Billy Wagner
Being a New York Mets fan isn’t what it always was. The 1969 and 1986 Mets defined the organization as a team of what can be. Even the disappointments like 1973 and 1999 showed us that even in losses, the Mets organization is known for the potential miracles that can occur.
Maybe it started with Dwight Gooden missing the championship parade while sitting in a crack house. Maybe it was Kenny Rogers walking Andruw Jones with the bases loaded, or it could have been Todd Zeile’s ball getting stuck on the wall.
Frankly, it was probably the Wilpons getting sole ownership of the Mets organization. At some point, this Mets team went from miracles to Carlos Beltran striking out looking, the two collapses to close out Shea Stadium, and sadly, so much more.
In that vein, let’s try to rank out the Mets collapses. Just a fun little exercise for us Mets fans.
5. 2025 Collapse
This is the freshest, and it probably seems worse that it was. Actually, it is worse than it was, but this is being viewed through the prism of Mets history,
Unlike some of the other collapses, this was a a slow moving train. We all watched on with horror for months as this happened. This was the man getting run over by the roller in Austin Powers.
This collapse started in June with Griffin Canning went down. For months, this team was David Peterson and just four other guys in the rotation, and then Peterson lost it.
Yes, there was so much enthusiasm entering the season with the 2024 shocking run to the NLCS, and the Juan Soto signing. That all said this team was just snakebitten.
This team lost AJ Minter and Jesse Winker for the season. Sean Manaea and Kodai Senga were trying to pitch through injuries. The additions at this year’s trade deadline didn’t have the magic touch. Ultimately, that was it – the magic was gone.
Still on the last day of the season, they had a chance, and they again blew it. This was as bad as it gets, but not the worst it gets for the Mets.
4. 2007 Mets
Unlike most Mets collapses, the 2007 Mets were a case of the Philadelphia Phillies just took it from them. No doubt the Mets fell apart, but the Phillies played baseball at an insane clip instead of the Reds 14-11 September.
The issue with the 2007 is they just ran out of starting pitching. That final week of the season was David Williams and Phillip Humber start games. Billy Wagner was hurt, and Aaron Hellman was on whatever comes after fumes.
We didn’t realize it at the time, but Tom Glavine was pitching with a fork in his back. He was just done, and we saw the Miami Marlins take full advantage.
In reality, this collapse was sown in 2005 with Jeff Wilpon forcing Pedro Martinez to pitch. Also, like we saw with the 2025 Mets, this was a slow moving train as well.
The 2007 Mets slide began in June. From June 1 to the end of the season, they were 54-56. They were just an average team. It was just hard to see at the time, but we know it now. And, we knew it from what we would see the next season.
3. 1998 Mets
The 1997 Mets shocked baseball by somehow finishing with an 88-74 record. They attacked the offseason adding Al Leiter and Dennis Cook in addition to re-signing John Olerud.
They then made the big move by trading for Mike Piazza after Todd Hundley suffered an elbow injury. After some early issues with Piazza adjusting to New York and the booing, the Mets vaulted to postseason contention.
On September 16, they had a big win against the Houston Astros and found themselves a half-game up in the Wild Card standings. From there, they would finish the season going 2-6, losing their last five games.
Making it all the worse is they just needed to win one more game over that stretch. of course, the Mets would completely blow two games over that stretch.
Keep in mind, the San Francisco Giants and Chicago Cubs would play in a winner-take-all Wild Card play-in game. The Cubs finished the season on a 4-6 stretch, and the Giants finished the season losing their last two games.
The play-in game was Steve Trachsel against Mark Gardner. The Mets couldn’t even win to enter this fray. If they won two, they advance to the postseason. It was all for naught as they choked it all away.
2. 2022 Mets
As written about here, the 2022 collapse was worse than the 2007 collapse.
