In the days of postseasons prior to the inception of Wild Card teams, the Mets had 95 victories heading into October and nothing yet to show for it. With the NL East Division title presenting the only avenue to the playoffs and the St. Louis Cardinals up three in the standings with six to play, New York’s last-ditch effort for 1985 came in a three-game set at Busch Stadium.
In the biggest start of Ron Darling’s young career, he more than answered the challenge. His opponent, John Tudor, the eventual runner-up to Dwight Gooden in the NL Cy Young Award race, matched Darling zero-for-zero. It took just one run to win it, and the Mets remained alive for at least one more night.
Some things to look for:
- You won’t find a more elaborate strike-caller than home plate umpire Dutch Rennert. He could’ve been heard from New York.
- The Cardinals’ run-production was predicated on their speed, and Darling kept their fastest men in check — only allowing Vince Coleman to reach base once (without a steal) and keeping Ozzie Smith off the basepaths completely (including a key double play at 1:42:40 to escape a seventh inning jam).
- Darryl Strawberry finally broke the scoreless drought (and almost the Busch Stadium clock) with a titanic blast at 2:38:30.
- The Mets tried to give that run right back at 2:47:38 with some miscommunication in the outfield, letting Tommy Herr get into scoring position with one out.
New York also won the next evening behind Dwight Gooden (to close the NL East margin to one) before dropping the series finale, effectively giving the Cards the division title. The Mets finished with 98 victories and, after a tough pennant race, a good deal of motivation heading into 1986.
