Bartolo Colon: The 40-Year-Old Surgeon

Bartolo Colon can afford to smile.  He now has 200 wins and a place in Mets history.  (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)

On Friday, 41-year-old Bartolo Colon earned his 200th career victory by pitching eight innings of one-run ball against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park.  Colon needed to sweat out a three-run rally by the Phillies in their last at-bat, but the bullpen eventually recorded the third out before allowing a fourth run to score to give Colon the milestone win.

Colon's 200th win was also his 11th victory for the Mets in 2014.  And in earning his 11th win of the year, he became just the third Mets pitcher to record as many as 11 victories in a season after his birth certificate turned 40.  See the chart below for the exclusive club joined by Colon.

Name	W ▾	Year	Age	GS	W-L%	IP	H	ER	BB	SO	ERA	FIP	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS
Tom Glavine	15	2006	40	32	.682	198.0	202	84	62	131	3.82	4.30	.267	.325	.421	.746
Tom Glavine	13	2007	41	34	.619	200.1	219	99	64	89	4.45	4.86	.281	.338	.438	.776
Orel Hershiser	13	1999	40	32	.520	179.0	175	91	77	89	4.58	4.63	.260	.342	.401	.742
Bartolo Colon	11	2014	41	23	.550	154.1	159	68	20	117	3.97	3.50	.261	.287	.401	.688

Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Play Index Tool Used
Generated 8/9/2014.

A 40-year-old (or older) starting pitcher has posted an 11-win season for the Mets four times, with Tom Glavine accomplishing the feat twice, and Orel Hershiser and Colon turning the trick once.  But what separates Colon from Glavine and Hershiser is that Colon has won his 11 games (and counting) for a Mets team that has been struggling all season to get to .500.  Meanwhile, both Glavine and Hershiser won their games for Mets teams that qualified for the postseason.  Glavine won 15 games in 2006 for the NL East champions, while Hershiser notched 13 wins for a Mets team that fell two wins short of a World Series berth.  Glavine's 2007 squad failed to crash the postseason party, but the Mets still won 88 games that year.

Colon also has far better control than his 40-year-old brethren, as Glavine averaged nearly two walks per start in his two 11-plus win seasons and Hershiser walked nearly two-and-a-half batters per appearance.  This year, Colon has issued 20 free passes in 23 starts, an average of less than one walk per start.  Because of his surgical precision on the mound, opposing batters have a .287 on-base percentage and .688 OPS against Colon, as opposed to Glavine and Hershiser, who would've traded in their AARP cards just to have the opportunity to lower their OBP and OPS to .300 and .700, respectively, in their 11-plus win seasons.

In addition, Colon's 3.50 FIP (Fielding Independent Pitching) is by far the best of the three forty-something hurlers, dwarfing the 4.30 FIP posted by Glavine in 2006.  Colon's FIP as a 41-year-old in 2014 in just slightly higher than the 3.45 career FIP posted by former Cy Young Award winner and MVP Justin Verlander.  It should also be noted that Verlander is ten years Colon's junior.  By contrast, the FIP posted by Glavine and Hershiser in their 11-plus win campaigns rivals that of former Met Kris Benson, who had a 4.54 FIP in his career (4.46 as a Met).

When Tom Glavine and Orel Hershiser had their high-win seasons for the Mets, both pitchers were beginning to show signs of wear, as they were allowing more opposing hitters to reach base than they had earlier in their careers.  However, they were constantly being bailed out - and therefore were afforded more opportunities to earn wins - by their explosive hitters.  The 1999 squad had John Olerud, Edgardo Alfonzo, Mike Piazza and Robin Ventura, to name a few, while the 2006 and 2007 teams scored aplenty with Jose Reyes, David Wright and the two Carloses (Beltran and Delgado) supplying the firepower.  Bartolo Colon's offense consists of Daniel Murphy, Lucas Duda and a subpar Wright.  In other words, Colon has had to truly earn his wins.

Bartolo Colon is signed for one more season - his age 42 season.  Should he remain in the Mets starting rotation in 2015 (not exactly a lock because of trade talks and the expected return of Matt Harvey), he stands to become the first 42-year-old in franchise history to earn a minimum of 11 wins.  Considering what he's done in 2014, and the fact that he's not showing any signs of his age, who's to say he can't be productive for another season?  We'll just have to wait and see if that productive season comes in a Mets uniform.

A Curious Stat About '80s World Series Champions

In 1983, Eddie Murray and Cal Ripken Jr. helped lead the Baltimore Orioles to the World Series championship, their third since moving to Baltimore from St. Louis in 1954.  At the time, the Orioles were one of the best teams in the American League.  From 1966-1983, no team in baseball won more pennants than Baltimore's six.  Not the Yankees or the Big Red Machine (they each won four).  Not the Dodgers (they won five pennants, but only one championship).  Not even the Oakland A's dynasty (three titles) could surpass the pennant-winning success of the Baltimore Orioles for an almost two decade span.

Murray and Ripken probably expected more championships following their 1983 title, but in the past 28 years, the city of Baltimore has been left without a World Series championship or an American League pennant.  In fact, they're not the only team to win it all in the '80s and then win nothing since then.

Following the Orioles' run to the championship, the Detroit Tigers spent every day of the 1984 season in first place in the American League East, culminating their spectacular season with a World Series championship.  The Tigers won another division title three years later (1987), a pennant in 2006 and another division title this past season, but have not given Motown another championship since '84.

After Detroit's championship in 1984, the Kansas City Royals were the last team to spray champagne in 1985, albeit with a little help from Don Denkinger's blown call in Game 6 of the World Series.  The 1985 campaign marked the seventh playoff appearance for the Royals in ten seasons, but they have not sniffed the postseason since their one championship season.

We're Mets fans.  We know what happened in 1986.  We also know that the Mets haven't won another World Series in the past quarter century.  We can move on to the next team now.

The 1987 Minnesota Twins finally broke the streak of four consecutive World Series winners in the '80s who have failed to win it all since then.  The Twins repeated as World Series champions four years later when Jack Morris (a key member of the 1984 World Champion Tigers) pitched ten shutout innings in the seventh and deciding game of the 1991 World Series against the Atlanta Braves.  But we can talk about that '91 Twins team later (and we will).