The Mets had Jacob deGrom, Max Scherzer, and Chris Bassitt lined up in a series where the Mets had to win one game to win the division. Instead, they were swept. At the time, their 10.5 game blown lead was the third largest division lead blown in Major League history. It’s now fourth thanks to the 2025 Detroit Tigers.
Because of the collapse, instead of having a first round bye giving Scherzer, deGrom, and Bassitt much needed rest, they hosted the Wild Card Series, again with their pitching lined up perfectly.
Keep in mind the hubris of Mets fans. At the time, they were actively debating lining up deGrom for Game 3 so he could start the NLDS after the Mets swept the Padres. This Mets team was that good.
Instead, Scherzer pulled a Glavine in Game 1. After deGrom won Game 2, Bassitt was not good in Game 3 with the Mets managing just one hit against Joe Musgrove and his glistening ears.
In many ways, this team unnecessarily panicked. They forced Mark Vientos and Francisco Alvarez into a pennant race after purposefully not giving them cups of coffee earlier in the year. To add insult to injury, Buck Showalter was named Manager of the Year for his guiding the Mets from an easy division title to a team who completely fell apart.
1. 2008 Mets
This is not a popular choice, but it is assuredly the worst of all the collapses. Everything from that season was disturbing.
Rumors still circle about Carlos Delgado and Jose Reyes purposefully quitting on Willie Randolph. Jerry Manuel worked behind the scenes with Jeff Wilpon to force Randolph’s firing. To make it all worse, the Mets did it to Randolph after the first game of a west coast trip began.
Oh, by the way, Randolph was the rare manager fired after a win. Instead, we got Manuel and his clown show. He was at least aided by a rejuvenated Delgado.
On August 27, the Mets led the NL East. Ironically, they opened September by sweeping the Milwaukee Brewers. After that sweep, they were ahead of the Phillies by 3.0 games, and they were ahead of the Brewers by two games in the loss column.
From there, the Mets would go 10-12.
On September 19, they led the NL East by a half-game. Over the final nine games of the season, that became a three game deficit. No, it wasn’t seven in 17, but it was inexplicable.
This team lost six of their final nine games. They were tied for the Wild Card entering the final week of the season with the Marlins (again). They would lose two out of three.
Unlike the prior year where it was Glavine who just didn’t have it, Beltran had a big homer to tie the game against the Marlins. Just when you thought he was changing the narrative from 2006, Manuel decides to go with Scott Schoeneweis, a reliever with a 7.00 September ERA that month.
It was classic Manuel. He was a bad manager making indefensible decisions.
Oh, and keep in mind, the Mets went out and got Johan Santana in the offseason. He was the ace missing in 2006, and he was the starter who could’ve prevented 2007 from happening. Apparently, nothing could stop Manuel, Jeff, and company.
Even if you want to believe 2007 was worse, consider this was the second year in a row only exacerbating everything. To make it even worse, this is the way they closed out Shea Stadium, the same place that saw the 1969 Mets, the ball go through Bill Buckner’s legs, Robin Ventura’s Grand Slam Single, and Mike Piazza’s homer after 9/11.
This loss was the cumulation of everything that happened after Beltran’s strikeout. After this, we had an awkward ceremony, and the team falling apart with the Wilpons getting caught up with the Madoff scandal.
The 2008 collapse was as bad as it gets. Sadly, being Mets fans, we have plenty of years from which to debate.
Weird things happen in the MLB postseason. Since the expanded postseason format, things rarely, if ever, goes as planned.
The first expansion was in 1969. The New York Mets shocked the world that year. Even though the Mets had won 100 games, they beat the favored Atlanta Braves in the first ever NLCS.
The Mets went on to shock the world by beating the 109 win Baltimore Orioles in the World Series.
Four years later, behind the Tug McGraw mantra of “Ya Gotta Believe!” the 1973 Mets won the NL East with only 82 wins. That team beat the Cincinnati Reds in five games (back when the NLCS was five games) to advance to the World Series.
