The Thrill of Victory, The Agony of the Mets: Doug Sisk

Mets fans love their team.  It doesn't matter if the club is mired in last place or fighting for a title; the fans will always be supportive.  Occasionally, however, the team's fans have been known to show their disdain for a player or two, even though those individuals are wearing the team's colors and are playing on the same side as the athletes who get the loudest cheers.

Richie Hebner didn't like playing in New York.  The fans noticed.  Hebner, who was a gravedigger when he wasn't playing baseball, dug his own grave during his one season with the Mets.

Bobby Bonilla was actually from New York.  But after the Mets acquired him, he rubbed everyone the wrong way with his exploits, both on and off the field.  Bonilla called the press box during a game to dispute an error.  He then wore earplugs on the field to silence the boo birds at Shea.  The coup de grâce was when he offered to be a Bronx tour guide to a Daily News reporter.  And let's just say it probably would have been more violent than the seas during Gilligan's three-hour tour.

Besides hearing constant boos from the fans, Hebner and Bonilla shared something else.  They both played for awful Mets teams.

It's easy to dislike a player when the entire team is playing poorly.  But what about the player who receives negative reactions from fans when the team is playing reasonably well, perhaps even well enough to win a championship?  Or even worse, what if the player being booed was actually having a decent career with the Mets but no one remembers because they were too busy booing him?  Such was the plight of one championship reliever who was made to feel like less of a champion during the latter part of his career.

Doug Sisk didn't throw heat.  But fans often threw heat at him.  (Jacqueline Duvoisin/Getty Images)

Douglas Randall Sisk was drafted by the Mets in 1980 as an amateur free agent.  The Washington state native, who was born and raised approximately 2,400 miles away from where the 1969 and 1973 Mets played their home games, grew up rooting for those pennant winners despite the geographical distance between himself and the team.

"I can recall the '69 World Series and I could always name every player on that team," Sisk said to author Erik Sherman.  "And then I could always recall the '73 National League playoffs when Willie Mays was on the club.  I mean, how many kids from the Seattle area back then could name the rosters from those two teams?  I might have been the only one."

Sisk may have been the only Mets fan he knew in the Pacific Northwest, but he wasn't the only Mets farmhand making a rapid ascent to the big club.  After years of ineptitude brought about by a flawed front office and the dismantling of the team's minor league system, the Mets were committed to restructuring their farm with an influx of young talent.  By 1982, several of those players had become regulars at the major league level, with Wally Backman, Mookie Wilson and Hubie Brooks in the starting lineup just about every day, and Ed Lynch, Jesse Orosco and Neil Allen finding themselves on the mound more often than not.  Just weeks before the curtain closed on the 1982 campaign, Sisk was on the big stage as well.

Making eight relief appearances for the Mets following his September call-up, Sisk was quite effective, allowing just one run (a home run by future Hall of Famer Andre Dawson) in 8⅔ innings.  Sisk, who prior to his late-season promotion had never pitched above the Double-A level, broke camp with the Mets in 1983 and continued to shine.  Used in various relief situations, Sisk notched 11 saves and posted a 2.24 ERA in 104⅓ innings.  In doing so, he became just the fifth pitcher in team history to throw 100 or more innings while pitching exclusively in relief, joining Tug McGraw (1972), Skip Lockwood (1977), Jeff Reardon (1980) and Jesse Orosco (also in 1983; Orosco reached the 100-inning mark two weeks before Sisk did).

Amazingly, Sisk allowed just one home run in those 104⅓ innings in 1983, and once again, it was a future Hall of Famer who took him deep (Mike Schmidt).  To this day, Sisk is the only pitcher in club annals to pitch more than 100 innings in a season and allow fewer than three home runs in that campaign.

As great as Sisk was in 1983, he was even better in 1984, especially during the first half of the season.  Through July 1, Sisk had recorded 11 saves and was the owner of an otherworldly 0.50 ERA, allowing three earned runs in 53⅔ innings.  Opposing hitters were batting just .165 against the right-hander and slugging (if you want to call it that) at a .188 clip.

Sisk had always pitched to contact, nibbling at corners hoping to get batters to swing at his best pitch - the sinkerball.  As a result, hitters didn't collect many hits (just 29 of them through July 1), but they did draw their share of walks (31 bases on balls).  Still, the object of the game for a pitcher is to keep the opponent off the scoreboard and few pitchers were as effective at doing that during the first half of the 1984 season as Sisk was.

As the weather got hotter in July, so did the race for the N.L. East crown between the Mets and Chicago Cubs.  But one player who melted in the heat was Sisk, who allowed runs in six of his 12 outings during the month.  From July 28 to August 6, Sisk made three appearances on the mound.  All three times he pitched against the Cubs.  All three times he allowed runs.  And all three times the Mets lost.  His appearance on July 28, one in which he allowed four runs (three earned) without retiring a batter, caused the fans at Shea Stadium to serenade him with a chorus of boos once he left the mound.  It was a sound Sisk was not yet accustomed to.

It's scary how quickly fans turned on Sisk.

"You know, that's the first time I've ever been booed," Sisk said after the game.  "Oh well, I guess you've got to get booed once in a while."

Once in a while turned into every time he set foot on the mound, as the Shea faithful continued to show a lack of faith in their reliever.  Finally, after his third straight disappointing appearance against the Cubs on August 6, the Mets found a way to keep their once-dependable pitcher away from the hostile home crowd, placing Sisk on the disabled list with what the team called shoulder stiffness.  But the reliever begged to differ, claiming the transaction should not have happened.

''I don't think they should have disabled me,'' Sisk said.  ''I've had soreness in the shoulder in the past, and have pitched with it.  It's demeaning to me to be put on the disabled list.  It wasn't necessary.  It makes me feel they intend to trade me before next season.''

Upon his return from the disabled list, Sisk appeared in five more games in 1984.  He held the opposition scoreless in four of them.  The one time he was scored upon was - you guessed it - against the division-leading Cubs on September 8.

Sisk came into the game with the Mets trailing the Cubs by two runs.  He faced 14 batters in two innings, allowing eight of them to reach base.  But just two of them scored.  Wes Gardner then relieved Sisk and allowed two more Cubs to score.  Cubs pitcher Rick Sutcliffe, who went on to win the Cy Young Award that season, pitched a complete-game shutout as Chicago knocked off New York, 6-0.

It's obvious that Sisk didn't have his best stuff in that game, just as it's obvious that any loss by the second-place Mets to the first-place Cubs was going to sting.  But did Sisk deserve to get viciously booed by the fans on that late summer evening at Shea?  The Mets failed to cross the plate in nine innings.  Sisk came into the game with the Mets already trailing by two runs.  After he was taken out for a pinch-hitter, Gardner pitched an inning and two more Cubs circled the bases.  That means the Mets would have lost the contest anyway even if Sisk had pitched two perfect innings.  Going back to the three consecutive appearances against the Cubs prior to his stint on the disabled list, the first loss (July 28) was definitely on Sisk.  But the other two?  Not so much.

On July 29, Sisk took the mound in the ninth inning with the Mets trailing the Cubs, 2-0.  He then allowed the Cubs to tack on an insurance run.  The Mets failed to score in the bottom of the ninth and lost, 3-0.  That final result was certainly not Sisk's fault, as once again the team could not generate any offense.  Eight days later, Sisk entered the game against the Cubs with the Mets already trailing, 7-3.  He pitched a scoreless sixth, then put up another zero in the seventh.  Sisk then allowed two runs in his third inning of work and the Mets lost to Chicago, 9-3.  Again, New York would have lost even if Sisk had not allowed two runners to cross the plate after he had already pitched two scoreless innings.