The 1988 Los Angeles Dodgers rode on the coattails of Orel Hershiser's arm and Kirk Gibson's bat to stun the Mets in the National League Championship Series and the trying-to-start-another-dynasty Oakland A's in the World Series.  Unfortunately, the Dodgers have failed to reach the World Series, let alone win it, since then.

Mets fans should remember these faces very well, even if they'd rather forget the 1988 season.  (Photo of Orel Hershiser by Tom Gannam/AP; Photo of Kirk Gibson by Steve Dykes/LA Times)

Remember those "trying-to-start-another-dynasty" A's from the last paragraph?  Sure you do.  Well, they did follow up their loss to the Dodgers in '88 with a championship of their own in 1989, defeating their Bay Area rival San Francisco Giants in four games.  The World Series that was known for the devastating earthquake prior to Game 3 would also be known to A's fans as the last one they would win.

Even after the 1980s ended, the curious stat concerning World Series winners failing to win another title continued.  The 1990 Cincinnati Reds shocked the A's in that year's World Series, sweeping Oakland in four games.  The Reds have failed to win another pennant since then.  The following year, the Minnesota Twins won their second title in five seasons.  Although the Twins have won six division titles in the past decade, they have yet to win the World Series that has eluded them for twenty years.

The 1992 Toronto Blue Jays did win another championship following their six-game defeat of the Atlanta Braves in that year's Fall Classic.  However, that title came the following season (1993).  Toronto has failed to return to the postseason since their mini-dynasty ended.

The 1994 strike killed that year's World Series, but did not kill the streak of World Series winners failing to return to glory following their championship seasons.  That streak had one more season left in it, as the 1995 Braves won their first and only title in Atlanta, defeating the Cleveland Indians (who themselves have not won a championship since 1948, the longest title-less drought in the American League) in six games.

Seriously.  This is a Mets site.  Who authorized the use of this photo?

When the Yankees won the World Series in 1996, it ended a stretch in which ten teams won their final World Series championship in 12 seasons (not including the 1994 season, which had no World Series).  Only the 1987 Twins and 1992 Blue Jays were able to win another championship during those dozen seasons, and both of them have now gone approximately two decades since their last title.

For all the talk about parity in baseball in the 21st century, what with teams like the Texas Rangers, San Francisco Giants and Tampa Bay Rays all competing for World Series championships over the past few seasons when very few experts predicted them to reach the Fall Classic, the real time for parity happened a generation ago.

One-third of the teams in major league baseball all won championships from 1983 to 1995.  None of those teams has been able to scale that mountain again.  It's a curious stat that has been overlooked over the past 20-30 years.  It makes you wonder if the teams that are winning championships now will go that long in search of their next title.

M.U.M.'s The Word (Most Underrated Mets): David Cone

In 1987, the Mets entered the season as defending World Series champions. They won the title in 1986 with a strong pitching staff that combined youth and veteran leadership. Despite their success on the mound, the Mets were still looking for more pitching prior to the 1987 season.

Kansas City had a hometown kid in their minor league system who had once been a top pitching prospect (16-3, 2.08 ERA in 1982), but fell out of favor when he developed control problems. The former "can't miss" prospect was a "can miss", as far as the strike zone was concerned, walking a combined 207 minor league batters in 1984 and 1985. As a result, the Royals had no problems trading him to the Mets (along with Chris Jelic) in 1987 for backup catcher Ed Hearn, minor league pitcher Mauro Gozzo and spot-starter Rick Anderson. The trade ended up being one of the best in Mets history, for it brought David Cone to New York.

The kid from Kansas City took a bite out of the Big Apple and never looked back.

Two weeks after being traded from Kansas City to New York, David Cone was on the Shea Stadium mound for the first time, coming out of the bullpen to face the Atlanta Braves. Unfortunately, his Shea Stadium debut was not a pleasant one, as Cone gave up the go-ahead run in the ninth inning and took the loss. Cone would go on to pitch in nine more games (six starts) in April and May before breaking his pinky on May 27 in San Francisco. The injury occurred when Cone (a right-handed pitcher, but a left-handed batter) was hit by a wayward Atlee Hammaker pitch as he was squaring around to bunt. As a result, Cone was placed on the disabled list and did not return until mid-August.

Upon returning to the big leagues on August 15, Cone looked like a new pitcher. Prior to his stint on the disabled list, Cone was 2-2 with a 4.60 ERA. But once he returned, he gave the injury-depleted pitching staff a big boost. In 11 games (seven starts), Cone held opposing batters to a .215 batting average and had a sparkling 2.92 ERA. Unfortunately, Cone's record during this stretch was only 3-4 because the Mets failed to provide him with any run support, scoring two runs or less in five of the seven starts.

Cone's rookie year was good, but not great. He went 5-6, with a 3.71 ERA in 21 games (13 starts). Still, he picked up valuable experience pitching in the heat of a pennant race in September, and did not wilt under the pressure. That experience would come in handy in 1988, when Cone blossomed into an unlikely star.

David Cone began the 1988 season in the Mets bullpen, making seven appearances in April. In his first six relief appearances, it was all or nothing for David, as he pitched 13 innings, striking out 12 batters and walking 11 more. But in his final April appearance, manager Davey Johnson stretched Cone out a little, allowing him to pitch 4 1/3 innings against the Cincinnati Reds. It was his best appearance of the young season, as Cone only allowed two baserunners (one hit, one walk) and struck out five. It also prepared Cone for his return to the starting rotation, which he did four days later when he faced the Atlanta Braves at Shea Stadium.

On May 3, 1988, David Cone faced the same team that he made his Mets debut against just one year earlier. In that start, he took the loss against Atlanta. This time, the end result would be much different, as Cone notched the first shutout of his career, blanking the Braves on eight hits. Cone's first start of the 1988 campaign would set the tone for what was to come for the rest of the season.