To hear Howie Rose tell it, if Yogi Berra pitched George Stone in Game 6 instead of Tom Seaver, that team likely wins the World Series. Still, an 82 team in the World Series highlights how crazy things can happen.
In 2015, aided by a Washington Nationals choke job (insert Jonathan Papelbon–Bryce Harper joke), the 2015 Mets won the division. Daniel Murphy became Babe Ruth, and the Mets trio of Jacob deGrom–Matt Harvey–Noah Syndergaard led the Mets to the pennant.
If not for Terry Collins, the Mets win the 2015 World Series. He was as bad as you can be, and the Mets largely didn’t win because of him.
It’s also worked against the Mets.
The Mets dominated the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 1988 season. However, Orel Hershiser would come up huge, and he’d help the Dodgers with a huge upset. Fueled by Kirk Gibson’s shocking homer in Game 1, the Dodgers beat what could’ve been seen as an all-time great Oakland Athletics team.
In 2000, the Mets had some luck with the St. Louis Cardinals beating the Atlanta Braves. That cleared the way for the Mets to beat the Cardinals and win the pennant.
In the World Series, they faced off against an 87 win New York Yankees team, who ended that season on the verge of an epic collapse to miss the postseason. If Todd Zeile’s ball bounces over the wall, or Armando Benitez throws a strike who knows?
The less said about that World Series, the better.
In 2006, the Mets were the best team in baseball and seemed destined to win the World Series. El Duque got hurt warming up the NLDS, Billy Wagner faltered in the postseason like he always does, and Carlos Beltran struck out looking.
Meanwhile, we watched on with horror as the 83 win Cardinals beat an imploding Detroit Tigers team to win the World Series.
No matter the win total, if the Mets make the postseason, they will be sputtering in. Who cares?
This is still a team who can win a World Series. Everything they need is here.
Nolan McLean is a real ace, and Edwin Díaz is the best closer in baseball. As we saw with the Dodgers last year, you can win getting 2-3 innings from everyone.
We’ve already seen that Clay Holmes–Sean Manaea piggyback work well. It can certainly work with the rest of the staff.
Pete Alonso and Juan Soto had series winning homers last postseason. Francisco Lindor led the way like he’s doing during the current stretch run. Mark Vientos shook off late season struggles to be the Mets best player last postseason.
This Mets team can win the World Series. They have what it takes. They just need to get there. Even if you’re still skeptical, just look at past postseasons to look at how crazy things get.
When you look back at Billy Wagner’s career, we can now say it was a Hall of Fame career. He’s second all-time in saves among left-handed relievers, and his K/9 was the best all-time.
There are many moments we can pinpoint in his career worth highlighting. Perhaps, his best moment was August 20, 2009.
In September 2008, with the New York Mets in the heat of a battle for the postseason, Wagner needed Tommy John. Typically, that surgery has players sit out at least a year.
For the Mets, the 2009 seaaon was an unmitigated disaster. Citi Field was not well received, and the team on the field made matters worse.
Remember, this was the year of Luis Castillo dropping the pop up. The less said about this, the better.
Point is the Mets were dreadful. They entered August 49-53, 9.5 games behind the Philadelphia Phillies. By August 20, the Mets were 13.5 games back.
Despite this, Wagner fought to return. In less than a year removed from Tommy John, he pitched a scoreless inning against the Atlanta Braves allowing no hits or walks while striking out two.
From there, Wagner would make one more scoreless appearance for the Mets before being traded to the Boston Red Sox Red Soxin what was really a salary dump trade. (Apologies to Chris Carter). He’d pitch one more year at a high level before retiring.
This moment shows us why Wagner was a Hall of Famer. He did whatever he needed to do to beat the odds. He forced his way on the field and was dominating.
This is what you expect from a naturally right-handed pitcher who learned to throw left-handed after breaking his dominant arm twice. You expect that from a 5’10” pitcher hitting triple digits on the gun.
Wagner will likely go in the Hall of Fame as a Houston Astro, as he should. However, he showed us all his best as a Met. He recorded his only three postseason saves with the team, and he made his superhuman return from Tommy John.
