The Thrill of Victory, The Agony of the Mets: Dwight Gooden

There have been many highly touted prospects who never lived up to the lofty expectations after they were called up to the majors.  Former No. 1 overall pick David Clyde went from being a Texas high school superstar (18-0, 0.18 ERA, 328 Ks in 148 IP) to the Texas Rangers almost overnight in 1973.  He pitched his final game in the majors before his 25th birthday.  Similarly, Joe Charboneau's first season with the Cleveland Indians in 1980 saw him win the American League Rookie of the Year Award and be the subject of a novelty song ("Go Joe Charboneau").  He played just 70 more games in the big leagues after his inaugural campaign, setting the record for fewest career games by a former Rookie of the Year.

Charboneau played his final game in the majors in June 1982, the same month that the Mets drafted a 17-year-old high school pitching phenom from Tampa, Florida with the fifth overall pick.  Before he was out of his teens, the prospect would win his own Rookie of the Year Award.  Then at age 20, he was the unanimous winner of the Cy Young Award.  A year later, he helped the Mets win a World Series trophy.  Three years, three individual and team awards.  But what should have been the beginning of a Hall of Fame career ended up leading to his downfall as a major league pitcher.  A small taste of success on the field led to a much larger taste in illegal activities off it.  And before long, his performance on the field for the Mets became the least of his worries.

Oh, what might have been for the good doctor.  (Ronald C. Modra/Sports Imagery/Getty Images)

Dwight Eugene Gooden was the third pitcher selected in the 1982 June Amateur Draft after Jimmy Jones (Padres) and Bryan Oelkers (Twins).  But whereas Jones and Oelkers failed to have much of an impact on the teams that drafted them, Gooden made the Mets better as soon as he put on a major league uniform for the first time in 1984.

At Hillsborough High School in Tampa, Gooden struck out 130 batters in just 74 innings during his senior year.  As he adjusted to minor league baseball, Gooden struck out fewer batters.  Doc - as he was so named by a family friend when he was in Little League - made 11 starts in his first professional season and fanned 84 batters in 78⅔ innings.  Promoted to Single-A Lynchburg in 1983, Gooden became unhittable, striking out 300 batters in 191 innings.  When the Mets' Triple-A team qualified for the International League playoffs, Gooden made the jump from Lynchburg to Tidewater at the request of Tides' manager Davey Johnson.

"I kept asking for him that year," Johnson said.  "I knew his command.  The Mets had taken Walt Terrell and Tom Gorman away from me that year, they took Ron Darling, and I kept yelling, 'Give me Gooden.'  After he pitched a 1-0 shutout that won the championship for Lynchburg, they finally let me have him in the playoffs."

Facing hitters who were one step away from the majors didn't faze the 18-year-old Gooden, as he struck out 19 more batters and recorded a complete-game victory over the Denver Bears.  Tidewater ended up winning the Little World Series, earning Johnson a promotion to the Mets to manage the big league club.  Although Gooden was still in his teens, Johnson wanted him on the Opening Day roster in 1984, which made general manager Frank Cashen uneasy because of what had happened to another top prospect just three years earlier.

"Davey told us he'd protect the kid, but Frank Cashen was leery," Mets vice president of operations Lou Gorman said.  "Frank remembered how Tim Leary had hurt his arm and he didn't want to take a chance on an 18-year-old hurting his arm after a long season."

In 1981, Leary - another former first round pick - was promoted from Double-A to the big leagues, making his debut with the Mets on April 12 at cold Wrigley Field in Chicago.  His first appearance lasted two innings, as an elbow injury forced him out of the game.  By the time Gooden was pitching for Tidewater in September 1983, Leary had not yet returned to the majors and would only start nine more games for the Mets before he was traded to the Milwaukee Brewers in 1985.

With a feeling of trepidation, Cashen agreed to have Gooden on the Mets' Opening Day roster as a 19-year-old in 1984.  There were no weather concerns for Doc in his first start, as the game was played indoors at the Houston Astrodome.  Gooden was sharp in his debut, holding the Astros to one run and three hits in five innings to earn his first major league victory.  He was not as fortunate in his second appearance, which, in an interesting bit of irony, was also played at a chilly Wrigley Field.

One day after the three-year anniversary of Leary's ill-fated debut, Gooden was knocked out of the game in the fourth inning after allowing six runs and ten base runners.  Much to the relief of Cashen, Gooden felt fine physically after the game.  In fact, Doc took the lessons he learned from the defeat and used it to carve out a wildly successful career against the Cubs, winning 28 of his next 31 decisions versus Chicago.

Rick Sutcliffe beat Doc for the 1984 Cy Young, but Doc beat Chicago the rest of his career.  (Ronald C. Modra/Getty Images)

Through his first eight starts, Gooden was just 3-3 with a 4.15 ERA.  But in late May, after a 14-strikeout performance against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Shea Stadium, Gooden became the pitcher Johnson saw in the minors.  In his final 23 starts, Doc went 14-6 with a 2.22 ERA, holding opposing hitters to a .197 batting average and .539 OPS.  Gooden struck out 217 batters in those 23 starts en route to setting a new single-season strikeout record for rookies.  Included in his stellar second half were back-to-back 16-strikeout games against the Pittsburgh Pirates and Philadelphia Phillies in mid-September when the Mets were trying to stay in their first pennant race in nearly a decade.

Unfortunately, the Mets lost Gooden's second 16-K game, and with it, lost any hope of catching the first-place Cubs in the division.  Despite having to settle for a second-place finish, the Mets had ended a seven-year stretch of losing baseball at Shea, one that began when the last pitching virtuoso, Tom Seaver, was traded away from the team.  New York finished the 1984 campaign with a 90-72 record, just the second time in franchise history that the team reached the 90-win plateau.  It would not be the last time the Mets won that many games during Gooden's tenure in New York.

The 1985 campaign began with the National League's Rookie of the Year trying to avoid the dreaded sophomore slump.  It ended with Gooden completing what is arguably the greatest season by a Mets starting pitcher in franchise history.  With off-season acquisition Gary Carter behind the plate, Gooden flourished in his second year with the team, winning the Triple Crown of pitching, as he led the league in wins (24), ERA (1.53) and strikeouts (268).  Doc also paced all National League pitchers in innings pitched (276⅔) and complete games (16), often pitching like a seasoned veteran despite being only 20 years old.  After failing to be the unanimous winner in the Rookie of the Year vote the previous season (future teammate Juan Samuel got one first place vote), Gooden received every first place vote for the Cy Young Award in 1985, becoming the first Met since Tom Seaver in 1975 to take home the coveted pitching prize.

For the second straight year, the Mets were runners-up in the division, this time finishing second to the St. Louis Cardinals.  The Mets were determined to not let it happen three years in a row, with Johnson going so far as saying that the team wouldn't just win; they would dominate.  Gooden also looked to improve upon his 1985 campaign.  But how does one improve a product that's already nearly perfect?

One thing that got better in 1986 was Gooden's bank account, as he received a hefty raise before his third season from $450,000 to $1,320,000.  That money did not include what he was earning from all the endorsement deals that were coming his way.  A 21-year-old whose face was plastered everywhere - including a larger-than-life mural on 42nd Street - became instantly recognizable to everyone; even non-baseball fans knew who Gooden was.  That recognition and success in turn led to all kinds of temptations.  And as strong as Gooden was on the mound, he was weak off it, especially when the high of doing lines became greater than the rush of pitching between them.

In the mid-'80s, Doc Gooden was larger than life.  (Matt Weber Street Photography)

In 1986, Gooden picked up where he left off the previous year, winning his first five decisions and posting a stellar 1.04 ERA through his first six starts.  But Doc was merely human after his strong first month of the season, as he pitched to a 3.32 ERA and 1.207 WHIP in his final 27 starts.  Gooden also needed to strike out the last batter he faced in his final regular season start just to reach 200 strikeouts, a number he had reached by the end of August in each of his first two seasons.  But with the Mets fulfilling their manager's prophecy by dominating the division, Gooden's so-so season never became an issue.  That is, until the postseason started.

In the National League Championship Series, Gooden pitched well against the Astros, allowing just two runs in 17 innings.  But he only struck out nine batters in his two starts and failed to earn a win in either game.  When Gooden took the mound against the Boston Red Sox in the World Series, he was hit quite hard.  Boston's hitters operated on Doc twice in the series, scoring ten runs (eight earned) and collecting 17 hits in his nine innings of work against the American League champions.  Although the Red Sox defeated Gooden twice in the series, the Mets would go on to win the Fall Classic in seven games.

The Mets lost five postseason games in 1986.  Three of the losses were charged to Gooden.  It was alarming to see the Mets' ace not come through for the team in the postseason.  It was even more alarming not to see him at the Mets' victory parade up the Canyon of Heroes.

As the team celebrated with its fans, Gooden was watching the parade from his bed after spending the previous night drinking heavily and doing drugs.  In his autobiography, "Doc: A Memoir", Gooden recounted his post-Game Seven activities.

