-25th) and was shortened to 140 games. This was due to the ending of World War I, and many players who had been in the military needed time to return home and settle back into their normal lives. The Mets, of course were not a thing then. The Cincinnati Reds won the World Series in 1919, defeating the Chicago White Sox five games to three.
The next delayed opening was in 1972, when the start of the season was pushed back two weeks due to the first ever players’ strike. MLB attempted to play as many of the affected games as possible, but the season ended with teams having played slightly different numbers of games.
For the Mets, 1972 was especially difficult. Not only was there a strike, but manager Gil Hodges died suddenly during spring training on April 2nd, and coach Yogi Berra assumed the managerial duties. The Mets finished a respectable 83-73, in third place behind the division-winning Pittsburgh Pirates.
The 1990 season saw a lockout during spring training, which postponed Opening Day for a week. All of the impacted games were made up during the season. The 1990 season was a decent one for the Mets, who finished 91-71, in second place behind the Pirates. That year, the Mets changed managers after 42 games, replacing Davey Johnson with Bud Harrelson.
The most recent incidence of a delayed opening to the season was 1995. You remember that one, right?
The 1994 season was halted in August due to a players’ strike, and the remainder of the season and the post season were cancelled. The strike was so filled with acrimony that it spilled into spring training of 1995. A settlement was reached in early April, and the season began on April 25th.
The Mets began that season in Colorado, on a frigid night (the game time temperature was 42 degrees, and when the game ended almost five hours later, the temperature was in the 20s). The Mets and Rockies battled for 14 innings, with a Todd Hundley grand slam being the key hit for the Mets. The Mets took the lead in the top of the 14th, and it seemed all would end well. But then Dante Bichette happened, and if you’re not faint of heart, you can watch his game-ending demolition of a Mike Remlinger pitch at the 6:55 mark of the video below.
The Mets went on to finish the 1995 season with a 69-75 record, in second place in the NL East. The second half of the season created much excitement for Mets fans, as the team played solid baseball, and saw the emergence of Jason Isringhausen, Bill Pulsipher. With a well-hyped Paul Wilson waiting in the wings, there was reason for optimism. That optimism faded quickly in 1996, as “Generation K” did not live up to expectations.
COVID-19 permitting, we are less than three weeks away from a significantly abbreviated 2020 season. The Mets have never qualified for the post season in seasons with delayed openings. In 2020, where everything is going to be significantly different, the Mets will strive for a welcomed, and different outcome.