When Sisk pitched his final game before being disabled, the Mets' record was 62-45.  When he returned on August 31, the Mets were 73-58.  That means the team posted a losing record (11-13) while Sisk was recovering from his injury.  They also lost four games to the Cubs in the N.L. East standings during Sisk's recovery, going from a slim 1½-game deficit to nearly being out of the race at 5½ games back.  The boo birds probably found a way to blame Sisk for that as well.

Overall, Sisk finished the 1984 campaign with 15 saves and a 2.09 ERA - numbers that were still quite impressive, but not enough to make fans stop booing.  Sisk then began the 1985 season with an 8.53 ERA in his first 11 appearances, which earned him a demotion to AAA-Tidewater.  His manager, Davey Johnson, was as tired of Sisk's poor outings as he was of the fans' reactions to them.

"It was a tough decision to make, but I couldn't think of anything else to do," Johnson said.  "I just felt that his failure, plus the way New York fans were getting on him that I thought this was my only option.  In Tidewater he'll get playing time and a chance to iron out his problems."

Sisk may have ironed out his problems at Tidewater, but the fans at Shea still had a few creases.  (Duvoisin/Getty Images)

When Sisk returned to the team after three weeks with the Tides, he did not pitch well at first.  On June 7, he was brought into an extra-inning affair against the St. Louis Cardinals, allowing six runs (five earned) in his one frame.  Of course, the game took place at Shea Stadium, where the home team's fans got to witness the carnage and voice their displeasure.

A week after his trouncing at the hands of the eventual division champion Cardinals, Sisk was still the owner of an ungodly 7.68 ERA.  But after June 14, Sisk turned his season around, going 3-0 with a 2.95 ERA the rest of the way.  Included in his revival was a yeoman-like effort against the Braves on July 4, when he pitched 4⅓ shutout innings in the Mets' epic 16-13 victory.  Sisk also hurled two scoreless frames against his previous year's nemesis, the Cubs, on August 2, then followed it up with two shutout innings versus the Giants and two more zeroes against the Dodgers, earning the victory in each game.  Unfortunately for Sisk, all of those brilliant efforts took place on the road.  When he returned with his teammates to Flushing, those games in Atlanta, Chicago, San Francisco and Los Angeles were distant memories for throaty Mets fans.

For the second straight year, the Mets fell short in their quest for a division title, making them more determined to advance to the postseason in 1986.  Also determined to recover from his worst season in the majors was Doug Sisk.  In late September 1985, Sisk was found to have bone chips in his right elbow and was thought to be lost for a significant part of the '86 campaign, if not all of it.  The bone chips, as well as a spur that was found in his pitching elbow, were the reason why Sisk did not pitch well in 1985.

"I kept mentioning all year that I wasn't right," Sisk said.  "I wasn't getting any leverage.  They thought I was a mental case.  They had me throwing sidearm in the bullpen.  Sidearm.  And I sat for 18 days, twice.  I was scared."

Despite a prognosis that cautioned against any pitching-related activities, Sisk spent the off-season swimming and chopping wood back home in Tacoma.  He then did some soft tossing, with his wife serving as his catcher.  Defying the odds, Sisk was back with the team in 1986 before Memorial Day.

Although Sisk got off to a bumpy start, posting a 4.02 ERA over his first 18 appearances, this time the heat of the summer brought back his effectiveness.  From July 29 to September 21, Sisk was one of the best relievers in baseball, posting a stellar 1.02 ERA in 35⅓ innings, while holding opposing hitters to a .238 batting average and .628 OPS.  However, fans still found the need to mercilessly boo Sisk despite his solid recovery from an awful 1985 campaign, causing Johnson to use him primarily when the team was trailing.  Johnson also tried not to use Sisk in games played at Shea Stadium, especially after the All-Star Break.  Once players returned from the mid-season hiatus, Sisk pitched just seven times in his home park until the Mets clinched the division title on September 17.  In the postseason, Sisk did not allow a run in two appearances.  But of course, both of those outings came in mop-up duty, as he pitched the final innings of games the Mets lost.

For the season, Sisk lowered his ERA by more than two runs, finishing the year with a 3.06 mark.  He also didn't allow a single home run in 70⅔ innings - not even to a future Hall of Fame slugger.  How unusual has it been over the years to pitch that many innings for the Mets and not give up a single long ball?

Without baseball-reference.com generating this chart for me, you'd still be booing Doug Sisk.

Since coming into the league in 1962, only five Mets pitchers have thrown at least 30 innings in a season without allowing a home run.  The only one to surpass 36⅓ innings in a tater-free campaign was Sisk in 1986, and he pitched almost twice as many innings as the next closest gopherless pitcher.

It's been more than half a century since the Mets played their inaugural season.  Since then, only ten pitchers have thrown more innings in a season than Sisk without allowing a single ball to leave the yard, as detailed in the chart below.

I wonder if the other pitchers on this list had to put up with constant boos from their home crowd.

The Mets failed to repeat as world champions in 1987, but Sisk had another solid season.  He pitched 78 innings - his highest regular season total since his fabulous 1983 campaign - and posted a 3.46 ERA.  He also walked just 22 batters, averaging 2.5 walks per nine innings, which was the lowest ratio of his career.

When the Mets were battling it out with the St. Louis Cardinals for the division title in September, it wasn't Sisk who gave up the crushing, season-changing homer to Terry Pendleton.  That was Roger McDowell.  And when New York was still mathematically alive during the last week of the season, Sisk wasn't on the mound giving up a walk-off blast to light-hitting pinch-hitter Luis Aguayo.  That was Jesse Orosco.  In fact, from August 31 until the end of the season, Sisk pitched ten times and recorded a 2.08 ERA.  Even more impressive was the slash line against him, as opposing hitters could only manage a .208/.240/.229 mark in those ten appearances spanning 13 innings.

The Mets used three relievers in high-leverage situations in 1987 (McDowell, Orosco and rookie Randy Myers).  McDowell finished the year with a 4.16 ERA, while Orosco's ERA ballooned to 4.44.  Myers, who finished sixth in the N.L. Rookie of the Year vote, had the lowest ERA of the three, but it was still a relatively high 3.96 mark.  And that was still half a run higher than the ERA posted by Sisk, who was traded to Baltimore at the end of the season.

Doug Sisk was a Met for six seasons.  He had a rough patch against the division-winning Cubs in 1984, but was mostly stellar against the rest of the league.  He admittedly had a difficult year in 1985, but an elbow injury was later revealed to be the reason for his ineffectiveness.  Still, fans viewed him as a scapegoat, booing him just about every time he stepped on the mound at Shea Stadium during the final three-and-a-half seasons of his tenure in New York.

They booed the owner of 3.10 lifetime ERA as a Met, which is tied for the seventh-lowest mark for all pitchers who threw at least 400 innings in franchise history.  Other pitchers in the top ten include Tom Seaver (2.57), Jesse Orosco (2.73), R.A. Dickey (2.95), Jon Matlack (3.03), Jerry Koosman (3.09) and Dwight Gooden (3.10).  Those pitchers were either Cy Young Award winners, Rookie of the Year Award recipients or pitchers who recorded final outs in the World Series for the Mets.  In other words, Sisk is in good company.