"I was drinking shots of vodka," Gooden wrote.  "I was snorting lines of cocaine.  And more lines of cocaine - and more lines of cocaine.  I didn't leave the drug party until after the sun came up.  As my teammates toasted our triumph, I was nursing a head-splitting coke-and-booze hangover, too spent, too paranoid, and too mad at myself to drag my sorry butt to my own victory parade."

Drugs had taken over Gooden's life in 1986.  When he wasn't pitching or preparing to pitch, he was nose deep in cocaine.  And when there was no baseball to play, there was more time to do drugs.  For the better part of a year, Gooden had been able to keep his off-the-field exploits a secret from the fans and the press.  By the end of spring training, however, his addiction had become public knowledge.

In March 1987, a urine sample submitted by Gooden tested positive for cocaine.  Faced with the option of a one-year suspension without pay or going to a drug rehabilitation center while continuing to be paid, Gooden chose the latter, checking himself into the Smithers Alcoholism and Treatment Center in Manhattan, where he would remain for a month.  Once Gooden completed his rehab, he made five starts in the minors before returning to the Mets on June 5.

Gooden had no idea what to expect from the Shea Stadium crowd that night.  In his absence, the defending champion Mets had become a mediocre team, entering the Friday night matchup against the Pittsburgh Pirates in fourth place with a 25-25 record.  Sportswriter Dick Young, whose articles had contributed to the departure of Tom Seaver a decade earlier, encouraged Mets fans to "stand up and boo" Gooden when he took the mound.

"If I could choreograph things tonight," Young wrote, "I would do it this way: Enter Dwight Gooden ... 50,000 people boo loudly.  That's to let him know how society feels about the wrong he has done, about the damage he has committed to the millions of kids who worshipped him."

Throw a Lord Charles like this and you'll never get booed.  (Focus On Sport/Getty Images)

Instead of booing, Gooden received a rousing ovation from the sellout crowd.  The extra support from the fans helped Doc pitch into the seventh inning, and when he was removed from the game with two outs, he exited to more thunderous applause.  The Mets won the game, 5-1, and more importantly, they had their ace back.  Although the Mets failed to return to the playoffs in 1987, they did improve from a .500 team without Gooden to a team that went 67-45 with Doc on the active roster.  And despite missing nearly a third of the season, Gooden still won 15 games for the Mets, which helped him place fifth in the Cy Young Award vote - his third top five finish in his first four seasons.

Unlike the 1987 season, Gooden was with the team from the start of the '88 campaign.  His drug demons supposedly behind him, Gooden finished the year with an 18-9 record and ten complete games.  It was the last time Gooden - or any other Mets pitcher - reached double digits in complete games.  For the first time in his career, Gooden pitched to contact instead of going for the strikeout, as he struck out just 175 batters in 248⅓ innings and averaged a career-low 2.1 walks per nine innings.  But as well as Gooden's pitch-to-contact mantra worked during the regular season in 1988, it came back to haunt him and the Mets in the postseason.

The Mets won 100 games in 1988 and cruised to their second division title in three years.  Their opponent in the NLCS was the Los Angeles Dodgers, a team New York had defeated ten times in 11 regular season matchups.  The Mets' fortunes against the Dodgers continued in the first three games of the series, as they took two of those three contests and had Gooden on the mound for Game Four.  Gooden struggled early, allowing two runs in the first inning before striking out Mike Scioscia to limit the damage.  Gooden's strikeout of Scioscia got him back on track, as Doc allowed just one hit over the next seven innings.  Meanwhile, Dodgers' starter John Tudor - who was the runner-up to Gooden for the Cy Young Award just three years earlier - was knocked around for four runs in five innings.

Through eight innings, the Mets held a 4-2 lead with Gooden throwing 118 pitches.  Still, Johnson kept Gooden in the game to face John Shelby, who had driven in the only two runs scored by the Dodgers.  Shelby fouled off Gooden's first pitch, then took a curveball for strike two.  Needing one pitch to retire the leadoff batter in the ninth, Gooden threw six more pitches before walking Shelby.  Doc was now up to 126 pitches, but there was still no one warming up in the Mets' bullpen.

And then, with one swing of the bat, Scioscia happened.

Mike Scioscia had gone deep just three times in 452 regular season at-bats in 1988.  He made it four on Gooden's first pitch to him, taking Doc over the right field wall for a game-tying, stadium-quieting home run.  It was like déjà vu all over again for Gooden and Scioscia, as the light-hitting Scioscia's first-ever homer at Shea Stadium back in 1984 had also been hit off Gooden, although that blast didn't come in a critical postseason game.  With the wind taken out of the Mets' sails, the Dodgers eked out an extra-inning win on a home run by Kirk Gibson.  Three games later, New York abandoned ship on their season, dropping the seventh and deciding game at Dodger Stadium.

Make that 2 wins, 60 losses after what transpired in Game Four.  (Screen shot courtesy of MLBClassics YouTube channel)

The heartbreaking loss in the 1988 NLCS was the beginning of the end for the Mets, as general manager Frank Cashen began to slowly dismantle the team that won him a championship.  By the end of the 1989 campaign, fan-favorites Wally Backman, Lenny Dykstra, Roger McDowell, Mookie Wilson and Lee Mazzilli were all gone.  Gooden's perfect health was also gone, as the 24-year-old veteran was placed on the disabled list because of an actual injury for the first time in his career in July.  Originally thought to be out three to four weeks with a slight tear of a muscle in his right shoulder, Gooden didn't return to the team until mid-September, making two relief appearances before being shut down for the final two weeks of the season.  Gooden finished the year with a 9-4 record; it was the first time he failed to win at least 15 games in a season.

New York bid adieu to the the 1980s with just one championship despite having one of the best pitching staffs in the league.  And less than two months into the first season of the 1990s, the team also said goodbye to its long-time manager, as Davey Johnson was removed from the position following a less-than-mediocre 20-22 start.  Gooden's early season performance matched the team's, as Doc started the year with a 3-5 record and 4.44 ERA in his first 12 starts.  But with the arrival of new manager Buddy Harrelson, the team started hitting.  And hitting.  And hitting some more.

Dave Magadan competed for the batting title.  Darryl Strawberry set the single-season franchise record for RBI.  Even Mackey Sasser hit over .300, becoming the first catcher in team history to reach that lofty level while playing in at least 100 games.  One of the main beneficiaries of the increased run production was Doc Gooden, who went 16-1 from mid-June to late September.  But just because he was winning almost every start didn't mean he was pitching like vintage Gooden.  Case in point, in back-to-back starts against the Dodgers and Giants in August, Gooden allowed a total of 13 runs (all earned), 15 hits and eight walks in just 11 innings.  Incredibly, he was the winning pitcher in both games.

For the season, the Mets averaged over six runs per game in Gooden's 34 starts.  As a result, Gooden won 19 games in 1990, losing his final start as he attempted to become a 20-game winner for the second time in his career.  Gooden also struck out 223 batters, his highest total since his Cy Young season in 1985.  But Doc's 3.83 ERA was the highest of his career and was more than a run higher than his 2.64 lifetime ERA coming into the season.  The years of sub-3.00 ERAs would become a thing of the past for Gooden, as would winning seasons for the Mets.

In 1991, the Mets finished the year with a 77-84 record; their first losing season since Gooden was pitching for Single-A Lynchburg.  Although Gooden won 13 of 20 decisions, his campaign was curtailed by another injury to his pitching arm, which required season-ending surgery in early September.  Prior to Opening Day of the '91 campaign, a healthier Gooden had signed the richest contract in National League history, which guaranteed him $15.45 million through 1994 (the contract wouldn't kick in until the 1992 season).  Unfortunately, Gooden had difficulty living up to his end of the deal.

From 1984 to 1991, Gooden finished at least five games over .500 in each season.  But from 1992 to 1994 - which covered the length of his new contract - Gooden had a losing record in each campaign.  His 1994 season was especially harsh, beginning with his Opening Day outing, when he allowed three home runs to Tuffy Rhodes at Wrigley Field.  Gooden also injured his toe during the season opener and exacerbated the injury over his next two starts, which caused him to spend nearly two months on the disabled list.  During his time away from the team, Gooden was randomly tested for drugs as part of his after-care program.  He returned to the team in early June, just three weeks before the results of his drug test were made public.  The news was not what the Mets and their fans wanted to hear.

Gooden was caught with cocaine in his system.  Again.  And this time, he was suspended by Major League Baseball for 60 days.

"I have been suspended for breaking the rules of my aftercare program," Gooden said in a prepared statement.  "I'm truly sorry it happened.  I will be back stronger and better."
 
Gooden never did come back to the Mets, as the 1994 players' strike canceled the remainder of the season before his suspension had come to an end.  Then, just days after the World Series would have ended had it been played, it was revealed that Gooden had tested positive for cocaine multiple times after completing his rehabilitation in August.  He was suspended for the entire 1995 season, which disappointed Joe McIlvaine, the team's executive vice president of baseball operations.

"Right now our only concern is for Dwight Gooden the person," McIlvaine said.  "Any speculation about his baseball future is secondary and unimportant.  It's a shame at the age of 29 his future is so much in doubt."