Wagner will always be a Met even if he’s an Astro in Cooperstown. We’ll remember the “Enter the Sandman” intro, that great 2006 team, and his fight. He did all he could to beat great and help the team.
He did that in his four years in New York, and every Mets fan is grateful he was a Met. Hopefully, he will get a day at Citi Field honoring his well deserved accomplishment.
Congratulations Billy Wagner.
The commentary when the New York Mets signed Francisco Lindor was he was grossly overpaid. That was a narrative screamed all over the airwaves, and it was at its most intense during Lindor’s early season slump.
Of course, the narrative was always false, and as usual, it had a twinge of #lolMets to it. With his near MVP season leading the Mets to the NLCS, Lindor shut that narrative up . . . for now.
Enter Juan Soto.
Soto received a MLB record 15 year $765 million contract. That carries a $51 million AAV. It’s a staggering number, and when he’s paid more than Shohei Ohtani, you’re allowed to question the disparity.
We can point out Soto is four years younger and just now entering his prime years. We can discuss Soto’s durability against Ohtani’s injury history. There’s more to contemplate, but it’s all a pointless exercise.
Determining whether or not Soto is overpaid is directly tied to the value he brings the team.
Each offseason had its own trends, but over the past six seasons, teams have paid roughly $7.6 million per 1 WAR. As a result, for Soto to be worth the deal, he would have to produce a 6.7 WAR per season.
On that note, Soto is coming off a season with a 7.9 WAR. Two of his past four seasons have exceeded 7.0 WAR. If Soto produces at this level during the peak years of his deal, he’s exceeding the AAV paid to him.
Of course, the $7.6 million is an average. We have twice seen the value surpass $9 million. At a $9 million valuation, Soto would only need to average a 5.7 WAR to be worth the deal.
Of course, this presumes WAR/$ doesn’t increase with increased revenues in baseball. As the WAR/$ increases, Soto’s production need not be at the 5-7 WAR value to be worth the deal.
Of course, the Mets signed him to be exactly that. As seen with pure hitters like Yordan Alvarez, Edgar Martinez, and Frank Thomas a hitter of Soto’s caliber can absolute produce that value.
Yes, this presupposes Soto will hit like a Hall of Famer. That’s what he’s done in his career, and there is zero expectation he will suddenly cease being that.
Look, the Mets signed Ted Williams. With apologies to Darryl Strawberry, the Mets finally landed the next Ted Williams.
There’s knowledge that comes with being that level of a hitter. As Soto discussed in his press conference, his discussions with Aaron Judge made both better.
Notably, it was the best years of Soto’s and Judge’s careers. It’s a relationship Soto can now have with Lindor. Moreover, think of the impact Soto can have on Francisco Álvarez and Mark Vientos.
There’s also the message adding a player like Soto sends to the rest of the league. Look at the Mets back at Pedro Martinez in the 2004 offseason. It paved the way for Carlos Beltran and eventually Billy Wagner.
Was Pedro worth his contract? Well, partially thanks to Jeff Wilson, certainly not. However, it was a move which made the Mets relevant, and it led to helping the Mets acquire players which would nearly lead to a pennant.
The Mets arguably already had that with Lindor. However, acquiring Soto pushes things even further. It puts the team on par with the Los Angeles Dodgers and their three MVPs.
The Mets are at a completely different level now. They haven’t been here since the 1980s. The Mets are now set to have a decade plus run as a World Series contender.
Lindor brought relevance. Soto takes the Mets to a new level entirely. Yes, Soto’s production will mostly likely be worth $51 million per year. The extra intangibles he brings means he will assuredly be worth every single last penny of the deal.
According to various reports, the New York Mets are out on Shohei Ohtani. The Mets are not at fault here.
The fact of the matter is Ohtani doesn’t want to come to New York. He doesn’t want the media attention and responsibility that comes along with New York.