In addition, the man who was on the receiving end of the fans' vitriol during the latter part of his career allowed just 11 home runs in 412⅓ innings during his time with the Mets.  That's an average of 0.24 homers per nine innings - the lowest of any pitcher with at least 400 innings in club annals.  The only other hurler with a ratio under 0.50 is Roger McDowell.  The ten players directly behind Sisk on this list include the usual suspects - Seaver, Koosman, Matlack, Gooden, Orosco - as well as other notable pitchers like Nolan Ryan, Bob Ojeda and David Cone.

Three world champion relievers.  Only one was booed regularly.  (NY Daily News Archive/Getty Images)

The 1985 season happened for Sisk.  It can't be erased.  But the other five years he was in New York, he pitched to a 2.63 ERA and held his opponents to a .248 batting average and .656 OPS.  He did this despite the fact that he wasn't a strikeout pitcher and had his share of walks when hitters were able to lay off his sinker.  But once a player is disliked in New York, he's always disliked in New York, even if his full résumé suggests that the hatred is unwarranted.

Doug Sisk experienced everything after being signed by the Mets in 1980.  He made his way through the minor league ranks quickly.  He joined Jesse Orosco to become a force in the bullpen just as the Mets were shedding their losing ways.  He was part of a world championship team.  But he couldn't get the fans on his side, no matter how hard he tried.  When his then-fiancee asked him why he didn't do anything about the constant derision, he only had one response.

"I can't beat up 60,000 fans."

Richie Hebner heard it from Mets fans.  Bobby Bonilla did, too.  The slow, rising crescendo of fans voicing their displeasure is enough to run the toughest players out of New York.  But not every player deserves that kind of treatment.  And certainly, a player who is a significant part of a team's rise to contention, culminating in an eventual championship, shouldn't have to be subjected to that kind of vocal negativity.

But that's what Sisk had to put up with for several years as a Met.  And unjust as it may be, that's also what he has had to deal with ever since he played his final game in New York.  Such is the agony of Doug Sisk, a player who wanted nothing more than to cherish being part of a victorious team accomplishment.

 

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

 
 

The Mets Set A Timely Record This Weekend

On Friday night (and Saturday morning), the Mets and Phillies took part in a 5-hour, 23 minute marathon that wasn't decided until the bottom of the 14th inning, when the Phillies walked off with a 6-5 victory.  As tiring as that game was for its participants and the fans, that was just the opening act for yesterday's affair.  Once again, the Mets and Phillies played a 14-inning affair, but this time they needed five hours and 32 minutes to decide a victor.  The Mets pulled out a 5-4 win by scoring a run in the top of the 14th and keeping the Phillies from crossing the plate in the bottom of the inning.

Two games, 28 innings, 10 hours and 55 minutes of game time.  It's almost enough to make even the biggest baseball lover put up the white flag.

So of course, with me being a numbers geek (so I've been told), I decided to see if the Mets had ever played back-to-back games of 14 innings or more.  I also fiddled around to find out if they had ever played consecutive five-hour games and if they had ever needed nearly 11 hours to complete two straight games, regardless of how many innings they needed to play those games.

Kids, we're looking at history here with these last two games.

Wake up, Mets fans!  You're missing out on history!  (Photo by Chuck Solomon/SI)

Prior to Friday and Saturday, the Mets had played consecutive games of 14 innings or more just once in their history.  That occurred on September 7 and September 8, 1979, when the Mets hosted the eventual World Series champion Pittsburgh Pirates at Shea Stadium.  On September 7, the Mets and Bucs played a 14-inning affair that ended in an 6-4 victory for Pittsburgh.  The Mets could have won the game in the 11th, but failed to score after loading the bases with no outs.  Pittsburgh won it when Mets third baseman Richie Hebner committed an error on what should have been the third out of the inning.  The Pirates took advantage of Hebner's gaffe, scoring on a single by Dave Parker and a passed ball by Alex Treviño, who caught all 14 innings.  No wonder long-time Mets fans hate Richie Hebner to this day.

Pittsburgh tied the September 7 game by scoring a run in the top of the eighth.  The next day, they scored twice in the eighth to knot the score again.  This time, the squads needed 15 innings until one team tasted victory.  Fortunately, the Mets did not have to endure a dual dose of defeat, as John Stearns singled home Lee Mazzilli with two outs in the bottom of the 15th inning to give the Mets a 3-2 victory.

Both games were played rather quickly, with the 14-inning game lasting three hours and 45 minutes and the 15-inning affair taking four hours and 18 minutes to complete.  Clearly, neither game approached the length of the two affairs played by the Mets and Phillies over the last two days.  But several consecutive games in the team's early days did.

The Mets didn't play the first five-hour game in team history until May 31, 1964, when they needed a record seven hours and 23 minutes to play a 23-inning game against the San Francisco Giants, a game they lost, 8-6.  That marathon was the second game of a doubleheader.  Fortunately, the first game lasted just two hours and 29 minutes, meaning the teams played the two games in under ten hours.  On June 2, 1964, the Mets played their first game after the 23-inning affair, taking a tidy two hours and 38 minutes to defeat the Houston Colt .45s by the final score of 7-4.  That means the Mets needed ten hours and one minute to play back-to-back games, the first time they had ever surpassed ten hours of playing time in consecutive games.

In 1968, the played another endless game, needing 24 innings before falling to Houston by a 1-0 count.  That game lasted six hours and six minutes.  However, neither the game preceding it nor the game immediately after the tense snoozefest made it to the three-hour mark, meaning the ten-hour, one-minute record for consecutive games was still intact.

The Mets did not play their third 5+ hour affair until 1973, when they took a 7-3, 19-inning decision over the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium.  Their next five-hour game took place a year later, when the Mets played a team-record 25-inning game at Shea Stadium against the St. Louis Cardinals.  The game took seven hours and four minutes to complete.  The following night, the Cardinals and Mets needed two hours and 57 minutes to play nine innings, giving them a record-tying ten hours and one minute of playing time for two straight games.  But the Mets still had not played back-to-back five-hour games.

After their 1974 marathon, New York played a handful of five-hour games.  They played exactly five hours in a 1979 game against Houston (an 18-inning loss) and competed for five hours and one minute versus San Diego in 1980 (another 18-inning loss).  The Mets played two five-plus hour games in 1985 and they actually won them both.  Of course, who can forget Fireworks Night in Atlanta on July 4 (and 5), when the Mets neeeded six hours and ten minutes to end the 19-inning rain-soaked slugfest?  That memorable game took place two months after New York claimed an 18-inning affair against Pittsburgh in five hours and 21 minutes.

The Mets came close to playing back-to-back five-hour games in 1986, when they lost to Houston in 15 innings on July 20 and defeated Cincinnati in a fight-filled 14-inning contest two nights later.  Both games lasted at least five hours.  However, the Mets played a game in three hours and seven minutes on July 21, making that game the meat in a five-hour marathon sandwich.  Those were two of the three five-hour matches the Mets played in their storybook 1986 campaign, as they played a long-since forgotten five hour and three minute game on April 12, when they lost in 14 innings to the Phillies.

From 1987 to 2012, the Mets played a total of 11 five-hour games, which includes Game 5 of the 1999 NLCS against the Braves and Game 3 of the 2000 NLDS versus the Giants.  Then in 2013, the Mets played five such games, including a notorious 20-inning affair against the Marlins on June 8 that took six hours and 25 minutes to complete.  The following day, the two teams squared off again and played another extra-inning contest.  However, that game ended in ten innings, taking three hours and 35 minutes to complete.  Still, it was the third time in franchise history that the Mets needed at least ten hours to play consecutive games.  But they still hadn't played back-to-back five-hour games.