Gooden's declaration of coming back stronger and better would have to come in another team's uniform, as the Mets did not offer their former ace a contract after he completed his suspensions.  Gooden signed with the crosstown Yankees in 1996 and almost immediately pitched a no-hitter for his new team.  He went on to win two World Series rings with the Yankees and made a triumphant return to Shea Stadium in 2000, defeating the Mets in the first game of a two-stadium doubleheader.

Gooden retired just days before the start of the 2001 season, ending his 16-year major league career six wins shy of 200 for his career.  All but 37 of his 194 victories came as a member of the New York Mets.

"It's a sad and enjoyable day for myself," Gooden said upon announcing his retirement.  "I've enjoyed a great career.  It's been a joyous ride."

Dwight Gooden played 11 seasons with the Mets.  His once-promising career should have yielded so many memorable moments, but instead ended up seeing Gooden with more drug suspensions as a Met than championship trophies.  Despite the personal demons that he could never quite conquer, even well after his retirement as a player, Gooden has remained quite popular with Mets fans.  Gooden received the loudest ovation when he returned to Shea Stadium for the park's closing ceremonies in 2008 and was inducted into the Mets Hall of Fame in 2010.

Doc's memorabilia is in Cooperstown, but not Doc himself. (Ed Leyro/Studious Metsimus)

In 1984, a 19-year-old rookie gave fans a reason to come to the ballpark after the Mets had spent seven seasons as the dregs of the league.  Dr. K had his own "Korner" at Shea Stadium.  He also had his own six-story mural on one of New York's busiest streets.  But for all the hold Gooden had on the city of New York, he couldn't control his own vices.  And a road that should have led to Cooperstown ended up leading to one rehab trip after another.

There's an old saying that reminds us "it's not where you start, it's where you finish."  Players like David Clyde and Joe Charboneau are quite familiar with that quote.  So is Dwight Gooden.  His first few years in the majors had many pundits mentioning his name in the same sentence as the game's all-time greats.  By the time his career ended, those same people were including Gooden on their lists of the game's greatest disappointments.

The Mets won one World Series during Gooden's tenure in Flushing.  Gooden then missed the parade that celebrated that lone title.  Just like Mets fans missed out on what should have been a legendary career in orange and blue.

Note: The Thrill of Victory, The Agony of the Mets is a thirteen-part weekly series spotlighting those Mets players and personnel who experienced the best of times and the worst of times with the team.  For previous installments, please click on the names below:

January 2, 2017: Tom Seaver
January 9, 2017: Mike Piazza
January 16, 2017: Wally Backman
January 23, 2017: Daniel Murphy
January 30, 2017: Frank Cashen
February 6, 2017: Ed Kranepool
February 13, 2017: Doug Sisk
February 20, 2017: Joan Whitney Payson 
February 27, 2017: John Franco and Armando Benitez

 

The Thrill of Victory, The Agony of the Mets: Tom Seaver

The Franchise.  Say those two words to any Mets fan and they'll know exactly who you're referring to.  To get that moniker, a player needs to have seen it all.  He needs to have experienced the highs that go with being the best, both as an individual and as part of a team.  But he also should know what it's like to fail and come just short of achieving his and the team's goals.

During the beginning of his career, the Mets' franchise player experienced a last place finish, followed by a quick rise to the top of the baseball world.  Individual awards would follow, as would the team's fall to mediocrity.  The Mets eventually shocked the baseball world again, only to be the laughingstocks of the league just a few years later.  And through it all, "The Franchise" kept doing what he did best until his best wasn't good enough for the franchise.

Just as the Mets eventually came back from their darkest days, so did "The Franchise", who returned to the team just as it was about to rise from the ashes that had been smoldering for seven long seasons.  And once again, a lower-case franchise blunder allowed the upper-case Franchise to walk away before a last ditch effort to have him end his wonderful career wearing blue and orange came to a crashing halt.

After so many victorious thrills and agonizing defeats, "The Franchise" called it a career after two decades in the game.  But what a career it was.

Call him "The Franchise", "Tom Terrific" or "The Greatest Player in Mets History".  (Getty Images)

George Thomas Seaver became a Met by accident.  Originally drafted by the Dodgers in the tenth round of the 1965 June Amateur Draft, Seaver balked at a $2,000 offer by Los Angeles, as he was looking for a hefty $50,000 sum.  When then-scout Tom Lasorda could only offer $3,000, Seaver walked away from his first professional contract, choosing to stay at the University of Southern California.

Seven months later, the Atlanta Braves selected Seaver in the secondary phase of the January draft and Seaver signed with the team, earning a $40,000 bonus.  But that contract was voided by Commissioner William Eckert because USC had played an exhibition game that the Braves did not know about prior to signing Seaver.  Baseball rules prohibited the signing of college players once their teams had played a game, even if that game didn't count in the standings.  In addition, once Seaver signed the now-voided contract with the Braves, he became ineligible to return to the USC baseball team, putting him in baseball limbo and making him a free agent.  As a result, a special lottery was held to determine which team had the right to sign the former Trojan pitcher.  Surprisingly, only three teams - the Indians, Phillies and Mets - entered the lottery for Seaver's services.  Defying not-so-overwhelming one-in-three odds, the Mets won the lottery, changing their franchise's fortunes forever.

Seaver spent his first season in professional ball at the Triple A level in Jacksonville.  That was his only year in the minors, as he posted a 12-12 record with the Suns, to go with ten complete games, four shutouts and 188 strikeouts in 32 starts.  During that same 1966 campaign, the Mets lost fewer than 100 games for the first time, finally climbing out of the National League basement.  Hope seemed to be on the horizon for New York and that hope arrived a season later, when Seaver was promoted to the big leagues.

The Mets regressed somewhat in 1967, going 61-101 and once again finishing in last place in the ten-team Senior Circuit, but Seaver proved that the Mets had done right in participating in the lottery for his services.  The 22-year-old neophyte set franchise records for wins (16), complete games (18) and strikeouts (170) and was the first starter in club history to post an ERA under 3.00 (Seaver finished the year with a stellar 2.76 ERA), becoming the ace of the staff in his rookie season - one that culminated with the National League Rookie of the Year award.

The 1968 season brought two new faces to the team that would help put an end to the 100-loss campaigns in Flushing - manager Gil Hodges and lefty starter Jerry Koosman.  As manager of the Washington Senators, Hodges ended the club's perennial rendezvous with triple-digit losses and the American League cellar and turned them into a middle-of-the-pack team, as Washington finished in sixth place in the ten-team American League in 1967.  Hodges then returned to his New York roots via a rare player-for-manager trade, as the Mets sent pitcher Bill Denehy and his one major league victory, along with $100,000 in cash to Washington in exchange for Hodges.  The deal became one of the best in Mets history, as Hodges ended up winning more championships as a manager (one) than Denehy won games as a pitcher (zero) after the two men switched uniforms.

Meanwhile, Jerry Koosman, who made his major league debut just one day after Seaver made his in 1967, but couldn't pitch well enough to stay at the big league level, flourished when given a second chance in 1968.  Retaining his rookie status in '68, Koosman surpassed Seaver's stellar debut campaign, winning 19 games, posting a 2.08 ERA and striking out 178 batters.  Seaver was also spectacular in 1968, going 16-12 with a 2.20 ERA and 205 strikeouts, becoming the first Met to reach the 200-K mark.  It would become a staple of Seaver's career.

The Mets finished 73-89 in 1968, prompting Hodges to proclaim that the team would win 85 games in 1969.  He based his prediction on the fact that the team lost 37 games the previous season by a single run.  "If you win half of those," Hodges said, "you are a contending ball club."

Defying the odds, the team did make it to the lofty 85-win plateau, reaching the prophetic skipper's total with three weeks left in the regular season, helped in part by the team's 41-23 record in one-run games.  They then proceeded to win 15 more contests, winning the division title to advance to the inaugural National League Championship Series against the Atlanta Braves - the team that tried in vain to sign Seaver just three years earlier.  Seaver was a huge part of the Mets' success in 1969, winning 25 games - a franchise record that still stands to this day - and nearly became the first Met to toss a no-hitter.  In fact, Seaver retired the first 25 Chicago Cubs batters he faced on July 9 before surrendering a clean single to Jimmy Qualls to break up his bid for perfection.  This is the same Jimmy Qualls who finished his career with 31 hits, or 171 fewer than Seaver had as a batter in his career.  Seaver would take no-hitters into the ninth inning again in 1972 and 1975, but neither of those near no-nos would be as cherished as his "Imperfect Game" against the Cubs in 1969.

Cleon Jones catches the final out of the "Imperfect Game" as Tom Seaver ponders what might have been.  (MLB.com)

Seaver's fantastic season - he also posted a 2.21 ERA and struck out 208 batters - earned him his first Cy Young award.  Seaver would have been the unanimous winner of the award had one vote not gone to Braves knuckleball pitcher Phil Niekro.  But Seaver got the last laugh, defeating Niekro in Game One of the NLCS.  The Mets went on to sweep the Braves in the best-of-five series to win their first National League pennant and a date with the powerhouse Baltimore Orioles in the World Series.