Certainly, Ohtani has spent his entire life in the limelight. He gets more attention than just about any baseball player. He understands the responsibilities that comes with being the best player in the game.
And yet, he’s being a bit short-sighted here, and thus, is making a mistake.
Frankly, the Mets history is replete with players who didn’t want to deal with New York. Even worse, it’s full of players who just don’t want the Mets.
However, for the most part, when they come here, they love it here.
The classic example was Keith Hernandez. He was devastated about the trade to the Mets. He was persuaded to stay, and it led to his being a beloved player with his number retired.
Time and again, Darryl Strawberry has said he regrets leaving the Mets. Players like Cliff Floyd and Billy Wagner were at one point skeptical of being a Met only to sign in free agents and cherish being a part of this team.
Mike Piazza was shockingly traded to the Mets. Even more of a shock, he’d get booed by the fans. Despite that, he signed a deal on the eve of free agency, became one of the most beloved players, and dons a Mets cap on his Hall of Fame plaque.
There was Curtis Granderson who came to the Mets in free agency after his New York Yankees tenure. He talked about how he heard Mets fans were real fans and later said Mets fans were louder.
Even a player like Carlos Beltran keeps finding his way back to the Mets. He didn’t initially want to come. The Wilpons made him want to leave, and yet he’s returned twice.
Point is there’s something special about being a Met. Even the most reluctant end up loving the experience and want to forever be a part of the franchise.
Ohtani is passing on that partially because he doesn’t want the New York media scrutiny and attention. Being fair here, that’s about to follow him anywhere he goes.
He’s also missing out on a city that would allow him to live somewhat in obscurity. After all, this is a city where Robert DeNiro and Al Pacino live. Harry Potter lives there. Hell, Spike Lee not only lives there, but he’s at every New York Knicks game.
New York comes with attention, but it also allows for a somewhat normal life. Being fair, Ohtani gets the same with Los Angeles.
With the Mets, Ohtani would get Steve Cohen who is not afraid to spend. He’s also an owner who wants his players to feel welcome and be like family.
There’s an adoring fanbase desperate to embrace him.
That’s not to say the Mets are the best fit for Ohtani. In the end, only Ohtani can figure that out for himself. To some degree, he has and is nearing a decision.
It’s just unfortunate he’s ruling out a team that could change his life for the better. Yes, the Mets need Ohtani, and he doesn’t need the Mets. That still doesn’t mean it wouldn’t be a great experience for him.
In the end, Ohtani should’ve given it more of a chance, and that is mostly why he’s making a mistake.
For reasons which still have not been explained, David Ortiz was held to a completely different standard than anyone else who has ever been on a Hall of Fame ballot. You might’ve believed Ortiz being inducted on the first ballot would prove to be a changing of the guard, but in the end, it was more of the same for the 2023 Hall of Fame class.
As previously detailed here, Ortiz had PED allegations. On this ballot, Alex Rodriguez, Manny Ramirez, and Gary Sheffield were not inducted despite each of them being far superior players. We again saw Omar Vizquel lose votes partially due to allegations of domestic violence, but when Ortiz was on the ballot, it was not remotely a factor or ever discussed. We can go on and on with the double standards including how Ortiz threw bats at umpires and constantly tried to police the fun of the game.
When looking at Ortiz, the only conclusion is he was a cheater, and he was an overall bad guy. However, he was great for a quote and mostly good to the media. Combine that with his being a willing caricature on Fox’s pre- and post-games, and you have a Hall of Famer.
That brings us to Carlos Beltrán. As you recall back in 2008, Billy Wagner spoke of a rift in the Mets clubhouse dealing with media accountability, which was an indirect shot at players like Beltràn.
By every measure, Beltràn was a deserving Hall of Famer who should have been inducted on the first ballot. He’s one of the best switch hitters of all-time, and by WAR, he’s the eighth best center fielder of all time ahead of players like Duke Snider and Andre Dawson.