Then May 30 and May 31, 2014 happened.  And history was made at Citizens Bank Park.  This tweet by yours truly says it all.

Congratulations, #Mets fans! You're watching history! This is the first time the team has played back-to-back games of five hours or more!
— Ed Leyro (@Studi_Metsimus) May 31, 2014

It took until the team's 53rd season, but they had finally done it.  At last, the team played consecutive games in which each contest took over five hours to complete.  And by playing a total of ten hours and 55 minutes over the two days and nights, the Mets shattered the team record of ten hours and one minute needed to play two straight games.  That record was first set in 1964 and then matched ten years later.

As the old adage goes, "You win some, you lose some."  That's exactly what the Mets did over the last two days.  They lost a game to the Phillies on Friday night (and Saturday morning) and then followed it up by defeating Philadelphia in their next game.  But they needed forever and a day (and some of the evening) to win one and lose one against their division rivals.

Baseball is beautiful because the game is not timed, unlike the other major team sports.  But just because there's no clock attached to it doesn't mean time is completely ignored.  If it was, then you wouldn't have just found out that the Mets just played back-to-back five-hour games for the first time in team history and needed nearly 11 hours to do so.  You also might not have known that it was just the second time in club annals that they needed to play 14 or more innings in consecutive games.

The Mets never make things easy for their fans.  But they do make things fun.  That's assuming you have the time for it.

Players Who Led The Mets In Unexpected Categories

When you think of the greatest home run hitters in Mets history, Darryl Strawberry, Mike Piazza, David Wright and Dave Kingman come to mind.  Similarly, no list of great Mets starting pitchers or relief pitchers can be generated without a mention of Tom Seaver, Dwight Gooden, Jerry Koosman, Jesse Orosco and John Franco.

All of those players led the team in several hitting and pitching categories over the years.  But what about those players who led the team in unexpected categories - categories they weren't known for as hitters or pitchers?  What about players who were never above-average at anything, but were fortunate to have one great season or two in a particular category?  And don't forget the handful of players who were strongly disliked by Mets fans, but still managed to lead the team in something other than boos.

Today, we'll discuss a dozen of those players.  You'll be educated.  You'll be amazed.  You'll be awestruck.  (But you'll probably still boo those players who you always booed in the past.)  Let's begin!

Johnny Lewis leads the 1965 Mets in runs scored

In 1965, the Mets were in their fourth year of existence, but they were still looking and playing like an expansion team.  After upping their win total in 1963 and 1964, the Mets regressed in 1965, losing 112 games.  The Mets also lost their manager as well, as the charismatic Casey Stengel was forced to retire as the team's skipper due to a hip injury.  But one bright spot on the 1965 team was the play of outfielder Johnny Lewis.

Lewis was playing in his first season with the Mets after being traded to New York by the St. Louis Cardinals following the 1964 campaign.  Through late July, Lewis was the best player on the team.  In just 81 starts, Lewis was batting .260 with 14 homers, 37 RBI and 49 runs scored.  He also was among the league leaders in outfield assists, finishing the year with 14.  But once Wes Westrum replaced the injured Casey Stengel as manager, Lewis' performance suffered.  Over the last two months of the season, Lewis batted .219 with just one homer, eight RBI and 15 runs scored in 53 games.  Despite his two-month post-Stengel slump, Lewis still managed to lead the Mets in runs scored with 64.

Lewis' run total in 1965 represented approximately two-thirds of the times he crossed the plate in his career, as he played in three other seasons in the majors and managed to score a total of 33 runs in those campaigns.

Honorable mention goes to Joel Youngblood, who paced the 1979 Mets with 90 runs scored.  Although he played 14 seasons in the big leagues, averaging over 100 games played per season, Youngblood finished his career with 453 runs scored (an average of 39.5 runs per season) and never scored more than 59 runs in any other season.

Ted Martinez leads the 1972 and 1974 Mets in triples

Players with good speed and an ability to hit the ball in the power alleys or down the right field line usually rack up their share of triples.  Ted Martinez played nine seasons in the big leagues without ever showing much speed (29 career stolen bases) or an ability to get hits that weren't singles (50 doubles, 16 triples, seven home runs).  But somehow he managed to lead the Mets in three-base hits twice.

In 1972, Martinez hit played six defensive positions for the Mets as their utility man.  He didn't hit much (.224 batting average) or walk much (.254 on-base percentage), but he did find a way to collect a team-leading five triples, one more than Bud Harrleson and Jim Fregosi.  What makes his feat all the more impressive is that Martinez only hit five doubles all season to go with his five triples.

Two years later, Martinez once again became an unexpected triples machine, leading the team with a career-high seven three-baggers despite posting a lower batting average (.219) and on-base percentage (.247) than he did when he was the team's triples leader in 1972.  Martinez had no real challenge to the team lead as Wayne Garrett finished second on the team with three triples.  His time as a top triples producer ended almost as soon as it began, as Martinez didn't collect another three-base hit until 1977 as a member of the Dodgers.

Dave Kingman leads the 1975 Mets in stolen bases

In the mid-'70s and early '80s, no Mets fan left his or her seat whenever Dave Kingman stepped up to the plate.  Prior to his arrival in New York in 1975, no Met had ever hit as many as 35 homers in a single season.  Kingman surpassed that total three times in Flushing, including a 37-HR campaign in 1982, when he became the Mets' first home run champion.  Kingman left the Mets after the 1983 season as the team's all-time home run leader with 154.  But his first season in New York saw him lead the team in something other than homers.

Kingman stole a team-leading seven bases for the Mets in 1975, a year that saw the club steal a league-low 32 bases.  None of Kingman's teammates stole more than four bases in 1975.  Kingman was also the only Met to reach double digits in stolen base attempts, as he was caught stealing five times in 12 tries.  Gene Clines was second on the team with eight attempts.

The Sky King was the Steals King in 1975, proving that he was more than just a home run and strikeout machine for the Mets.  But in reality, what it really proved was that the Mets were a station-to-station team, depending on their excellent pitching and ability to hit home runs (the team finished sixth in the league in homers) to claw out victories.

Richie Hebner leads the 1979 Mets in RBI

After suffering through their second consecutive losing season in 1978, the Mets felt the need to upgrade their offense. To do so, they traded one of their best starting pitchers, Nino Espinosa, to the Philadelphia Phillies for veteran third baseman Richie Hebner.  Although Hebner had hit 156 homers prior to coming to the Mets in 1979, he had never driven in as many as 75 runs in a season until his one year in Flushing.  But if you ask Hebner, he would have gladly traded that first 75-RBI campaign for a ticket out of the Big Apple.  In other words, let's just say John Rocker enjoyed his short stays in New York more than Hebner did.

Despite his disdain for the Big Apple, Hebner actually performed fairly well for the Mets.  The surly slugger hit .268 with 25 doubles, 10 homers and 79 RBI.  Although he only played in 136 games (five of his teammates played 150+ games), Hebner tied Lee Mazzilli for the team lead in RBI.  Hebner was also one of the team's best clutch hitters, batting .308 with men on base and .310 with a runner on third and less than two out.  He also fared well against division rivals, batting an even .300 (87-for-290) versus NL East pitchers.

Hebner was not long for New York, as his insensitive comments were hurting the team more than his bat was helping it.  Just days after the 1979 World Series ended, Hebner was traded to the Detroit Tigers and Elliott Maddox became the Mets' third baseman until top prospect and fan favorite Hubie Brooks was ready to take over the position in September.  Boos for third basemen stopped soon after Brooks' promotion.

