In the ’90s, Major League Baseball was dominated by luminary power hitters, such as Barry Bonds, Ken Griffey Jr., Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa and Albert Belle. Fans were enthralled with the enticing numbers being produced, with larger-than-life personalities regularly receiving the spotlight and fanfare. For all of their rightful attention, players who produced in other ways, and perhaps in a...
Friday night wasn’t particularly kind to the Mets. They were shut out by old friend Joe Musgrove and co., Paul Blackburn exited the game in the third inning after a comebacker hit his wrist, and the Braves were gifted a win after Nationals shortstop CJ Abrams committed an error in the bottom of the tenth. Again, a lot went wrong. But one bright spot came in the top of the ninth for the...
Today is the 27th anniversary of the Mets’ acquisition of first baseman John Olerud. This article was originally published in 2020. John Olerud only spent three years with the New York Mets, but he made the most of his time in Queens. New York acquired Olerud and $5 million in cash from the Toronto Blue Jays in exchange for Robert Person in advance of the 1997 season. The first baseman...
Robin Ventura finished his major league career with 18 grand slams. But it’s a hit that only looked like a grand slam which is his signature Mets moment and a unique ending to a 15-inning, five-hour and 46-minute postseason classic. For a team that spent three weeks walking a tightrope, Game 5 of the National League Championship Series against the rival Atlanta Braves was the latest (and...
Mike Piazza’s journey of going from a 62nd-round draft pick (1,390th overall) at the behest of a Hall of Fame manager to switching positions late in his teenage years and becoming the greatest hitting catcher of all time is one of near improbability. For Piazza, 54, baseball was a way of life and something he innately knew he was destined for. From a young age, Piazza had access to the...
Pete Alonso already has the Mets’ single-season home run record. Now he’s after the RBI mark. Following play on Monday, even with recent struggles, his current pace has him within sight of the 124 set by Mike Piazza and David Wright. And with under six weeks left in the regular season, his other number put him in the discussion for the greatest individual hitting seasons by a Met. In...
As we move headlong toward the All-Star break, the New York Mets find themselves atop the NL East with a 45-26 record, and a slim four-game lead over the Atlanta Braves. Fueling their efforts to secure a division title and a postseason drive, has been an offensive explosion that has the team leading MLB in Hits, Runs Scored and RBIs. One other category of particular note is the Mets leading the...
Dave Mlicki’s major league career lasted ten seasons. By comparison, it was a rather modest decade: 66-80, a 4.72 ERA, and a 1.47 WHIP. He spent four years with the Mets registering a 24-30 record and an ERA+ of 98. Of the 66 victories in the majors and 24 as a Met, his night at Yankee Stadium clearly stands out. It wasn’t any ordinary game, contrary to what some players may have...
Hi, Mets fans! You might know me from the interviews I conduct for Metsmerized Online, but I also love diving into numbers and looking up all kinds of stats and information, which you might see on my Twitter feed on a daily basis. In this new weekly feature for MMO, I’m going to look back at the previous week’s games and share some interesting data and information that I’ve...
The 2012 New York Mets started out well, but the season ended basically as expected for a rebuilding team. The Mets finished 74-88 in 2012. There were some individual highlights, such as the pitching of R.A. Dickey, who won the National League’s Cy Young award that year with a 20-6 record. On April 27, 2012, Scott Hairston achieved a rare feat, hitting for the cycle. The Mets were...
People have been asking us all winter what we’ve been doing to pass the time during the MLB lockout. I’ll tell you what we do here at MMO — we come up with ideas that not only help us stay busy, but will help you all stay busy, too. Talking about the best teams and/or players in New York Mets history is always a good debate to have — especially during the cold winter...
We are right smack in the middle of the holidays, so there’s a good chance you’re still around some extended family even though Christmas is officially in the rearview mirror. What better way to pass the time than talk about New York Mets history…am I right? I mean, there’s not much happening in the game right now thanks to the lockout, so this is the next best thing to...
