My NY Mets Tribute

    In 1962, the New York Metropolitans were created. This team name was quickly shortened to the NY Mets, where it has stood ever since. During the press conference that officially made the Mets an official baseball team, old time manager, Casey Stengel said: "It's a great honor for me to be joining the Knickerbockers." Although the Mets were a new team, they still played in an old stadium; the Polo Grounds. Another thing that had history was there manager, Casey Stengel, the oldest, and possibly the wisest man in baseball. After a few weeks of seeing his team play, he told a reporter: "Come and see my "Amazin'" Mets. I've been in this game a hundred years, but I see new ways to loose I never knew existed before."

    The major problem with the NY Mets, was that the players were all newcomers, to the game, or old veterans that had lost their potential years ago, such as Don Zimmer. The famous question "Can't anybody here play this game?" possed by the Stengel was quickly answered, "No." Casey obviously understood how to manage a ball club, after all he did win numerous pennants with the NY Yankees. Casey said: "You have to start with a catcher, or you'll have a lot of passed balls." Well, the "Ol' Perfessor" found a catcher, Harry Chiti, in exchange for "a player to be named later." Poor Harry proved to be so inept that he was traded back to the Cleveland Spiders, 30 days later, as the "player to be named later" part of the deal. With that, Harry Chiti became the first player in Professional Baseball history, ever to be traded for himself! After that incident Casey went through six more back stops before acquiring Norm Sherry, who couldn't throw; and Clarence "Choo-Choo" Coleman, who couldn't throw either. With that combination of "talent" the Mets ended the season with 26 passed balls.   

     Just how bad was this team, you ask. Don Zimmer set a record of going up to the plate 32 consecutive  times, and not getting a single hit. "Marvelous Marv." Thornberry had a knack for dropping pop ups. Despite, or perhaps as a result of his common mishaps on the field, the fans adored him. During one game, Marv managed to collide with the runner, without having possession of the ball! As a result the umpire called "interference" and the Cubs scored four times. Later, in the same game, Thornberry hit a triple, but he neglected to touch first base. Well, Casey stormed out of the dugout, and argued the call; however, when the umpire told him that Marv, didn't touch second base either he replied by saying: "Well, I know he touched third base because he's standing on it."

    However, miraculously, the worse the Mets played, the more there fans loved them. Even when the Met lost 17, 13, and 11 in a row, still, huge crowds came and chanted their team on saying "Let's Go Mets! Let's Go Mets!" Other loyal fans brought huge banners saying,

M is for Mighty

E is for Exciting

T is for Terrific

       S is for So lovable   

We don't want to set the World on fire-We just want to finish Ninth.

To Err is human-To forgive is a Mets fan.       

 

The New York Metropolitans (Mets) finished there first season with a record of 40 wins-120 losses! When the Mets moved from the historic Polo Grounds, the historic home of the NY Giants, to a bran new home entitled Shea Stadium they outdrew there cross-town rivals the Yankees!  Sadly though, the most cheered for team in the majors, would stay near the cellar for five more seasons!                
In the beginning of the soon to be remarkable season of 1969, the Mets odds of winning the pennant were 100-1! However, Casey had retired from the Mets, and now the manager of this still blossoming team was Gil Hodges. Much like the Mets first season, 22 of the 26 players on the team's regular roster were recent college graduates. However, a few of those rookies were to become future Hall of Famers. This unique list included: Tom Seaver, Nolan Ryan, Tug McGraw and Jerry Koosman. Spectacularly, in September, the Mets won 38 of their last 49 games. Even more remarkable was that they took the Eastern Division Title by 8 games. That wasn't it though, the Mets also managed to beat the Braves to become league champions. In their first game of the World Series against the Orioles, Seaver lost 4-1. However, in the following game Koosman pitched a two-hitter! The Mets won the following game also, 5-0, the Mets won the next game too; with a score of 1-0, Tom Seaver was pitching. The NY Mets needed just one more game to become World Series Champions!

The New York Mets won the World Series!

My other Met sites


Mets History

Here is the box score of the first Mets game.

Pictures of Past Met Players

Information on Shea Stadium




Thank you to all those that let me use their pictures.