Mark Bomback leads the 1980 Mets in wins

From 1971 to 1978, Mark Bomback was a minor leaguer in the Milwaukee Brewers organization.  In those eight seasons, his major league experience consisted of one start and one relief appearance.  But Bomback couldn't crack the Brewers' starting rotation in 1979, even after a career year at the Triple-A level in which he went 22-7 with a 2.56 ERA.  The Brewers traded Bomback to the Mets after the 1979 season and he was immediately given a chance to succeed in New York.

Bomback began the 1980 campaign in the bullpen, making three relief appearances in April before earning his first start on April 23.  Bomback was superb against the Phillies in that start, earning his first major league victory.  He was even better in his next start (also against the Phillies), as he pitched a complete-game two-hit shutout against the eventual World Series champions.

The Mets were marketing that "the magic was back" at Shea Stadium, and part of that magic came from the right arm of Mark Bomback.  Bomback won nine of his first 12 decisions in 1980, as the Mets made a surprising run at the .500 mark in mid-July.  But Bomback faded down the stretch, and his career came crashing down soon after.  Although Bomback led the team with ten victories in 1980, it was his only year with the Mets.  Bomback pitched three other seasons in the big leagues, making 20 starts and 18 relief appearances.  He was the winning pitcher in just six of those 38 appearances.

Pete Falcone leads the '80 and '82 Mets in strikeouts

Pete Falcone was drafted by the San Francisco Giants with the fourth overall pick in the 1973 June amateur draft.  Two years later, he won 12 games as a rookie with the Giants and won 12 more as a Cardinal in his sophomore season in the majors.  But St. Louis gave up on Falcone after he combined to post a 6-15 record with a 5.56 ERA in 1977 and 1978.  After surpassing 130 strikeouts in each of his first two seasons in the majors, Falcone's final season in St. Louis saw him strike out only 28 batters in 75 innings.  As a result, the Cardinals traded him to the Mets following the 1978 campaign.

Falcone posted a 26-37 record during his four-year tenure with the Mets, but his 3.91 ERA showed the lack of run support he got in New York.  Although he wasn't a dominant strikeout pitcher, Falcone led the team in strikeouts twice.  He needed just 109 strikeouts in 1980 and 101 strikeouts in 1982 to lead the team - the lowest totals for a team strikeout leader in a non-strike shortened season.  Ironically, neither total was Falcone's career high as a Met.  The lefty from Brooklyn's Lafayette High School (which also produced fellow southpaws Sandy Koufax and John Franco) fanned 113 batters for the Mets in 1979, which was second on the team to Craig Swan's 145 Ks.

How low were Falcone's team-leading strikeout totals in 1980 and 1982?  They were fewer than the 128 whiffs posted by Armando Benitez in relief in 1999.  Yeah, that low.  Falcone finished his ten-year big league career in 1984, having struck out just 865 batters despite making 217 starts and 108 relief appearances.  In four years with the Mets, Falcone pitched in 145 games (86 starts) striking out 379 batters, or three fewer than fellow Lafayette alum Koufax fanned in 1965 alone.

Anthony Young leads the 1992 Mets in saves

Mention Anthony Young's name to any long-time Mets fan and they'll tell you that his full name should have been Anthony L. Young since the letter "L" was seen next to his name in the boxscore quite often in 1992 and 1993.  But Young was more than just a hard-luck loser for the Mets in that awful Jeff Torborg era.  He actually was a team leader in a positive pitching category, as he tied John Franco for the team lead in saves in 1992 with 15.

After losing eight consecutive decisions as a starter in May and June, manager Jeff Torborg decided to give Young a chance as a closer, becoming the right-handed portion of a lefty-righty closer combo with John Franco.  The move seemed to pay off, as Young did not give a run in 20 straight appearances in July and August, recording nine saves and two holds along the way.  But Young was atrocious in September, blowing five saves and adding five losses to what became a major league record 27-game losing streak.  He would only save three more games as a Met following the 1992 season.

Young's 5-35 won-loss record is the worst for any Mets pitcher with 40 or more decisions in franchise history, but he truly wasn't a bad pitcher, posting a 3.82 ERA in 101 appearances.  And he also accomplished something that wasn't surpassed by a Met in over two decades, as no homegrown Met saved more than 15 games after Young did in 1992 until Bobby Parnell recorded 22 saves for the Mets in 2013.

Desi Relaford leads the 2001 Mets in batting and SB

On a team that was coming off a World Series appearance and featured Mike Piazza, Robin Ventura, Todd Zeile and Edgardo Alfonzo, it was Desi Relaford who led the team in batting average (.302) and stolen bases (13).  Relaford also nearly led the team in doubles, as his 27 two-baggers were second to Piazza's 29.  The 2001 campaign also saw Relaford finish second on the team to Piazza in slugging percentage (.472) and OPS (.836).  Relaford's .364 on-base percentage was tied for second with Benny Agbayani.

If leading the team in two offensive categories (and nearly leading the club in several others) wasn't enough for the utility infielder, Relaford also pitched a perfect inning of relief on May 17, 2001, striking out the first batter he faced on three pitches and inducing two fly ball outs from the next two batters.  It was the best pitching performance by a position player in Mets history.

Relaford played a total of 11 years in the big leagues and never had as complete a season as he had in only 340 plate appearances in 2001.  He finished his career with a .243 batting average, 147 doubles and 81 steals, averaging 12 doubles and seven stolen bases per season in the years prior to and after 2001.

Timo Perez leads the '02 Mets in doubles and triples

The Mets entered the 2002 season with high expectations and a plethora of new players, as newcomers Mo Vaughn, Jeromy Burnitz and Roberto Alomar joined veteran returnees Mike Piazza and Edgardo Alfonzo.  On paper, that team should have produced many extra-base hits.  But none of those players led the team in doubles in 2002.  Similarly, none of them led the team in triples.  But like Ted Martinez before him, the team leader in three-base hits (and two-base hits) was a versatile player with little power, not much speed and an aversion to drawing ball four.

Timo Perez was a cult hero for the Mets during their run to the World Series in 2000.  But he never lived up to the potential he showed during September and October of their pennant-winning campaign.  By 2002, he was playing almost every day, mainly because outfielders Roger Cedeño, Jay Payton and Jeromy Burnitz either underperformed or were injured.  As a result, Perez managed to collect 27 doubles and six triples in 136 games, leading the team in both categories despite being eighth on the Mets in plate appearances.

Perez played seven other seasons in the major leagues, but was only able to collect 64 doubles and four triples in those seven campaigns.  He also collected two other things in those seven seasons - World Series rings - as Perez was a member of the 2005 White Sox and 2006 Cardinals, playing a total of 99 games between the two championship teams.

Jason Phillips leads the '03 Mets in batting average

To many Mets fans, Jason Phillips was primarily known for two things.  He, along with Vance Wilson, was one of the catchers who allowed Mike Piazza to move to first base on a full-time basis (temporarily) and he was also known for the goggles he wore as a hitter.  But those goggles did the trick for Phillips in 2003, as he did what Piazza did regularly for the Mets for many years - he led the team in hitting.