After shutting out the Braves, Cone won every game he started in the month of May, going 5-0 with a microscopic 0.72 ERA. For his efforts, Cone was named the National League Pitcher of the Month for May. Two months later, he earned his first All-Star selection, retiring future Hall of Famers Rickey Henderson, Paul Molitor and Wade Boggs in order in his one inning of work.

As the Mets were pulling away from the rest of the competition in the NL East, Cone was establishing himself as the ace of the staff. Whereas some pitchers coast to the finish line, Cone was accelerating towards it. From August 23 to the end of the season, Cone won all eight of his starts. More importantly, the wildness that had plagued him since his days in the Royals' farm system was no longer an issue, as Cone walked a total of 14 batters over his final eight appearances.

For the season, Cone finished 20-3, with a 2.22 ERA and 213 strikeouts. His .870 winning percentage led the National League and was the highest in Mets history for pitchers with 20 or more decisions, surpassing Dwight Gooden's .857 mark from 1985. Although his performance was certainly worthy of the Cy Young Award, that honor went to Orel Hershiser, who bulldogged his way to the award by pitching 59 consecutive scoreless innings to end the season. Cone finished third in the voting, behind Hershiser and Danny Jackson of the Cincinnati Reds.

After finishing ahead of David Cone in the 1988 NL Cy Young Award vote, Danny Jackson went 52-74 with a 4.52 ERA over the rest of his career. Insert "you may have won the battle, but I will win the war" here.

In the 1988 NLCS, the Mets faced the Los Angeles Dodgers, a team they had defeated in 10 of 11 regular season matchups. On paper, the Mets were the clear favorite, although the Dodgers had Orel S. Hershiser (the "S" stands for "shutout") as their Game 1 starter. Speaking of paper, David Cone decided to use one, the New York Daily News, to share his thoughts on the series in a daily column. His venture into being a sports columnist turned out to be misguided.

After the Mets rallied for three runs in the ninth inning to defeat the Dodgers in Game 1, Cone shared his opinion on the state of the Dodgers in his column, when he said:

''I'll tell you a secret: As soon as we got Orel out of the game, we knew we'd beat the Dodgers. Knew it even after Jay Howell had struck out HoJo. We saw Howell throwing curveball after curveball and we were thinking: This is the Dodgers' idea of a stopper? Our idea is Randy, a guy who can blow you away with his heat. Seeing Howell and his curveball reminded us of a high school pitcher.''

Naturally, the Dodgers took umbrage to Cone's remarks, calling them "classless" and "stupid". Of course, this gave them all the motivation they needed when they faced Cone in Game 2.

In 28 starts during the regular season, Cone gave up as many as five earned runs in a game only once (June 29 vs. Pittsburgh in a game eventually won by the Mets 8-7). Game 2 would be his second such start, as he allowed five runs in only two innings of work. Cone faced 14 batters and allowed eight of them to reach base (five hits, two walks, one hit batsman). The Mets would go on to the lose the game 6-3, and returned to Shea Stadium with the series deadlocked at one game apiece.

In the aftermath of the game, Cone decided that it would be best to make his statements on the mound rather than in a newspaper column. The day before the series resumed in New York, Cone "retired" from his sports writing gig, saying:

''This is my first - and I'm announcing today - my last attempt at tabloid journalism. I apologize to my family for embarrassing them. And I apologize to my teammates.''

The Mets were able to recover from the loss in Game 2 by defeating the Dodgers, 8-4, in Game 3. After his short outing at Dodger Stadium, Cone came out of the bullpen to pitch the ninth inning, retiring the Dodgers in order.

The quick recovery in Game 3 was short-lived, as the Mets lost Game 4 (no thanks to Mike Scioscia and Kirk Gibson) and Game 5, facing elimination as they returned to Dodger Stadium for Game 6. It was time for David Cone to prove that he was the dominant pitcher who won 20 games during the regular season and not the helpless mortal who showed up in Game 2.

The Mets pounced on Dodgers' starter Tim Leary early, scoring a run in the first and adding another in the third. After Kevin McReynolds hit a two-run homer in the fifth inning, the Mets led 4-0 and Cone was on cruise control, retiring 12 consecutive batters, before giving up back-to-back singles with two outs in the ninth. At 116 pitches, manager Davey Johnson could have elected to bring in Randy Myers from the bullpen. After all, it was Cone who said in his newspaper column that Myers could blow anyone away with his fastball. But Johnson decided to let Cone finish what he started and he did just that, retiring pinch-hitter Mike Davis on a fly ball to left field.

David Cone had exorcised his Game 2 demons, helping the Mets reach Game 7 against Orel Hershiser. Unfortunately, Cone's victory in Game 6 would not lead to the team's fourth World Series berth, as Ron Darling struggled, retiring only three batters while giving up six runs. The offense also failed to produce, as Hershiser stymied the Mets, shutting them out for the National League pennant.

Despite the unexpected ending to the 1988 season, the year can still be remembered for the breakthrough of David Cone from reliever/spot starter to the ace of a formidable staff.

David Cone will huff and he'll puff and he'll blow your hitters away.

The 1989 and 1990 Mets failed to return to the postseason, finishing second in the NL East to the Chicago Cubs and Pittsburgh Pirates, respectively. Although David Cone did not return to the lofty perch he reached in 1988, he remained one of the best pitchers in the National League, combining to go 28-18, with a 3.38 ERA over the two seasons. In 1990, he led the National League with 233 strikeouts. His 9.9 strikeouts per nine innings and his 3.58 K/BB ratio also paced the NL. On a team filled with underachievers, Cone raised the bar and helped keep the Mets in contention until the season's final days.

By the time 1991 rolled around, most of the players from the 1986 and 1988 division winners had left the team. Gary Carter, Keith Hernandez, Wally Backman, Mookie Wilson, Lenny Dykstra and Darryl Strawberry were no longer taking the field for the Mets, being replaced by the likes of Mackey Sasser, Dave Magadan, Gregg Jefferies, Keith Miller, Daryl Boston and Hubie Brooks. The pitching staff was bolstered by the acquisition of former Cy Young Award winner Frank Viola, but the heart and soul those '80s teams had disappeared.