Beltràn won Rookie of the Year. He was a nine time All-Star. He won three Gold Gloves and two Silver Sluggers. He had postseason success and won a World Series in the final year of his career. This is as complete of a Hall of Fame resume as you get, especially when there are zero allegations of PEDs against him.
Of course, this neglects his final year with the Houston Astros. In that year, the Astros had a sign stealing system with Beltràn named as the ring leader. Keep in mind, this needed to be an organizational efforts with the cameras and the like, but in the end, it was Beltràn who received the blame.
As a result, writers lined up to write article after article on how the Mets needed to fire Beltràn as their manager. To that end, Beltràn remains the only player punished for this actions. Apparently, the Wilpons being callow and succumbing to public pressure was insufficient punishment. The writers demanded further punishment with them opting not to vote for Beltràn for the Hall of Fame.
Keep in mind, many of these same writers voted for players like A-Rod. They voted for Ortiz on the first ballot. They did that even though the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox received punishments from Major League Baseball for similar systems. We would see Mookie Betts and Aaron Judge win MVP awards after their teams cheated. Apparently, the sign stealing wasn’t an issue for their careers.
We can go on and on when it comes to sign stealing systems. The reason is for some reason the only time baseball cared was with that Astros team. When it was Bobby Thompson and the New York Giants, it was the “Shot Heard Round the World.”Really, when it came to Beltràn and the Astros, everything has been blown way out of proportion.
Overall, writers just have it out for Beltràn despite his not taking PEDs, committing acts of domestic violence, or throwing bats at umpires. In the end, Beltràn’s biggest crime was not having a much better relationship with the media during this playing days. If he did, the writers would’ve fought for him to keep his managerial job and for his induction into the Hall of Fame. After all, they bent over backwards to overlook all the issues with Ortiz to put him in the Hall.
As a New York Mets fan, you thought it couldn’t get worse than 2007. Seven in 17. Tom Glavine not devastated after allowing seven runs in 0.2 innings.
That was a horror show we all watched unfold, but at least we could see it coming. There were starts in the final week of the season from David Williams and Phillip Humber. Billy Wagner was battling back spasms, and Aaron Heilman was gassed.
There were many issues with that team, and they were not remotely built to win the World Series. That makes that team vastly different than the 2022 Mets, a team which will also live in Mets infamy.
Make no mistake. The 2022 Mets collapse and choke was far worse than the 2007 Mets. The aftermath may only punctuate that.
On June 1, the Mets led the National League East by 10.5 games. This the third largest blown division lead in Major League history. It is the largest blown lead over a full 162 game season since the inception of division play. Notably. it is only the second such collapse since the inception of the Wild Card.
From a Mets perspective, this was made all the worse by their September. Remember, they had the easiest closing schedule in baseball with a three game lead.
The Mets were 2-6 against the Washington Nationals, Chicago Cubs, and Miami Marlins at home before the Atlanta Braves series. Really, the NL East never should have been at play when the Mets traveled to Atlanta.
Despite the Mets having their rotation aligned, they were swept by the Braves. This wasn’t Williams or Pelfrey faltering. It was Jacob deGrom, Max Scherzer, and Chris Bassitt faltering with each pitching worse than the last.
Yes, Starling Marte was injured, and he was a very good player and emotional leader all year. That said, the Mets should not have needed him to beat the worst teams in baseball. Again, this is far more about the Washington Nationals, Pittsburgh Pirates, and Miami Marlins stretch than it was about the Braves series, a series that never should have mattered.
The Mets controlled the division and their own destiny. They completely and utterly failed doing it in historic fashion. As a result, they were the Wild Card and not a division winner.
In the Wild Card series, the Mets only showed up for the second game. It’s a harsh but fair criticism. Note, this isn’t saying they didn’t want to win. Of course, they wanted to win. They were desperate to win . It’s odd to say for a 101 win team, but they didn’t have what it took to win.