Although Seaver lost the first game of the Fall Classic in Baltimore, he came back with a tremendous performance in Game Four at Shea Stadium, pitching ten innings of one-run ball.  The Orioles' sole tally of the game scored on a sacrifice fly by Brooks Robinson in the ninth inning, a play that is now famous in Mets' lore because of Ron Swoboda's jaw-dropping diving catch.  Upon completing the top of the tenth, Seaver was removed for pinch-hitter J.C. Martin, who reached base on an errant throw by Orioles' reliever Pete Richert, which allowed pinch-runner Rod Gaspar to scamper home from second base with the winning run.

Seaver's complete-game, extra-inning masterpiece gave the Mets a commanding 3-1 lead in the series and Jerry Koosman's complete game win the following day wrapped up the Mets' first World Series championship.  In a span of three seasons, Seaver helped transform the Mets from cellar dwellers to penthouse occupants, and he reflected upon the team's sudden rise to the top of the baseball world in a post-game locker room interview with Mets broadcaster Lindsey Nelson.

"No matter what happened, no matter where we were ... we never put our heads between our legs and we always fought and it's the greatest feeling in the world."

With a nucleus built around the young pitching staff that included Seaver, Koosman, Gary Gentry and Nolan Ryan, the Mets were expected to contend for many years to come.  But the team that surpassed Hodges' 85-win prediction never won that many games again under Hodges' leadership, racking up 83 victories in 1970 and 1971.  The sudden death of Hodges prior to the start of the 1972 campaign shook up everyone on the team, but none more so than Seaver.

"It was utter disbelief," said Seaver.  "I don't think Gil's death had an effect on the team but it had an effect on the individuals... He prepared you for your career - and unfortunately one that turned out to be not having him as a manager."

Seaver clearly was affected as an individual during the 1972 season, his first without Gil Hodges as manager since his rookie campaign.  After completing what was arguably his finest season in 1971, setting career highs in complete games (21) and strikeouts (289), while leading the league in ERA (1.76) and WHIP (0.946), Seaver dropped off a bit under new manager Yogi Berra, completing eight fewer starts, striking out 40 fewer hitters and watching his ERA go up by more than a full run, although 13 complete games, 249 Ks and a 2.92 ERA are numbers most pitchers would love to have.  Not satisfied with his season in 1972, Seaver set out to return to championship form in 1973.  It took his teammates a little longer to join him.

Seaver thrived under Gil Hodges and missed him terribly after he was gone.  (Bob Moreland/St. Petersburg Times)

The 1972 season saw the Mets get off to a strong start (32-13 in their first 45 games) before limping to the finish line (51-60 after their hot start).  The hangover continued into the 1973 campaign, as the Mets were below .500 most of the season.  Although Seaver posted an impressive 2.08 ERA through his first 19 starts, he only had nine wins to show for it.  But from July 18 to September 13, Seaver made sure the team wouldn't saddle him with no-decision after no-decision.

In 13 starts over the two-month stretch, Tom Terrific pitched 118⅓ innings, incredibly averaging over nine innings per start.  Seaver won eight of those starts, posting a 1.29 ERA and 0.90 WHIP while holding opposing batters to a .200/.239/.276 slash line.  Included in those starts was a 12-inning, 12-strikeout performance against the Reds in August and an 11-inning, 12 strikeout game versus the Phillies in September.  When Seaver's streak began, the Mets were still double digit games out of first place.  By the time he defeated the Phillies with his Herculean effort on September 13, the Mets had moved to within 2½ games of first place.  Finally, on September 21, Seaver put the Mets in first for good with a complete-game victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates.  Ten days later, the Mets wrapped up their second division crown in five seasons with Seaver earning the title-clinching win over the Chicago Cubs.

The disappointing (to him) 1972 campaign was no longer in Seaver's rear view mirror, as Seaver's 1973 campaign saw him lead the league in ERA (2.08), complete games (18), strikeouts (251), WHIP (0.976), fewest hits per nine innings (6.8), strikeouts per nine innings (7.8) and strikeout to walk ratio (3.92).  Seaver earned his second Cy Young Award and received MVP consideration for the sixth time in seven years.  But Seaver couldn't help the team win its second championship despite having a stellar postseason.  In four games against the Reds and A's, Seaver pitched to a 1.99 ERA, 1.073 WHIP and had 35 strikeouts in 31⅔ innings, but the Mets lost three of those four starts.  With the Mets holding a three games to two lead in the World Series, manager Yogi Berra tabbed Seaver to pitch the potential championship-clinching game on three days rest rather than going to a well-rested George Stone.  The decision failed miserably, as Oakland won a pitchers' duel in Game Six and then took the seventh and deciding game, defeating Jon Matlack on short rest instead of what could have been Seaver on normal rest.  

Passing a kidney stone is a daunting experience.  But passing up Stone for Seaver was enough to give repressed memories to fans for years to come and served as the beginning of the end for the Mets as we knew them.  In fact, Seaver's long-time teammate, Ed Kranepool knew Berra's costly decision to start Seaver over Stone was wrong from the moment it was made.

"Sometimes managers will affect a short series.  The best team is going to win in 162 games, but when it comes to the World Series, a critical mistake by a manager can affect the game.  Sometimes (managers) are asleep,"  said Kranepool.  "George (Stone) was our hottest pitcher down the stretch.  If they knock him out, big deal, we got (Game Seven) with the whole staff.  Yogi is the greatest guy in the world, he's a sweetheart, he's a nice guy but I wouldn't want him to lead me to war."

With the team still stewing over their bitter defeat in the World Series, the 1974 squad became the first to finish with a losing record since 1968 and the first to lose 90+ games since Seaver's rookie campaign.  Seaver's season was easily the worst of his eight-year career, as he won just three of his first 15 starts with an ERA approaching 4.00 during that time, before finishing his injury-plagued year (he suffered from shoulder and hip pain) with a mediocre 11-11 record and 3.20 ERA.  His poor showing caused him to be left off the National League All-Star roster for the first time and also caught the attention of New York Daily News writer Dick Young, who claimed that Seaver "was an agent of discontent among his teammates."

Brushing off his subpar showing in 1974 as well as Young's comments, Seaver rebounded with his third Cy Young Award-winning season in 1975, posting a league-leading 22 wins and 243 strikeouts to go with a 2.38 ERA and 1.088 WHIP.  His pitching brethren, however, did not follow suit, as the rest of the team combined to go 60-71 with a 3.63 ERA and 1.365 WHIP.

Only Sandy Koufax had ever won three Cy Young Awards.  Until Tom Seaver matched him.  (Larry C. Morris/Getty Images)

The opposite was true in 1976, as Seaver could only manage a 14-11 mark on a team that went 86-76, which at the time was the second-most wins in franchise history.  Although Seaver did extend his major league record with his ninth consecutive season of 200 or more strikeouts - Seaver's 235 whiffs gave him a fifth National League strikeout crown - he was no longer the top winner on the team, as both Jerry Koosman (21-10, 2.69 ERA, 200 strikeouts) and Jon Matlack (17-10, 2.95 ERA, team-leading six shutouts) set new career highs in victories.

The 1976 campaign was also the first without original team owner Joan Payson, who passed away just days after the completion of the 1975 regular season.  Upon her death, ownership of the club shifted to her husband, Charles Payson, and their daughter Lorinda de Roulet, but baseball operations were placed solely in the hands of team chairman M. Donald Grant.  As much as Charles and Lorinda were not really fans of baseball, Grant was not a fan of spending money on his own players or on other teams' players, as free agency had just begun around that time.  This, of course, came into play when it was time to negotiate Seaver's contract.

Prior to the 1976 season, Seaver asked Grant for a three-year, $825,000 contract.  Seaver had just won his third Cy Young Award, joining Hall of Famer Sandy Koufax as the only pitchers to have won as many as three.  Grant would have none of Seaver's demands and threatened to trade him to the Dodgers for Don Sutton if he didn't agree to the chairman's terms.  Eventually, Seaver agreed to a three-year, $675,000 deal that would keep him in Flushing.  At the same time, slugger Dave Kingman had noticed the multi-million dollar contract that the Yankees had offered Reggie Jackson and wanted a comparable deal.  When Grant offered Kingman a paltry $200,000, the Sky King held out for more, causing Grant to blame Seaver for what he felt were exorbitant demands by Kingman, as if Seaver's contract squabbles had coerced Kingman to ask for the financial compensation he felt he deserved.

Seaver and Kingman began the 1977 season unhappy with their deals, but still on the team.  By the time the season was half-complete, that would no longer be the case.

Entering the 1977 campaign, New York tabloid writers were mostly on Seaver's side of the argument, seeing how instrumental "The Franchise" was in the success of the franchise.  One such writer was Maury Allen of the New York Post.

"When you have the best pitcher in the world, you sign him, you don't humiliate him," wrote Allen.  "Grant can't stand opposition from Seaver or anybody."