The 1991 Mets came into the season with a fearsome threesome at the top of their rotation. With 53 victories and 638 strikeouts between them in 1990, Frank Viola (20-12, 2.67 ERA, 182 Ks), Dwight Gooden (19-7, 3.83 ERA, 223 Ks) and David Cone (14-10, 3.23 ERA, 233 Ks) were counted on to lead the Mets back to the postseason. However, other than Howard Johnson, who had a career year with 38 HR, 117 RBI and 108 runs scored, the offense sputtered, with no Met hitting more than 16 homers, driving in more than 74 runs or scoring more than 65. The team's .244 batting average was the lowest since 1983, which was the last time the Mets finished with a losing record, that is, until 1991.

The inept offense took its toll on the pitching staff, especially during a particularly horrid stretch in July and August when the Mets lost 23 out of 27 contests. During that 4-23 stretch, the Mets scored two runs or less 16 times, losing all 16. Dwight Gooden's season was cut short in late August by a shoulder injury while Frank Viola was a shadow of his former self, leading the major leagues in hits allowed (259). David Cone could have packed it in just like the Mets did in the final two months of the 1991 season, but he only became stronger as the season went on.

From August 21 to the end of the season, Cone made ten starts. In 72 innings, he recorded 86 strikeouts and opposing batters hit .196 against him. During that period, Cone also had an exceptional 2.63 ERA. Of course, since the offense had gone south for the summer, the Mets lost six of those ten starts. One of the starts they did win was the final game of the season, which was perhaps Cone's most memorable effort in a Mets uniform.

Cone took the mound at Veterans Stadium on the final day of the 1991 season, needing a win to avoid finishing the year with a losing record. If the Mets weren't going to hit for Cone, he wasn't going to let the Phillies hit him. Over the first six innings, Cone struck out 15 batters. Almost miraculously, the Mets put on their hitting shoes that afternoon, scoring three runs in the first inning and adding single runs in each odd-numbered inning after that.

By the time the Phillies came to bat in the bottom of the ninth inning, the Mets had a commanding 7-0 lead and Cone had struck out 17 batters. although he had thrown 126 pitches to do so. But interim manager Mike Cubbage wasn't about to take Cone out when his next start wasn't scheduled for another six months. Cone struck out Kim Batiste and Mickey Morandini to tie the National League record for strikeouts in a nine-inning game. Now only one K away from setting a new NL record and tying Roger Clemens' major league record, Cone faced Wes Chamberlain, whom he had fanned in each of his three previous plate appearances, but the Phillies' leftfielder smoked a ground rule double to extend the inning, bringing up aging veteran Dale Murphy. The former All-Star was prone to striking out, leading the National League in whiffs three times (1978, 1980, 1985). However, on a 2-1 pitch, Murphy grounded out to shortstop Jeff Gardner, preserving the shutout, but keeping Cone from baseball immortality.

With his Closing Day victory, Cone finished the 1991 season with a 14-14 record and a 3.29 ERA. For the second consecutive season, Cone led the league in strikeouts, finishing with 241. But all this took a backseat to the news that Cone had allegedly raped a woman the night before his season-ending victory. Soon after, the police dropped the case, as the alleged victim's claims were deemed baseless.

In 1992, the Mets put together a team that (yet again) on paper, looked like a contender. They added manager Jeff Torborg, who had won the AL Manager of the Year Award for the White Sox in 1990. They also brought in sluggers Eddie Murray and Bobby Bonilla, along with two-time Cy Young Award winner Bret Saberhagen. None of these acquisitions fared well for the Mets, nicknamed "The Worst Team Money Could Buy". But the one Met who continued to perform exceptionally well was David Cone.

The 1992 Mets were around the .500 mark for much of the first half of the season. At the All-Star Break, they were 42-46 and in fourth place in the NL East. For all the former All-Stars brought in to help the team, it was David Cone who was the Mets' sole All-Star Game representative. His stats at the halfway mark (9-4, 2.56 ERA, 154 Ks) were far and away the best on the staff and they continued to get better after the break, as Cone won his first four second-half starts to improve to 13-4. However, the Mets were still below .500 at 51-53 and were going nowhere fast despite having the highest payroll in baseball.

Prior to the 1992 season, David Cone was awarded the highest arbitration amount in history, when he won a $4.25 million salary for the '92 campaign. That left the Mets in a bind because Cone was due to become a free agent at year's end and his stellar season was sure to command a hefty pay increase. Therefore, to avoid having to pay Cone during the off-season, the Mets chose to trade him to the Toronto Blue Jays on August 27 for Jeff Kent and Ryan Thompson. Although he played the final five weeks of the 1992 season in the American League, Cone still led the National League with five shutouts (tied with Tom Glavine) and finished one strikeout behind John Smoltz for the National League lead.

Jeff Kent burst everyone's bubble as a Met, but apparently, not his own. (Photo by Brad Mangin)

Kent and Thompson never became stars for the Mets, although Kent did have quite a career after leaving New York, building a Hall of Fame-caliber career with the San Francisco Giants. Cone, on the other hand, blossomed after he Shea'd goodbye. He won a World Series ring in 1992 as a Blue Jay, then took home the Cy Young Award as a Kansas City Royal in the strike-shortened 1994 season. He won four more World Series rings as a member of that other New York team in 1996, 1997, 1998 and 2000, becoming a 20-game winner for the second time in 1998 and throwing a perfect game in 1999.

After playing the 2001 season in Boston, Cone was not signed by a major league team in 2002. Not believing his career to be done, Cone signed an incentive-laden deal with the Mets in February 2003. At the time, Cone needed seven wins to reach 200 for his career and the Mets, fresh off a 2002 season in which they went 75-86, were the only team willing to give him the opportunity to reach that plateau. Nothing was guaranteed for Cone as he entered Spring Training, as he was fighting for a job with players who were almost half his age. But as time went by, Cone was performing as well, if not better, than pitchers already guaranteed spots in the rotation. By the end of Spring Training, Cone had not only made the team, but he was penciled in as the Mets' fourth starter, making his return to Shea Stadium on April 4, 2003.

