Friday night's game against the Miami Marlins was already going to be special for the Mets because it was to be their first game in the Marlins' new ballpark. But Mets historians such as myself will remember the game for another reason, as it was the 8,000th regular season game in franchise history.
In their first 8,000 games, the Mets have emerged victorious 3,829 times, while falling short on 4,163 occasions. They have also played eight games to a tie. In addition, the Mets have finished with a winning record in 23 of their 50 campaigns, making the playoffs seven times (five division titles, two wild cards). All that you know. But what if I broke down the 8,000 games into eight 1,000-game periods? What would the Mets' record be in each period? Which team did they defeat the most? Which team gave them the most trouble? Which pitcher was the most successful? Who hit the most home runs?
Ladies and gentle-Mets, without further ado, I invite you to join me as we go around the Mets' world in 8,000 games (1,000 games at a time) to answer all these questions and perhaps find a nugget or two we weren't expecting to find.
Games 1 - 1,000: April 11, 1962 - May 12, 1968 (1st game of DH)
Easiest victim: Chicago Cubs (47 wins, 67 losses, 1 tie)
Toughest opponent: Los Angeles Dodgers (27 wins, 87 losses, 1 tie)
Winningest pitcher: Al Jackson (40 wins, 74 losses)
Saves leader: Jack Hamilton (14 saves)
Top home run hitter: Jim Hickman (60 HR)
RBI leader: Ed Kranepool (223 RBI)
Games 1,001 - 2,000: May 12, 1968 (2nd game of DH) - June 17, 1974
Easiest victim: Philadelphia Phillies (67 wins, 42 losses)
Toughest opponent: Cincinnati Reds (30 wins, 51 losses)
Winningest pitcher: Tom Seaver (121 wins, 66 losses)
Saves leader: Tug McGraw (83 saves)
Top home run hitter: Tommie Agee (81 HR)
RBI leader: Cleon Jones (379 RBI)
Games 2,001 - 3,000: June 18, 1974 - July 18, 1980
Easiest victim: Chicago Cubs (63 wins, 52 losses), Atlanta Braves (46 wins, 32 losses)
Toughest opponent: Philadelphia Phillies (40 wins, 73 losses)
Winningest pitcher: Jerry Koosman (55 wins, 65 losses)
Saves leader: Skip Lockwood (65 saves)
Top home run hitter: Dave Kingman (82 HR)
RBI leader: Lee Mazzilli (233 RBI)
Games 3,001 - 4,000: July 19, 1980 - April 19, 1987
Easiest victim: Pittsburgh Pirates (66 wins, 44 losses, 1 tie)
Toughest opponent: St. Louis Cardinals (49 wins, 64 losses)
Winningest pitcher: Dwight Gooden (58 wins, 19 losses)
Saves leader: Jesse Orosco (94 saves)
Top home run hitter: Darryl Strawberry (113 HR)
RBI leader: Darryl Strawberry (358 RBI)
Games 4,001 - 5,000: April 20, 1987 - May 24, 1993
Easiest victim: St. Louis Cardinals (62 wins, 46 losses)
Toughest opponent: Chicago Cubs (50 wins, 57 losses)
Winningest pitcher: Dwight Gooden (89 wins, 51 losses)
Saves leader: John Franco (79 saves)
Top home run hitter: Howard Johnson (166 HR)
RBI leader: Howard Johnson (527 RBI)
Games 5,001 - 6,000: May 25, 1993 - September 5, 1999
Easiest victim: St. Louis Cardinals (38 wins, 27 losses)
Toughest opponent: Houston Astros (27 wins, 41 losses)
Winningest pitcher: Bobby Jones (63 wins, 50 losses)
Saves leader: John Franco (189 saves)
Top home run hitter: Todd Hundley (112 HR)
RBI leader: Todd Hundley (338 RBI)
Games 6,001 - 7,000: September 6, 1999 - April 7, 2006
Easiest victim: Colorado Rockies (28 wins, 17 losses)
Toughest opponent: Atlanta Braves (44 wins, 70 losses), St. Louis Cardinals (14 wins, 26 losses)
Winningest pitcher: Al Leiter (67 wins, 52 losses)
Saves leader: Armando Benitez (143 saves)
Top home run hitter: Mike Piazza (165 HR)
RBI leader: Mike Piazza (477 RBI)
Games 7,001 - 8,000: April 9, 2006 - May 11, 2012
Easiest victim: Pittsburgh Pirates (27 wins, 17 losses)
Toughest opponent: Atlanta Braves (52 wins, 62 losses)
Winningest pitcher: Mike Pelfrey (50 wins, 54 losses)
Saves leader: Billy Wagner (100 saves)
Top home run hitter: David Wright (143 HR)
RBI leader: David Wright (595 RBI)
I like how Doc led 2 different groupings in wins and Franco led 2 different groupings in saves.
ReplyDeleteI was thinking Fonzie was the team leader in RBI from Game No. 5,001 to No. 6,000, but Hundley beat him out by 9 RBI.
DeleteThe fact that Doc led all pitchers in wins from Game No. 3,001 to No. 4,000 despite not making his debut until Game No. 3,507 is either a testament to how great Doc was or how awful the other pitchers were prior to Doc's debut.