Unfortunately, one writer stood steadfastly with Grant, and that was all it took to get Seaver to ask for a ticket out of New York.  Going back to 1974, Dick Young of the New York Daily News had always been critical of Seaver and how he affected the Mets clubhouse.  But once free agency began, Young really unloaded upon Seaver, calling him a "pouting, griping, morale-breaking clubhouse lawyer poisoning the team."  On the morning of June 15, 1977 - the day of the trade deadline - Young and fellow Daily News scribe Jack Lang took opposing views on the Seaver vs. Grant feud.

"My unhappiness started with the contract negotiations a year-and-a-half ago," said Seaver to Lang.  "All of a sudden, nine years of performance for the Mets was thrown out the window... They even threatened to trade me if I didn't sign it, so I signed."

That deal would have kept Seaver in New York until 1978.  However, the night before the Daily News article was published, Seaver went directly to owner Lorinda de Roulet, bypassing Grant in the process, and finalized a three-year contract extension that would pay him $1.1 million to remain a Met through the 1981 season.  The next day, in his counterpoint to Lang, Young brought up Seaver's good friend and former teammate, Nolan Ryan.  Young also brought up someone else who was quite dear to Seaver.

"Nolan Ryan is now getting more than Seaver", wrote Young in his article, "and that galls Tom because Nancy Seaver and Ruth Ryan are very friendly and Tom Seaver long has treated Nolan Ryan like a little brother."

A dick and a Dick helped push Tom Seaver out of New York.  (AP Photo/Daily News photo)

Seaver had tolerated years of criticism from Young and had always turned the other cheek rather than retaliate.  But once Young brought Seaver's wife into his smear-fest, that was the final straw for Seaver and his decade-long tenure in New York.  "Get me out of here," screamed a disgusted Seaver.  And with those five words, Seaver backed away from his million dollar extension and demanded to be traded.  By the end of the day, "The Midnight Massacre" was complete, with Seaver being dealt to the Reds for Pat Zachry, Steve Henderson, Doug Flynn and Dan Norman.  In addition, Dave Kingman was shipped off to San Diego for Bobby Valentine, which effectively silenced the two players who were most vocal when it came to how much they should be paid for their services.  Or so Grant thought.

At the time of the trade, Seaver had a 7-3 record for the last place Mets and Kingman was leading the team with nine homers and 28 RBI.  Once the deals were consummated, the Mets went 38-63 to end the season with 98 losses.  Meanwhile, Seaver and Kingman let their play on the field do the talking for them.  Seaver posted his fifth 20-win season in 1977 and led the league in shutouts (7) and WHIP (1.014), which helped him finish in a third-place tie for the Cy Young Award, while Kingman continued to hit the long ball, peaking two years later when he smacked a league-leading 48 homers and drove in 115 runs for the Cubs.

From 1977 to 1982, the Mets finished in last place four times, never winning more than 67 games.  But with the sale of the team in 1980 to Nelson Doubleday and Fred Wilpon, the days of playing in "Grant's Tomb" were soon to be over.  By 1983, the team had brought back Kingman, traded for George Foster, were about to call up top hitting prospect Darryl Strawberry and were soon to acquire perennial Gold Glove winner Keith Hernandez.  One other veteran was added to the mix in 1983 - one that was happy to return now that M. Donald Grant was no longer running the show.

In his first five seasons with the Reds, Seaver posted a 70-33 record, finally completed the no-hitter that eluded him on three occasions as a Met, and had three top-five finishes in the Cy Young Award vote, including a second-place finish behind Fernando Valenzuela in the strike-shortened 1981 campaign.  But Seaver's 1982 season was one of physical pain (shoulder) and professional embarrassment, as the 37-year-old struggled through 21 starts, averaging barely over five innings per outing and posting a 5-13 record, 5.50 ERA and 1.617 WHIP.  The Reds wanted nothing to do with Seaver entering the 1983 season, and the Mets were quick to bring him back to Flushing.

(Focus On Sport/Getty Images)

Seaver posted his second consecutive losing season in 1983, going 9-14 in 34 starts.  Although that represented his worst record in 12½ seasons as a Met, Seaver did improve his ERA by nearly two runs (3.55) and his 231 innings were the most he had thrown since 1978.  At age 38 and in his 17th season in the big leagues, Seaver managed to lead all Mets starters in innings pitched and ERA, as well as strikeouts (135) and WHIP (1.242).  He also tied for the team lead in starts (34), complete games (5) and shutouts (2).  Seaver's return to New York did not help the Mets in the National League East standings, as the team finished the 1983 campaign in last place with a less than spectacular 68-94 record.  However, that still represented the most wins the Mets had recorded since 1976 - Seaver's last full season with the team.  

But the place where the Mets really reaped the rewards of Seaver's return was in the ticket booth.  Whenever a pitcher other than Seaver started for the Mets at Shea Stadium in 1983, an average of 12,284 fans were in attendance.  But in Seaver's 19 starts at home, the average attendance nearly doubled to 23,007 fans.  The Mets had seven home dates during the 1983 season in which they surpassed 30,000 fans.  All seven were Seaver starts.

Despite the obvious attendance boost that Seaver gave the team, the Mets front office failed to protect him in the free agent compensation draft.  Although Seaver was under contract for the 1984 season, the Mets incorrectly assumed that his age (Seaver turned 39 in November), contract (he was due to earn nearly $800,000 in 1984) and his 20-37 won-loss record over the previous two seasons would discourage potential suitors from scooping him out of the compensation pool.  They were wrong.  For the second time in seven years, "The Franchise" parted ways with the Mets, this time going to the Chicago White Sox.

"It's a personal decision," said Seaver about the Mets' decision to leave him unprotected.  "I don't feel betrayed, and I'm not going to blast anybody.  But I'm upset.  It was a mistake, they admit that."

Seaver left New York just 27 wins shy of 300 for his career and two victories away from 200 as a Met.  He then proceeded to go 31-22 for the White Sox over the 1984 and 1985 campaigns, despite the fact that Chicago was a combined 159-165 over the two seasons.  Seaver pitched nearly 500 innings over the two seasons and had 16 complete games and five shutouts, with one of those complete games coming on August 4, 1985 at Yankee Stadium, when Seaver earned his 300th win.  Not bad for a supposedly washed-up quadragenarian.

After splitting the season between the White Sox and Red Sox in 1986 (and watching the Mets win the World Series from the visitors' dugout), Seaver got one more chance to play for the Mets when he was signed by the team on June 5, 1987 after a rash of injuries felled several of the club's pitchers.  But the third time with the Mets was not the charm for the 42-year-old Seaver, as a poor outing in a simulated game on June 20 - one in which Seaver allowed Mets backup catcher Barry Lyons to go 6-for-6 against him with a home run - ended Seaver's comeback and career.

"In my heart, I feel the time has come for me not to play anymore," said Seaver at his retirement press conference.  "I've used up all the competitive pitches in me... I don't know what the future holds for me.  That's what I'll be digesting for the next year.  I'm sure the answer is out there.  I'm not going to rush into anything."

The future for Seaver held many accolades.  First, in 1988, his number was retired by the Mets, making him the first player in franchise history to have his number permanently removed from circulation.  (Casey Stengel and Gil Hodges were bestowed that honor as managers.)  Then, in 1992, Seaver was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame, receiving the support of 98.8% of the voters - a record that stood until Ken Griffey Jr. was named on 99.3% of the ballots in 2016.

Tom Seaver.  Hall of Famer.  Baseball Legend.  (Bettmann/Getty Images)

Tom Seaver was named "The Franchise" not just because he's the Mets' all-time leader in the majority of pitching categories.  He received that nickname because he brought life to a dormant franchise.  When he first pitched for the Mets in 1967, Seaver gave fans hope that the team was finally heading in the right direction.  Two years later, he helped deliver a miraculous championship to the masses.  When he left in 1977, the hopes of the franchise went with him and the team embarked through a moribund period that lasted for more than half a decade.  Once Seaver returned in 1983, fans flocked to Shea Stadium to see him pitch when nothing else would bring them to the ballpark.  And until Mike Piazza was enshrined in Cooperstown in 2016, Seaver was the only Hall of Famer wearing a Mets cap on his plaque.

He threw a no-hitter as a member of the Cincinnati Reds.  He won his 300th game pitching for the Chicago White Sox.  But he won his only championship with the New York Mets.  In 20 big league seasons, Tom Seaver experienced all the highs and lows a player can face.  He pitched for winning teams and he pitched for second division clubs.  He also dealt with an untrustworthy front office and the backstabbing media as well as he could.

"The Franchise" will always be loved and remembered in New York.  It's unfortunate that not all of his memories of New York are ones he would love to remember.


Note: The Thrill of Victory, The Agony of the Mets is a thirteen-part weekly series spotlighting those Mets players and personnel who experienced the best of times and the worst of times with the team.  Please come back next week for the latest installment.

In Defense of Jonathon Niese

Don't worry, Jon.  I've got your back.  (Getty Images)

For the first time since becoming a Met in 2008, Jonathon Niese has lost four consecutive starts, with all four defeats coming after his brief stint on the disabled list.  The losing streak has caused some Mets fans on Twitter and in the blogosphere to question whether the best days for the lefty are behind him.

But before you proclaim yourself ready to say uncle about Niese, take a look at a few facts.