It had been over a decade since Cone last started for the Mets, but as he faced off against the Montreal Expos, it appeared as if nothing had changed. On a cold and windy night at Shea, Cone froze the Expos' hitters, pitching five scoreless innings, allowing only two hits, walking three and striking out five. It was vintage David Cone at Shea Stadium that night, and career win No. 194 was reminiscent of his previous 80 wins in a Mets uniform.

However, Cone's first start of the 2003 season would also produce the final win of his highly successful career. In his next start, also against the Expos, but this time at Montreal's home away from home in Puerto Rico, Cone struggled mightily. After keeping the Expos scoreless over the first two innings, Cone was rocked for seven runs in the third, with the crushing blow coming on a grand slam by Brad Wilkerson. Cone would lose that game as well as his next start in Pittsburgh, although he pitched better against the Pirates, allowing three runs in five innings of work.

On April 22, Cone would make his final start for the Mets, pitching two innings against the Houston Astros, before leaving the game with an injured left hip, for which he was placed on the disabled list the following day. Cone returned to the Mets on May 28, pitching two innings of relief against the Phillies, but his arthritic hip would not allow him to pitch again, as Cone announced his retirement two days later.

Cone only pitched five full seasons (1987-1991) and parts of two others (1992, 2003) in a Mets uniform. Despite having a relatively short career as a Met, Cone is all over the franchise's all-time pitching leaderboard, finishing in the top ten in all of the following categories:

• Wins: 81 (8th)
• ERA: 3.13 (9th)
• Win-Loss Percentage: .614 (5th)
• WHIP: 1.192 (9th)
• Hits/9 IP: 7.524 (5th)
• Strikeouts/9 IP: 8.722 (1st)
• Innings Pitched: 1,209.1 (10th)
• Starts: 169 (10th)
• Strikeouts: 1,172 (5th)
• Complete Games: 34 (7th)
• Shutouts: 15 (5th)
• Strikeouts/BB: 2.719 (7th)

Cone struck out 10 or more batters in a game 33 times in 169 starts as a Met, which explains why he is the club's all-time leader in strikeouts per nine innings, despite the fact that the Mets have employed some of the best strikeout pitchers of all-time, such as Tom Seaver, Dwight Gooden and some guy whose last name was Ryan.

Speaking of Seaver and Gooden, upon further inspection of the Mets' all-time leaderboard, Cone ranks in the top three for right-handed pitchers in ERA, hits per nine innings pitched, strikeouts per nine innings pitched, total strikeouts and shutouts. The other two pitchers in the top three in almost all of those categories are Tom Seaver and Dwight Gooden.

Had David Cone been a Met for more than six years, perhaps he'd be on this stage alongside legendary right-handers Dwight Gooden and Tom Seaver. (Photo by Michael G. Baron)

It would not be a stretch to say that David Cone is the third-best right-handed starting pitcher in franchise history. Nolan Ryan didn't have his best years until after he left New York, Ron Darling had too many ups and downs in the latter part of his Mets career and Rick Reed didn't pitch long enough to be taken into consideration. Bobby Jones, although very underrated, only had one exceptional year and one memorable post-season appearance for the Mets, although he's among the franchise's all-time winningest pitchers.

When David Cone was traded to New York before the 1987 season, the trade didn't make much noise in the tabloids. Almost a quarter century later, it remains one of the best trades in franchise history. The Mets gave up three players who had very little, if any, major league experience and got back a pitcher who went on to become one of the best and most beloved players in franchise history.

It's odd to call such a great pitcher underrated, but just ask any Mets fan on the street who the best right-handed starting pitchers are in team history. You'll hear some Tom Seavers and some Dwight Goodens in their responses, but see how many people say David Cone. Even they would be surprised at just how great Cone was once he left his hometown to come to the bright lights of the big city.


Note: M.U.M.'s The Word is a thirteen-part weekly series spotlighting some of the best Mets players of all-time who never got the recognition they deserved because they weren't the biggest names on the teams they played for. For previous installments, please click on the players' names below:

January 3, 2011: John Olerud
January 10, 2011: Sid Fernandez
January 17, 2011: Jon Matlack
January 24, 2011: Kevin McReynolds
January 31, 2011: Bobby Jones
February 7, 2011: John Stearns

M.U.M.'s The Word (Most Underrated Mets): Kevin McReynolds

The 1986 Mets were perhaps the most beloved team in franchise history. They combined a great pitching staff along with veteran leadership (Keith Hernandez, Gary Carter, Ray Knight) and youthful exuberance (Darryl Strawberry, Lenny Dykstra, Kevin Mitchell) to win their second World Championship.

However, after the season ended, general manager Frank Cashen decided that Kevin Mitchell had too much youthful exuberance, which was the polite way of saying that Mitchell was a bad influence on Darryl Strawberry and Dwight Gooden. It was time for the versatile rookie to go, and so Cashen traded Mitchell (along with Shawn Abner, Stanley Jefferson, Kevin Armstrong and Kevin "No, not that one" Brown) to the San Diego Padres for pitcher Gene Walter, minor leaguer Adam Ging and a good ol' country boy from Arkansas named Walter, although Mets fans probably know him better by his middle name.

You can't call him Wally, but you can call him underrated.

Walter Kevin McReynolds was coming off a 1986 season in which he set career highs in batting average (.288), runs scored (89), home runs (26), RBI (96) and stolen bases (8). It was not his first good year in the majors, as he had a stellar 1984 season for the Padres, finishing 17th in the NL MVP voting and helping the Padres advance to their first World Series. However, McReynolds broke his hand in Game 4 of the 1984 NLCS and did not play in the World Series, which the Padres lost to the Detroit Tigers in five games.

Although McReynolds was the Padres' primary centerfielder, the Mets acquired him to play left field, a position he had only played for 43 games over his first four seasons in the majors. The Mets had gone through four and a half years of the underachieving malcontent, also known as George Foster, from 1982 until midway through the 1986 season, when they released him soon after he stayed glued to the bench during a bench-clearing brawl between the Mets and the Cincinnati Reds.

There's a better chance you'll find Waldo in this donnybrook than George Foster.