Like the Braves series, Scherzer and Bassitt were bad. For his part, deGrom was good but human. It is very clear by now Scherzer’s oblique and deGrom’s blister compromised them. Bassitt was just one fumes after pitching a career high in innings. However, it is more than that.
There’s plenty of blame to go around here. That includes Buck Showalter, who made a series of baffling decisions in the Braves series and the postseason. It’s Billy Eppler who failed at the trade deadline and who failed to call up his prospects in Mark Vientos and Francisco Álvarez who were just not given sufficient opportunity to get acclimated to the majors before being thrown into a pennant race.
What remains is the first 100+ win team to make the LDS since the inception of the series. It is the largest blown division lead in a full 162 game season since the inception of division play. It is a team which managed just one hit in an elimination game, the fewest a team has ever had.
The Mets entered the postseason with the best home winning percentage in the postseason. They lost two out of three getting outscored 16-8. They scored a total of one run in their two losses. ONE RUN.
This was a complete collapse from a team we all expected to be a true World Series contender. It failed because it couldn’t beat bad teams. It failed for so many reasons. In the end, this was a historic collapse in its own right, and yes, it was absolutely worse than 2007 because this team should have won the World Series.
There are two players who wear a Mets cap on their Hall of Fame plaque, and there are only two people who have had their numbers retired by the Mets for what they did as players – Tom Seaver and Mike Piazza.
The fact Piazza even became a Met was somewhat of a miracle. It required the Marlins to go into fire sale mode after winning a World Series. It needed the Dodgers to overreact to Piazza not agreeing to a contract extension. It required Todd Hundley to suffer a significant elbow injury. Finally, it required public pressure from the fans and airwaves for the Mets to do the right thing and get a superstar in his prime.
As Piazza would tell it, he went into the shower thinking he would be a Cub, and he came out a Met. There’s probably a euphemism to be made there.
After somewhat of a slugging start, one where he was incredulously booed, he took off, and he had probably the best stretch we have seen from any Mets catcher. To put it in perspective, Piazza had a .876 OPS in June, and his monthly OPS would improve each of the ensuing months to the point where he hit .378/.475/.720 for a Mets team trying to make their first postseason in a decade.
During that stretch, he would have his first memorable home run as a member of the Mets. During that September push for the postseason, he had a dramatic go-ahead three run homer against Billy Wagner with the Mets trailing 2-0 in the top of the ninth.
While that Mets team didn’t get over the hump, the Mets made sure Piazza would be a part of the Mets team who eventually did giving him the biggest contract in baseball. With Piazza with the Mets for a full season, things were different for this franchise. Suddenly, they had a superstar, and they were legitimate World Series contenders.
Piazza immediately made good on his contact with a great 1999 season. In that first full season with the Mets, Piazza hit .303/.361/.575 with 25 doubles, 40 homers, and 124 RBI. It was the second most homers a Mets player would have in a single season, and it would be the first time in Major League history a player had 40 homers without a multi-homer game. He would also set the franchise mark for RBI in a season, a record which still stands to this day.
There were so many big homers during that season. There was the beginning of his blood feud with Roger Clemens, who Piazza absolutely dominated. There was his legendary tape measure shot against Ramiro Mendoza, which helped the Mets take their first ever series in the Subway Series:
That would not be the only big homer Piazza would hit that year. Piazza had struggled in the 1999 postseason due to a thumb injury. That injury had actually kept him out of Games 3 and 4 of the NLDS. He would play through the injury during the NLCS, and then in the seventh inning of Game 6, Piazza would hit a game tying homer off of John Smoltz, who is one of the greatest postseason pitchers of all-time:
Unfortunately for Piazza and the Mets, while they made the comeback, they could not complete it losing that game in heartbreaking fashion. The next year, neither Piazza or the Mets would be denied.