When Mo Vaughn was lost to what became a career-ending injury, Phillips took over at first base, even though he was primarily a catcher.  Phillips was just so-so a hitter through June 16, batting .242 and giving no indication that he was going to compete for a batting title.  For a two-month stretch from mid-June to mid-August, Phillips produced a Piazza-esque .364/.420/.531 slash line.  Phillips was hitting .316 as late as September 7 before a slump over the last three weeks of the season caused his batting average to fall below .300.  However, his .298 average was the highest of all the regular players on the 2003 squad.  (Jose Reyes batted .307, but he only played in 69 games.)

Phillips was never able to repeat his 2003 success in ensuing seasons.  His average dropped 80 points to .218 as the Mets' primary catcher in 2004.  He played three more seasons in the majors for the Dodgers and Blue Jays after 2004, never hitting above .250 in any of those seasons.  His post-2003 batting average was just .227.

Kaz Matsui leads the 2004 Mets in hits, 2B and 3B

In a move that generated much pomp and circumstance in two countries, former Japanese League All-Star (and hot dog) Kaz Matsui became the first infielder from Japan to sign a major league contract when he agreed to a three-year deal in 2004 to play shortstop for the Mets, despite the team already having 20-year-old Jose Reyes playing the position.  Reyes, who only had half a season of major league experience under his belt, moved to second base for the 2004 campaign to allow Matsui to take over his former (and future) position.

Matsui, a former 30-30 player in Japan, couldn't reach 30 homers or 30 steals in two and a half seasons as a Met, totaling 11 homers and 22 steals from 2004 to 2006.  But somehow, amid the growing crescendo of boos emanating from every level of Shea Stadium, Matsui was the team leader in a number of offensive categories in his rookie season, despite missing 43 games in August and September due to an injury.

Although he only played in 114 games in 2004, Matsui led the team in hits (125), doubles (32) and tied for the team lead in triples (2).  The whole team had just 20 triples, or one fewer than Lance Johnson had by himself in 1996.  Matsui's numbers were good enough to make him finish sixth in the Rookie of the Year vote, behind future All-Stars Jason Bay and Matt Holliday.  But in the years following his rookie campaign, Matsui's career veered more toward Bay than Holliday.  By mid-2006, Matsui had played himself out of New York, as the infielder was traded to Colorado, where he enjoyed a wonderful postseason (.304 batting average, five extra-base hits, eight RBI in 11 games) during the Rockies' run to an unexpected World Series berth.

Daniel Murphy leads the 2009 Mets in home runs

When he was first called up to the Mets in 2008, Daniel Murphy was known as a hard-working player who could hit to all fields with extra-base power.  However, he was not much of a home run hitter.  In fact, in his first four seasons with the Mets, Murphy hit more than six homers just once.  But that one season came in 2009, when everyone and his mother ended up checking in to the DL Hotel.

Only three players had more than 380 plate appearances for the Mets in 2009.  One of them was Luis Castillo, who made jaws drop whenever he hit a ball that hit the outfield fence on three hops.  Another was David Wright, who took some time to get adjusted to Citi Field's pitcher-friendly dimensions.  Wright hit a career-low 10 homers in 144 games.  Castillo and Wright both made short visits to the disabled list.  Daniel Murphy did not, playing in all but seven games in 2009.

On a team that had Carlos Delgado, Carlos Beltran, Gary Sheffield and Jeff Francoeur on its roster at various points of the season, Murphy was the only one to hit more than ten homers.  He needed five long balls in September to take over the team lead, but his 12 homers for the year were good enough to make him "Daniel Murphy, Home Run Machine" for one season.

The Mets That Got Away: Jeff Kent

There have been countless players who were drafted by the Mets or made their major league debuts wearing orange and blue.  Some of these players became very successful in New York (Tom Seaver, David Wright), while others saw their careers fizzle once they made it to the majors (Bill Pulsipher, Paul Wilson).

There have also been quite a few players who weren't necessarily drafted by the Mets, but established themselves as major leaguers in New York.  However, some of these players fell short of expectations and were later shipped off to another team, becoming stars for their new employers.  One such player is Jeff Kent.

In 1992, the Mets acquired Kent from Toronto in a much-maligned trade for David Cone.  Cone went on to win the World Series that year as a Blue Jay, then won a ring for each of his other four fingers as a member of the Yankees.  Jeff Kent, on the other hand, never got to experience a winning season in New York.

Although Kent was producing offensive numbers the Mets had never seen before at the second base position, he wasn't about to replace David Cone in the hearts of Mets fans.  Couple that with the fact that Kent was a loner in a city where no one is ever left alone and you have the recipe for a future trade.  And that's exactly what happened four years after the Mets first acquired Kent.  This time, a change in scenery did wonders for Kent's career.

Jeff Kent's cap didn't fit him in New York, just as New York wasn't a good fit for Jeff Kent.

Jeffrey Franklin Kent was not a top prospect when he was drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 1989 June amateur draft.  Drafted as a shortstop in the 20th round, Kent was a good, but not great, prospect.  From 1989 to 1991, Kent showed decent pop in the minors, collecting 80 doubles and 41 homers.  He also showed he could steal a base or two, swiping 47 bags.  However, he had a penchant for striking out (283 Ks in 1,160 at-bats) and combined to hit .256 during those three seasons.

Despite his shortcomings at the plate, Kent was invited to spring training with the Blue Jays in 1992.  A torrid spring allowed Kent to make the team, even though he didn't have a regular position to play.  After being drafted as a shortstop, Kent played mostly second base and third base in the minors.  But Kent was blocked at each position at the major league level by two Gold Glove-winning All-Stars in Roberto Alomar and Kelly Gruber.  Kent also dabbled a little at first base but was blocked there by future batting champion John Olerud.

Kent played sparingly during his rookie season in Toronto, starting 52 of the team's first 126 games.  The ample bench time dashed Kent's confidence at the plate, as the infielder was held to a .240 batting average in 192 at-bats.  With the Blue Jays trying to win the AL East, they weren't about to give a rookie extended playing time.  At the same time, they needed another arm in the rotation if they wanted to make a serious run at the World Series, a place they had never been even though they had won three division titles in seven years.  Enter the New York Mets.

In 1991, the Mets completed their first losing season in eight years, causing them to retool their roster with former All-Stars.  Gone were most of the players from the mid-to-late '80s teams, replaced by veterans such as Eddie Murray, Bobby Bonilla and Bret Saberhagen.  But when those players didn't help the Mets return to prominence, the team realized that it had spent too much money and had gotten nothing in return.  Therefore, the front office decided that if a player's contract was about to expire, especially a player who was due to earn a large sum of money in free agency, that player was going to be traded.  One of the casualties of that new edict was David Cone.

In his five-plus seasons with the Mets, Cone had become one of the most dominant pitchers in the National League.  He became only the fourth pitcher in franchise history to post a 20-win season in 1988 and won two league strikeout titles in 1990 and 1991.  In 1992, as September approached and postseason rosters were due to be set, Cone was gunning for his third consecutive strikeout crown.  But he was also gunning for a big payday as a free agent, and the Mets were not about to dole out another huge contract while the team was in the midst of another losing season.  Cone never got to win that third National League strikeout crown, as he was traded to Toronto for Jeff Kent and outfielder Ryan Thompson.

The Coneheads at Shea Stadium were not happy with the deal, as their favorite son was going north of the border for two players who weren't on anyone's radar.  Kent didn't help things either.  He never went out of his way to endear himself to the fans and he also didn't earn the respect of his teammates, especially when he didn't go along with the rookie hazing that has become a tradition in baseball clubhouses.  Kent raised a ruckus in the clubhouse when his clothes were taken from him and replaced with apparel only a rookie's mother could love.  Kent went on to say:

"I paid my rookie dues in Toronto.  I feel I have endured my embarrassments, my punishment.  I felt I was being taken advantage of.  They wanted to go overboard.  I stuck up for myself.  I won't be pushed around."