The Mets used four leftfielders after Foster's release, never starting Mookie Wilson, Kevin Mitchell, Danny Heep and the newly re-acquired Lee Mazzilli for more than five consecutive games at a time. The team needed a steady leftfielder, one that wouldn't be a cancer in the clubhouse (a la Foster) or a bad influence on the young stars (a la Mitchell). Kevin McReynolds fit the bill perfectly and gave the Mets quite the ballplayer in left field.

McReynolds' career as a Met didn't start off with a bang. After a loss to the Chicago Cubs on June 9, 1987, the Mets slipped to fourth place with a .500 record (28-28). One of the reasons for the poor start to the season was the hitting (or lack thereof) of Kevin McReynolds. Big Mac's numbers at the plate (.249, 9 HR, 26 RBI) weren't that much different than what George Foster was giving the Mets in 1986. All that changed the following afternoon (June 10), when McReynolds collected four hits (two singles, two doubles), scored two runs and drove in another. That began a two-month stretch where McReynolds and the Mets simultaneously caught fire.

From June 10 to August 7, McReynolds played in 53 games (52 starts). Over that time period, he batted .338, with 13 doubles, two triples, 10 home runs and 42 RBI. The 25 extra-base hits over the two months gave him an exceptional .572 slugging percentage. The Mets needed McReynolds' power in the lineup because Darryl Strawberry was not driving in runs at his usual pace (30 RBI over the same 53-game stretch). When McReynolds woke up from his early season slumber, so did the Mets, as the team went 35-18 during Big Mac's hot streak. In two months, the Mets went from a fourth-place, .500 team to a second place team that was within striking distance of the first place St. Louis Cardinals.

Then September 11 happened. No, not THAT September 11. On the night of September 11, 1987, the Mets and Cardinals squared off at Shea Stadium, with the Mets trying to close to within half a game of the first place Redbirds. Everything was going perfectly for the Mets. Ron Darling took a no-hitter into the sixth inning and the Mets had a 4-1 lead (St. Louis scored their run on two walks and two groundouts).

Then Vince Coleman dropped a drag bunt that not only ended Darling's no-hitter, but his season as well, as Ronnie injured his thumb while diving to make a play on the ball. Once Terry Pendleton hit a two-out, two-run game-tying homer in the ninth inning off Roger McDowell, the Mets' chances to catch the Cardinals in the standings vanished. The Cardinals went on to win the NL East, denying the Mets an opportunity to defend their World Series title.

Although the Mets failed to advance to the postseason in 1987, it was not the fault of Kevin McReynolds. In fact, McReynolds was one of the reasons why the Mets stayed in the division race for as long as they did. He batted .276, and set career-highs with 163 hits, 32 doubles, 29 HR and 14 stolen bases. He also picked up 95 RBI while showing great discipline at the plate, striking out only 70 times in 639 plate appearances. Big Mac didn't help the Mets to the postseason in 1987, but 1988 was a different story.

McReynolds started the 1988 season with a bang, going 4-for-5 with two homers on Opening Day in Montreal. The two blasts were part of a six-homer barrage by the Mets, which included a monster shot by Darryl Strawberry that hit the roof of Olympic Stadium. The Opening Day fireworks by McReynolds were just a prelude for what was to come. Over his first six games of the season, Kevin hit .565 (14-for-23). He slid back to reality after his dominant start to finish the first half of the season with respectable numbers (.281, 11 HR, 47 RBI, 11 SB). Once he returned from the All-Star Break, McReynolds took his game to another level, starting with the first game in Atlanta.

On July 14, the Mets and Braves were engaged in a seesaw battle. The Braves had an early 3-0 lead, but the Mets poured it on, scoring eight unanswered runs to take an 8-3 lead. The big blow was a three-run homer by McReynolds in the fourth inning. The Braves refused to lose quietly, storming back with five runs of their own to tie the game at 8. Darryl Strawberry led off the top of the ninth inning by reaching first on an error. Unfortunately, he was thrown out trying to steal second in the hopes that McReynolds would drive him in. Darryl's over-aggressiveness might have cost the Mets the go-ahead run, as McReynolds doubled into the gap in left-center. A ground ball double play by Gary Carter ended the Mets threat and the game moved on into extra innings, where the Mets won the game in the 11th inning on a base hit by...you guessed it...Kevin McReynolds.

For the game, Big Mac was true to his nickname, going 5-for-6, with three runs scored, two doubles, a home run and four RBI. July 14 wasn't the last time McReynolds had a big game in the second half. Two weeks later against the Phillies, he went 4-for-4, hitting another home run and driving in five runs. In August, he had another five-RBI game, this time against the Cubs. But he saved his hottest RBI streak for the most important time of the year.

Over a two-week stretch in September, McReynolds was a one-man wrecking crew. In 14 games, he batted .400, with six home runs and 18 RBI. While McReynolds was rockin', the Mets were rollin'. New York won 13 of those 14 games, including the game against the Phillies on September 22 which gave them their second NL East title in three years. Not surprisingly, McReynolds went 2-for-4 with an RBI in that game. It was the third of five consecutive multi-hit games for the leftfielder, who was now in the middle of everyone's MVP conversations.

Unfortunately, the MVP Award was not to be, as Kirk Gibson's performance for the Dodgers (.290, 25 HR, 76 RBI, 31 SB) was considered more valuable than McReynolds' season (.288, 27 HR, 99 RBI, 21 SB) and teammate Darryl Strawberry's year (.284, 39 HR, 104 RBI, 36 SB). It was widely agreed that voters who picked an MVP candidate from the Mets split their votes between Strawberry and McReynolds, allowing Gibson to sneak away with the award. However, had the voters noticed that McReynolds also led the league with 18 outfield assists (including seven runners thrown out at the plate) and set a major league record by having the most stolen bases in a season without being caught (later broken by Chase Utley in 2009 with his 23-for-23 season), perhaps they would have changed their vote to the player who was truly the most complete player in the National League in 1988.

McReynolds continued his dynamic 1988 season into the playoffs, where the Mets faced off against Orel Hershiser and the Los Angeles Dodgers, a team they had defeated 10 out of 11 times during the regular season. Hershiser had finished the 1988 season by pitching 59 consecutive scoreless innings and he continued to do the same in Game 1 of the NLCS, holding the Mets to zero runs through eight innings. But things began to unravel for "The Bulldog" in the ninth inning.