Niese's four-game losing streak has come against the Mariners, Brewers, Giants and Nationals.  As of this writing, Seattle is only one game out of the second wild card spot in the American League.  Meanwhile, San Francisco holds the top wild card spot in the NL, while Milwaukee and Washington sit atop their respective divisions.  In other words, Niese lost to four good teams!

In addition to facing playoff contender after playoff contender during his skein, Niese has received no run support from his teammates whatsoever.  The Mets have scored two, two, one and one run in Niese's last four starts.  In fact, this poor support has victimized Niese all season, as the Mets have lost 11 of Niese's 21 starts, scoring two runs or fewer in ten of the 11 losses.  With that kind of support, it's a wonder Niese has WON as many games as he has.

Other than a three-start tryout in 2008, Niese has pitched his entire career for Mets teams that finished with sub-.500 records.  Yet it took him until his seventh season to lose four straight decisions in the same season.  Consider this.

In 1967, Mets rookie Tom Seaver lost four consecutive decisions in a five-start span.  Three years later, he was credited with a loss in four straight starts (August 15-28, 1970).

A quarter century after Seaver's rookie campaign, Dwight Gooden suffered the first four-game losing streak of his career, doing so in a five-start stretch from July 9 to August 19, 1992.  (Gooden was placed on the 15-day disabled list in the middle of that rough patch.)  A year later, Doc had two separate stretches in which he lost four consecutive starts, doing so from June 12 to July 1 and August 7-23.

In 2010, R.A. Dickey won his first six decisions as a Met.  He followed that up by losing four straight decisions in a period of five starts (June 28 to July 20).  Although Dickey never lost four straight starts, he did lose five consecutive decisions during a six-start stretch in 2011.

What do the above three pitchers have in common besides several losing streaks of four games or more?  All three won Cy Young Awards as members of the New York Mets.  Even Jerry Koosman, who never won a Cy Young Award, but still leads all Mets southpaws in career victories, had some tough times on the mound.  From August 2 to September 5, 1977, Koosman started eight games for the Mets.  Incredibly, he was pinned with a loss in all of them.

Like Koosman, Niese is a left-handed pitcher who has had his shares of ups and downs.  Koosman finished his 12-year Mets career just three games above .500 (140 wins, 137 losses), while Niese currently has a 48-48 won-loss record.  But as bad as Niese's current four-game stretch is, it's only halfway to the worst streak suffered by Koosman.  It's also not the first time a Met has lost four straight starts, as club legends Seaver and Gooden both accomplished the feat.

Tom Seaver lost four straight in 1967.  The Mets lost 101 games that year.  Dwight Gooden had three separate four-game losing streaks in 1992 and 1993.  Those are the teams most known for being "the worst team money could buy".  R.A. Dickey had losing streaks of four and five games in his short Mets career.  He never pitched for a winning Mets team.  And of course, Koosman's unfortunate streak in 1977 came in the first year of the Grant's Tomb era.

Someday, the Mets will finish a season above .500 again.  When that day comes, Jonathon Niese will surely have a better chance to win a greater percentage of his ballgames.  It's amazing that it took until his seventh season for him to put together a four-game losing streak, considering the teams he's played for.

So for all those people who are becoming impatient with Jonathon Niese, just remember this.  Some of the best pitchers to ever put on a Mets uniform suffered misfortunes just as much as Niese did.  Don't give up hope on the Mets' 27-year-old lefty yet.  He still has plenty of time to put up some fantastic numbers, just as long as his teammates remember to put up a few numbers of their own on the scoreboard.

The Best On The Worst: R.A. Dickey

Some men dare to dream.  And when they do, it's amazing what they can accomplish.  For example, Jim Abbott was born without a right hand, but despite the obvious hardships he faced as a pitcher, he still managed to remain in the big leagues for ten seasons and pitched one of the most unlikely no-hitters in history.  Similarly, William "Dummy" Hoy played 14 seasons professionally, collecting over 2,000 hits and stealing nearly 600 bases.  Hoy was able to have a successful career despite being legally deaf.

Both Abbott and Hoy overcame physical obstacles to become two of baseball's most inspiring success stories.  But not every player has had to persevere through those types of challenges in order to achieve success in the big leagues.  Some players have to conquer mental obstacles, while others have to deal with repeated bouts of rejection.  Many players can't handle those pressures.  But some do.  And in conquering those demons, those players not only make their own baseball dreams come true, but help others achieve their dreams as well through their stories.

One such player was told he couldn't succeed so many times, he had to reinvent himself as a baseball player, suffering through constant failure and disappointment before his patience finally paid off.  And in doing so, he became one of the most beloved and respected players in the history of the New York Mets.

That grip means you're about to get knuckled by a beloved former Met.  (Photo by Ed Leyro/Studious Metsimus)

Robert Allen Dickey, for all intents and purposes, had a great year in 1996.  He was drafted in the first round by the Texas Rangers and was a member of the United States Olympic baseball team that won the bronze medal.  The future looked quite bright for the Tennessee native, and quick stardom (not to mention a growing bank account) was all but assured for the All-American pitcher.

Texas had offered Dickey an $810,000 signing bonus, which the right-hander was happy to accept.  But the arm attached to that right hand became a bit of a concern for the Rangers after the team trainer noticed it was dangling at an odd angle in a photograph published on the cover of Baseball America.  Before long, Dickey's offer of $810,000 had shrunk to $75,000.  What was the reason for the steep drop in signing bonus money?  A physical revealed that Dickey's right elbow did not have an ulnar collateral ligament.  In plain English, Dickey's elbow should have gone kaplooey every time he threw a baseball.

Eventually, Dickey did sign with the Rangers for the reduced amount, then spent half a decade toiling in their minor league system waiting for his first call-up to the major leagues.  That call finally came in 2001, with Dickey making the long-awaited jump to the Rangers in late April.  Dickey pitched well in relief in two of his first three appearances, but took the loss on May 7 when he allowed six runs against the Chicago White Sox.  The defeat came four days after manager Johnny Oates had resigned from his position.  His replacement, Jerry Narron, wasn't as supportive of Dickey as Oates was.  Dickey was sent back to the minors immediately after the loss.  He would never pitch for Narron again.

Jerry Narron continued to manage in Texas through the 2002 season while Dickey watched from Oklahoma as a member of the Rangers' Triple-A affiliate.  Although Dickey pitched well for the RedHawks, going 19-14 with a 3.92 ERA, he was never promoted back to the Rangers during Narron's tenure as the team's skipper.  But once Narron was fired and replaced by Buck Showalter prior to the 2003 campaign, Dickey was afforded a second chance.  Showalter was the Rangers manager for four seasons, and Dickey spent time with the team in each of those seasons.  However, he never quite became the star the Rangers expected when they selected him with the 18th overall pick in the 1996 draft, going 16-17 with a 5.49 ERA from 2003 to 2005.  Dickey made one and only one appearance for the Rangers in 2006, and it was one for the history books - for all the wrong reasons.

On April 6, 2006, Dickey was removed from his first start of the season after coughing up six home runs to the Detroit Tigers, tying a major league record.  The rough outing came a year after Dickey had converted from a conventional pitcher to a knuckleball pitcher at the behest of Showalter and pitching coach Orel Hershiser.  Ten years after seeing his bonus money drop from $810,000 to $75,000, Dickey was seeing his odds of remaining in the big leagues drop as well.  The knuckleballer was demoted once again to Oklahoma and never pitched again for the Rangers.

From 2007 to 2009, Dickey would pitch in the Brewers, Mariners and Twins organizations, but continued to rack up more frequent flyer miles than innings pitched at the major league level.  Dickey spent time in the minors in all three seasons before the Twins decided that they would not re-sign him at the conclusion of the 2009 campaign.  At the age of 35, Dickey had won a grand total of 22 games at the major league level and had posted a lifetime 5.43 ERA.  But he was now at a crossroads in his career, having fared poorly as a conventional pitcher and as a knuckleball pitcher.  Would any team be willing to take a chance on a pitcher in his mid-30s who had never been a consistent major league pitcher regardless of how he threw the ball?  One team would.  And that decision ended up changing Dickey's life forever, only this time it was finally in a good way.

How could Omar Minaya say no to this face?  (Photo by Jeff Roberson/AP)

Ten years is a long time for a player to get a second chance at success.  By the time the 2010 season rolled around, R.A. Dickey had gotten third chances, fourth chances, almost as many chances as he had wins.  Cast aside by the Rangers, Brewers, Mariners and Twins, the New York Mets became the latest team to give him a shot to achieve his lifelong dream.  The Mets had just come off a forgettable 2009 campaign in which they were decimated by injuries and poor play, finishing the year with a 70-92 record - their first losing season in five years.  Eleven pitchers started at least five games for the Mets in 2009, but just one pitcher (Mike Pelfrey) made more than 25 starts.  Clearly, Dickey had as much a chance as any pitcher had to make the Opening Day roster.  That is, until he became the first player cut in spring training.