Ordinarily, it would be a good thing to hear a player say that he won't be anyone's patsy.  But normally, that player is referring to someone on an opposing team, not a teammate who is sharing locker space with him.  Needless to say, Jeff Kent wasn't the most popular player in the clubhouse after making those remarks.  Kent also wasn't becoming a fan favorite at Shea Stadium, as he batted .239 with three homers and 15 RBIs in 113 at-bats following the trade.

The 1993 season saw Kent finally establish himself as a major leaguer.  Kent set team records for second baseman by blasting 21 homers and driving in 80 runs.  But although he was hitting with power, he did not have very good plate discipline (88 Ks, 30 BB).  Kent was also a horrible fielder.  He led the league in errors by a second baseman (18) despite playing only 127 games at the position.  Still, it was hard to get on him for his defense, especially when he was becoming one of the team's most productive hitters.

In the strike-shortened 1994 campaign, Kent led the Mets in batting average (.292), hits (121), doubles (24), triples (5) and RBIs (68).  He also hit 14 home runs while playing 107 games at second base.  But that wasn't the only thing he had 14 of.  Once again, Kent played atrocious defense, making 14 errors at second base to tie for the league lead with the Marlins' Bret Barberie.  But hey, at least he could still hit, right?

After two seasons of good hitting and poor fielding, Kent finally had a letdown at the plate in 1995.  And once he started to struggle as a hitter, all of his other flaws became that much more evident.  In 1994, Kent was one of the best hitters in baseball with runners in scoring position, posting a .385 average (40-for-104) in those situations.  Just a year later, he was one of the worst, batting a miserable .199 (27-for-136) in those pressure-packed at-bats.

As a result, Kent saw drops in his overall batting average, on-base percentage and slugging percentage.  He also had fewer doubles, triples and RBIs despite playing in 18 more games than he did in 1994.  Not by coincidence, fans finally started to notice that he couldn't play a lick at second base (even though he made only ten errors in 1995) and started too rain boos on Kent from every level at Shea Stadium.  The Mets also took notice and by 1996, Kent was the team's starting third baseman.

Jeff Kent's bubble had already burst at second base.  In 1996, his career as a Met popped as well.

The 1995 Mets finished the season strongly, going a league-best 34-18 over their last 52 games.  But the 1996 squad struggled out of the gate, losing ten of their first 14 games.  By mid-May, the Mets were already facing a double-digit deficit in the NL East standings.  Despite the career years being posted by players such as Todd Hundley, Bernard Gilkey and Lance Johnson, the Mets fell out of playoff contention before the All-Star Break.  Although most of the team's struggles were caused by the failures of the much-hyped Generation K pitching triumvirate, Jeff Kent received some of the blame as well.

Through early June, Kent was hitting .257 and his on-base percentage was hovering around .300.  Although Kent had hit 20+ home runs in two of his previous three seasons, he had only managed five round-trippers in his first 58 games and had a low RBI total (22) through June 7.  And this was from a player who spent most of May and June hitting fourth or fifth in the lineup.  Kent also did not adjust very well to his new position, committing 21 errors at the hot corner in only 89 games.  (Houston's Sean Berry led all National League third basemen with 22 errors, but he played 43 more games at the position than Kent.)

By the All-Star Break, it was clear that the Mets were going to be sellers instead of buyers at the trade deadline.  It was also clear that Jeff Kent had worn out his welcome in New York.  He was a good hitter, but was not very patient at the plate.  In four-plus seasons as a Met, Kent drew a mere 110 walks and struck out 346 times.  That and his inability to handle the media, his teammates and the city made it easy for the Mets to part ways with Kent, which they did on July 29 when they sent him and Jose Vizcaino to Cleveland for three-time All-Star Carlos Baerga and veteran infielder Alvaro Espinoza.

Espinoza played well as a Met, batting .306 in 48 games before signing with the Seattle Mariners as a free agent in 1997.  But Baerga, who averaged 19 HR and 97 RBIs as an Indian from 1992 to 1995, was a disappointment in New York, managing a total of 18 HR and 116 RBIs in 2½ seasons as a Met.  Jeff Kent managed to do a heck of a lot more.

After playing in 39 games with the Indians and getting his first taste of the postseason (Kent went 1-for-8 in Cleveland's four-game ALDS loss to the Baltimore Orioles), Kent was traded to the San Francisco Giants in a six-player deal that netted Cleveland perennial All-Star and Gold Glove winner Matt Williams.  With the Mets, Kent hit between guys like Carl Everett, Rico Brogna and Joe Orsulak.  As a Giant, Kent hit behind Barry Bonds and his .446 on-base percentage and in front of J.T. Snow and his career-high 28 HR and 104 RBIs.  Needless to say, Kent blossomed as a hitter in his new environment.

In 1997, Kent set career highs across the board, slamming 29 homers and driving in 121 runs.  He also collected 38 doubles and scored 90 runs.  Kent accomplished this despite a .250 batting average and 133 strikeouts.  By 1998, low batting averages and high strikeout rates had become a thing of the past.

In his second year with the Giants, Kent's power numbers continued to impress (37 doubles, 31 HR, 128 RBI).  But he had a marked improvement as a hitter, raising his batting average 47 points to .297, while striking out 23 fewer times than he did in 1997.  One year later, Kent became an All-Star for the first time, finishing the year with his third consecutive 100-RBI season and his first 40-double campaign.

Going into the 2000 season, Jeff Kent had already completed three phenomenal years in San Francisco.  Any one of those seasons could have been considered a career year for most players, especially for a middle infielder.  But the 1997 to 1999 campaigns were just a springboard for what Kent achieved in 2000.

Kent finished the year with a .334 batting average and .424 on-base percentage.  He also led the National League with 81 extra-base hits, collecting 41 doubles, seven triples and 33 home runs, while scoring 114 runs and driving in 125.  For his efforts, Kent was voted the National League's Most Valuable Player and earned his first Silver Slugger Award as the Giants went on to win the NL West crown with a league-best 97 wins.  Kent was in the playoffs for the third time in five seasons, but this time he was going to be facing the Mets.

After dropping the first game to the Giants in San Francisco, the Mets came back to win the next three games to take the NLDS in four games.  New York held the Giants to a .205 batting average in the series, but had a tough time figuring out Jeff Kent.  Kent batted .375 in the NLDS, leading the Giants with six hits and three runs scored.  He also produced the only hit in Bobby Jones' series-clinching one-hit shutout.

It was more of the same for Kent in 2001 (.298, 49 doubles, 22 HR, 106 RBI) and 2002 (.313, 42 doubles, 37 HR, 108 RBI).  In the latter season, Kent finally earned his first trip to the World Series, a hard-fought seven-game loss to the Anaheim Angels.  Kent hit three home runs in the Fall Classic.  He also scored six runs and led the team with seven runs batted in.  But Kent and teammate Barry Bonds (.471, four homers) couldn't prevent the Angels from taking Games 6 and 7, sending the Giants home without a World Series title.  Kent had fallen short of his goal to win a championship and was not going to get another chance to reach that goal in San Francisco.