In 1988, the National League was schooled by Hershiser and his "Orel" exams.

After a leadoff single by wünderkind Gregg Jefferies, Keith Hernandez moved him to second base with a groundout. Darryl Strawberry then lined a double to right field, plating Jefferies and ending Hershiser's scoreless streak and his night, as he was removed from the game for closer Jay Howell.

Kevin McReynolds was the first batter to face Howell, and he was able to draw a walk. After Howard Johnson struck out, the Mets were down to their final out, but they still had their two MVP candidates on the bases and Gary Carter at the plate. With the Dodger Stadium crowd on their feet in anticipation of the final out, Carter silenced the ballpark by looping a double in front of a diving John Shelby. Strawberry had already scored the tying run as McReynolds was rounding third. The throw from Shelby to Mike Scioscia arrived at the same time as McReynolds' lowered shoulder did. The jarring home plate collision led to the go-ahead run for the Mets and they held on to that lead, taking Game 1 in their final at-bat, with the winning run scoring on the shoulders of Kevin McReynolds.

The Mets split the next two games of the NLCS, taking a 2-1 series lead into Game 4, the game forever known as the Mike Scioscia game. With the Mets about to take a commanding 3-1 lead in the series, manager Davey Johnson left Dwight Gooden on the mound the start the ninth inning. At the time, the Mets led the game 4-2. Gooden stayed in the game even after issuing a leadoff walk to John Shelby. The reasoning for the non-move was simple. The next batter was light-hitting catcher Mike Scioscia, who had hit only three home runs in 408 regular season at-bats and was a prime candidate to hit into a double play. There was no double play, unless if you can start one from behind the outfield wall.

One former Dodger who wore #14 helped the Mets win the World Series in 1969. Nineteen years later, another one prevented the Mets from reaching the World Series.

With Mike Scioscia tying the game with his Pendletonian blast, the momentum shifted over to the Dodgers, especially after Kirk Gibson's two-out, solo homer in the 12th inning off Roger McDowell gave Los Angeles a 5-4 lead. The Mets fought back in their half of the inning, as the first two batters reached base against former Met Tim Leary. After retiring Gregg Jefferies, another former Met came into the game to face lefties Keith Hernandez and Darryl Strawberry. That man would be Jesse Orosco.

Orosco was able to induce a popup from Strawberry that could not score the tying run. The next batter was Kevin McReynolds. Orosco would not get a chance to face Big Mac, as future Met and current Bulldog Orel Hershiser would get the call to come in from the bullpen.

McReynolds had already contributed greatly to the game. His solo homer in the fourth inning had given the Mets a 3-2 lead, a lead that was extended to 4-2 in the sixth inning when McReynolds hit a ground rule double and scored on Gary Carter's triple. Big Mac had also drawn a walk in the 11th inning, followed by a stolen base to put his potential winning run in scoring position. However, that is where he was left stranded. Now the game was in the 12th inning, and it was up to him not to leave anyone stranded.

With the Shea Stadium crowd expecting another comeback victory, McReynolds lifted the third pitch from Hershiser into short center field. Everyone's thoughts went back to the ninth inning of Game 1, when John Shelby failed to catch Gary Carter's short fly ball, allowing the tying (Strawberry) and go-ahead (McReynolds) runs to score. That Game 1 moment would not be revisited in Game 4, as Shelby raced forward and tumbled onto the Shea Stadium grass, this time with ball in glove. Game 4 went to the Dodgers, as did Game 5.

You mean to tell me that the Mets were beaten by a guy wearing braces?

The series shifted back to Dodger Stadium for Game 6 with the Mets trying to stave off elimination. Their chances looked good with 20-game winner David Cone on the mound, although he had already been defeated by the Dodgers in Game 2. A repeat performance by Cone in Game 6 would mean that the hitters would have to come through to save the Mets' season. That's exactly what Kevin McReynolds did.

Batting with the bases loaded and one out in first inning, McReynolds hit a sacrifice fly to right field, giving the Mets the early 1-0 lead. In the third inning, after a leadoff single by Strawberry, McReynolds followed with a base hit of his own, moving Strawberry into scoring position, where he eventually scored on a double by shortstop Kevin Elster. The Mets still had a slim 2-0 lead in the fifth inning when McReynolds delivered the crushing blow, a two-run homer to left that knocked out starting pitcher Tim Leary. The blast gave the Mets a 4-0 lead and they went on to win the game 5-1, on the strength of David Cone's complete game and Kevin McReynolds' fireworks at the plate.

Alas, the Mets would not be celebrating a pennant after Game 7, as Orel Hershiser pitched a five-hit shutout to send the Dodgers to the World Series. McReynolds' 0-for-4 performance in the NLCS finale did not take anything away from his otherwise stellar series. Over the seven games, he collected seven base hits, including two doubles and two homers, scored four runs, drove in another four and stole two bases. For his efforts, he was rewarded with a three-year, $5.5 million contract during the off-season.

Although the Mets did not return to the playoffs in 1989 and 1990, it was not the fault of McReynolds. In fact, his two seasons were very similar:

• 1989: .272, 22 HR, 85 RBI, 74 runs, 25 doubles, 15 SB, 9 assists
• 1990: .269, 24 HR, 82 RBI, 75 runs, 23 doubles, 9 SB, 12 assists

Going into the 1991 season, things had changed for the Mets. The team McReynolds joined in 1987 was a shadow of its former self. Keith Hernandez, Gary Carter, Lenny Dykstra, Mookie Wilson and Darryl Strawberry were no more. Those veteran players had been replaced by a new group of veterans. It's too bad the new cast of non-characters included Rick Cerone, Vince Coleman, Hubie Brooks, Garry Templeton and Tommy Herr, players who would have made a formidable team had they brought their DeLoreans with them with the time coordinates set for 1980-1985.

The Mets could've used 1.23 gigawatts of electricity in their bats in 1991.