In his Hall of Fame career, Piazza would put together a number of MVP worthy seasons. In 1998 and 1999, he was frankly overlooked, and in 2000, he was probably robbed of the award. In that season, Piazza would hit .324/.398/.614 with 26 doubles, 38 homers, and 113 RBI. Again, with Piazza, it wasn’t just the stats, it was when he did it. Arguably, to that point in his career, he hit the biggest home run he had ever hit when he hit a homer capping off the Mets 10 run inning against the Braves.
The Mets making a comeback like that against the Braves was indication the 2000 season was going to be different, and it was. This time, the Mets were not going to be denied the pennant. One of the reasons why was this time Piazza was healthy, and he would have a great postseason.
In the NLCS, he would lead all players in OPS. To a certain extent, you could argue he was once again robbed of an MVP. He would lead the Mets to their first World Series. That’s when Piazza would be treated unfairly.
It was not Piazza’s fault he was attacked by Clemens, and he did the smart thing staying in that game. It also gets overlooked far too often Piazza would homer later in that game to give the Mets a chance to win. He would also homer in Game 4 of the World Series to give the Mets a chance to win that game and get back into the series. Overall, Piazza would leave that postseason as the Mets all-time leader in postseason homers (since passed by Daniel Murphy).
The shame for Piazza is he would continue playing at a high level while his teammates had a noticeable drop-off in production in 2001. He was almost single-handedly tring to keep that team afloat, and to a certain extent he did as the Mets did have at least an outside chance of making the postseason when September came.
Of course, in the grand scheme of things, none of that matters. On September 11, 2001, the Twin Towers fell in a terrorist attack devastating the city and the country. Baseball would be shut down for a while, and there was not only trepidation over when it would be safe to play sports again, but also when it would be safe to return to New York. When baseball did resume, it was the Mets who were the first New York sports team to play in the city. In the bottom of the eighth, Piazza hit not only the most important homer in his career, but arguably in the history of the City of New York (and baseball):
Piazza’s Mets career would take some strange twists and turns from there. There was the botched first base experiment with Art Howe, and there was the issue whether or not he ever demanded a trade. There were the rumors about his sexual orientation and the awkward press conference which ensued. He would also battle some injuries.
Through all of that Piazza remained a very good to great player. He would first hit his 300th homer, and later on in his career, he would break Carlton Fisk‘s record for home runs by a catcher. The 2005 season would be his last one with the Mets, and he would get a chance to say good-bye to the Mets fans who adored him. Mets fans adored him even to the point where he would received a curtain call when he returned to Shea Stadium as a member of the Padres and homered off of Pedro Martinez.
When Piazza left the Mets, he left as the team’s all-time leader in slugging, and he is second in OPS. He is also in the top 10 in several offensive categories. That includes his being third all-time in homers, RBI, and OPS+. That is in addition to all the Major League records he has as a catcher.
In sum, Piazza was the greatest hitting catcher of all-time, and he was the best catcher in Mets history. As a Met, he was a seven time All-Star winning five Silver Sluggers and finishing in the top 15 of MVP voting four times.
An argument can be made he was the most important position player to ever don the Mets uniform. He caught the final pitch at Shea and the first one at Citi He is a Hall of Famer, and he is now the former player who throws out the first pitch for important moments in franchise history. To put it succinctly here, he is the best Mets player to ever wear the number 31.
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1.Mookie Wilson
2.Mackey Sasser
3. Curtis Granderson
4. Lenny Dykstra
5. David Wright
6. Wally Backman
7. Jose Reyes
8. Gary Carter
9. Todd Hundley
10. Rey Ordonez
11. Wayne Garrett
12. John Stearns
13. Edgardo Alfonzo
14. Gil Hodges
15. Carlos Beltran
16. Dwight Gooden
17. Keith Hernandez
18. Darryl Strawberry
19. Bob Ojeda
20. Howard Johnson
21. Cleon Jones
22. Al Leiter
23. Bernard Gilkey
24. Art Shamsky
25. Pedro Feliciano
26. Terry Leach
27. Jeurys Familia
28. Daniel Murphy
29. Frank Viola
30. Michael Conforto