Although Kent had had six incredibly productive seasons in San Francisco, the same problems that got him shipped out of New York in 1996 caused the Giants to let him walk as a free agent.  First, Kent lied to the team about a wrist injury he suffered in spring training, claiming it was caused while he was washing his truck when in reality, it happened while he was riding his motorcycle.  Second, he got into a dugout scuffle with Barry Bonds, who was the face of the franchise at the time.  Both incidents contributed greatly in the Giants' decision not to re-sign Kent.  Two months after Kent watched the Angels celebrate their World Series title, he signed a two-year, $18.2 million contract to play for the Houston Astros.

Injuries caused Kent to miss a month of action prior to the All-Star Break in 2003.  But he was still quite productive when he was healthy enough to play.  He finished his first year in Houston with a .297 average, 39 doubles, 22 homers and 93 RBIs.  However, the month he missed due to tendinitis in his left wrist caused him to finish under 100 RBIs for the first time since 1996.  It also dealt a serious blow to the Astros' playoff hopes.  Houston went 12-11 during Kent's time on the disabled list.  The team was 13 games over .500 when Kent was able to start.  Kent's injury was a major reason why the Astros failed to make the playoffs in 2003, as Houston finished one game behind the Chicago Cubs for the National League Central division title.

Kent started a new triple digit RBI streak in 2004, batting .289 with 27 HR and 107 RBIs for the Astros.  But this time Kent did not spend any time on the disabled list.  And when Houston needed a miracle finish to avoid falling short of the playoffs for a second straight season, Kent carried them to the promised land.

Former Mets Jeff Kent and Jose Vizcaino celebrate while Met-hating umpire Angel Hernandez looks on.  Shoot me now.

Going into the final week of the regular season, Houston's record stood at 85-70.  They were in third place in the National League wild card race, two games behind the Giants and 2½ games behind the Cubs.  But the Astros went on a tear, winning their last seven games to finish one game ahead of the Giants and three games in front of Chicago. 

Although Houston had MVP candidates Lance Berkman (.308, 1 HR, 4 RBI during the season-ending seven-game winning streak) and Carlos Beltran (.267, 0 HR, 2 RBI during the streak), it was Jeff Kent's bat that propelled the team during its run to the wild card.  Kent hit .444 (12-for-27) during the season's final week.  He slammed four homers (three of which gave Houston the lead), drove in eight runs and scored eight times.  Kent's RBI single in the regular season finale proved to be the winning run in the Astros' wild card-clinching victory.

Houston fell one win short of their first World Series appearance, losing to the St. Louis Cardinals in the NLCS.  But Kent did all he could to help the team make it to a seventh game, producing five extra-base hits (including a walk-off homer in Game 5) and seven RBIs in the series.  Once again, Kent bolted for a new team as soon as his contract expired, this time ending up in Los Angeles.

Kent had a productive first season as a Dodger in 2005, batting .289 with 36 doubles, 29 homers and 105 RBIs in 149 games.   But that would be the 37-year-old Kent's last great year in the major leagues.

In 2006, Kent had his least productive season since his final year in New York, collecting only 14 HR and 68 RBIs, while batting .292.  When Kent posted those exact numbers for the Mets in 1994, they were considered to be outstanding.  But they were considered subpar for a player who had already produced numerous 30 HR, 100 RBI seasons.  The only thing that wasn't subpar for Kent in 2006 was his performance in the postseason.  Just as he had done six years earlier as a member of the Giants, Kent took apart Mets pitching in the NLDS, batting .615 (8-for-13) in the series.  But once again, his exploits at the plate were not enough to defeat his former team, as the Mets swept Los Angeles to advance to the NLCS.  Kent did, however, take part in one of the most bizarre plays in the series in Game 1, when he and teammate J.D. Drew were both tagged out at home on the same play by Mets catcher Paul Lo Duca.

"Just your routine double play."

Kent played two more injury-riddled seasons in Los Angeles, averaging 16 HR and 69 RBIs in 2007 and 2008, before playing his final game in the big leagues in (you guessed it) a postseason loss.  The Dodgers advanced to the NLCS in 2008, but fell to the eventual World Series champion Phillies in five games.  Kent ended his career by going 0-for-8 with four strikeouts in the NLCS loss.

Jeff Kent was never supposed to accomplish much in the major leagues.  If he had, he wouldn't have been bypassed by every team until the Blue Jays selected him in the 20th round of the 1992 amateur draft.  But he proved the naysayers wrong, becoming one of the best hitting second basemen of all time.

Kent finished his 17-year career with 2,461 hits, which included 560 doubles and 377 home runs.  Kent's 351 homers as a second baseman (he hit 26 at other positions) make him the all-time home run leader at the position.  He also scored 1,320 runs and collected 1,518 RBIs.  Kent was a five-time All-Star, won four Silver Slugger Awards and received MVP votes in seven different seasons, which includes four top ten finishes and the 2002 National League MVP Award.

During a nine-year stretch from 1997 to 2005, Kent was one of the most productive hitters in baseball.  An average Kent season in his near-decade run of excellence consisted of a .296 batting average, 40 doubles, 28 home runs and 110 RBIs.  Kent also made the playoffs seven times in his career and excelled against the Mets in two postseason meetings, batting .483 (14-for-29) in the 2000 and 2006 Division Series versus New York. 

Finally, as a member of the San Francisco Giants, Kent put up some of the best power numbers in the franchise's long and storied history.  On a team that can claim Mel Ott, Willie Mays, Willie McCovey, Orlando Cepeda, Matt Williams and Barry Bonds, to name a few, Jeff Kent's name can be found on the team's all-time home run list (175 - 10th all-time in Giants history) and slugging percentage (.535 - tied for 5th with Orlando Cepeda).

Richie Hebner

In many ways, Jeff Kent was like a modern-day Richie Hebner.  Both players were frequent postseason participants, with Hebner's teams making the playoffs eight times and Kent appearing in seven postseasons.  Both players were also very vocal about their displeasure with the Mets and the city they played in.  But there was one major difference between Kent and Hebner.

Richie Hebner came to New York at the tail end of his career, after having played over a decade in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, winning multiple division titles with each team.  Jeff Kent became a Met during his rookie season in the major leagues, then went on to become one of the greatest hitting second basemen of all-time after he left the city he never cared for.

Had Jeff Kent never left New York, perhaps Edgardo Alfonzo wouldn't have become the legendary Met he became.  Perhaps the Mets wouldn't have signed Robin Ventura, who was so instrumental during the team's run to the 1999 NLCS and 2000 World Series.  Perhaps Mets history would have looked a lot different.  (Just think - had Kent not carried the Astros on his back during the final week of the 2004 regular season, then Carlos Beltran might never have reached the postseason that year and would not have gotten a chance to parlay a record-setting playoff performance into a nine-figure deal with the Mets.)

But Kent did leave New York.  And he became a superstar in San Francisco.

Sometimes Mets fans cringe when they think of great players the team let get away.  But in Jeff Kent's case, fans would have cringed had he stayed in New York.  Although Kent had a Hall of Fame-caliber career after he skipped town, his departure was probably the best thing that could have happened to both him and the Mets.  This is one Met that should have gotten away and did.  And everyone involved ended up better because of it.



Note:  The Mets That Got Away is a thirteen-part weekly series that spotlights those Mets players who established themselves as major leaguers in New York, only to become stars after leaving town.  For previous installments, please click on the players' names below:

January 7, 2013: Nolan Ryan
January 14, 2013: Melvin Mora  
January 21, 2013: Kevin Mitchell 
January 28, 2013: Amos Otis
February 4, 2013: Jeff Reardon
February 11, 2013: Lenny Dykstra