The team was in disarray. There was no chemistry among the diverse group of players. As a result, performances suffered and the team fell apart, as they finished with their first losing season since 1983. McReynolds was not immune to the underachievement virus being passed around in the clubhouse, as he finished the 1991 season with his poorest numbers as a Met (.259, 16 HR, 74 RBI, 65 runs scored, 32 doubles, 6 SB, 9 assists). His only bad season in New York was also his final one, as McReynolds was traded to the Kansas City Royals (along with Gregg Jefferies and Keith Miller) for Bret Saberhagen and Bill Pecota (whose sole claim to fame as a Met was that he became the first position player to pitch in a regular season game when he did so in 1992).

Saberhagen had a Pedro Martinez-like Mets career, pitching four years in New York, with almost half of his victories coming in one of them (Saberhagen won 29 games as a Met, with 14 of them coming in 1994. Martinez won 32 games in New York, with 15 of them coming in 2005), while Bill Pecota only collected 269 at-bats in his one season as a Met.

The move to Kansas City did not help McReynolds' career, as he failed to hit .250 or pick up 400 at-bats in either of his two years there. In fact, his cumulative power numbers during the 1992 and 1993 seasons in Kansas City (24 HR, 91 RBI) were similar to what he produced in one average season during his prime with the Mets.

Despite the fact that McReynolds' career was on the downside, the Mets re-acquired him prior to the 1994 season. The main reason for McReynolds 2.0 was not to try to resuscitate his dying career. The Mets pulled off this deal in order to rid themselves of Vince Coleman (a.k.a. Vincenzo Grucci), who left his career in St. Louis, but brought his fireworks to New York.

Was Vincenzo Grucci responsible for this as well? (Photo by David G. Whitham)

Unfortunately, injuries took their toll on the 34-year-old McReynolds, as he was placed on the disabled list three times during the 1994 season. But before his second stint on the DL, McReynolds was showing signs of his former self. In his last eight games before his second trip to the disabled list, McReynolds hit .308, with a .400 on-base percentage and a .731 slugging percentage. He also scored seven runs, drove in nine and stole a base. Once he returned from the DL on July 8, he picked up right where he left off, batting .300 over his next nine games. His start on July 19 was vintage Kevin McReynolds.

The Mets were trailing the Dodgers 4-2 going to the bottom of the eighth inning. It was the second time the Mets had trailed by two runs in the game. In the fourth inning, the Mets were losing 2-0 when Todd Hundley cut the lead in half with a solo home run. With one out, Kevin McReynolds put himself into scoring position with a double off Dodger starter Kevin Gross. He later came around to score on a triple by Jeff Kent (who probably received a cheer or two from the 22,045 fans in attendance) that tied the game at 2.

In the sixth inning, with the Mets down 4-2, McReynolds delivered his second hit of the game, but was erased when Joe Orsulak followed Big Mac by grounding into a 6-4-3 double play. The next time Big Mac got an opportunity to hit, he would make sure the Mets would not go quietly.

With one out and two runners in scoring position, McReynolds came up to bat in the bottom of the eighth inning. A sacrifice fly would score a run, but a base hit would tie the game. Big Mac would come through with the latter, delivering a base hit to left that scored the tying runs. Later on in the inning, the Mets would load the bases against former Met Roger McDowell. First baseman David Segui hit a ground ball to his counterpart at first, Eric Karros, who threw home to force out McReynolds. But centerfielder Ryan Thompson followed that up by clearing the bases with a double to left, giving the Mets a 7-4 lead, a lead that John Franco protected in the ninth inning.

The Mets' five-run eighth inning, fueled by McReynolds two-run single, ended a two-game losing streak. But during his slide into home plate during the game-changing inning, McReynolds jammed his knee. It was later revealed that he had suffered cartilage damage in his right knee, necessitating a third trip to the disabled list. McReynolds did not start another game for the Mets, although he did come off the disabled list to appear as a pinch-hitter against the Philadelphia Phillies on August 11, the day before the 1994 players strike was set to begin. In his final turn at-bat, McReynolds pinch hit for starting pitcher Jason Jacome and flied out against Fernando Valenzuela (yes, El Toro was a Phillie then) in the eighth inning. The Mets went on to lose the game 2-1 in 15 innings, then went on strike an hour later.

During the players strike, McReynolds decided that baseball was no longer in his future, so he retired back home to Arkansas for a life as an outdoorsman and duck hunting entrepreneur.

Duck season? Wabbit season? In the late '80s, it was Big Mac season at Shea.

Kevin McReynolds played 12 years in the major leagues, six of those seasons with the Mets in two separate stints. His 122 home runs as a Met are good for eighth on the all-time club leaderboard, but at the time he retired in 1994, only three Mets had ever hit more home runs than McReynolds (Darryl Strawberry, Howard Johnson, Dave Kingman). Also, McReynolds remains in the top ten on the franchise's all-time RBI list with 456, but was sixth at the time of his retirement (surpassed only by Darryl Strawberry, Howard Johnson, Ed Kranepool, Cleon Jones and Keith Hernandez). In addition, he was one of the smartest baserunners in franchise history, stealing 67 bases in 83 attempts (80.7% success rate). He also registered 60 outfield assists during his six seasons in New York, making him one of the better defensive players among Mets outfielders.

When Kevin McReynolds became a Met prior to the 1987 season, he was supposed to be the player the Mets thought they were getting when they signed George Foster five years earlier. They got far more than that. They got a player who wasn't a cancer in the clubhouse and one who was consistently good in all aspects of the game. Yes, sometimes he seemed to have his mind on hunting a little too much, but that was just a little bit of Arkansas that he brought with him to the big city.

Kevin McReynolds might be the best leftfielder in Mets history (no offense to Cleon Jones), yet so many people forget how valuable he was to the Mets during his time in New York. No leftfielder had a better stretch as a Met than McReynolds did from 1987-1990. If a big hit was needed, you could count on Big Mac to come through. If you needed a runner in scoring position, a successful steal attempt would soon follow. Need a strong and accurate throw from the outfield to cut down a run at the plate? McReynolds was your man. Without question, Kevin McReynolds is one of the most underrated Mets of all-time. It's just that he was too quiet to let you know it himself.