Dickey opened the season not in New York, where the Mets opened the season against the Florida Marlins, but in Buffalo, as a member of the Triple-A Bisons.  Dickey started eight games for Buffalo, but his most memorable start came on April 29 against the Durham Bulls, when he allowed a hit to leadoff batter Fernando Perez, then proceeded to retire the next 27 batters.  The near-perfect game caught the eyes of the Mets' front office, and when the struggling Oliver Perez was removed from the starting rotation in mid-May, Dickey was called up to take his place.  He would never be sent back to the minors again.

After posting a 4-2 record with a stellar 2.23 ERA at Buffalo, Dickey proved his minor league dominance was not a fluke, going 6-0 with a 2.33 ERA in his first seven starts with the Mets.  Dickey's hot streak was contagious, as the Mets won 24 of 34 games after he made his debut.  But the 2010 Mets were a very streaky team, and just as soon as they became unexpected contenders, they regressed back to their 2009 selves.  This time, it was the offense that failed to wake up after hitting the snooze button one too many times.  Dickey had a brilliant month of July, posting a 1.51 ERA in six starts and holding opposing hitters to a miniscule .259 on-base percentage.  But as great as Dickey was in July, his teammates were the exact opposite, scoring just 13 runs in the six starts.  A month that should have produced many victories for Dickey saw him and his teammates emerge victorious just once, and Dickey needed to shut out the Cardinals into the ninth inning to earn that one win.  Three starts later, not even an anemic offense could prevent Dickey from earning a near-historic win.

The Mets had been a season-high 11 games over .500 as late as June 27.  Six weeks later, they were back at .500, struggling to stay relevant in the National League wild card race.  On August 13, the Mets hosted the three-time defending NL East champion Phillies at Citi Field, with Dickey squaring off against Cole Hamels.  Both pitchers brought their A-games to the mound, putting zero after zero on the scoreboard through five innings.  But in addition to the zeroes under the "R" column for both teams, the Phillies also had a zero under the "H" as well, as Dickey had held Philadelphia hitless through five.  The 35,440 fans in attendance were all aware that no Met had ever tossed a no-hitter as Dickey and the Mets entered the sixth, an inning that would begin with Dickey striking out the light-hitting Wilson Valdez.  But a soft single by Dickey's mound opponent, Cole Hamels, ended his quest for baseball immortality.  Hamels' hit would be the only one produced by the Phillies all game, as Dickey went on to pitch a complete game won by the Mets, 1-0, on a sixth-inning, RBI double by Carlos Beltran.  It was the first complete game and first shutout for Dickey since August 20, 2003.

Dickey's one-hitter - the 35th in Mets history - pushed the Mets' record to 58-57.  The team would spend just three more days above the break-even point the rest of the season, finishing the year with a 79-83 record.  Dickey's final numbers (11-9, 2.84 ERA, 1.19 WHIP, 104 strikeouts, 174⅓ innings pitched) were all easily career-bests and earned him his first multi-year contract, giving him financial and job security for the first time in his 14 professional seasons.  It also guaranteed he would start the 2011 season in a team's starting rotation for the first time in five years.

The 2011 campaign - his second as a Met - would begin with Dickey allowing an unearned run in a victory over the Marlins.  But that was as good as it got for Dickey during the first two months of the season, as the right-hander was inconsistent over his next ten starts, going 1-6 with a 4.90 ERA and 1.50 WHIP.  Dickey finally turned things around on June 5, pitching eight innings of one-run ball against the Atlanta Braves to earn his third victory of the season.  But once again, the Mets' bats became dormant whenever Dickey took the mound, only this time it lasted for more than just one month.

Beginning with his fine performance against the Braves, Dickey posted a 2.74 ERA for the remainder of the season and had an exceptional .285 on-base percentage against him.  But despite regaining his ability to keep his opponents off the scoreboard, the Mets weren't doing much to put wins in his pocket.  Dickey won just five of his last 20 starts in 2011, even though he allowed two runs or fewer in 12 of those starts.  Here's a perfect example of how frustrating it must have been for the veteran pitcher in 2011.  He allowed no more than six hits in 11 of his final 20 starts, but earned the victory in just one of those games.

The Mets didn't earn many victories either in 2011, completing their third consecutive losing season with a 77-85 record under first-year manager Terry Collins.  The 77 wins represented a two-win drop-off from the previous season, Jerry Manuel's last as the team's skipper.  Although Dickey surpassed 200 innings for the first time in 2011 and finished the year with a respectable 3.28 ERA, he could only manage an 8-13 record.  It was the first time Dickey had reached double digits in losses in a single season.

Although the Mets had a quiet off-season leading into the 2012 campaign, it was far from quiet for R.A. Dickey.  Dickey embarked on a quest to scale Mount Kilimanjaro to raise awareness for women and girls in Mumbai who had been sexually abused or were at the risk of being exploited.  Soon after he successfully completed the long trek, Dickey released a tell-all memoir, Wherever I Wind Up: My Quest For Truth, Authenticity and the Perfect Knuckleball.  The book touched upon his ascension from minor league journeyman to his time with the Mets, as well as his own sexual abuse he suffered as a child.

Dickey's time as a media darling did not stop there, as he was prominently featured in the documentary, Knuckleball!  By the time the curtains had opened on the 2012 season, the whole country knew about R.A. Dickey, not just baseball fans in New York.  Dickey's off-season exploits thrust him into the spotlight for the first time in his career.  His performance on the field made sure he stayed there.

Dickey won his first two starts of the year in 2012, defeating the Braves at Citi Field and the Phillies at Citizens Bank Park.  But his third start, also against the Braves, was a disaster.  Pitching at rain-soaked Turner Field - soggy conditions are like kryptonite to Dickey's super pitch - Dickey allowed eight runs in 4⅓ innings, the most runs Dickey had allowed in a game since August 20, 2008, when he gave up an eight-spot as a member of the Seattle Mariners.  It was also one more run than he allowed in the record-tying six-homer game against the Tigers in 2006.  Looking back on his effort, Dickey had one thing to say about pitching in adverse weather conditions.

"I hate the rain," Dickey said matter-of-factly.  "I'm like the Wicked Witch of the West.  Water is no good."

Three days after his poor start against the Braves, Dickey attended the premiere of Knuckleball! at the Tribeca Film Festival, where he mingled with fans and taught children of all ages how to throw his signature pitch.  He did not seem like a man who had just pitched his worst game in four years.  Rather, he was at peace with himself and his effort, and seemed eager to get back on the mound to erase the bad taste left by the Braves.

Yeah, that's me (a child of all ages) getting knuckleball lessons from Mr. Dickey.  Jealous?

Four days after the film premiere, Dickey was back on the mound to face the Marlins at Citi Field.  This time the weather conditions were far more knuckleball-friendly, as Dickey held Miami to one run in seven innings to earn his third victory.  Dickey continued to roll along, and by mid-May, he was 5-1 with a 3.75 ERA.  But beginning with his start on May 22, Dickey's efforts were becoming superhuman, proving that the liquid kryptonite he endured in Atlanta was just a thing of the past.

From May 22 to June 18, Dickey won all six of his starts, allowing two runs (one earned) in 48⅔ innings for a microscopic 0.18 ERA.  Dickey wasn't just keeping opposing teams off the scoreboard with his knuckler.  He was keeping opposing hitters off-balance as well, using impeccable control not usually associated with an erratic pitch to strike out 63 batters while walking only five.  Included in his sizzling stretch were back-to-back complete-game one-hit shutouts.  Dickey became the first pitcher to accomplish that feat since Toronto's Dave Stieb, who threw his consecutive gems in September 1988.  In addition, Dickey became just the second Met to manufacture three complete-game one-hitters in his career and the first since Tom Seaver, who pitched five one-hitters as a Met.  (David Cone participated in three one-hitters, but needed relief help in one of them.)

Dickey's dominance took a brief early summer hiatus from June 24 to July 24 as he allowed five runs or more in four of his six starts.  He also gave up two runs in an unexpected relief appearance.  But Dickey did have one memorable outing during this period, appearing in his first All-Star Game.  The knuckleballer pitched a scoreless inning in the Midsummer Classic, striking out the Angels' Mark Trumbo and inducing an inning-ending double play from eventual Triple Crown winner Miguel Cabrera.

After his one-month "slump", Dickey returned to his early season form.  From July 29 to August 31, Dickey allowed just 36 hits in seven starts while striking out 51 batters.  He also produced a 1.73 ERA, 0.96 WHIP and earned four wins.  Included in this stretch was his fourth and fifth complete games of the season and his third shutout.  Dickey would end up leading the league in both categories.  Dickey's first September start produced his 18th win of the season, making him the Mets' first pitcher to surpass 17 victories since Frank Viola in 1990.  Viola won 20 games that year, becoming the fifth pitcher in Mets history to attain that lofty win total.  By season's end, Dickey would become the sixth.

On September 27, as the Mets closed out their home schedule, Dickey took the mound against the lowly Pittsburgh Pirates, who were on their way to a record 20th consecutive losing season.  Dickey struggled early, allowing run-scoring hits to Rod Barajas and Jordy Mercer in the second inning and a solo homer to Barajas in the fourth.  But Dickey recovered quickly, striking out five of six batters soon after the Barajas blast.  The Mets, meanwhile, did everything they could to give Dickey a lead to work with, scoring a total of five runs in the fifth and sixth innings.  The big blow came in the sixth, when David Wright launched a tiebreaking three-run homer off Bucs starter Kevin Correia.  Dickey went on to pitch seven and two-thirds innings, matching his career high by striking out 13 batters.  But Dickey's landmark win was very much in jeopardy in the ninth after reliever Jon Rauch gave up a two-run homer to Alex Presley.  With the lead down to one, manager Terry Collins summoned Bobby Parnell to close out the game and preserve Dickey's victory.  Parnell retired both batters he faced, eliciting a massive roar from the crowd (which only slightly drowned out the fans who were finally able to exhale) and earning Dickey his well-deserved 20th win.

Dickey, being an expert wordsmith as well as a talented knuckleball artist, had much to say after achieving what no one thought possible entering the 2012 campaign.

"Growing up, you just want to compete, and then once you have the weaponry to compete, you want to be really good, and then when you're really good, you want to be supernaturally good.  For me, there's been this steady metamorphosis from just surviving to being a craftsman, and then, ultimately, the hope is to be an artist in what you do.  This year is kind of representative of that for me."

 
The 2012 Mets finished the year with an unspectacular 74-88 record, but Dickey's season was one for the ages.  Dickey posted a 20-6 record, to go with a 2.73 ERA and 1.05 WHIP.  Dickey also led the league in strikeouts (230), innings pitched (233⅔), complete games (5) and shutouts (3).  Not bad for a pitcher who worked his magic for a sub-.500 team.  In fact, Dickey became the first 20-game winner on a losing team since 1997, when Roger Clemens won 21 games for the 76-86 Blue Jays and Brad Radke earned 20 victories for the 68-94 Twins.

Dickey's five complete games were the most by a Mets pitcher since Dwight Gooden completed seven games in 1993 and his three shutouts were more than any Met had produced in a single season since 1992, when David Cone also twirled three such gems.  But no pitcher in Mets history can match one aspect of Dickey's stellar campaign.

By winning 20 games for a 74-win team, Dickey earned 27.0% of the Mets' wins in 2012.  Although not quite on par with Steve Carlton's 1972 campaign (Carlton earned 27 of the Phillies' 59 wins in 1972), Dickey's feat allowed him to become the pitcher who accounted for the highest percentage of his team's wins in club history, surpassing Tom Seaver's record of 26.8%, accomplished in 1975 when "The Franchise" earned 22 of the Mets' 82 wins.

Dickey's 20th win was just the chocolate sauce on his ice cream sundae of a season.  The cherry on top came in November, when Dickey won the National League Cy Young Award in a landslide over Clayton Kershaw and Gio Gonzalez.  Dickey became the third Met to win the award, joining Tom Seaver (1969, 1973, 1975) and Dwight Gooden (1985).  But like all satisfying desserts, eventually we reach the end and are left wanting more.  Only with R.A. Dickey, Mets fans never got another taste.

After picking up Dickey's $5 million option for the 2013 season, the Mets traded the popular pitcher to Toronto for catcher Travis d'Arnaud and pitcher Noah Syndergaard, two of the most valuable minor league jewels in the Blue Jays' organization.  Since the trade, d'Arnaud has become the Mets' No. 1 catcher.  And by the summer of 2014, he should be calling pitches at Citi Field for Syndergaard, whose vast repertoire has impressed all those who have watched him pitch.

Although Dickey's first year in Toronto produced a mediocre 14-13 record, it was still two more wins than any Met earned in 2013, as Dillon Gee led the team with a dozen victories.  One thing that didn't change as a result of Dickey's departure was the Mets' win total, as New York posted its second straight 74-88 season in 2013.  Ironically, that was the Blue Jays' record as well in Dickey's first season with the team.

In just three years with the Mets, R.A. Dickey went from being a reclamation project to a Cy Young Award winner.  He began his career in New York as a relatively unknown player to Mets fans, and ended it as one of the most beloved personalities in franchise history.  Dickey charmed fans with his approachability and candor.  He was also a media darling, eschewing the clichés of the modern athlete for well-thought-out responses that were both refreshing and unique.  Needless to say, the erudite pitcher was missed by all those who crossed paths with him on and off the field.

One such person who had a strong connection to the former Met is Taryn Cooper, a highly respected Mets blogger and podcaster who has been a fan of the team since she was a young girl.  Both Dickey and Ms. Cooper majored in English literature as collegians, making Ms. Cooper's connection to the pitcher extra special.  Here is her story.

"Friend and fellow blogger Jason Fry (one half of Faith and Fear in Flushing) probably said it best, when he said, 'If R.A. Dickey didn't exist, Mets fans probably would have made him up.'  And if you are a Mets fan, and don't get that, you may need to be schooled in some Mets history.

Because I got that statement.  Though Sidd Finch was an April Fools' Joke, the idea of a French horn playing, yoga enthusiast, quiet, reflective man who threw a 160+ mph pitch appealed to Mets fans, and still does to this day.  Why is that?  Because Mets fans like the underdog.  That's why stories like the Hendu Can-Do walk off home run still resonates 30+ years later. 

And R.A. Dickey was the underdog, the guy with a hard luck story who faced obstacles every step of the way, yet persevered and won.  Not only did he win, he certainly was the best on the worst.  He won 20 games for a 4th place team.  He not only won 20 games, he did so with a quirky pitch AND in a year that he published an autobiography where he stated that he would probably never WIN a Cy Young Award.  He did that year as well.

Even the story of R.A. Dickey couldn't be fully savored by Mets fans though.  That's why he sticks with us.  We wanted to celebrate his accomplishments Opening Day 2013 at CitiField.  But we were not allowed that opportunity because he was the centerpiece in a trade in what could possibly be one of the best trades in Mets history.   He wasn't bitter.  He took the high road as Dickey normally did.  What else could he do?

That didn't stop Mets fans from loving him and supporting him, no matter what the team.  If you think about it, Robert Allen Dickey was his own self-made media mogul.  He was on several television shows, he wrote a book, he was in the center of a documentary based on the pitch he threw, and he was a Twitter personality.  What Mets fans truly appreciated was his likability and accessibility to the fans.  He is a self-proclaimed Star Wars geek, which is a faction in and of itself.  He wasn't a cliché-ridden interview, he had carefully thought out responses and talked literature with his fans.  Heck, he and I even talked about Shakespeare and Hemingway, and I told him at a book signing that I'd love to take a class on Faulkner that HE taught.  See, no other baseball player let alone any Met would know what the heck I was talking about.  He did, though.  

This fanbase may be cynical at times.  But R.A. Dickey brought out the best in us.  He made us see that even in darkest times, we could believe that good times were around the corner.  I just wish he was around to share in the very bright future of the team."

Dickey celebrates his 20th win in 2012.  The fans, to this day, celebrate him.  (Photo by Barton Silverman/NY Times)

Over the years, the Mets have had several extended stretches of success.  But they have also suffered through their share of lean years.  And when the team has played poorly, fans have latched onto individual players.  After all, it's much easier to root for an athlete who plays hard than for a team that hardly plays.  During the Mets' seminal years, Al Jackson, Jim Hickman and Ron Hunt gave fans a reason to believe in the team, even as they were losing at an unbelievable rate.  When Shea Stadium was mockingly referred to as Grant's Tomb, Lee Mazzilli, Hubie Brooks and Dave Kingman shared the last laugh.  And during the time when the Mets were the worst team money could buy, Todd Hundley and Rico Brogna gave fans more bang for their buck.

The current incarnation of the Mets has produced five consecutive losing seasons.  Attendance has dropped steadily at Citi Field since it opened its doors for the first time in 2009.  But in the three years R.A. Dickey called the park home, fans had a player they could easily root for. 

Walt Disney once said, "If you can dream it, you can do it."  R.A. Dickey was a dreamer who always believed in himself and his ability to perform on the mound, even as the game was telling him otherwise.  Setback after setback would have quashed many player's dreams.  But not Dickey.  A competitor since birth, Dickey refused to stop dreaming.  And after many years of hardships, his dreams finally came true.

R.A. Dickey is a great American success story who just happened to write his greatest narrative as a member of an unsuccessful team.  In 2010, the Mets took a chance on the struggling knuckleball pitcher, trying to find lightning in a bottle.  Within two years, Dickey guaranteed that his story would have a happy ending.  Stories like that are the stuff dreams are made of.


Note:  The Best On The Worst was a thirteen-part weekly series (that's "was", as in you just read the final chapter) spotlighting the greatest Mets players who just happened to play on some not-so-great Mets teams.  For previous installments, please click on the players' names below:

January 6, 2014: Todd Hundley 
January 13, 2014: Al Jackson
January 20, 2014: Lee Mazzilli
January 27, 2014: Steve Trachsel
February 3, 2014: Rico Brogna
February 10, 2014: Skip Lockwood 
February 17, 2014: Ron Hunt
February 24, 2014: Craig Swan 
March 3, 2014: Hubie Brooks 
March 10, 2014: Joel Youngblood 
March 17, 2014: Jim Hickman 
March 24, 2014: Dave Kingman