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Straw Seems Safe

Given David Wright's performance this season, it would seem that Darryl Strawberry's Mets record of 252 home runs is a little more safely positioned than we initially thought.

Wright ranks 5th in Mets annals with 140 home runs. He's 14 behind Dave Kingman, and it seems reasonable to expect him to bounce back and sky King next season, but after that, it's a bigger climb to the No. 3 spot and Howard Johnson's 192.

Carlos Beltran ranks sixth with 126 home runs. He's chasing Wright and Kingman. Given that he's only got two more years on his contract, and that he's only halfway to Strawberry, an ideal finish for him would be right alongside Johnson.

Carlos Delgado ranks 11th with 104 home runs and I get the feeling that's where he'll sit. He needs 14 to match Ed Kranepool's total and crack the top 10. That ain't happening unless he gets thrown a one-year invite to return next season, and I don't think he will.

Jose Reyes and John Olerud share the 25 spot on the Mets home run list with 63 dingers. A healthy Reyes could hit 14 and get to 77, which would match Robin Ventura for 20th place. An unhealthy version, and he's struggling to meet Jeff Kent's 67, which stand 24th.

It's a long plummet after that among current Mets, as we drop to the 73rd spot and Fernando Tatis's 18 home runs for the club, the same number as (among others) Ray Knight, Ken Singleton and Timo Perez. If he can hit two home runs, Tatis would become the 71st Met with 20, and match Ron Hunt and Johnny Lewis' team totals.

Brian Schneider is locked in a seven-way tie for 109th with a dozen home runs, and with his lack of competence with the bat this season, it's fair to surmise he finishes even in total with the likes of Kevin Mitchell, Rickey Henderson, and Joe Torre.

Gary Sheffield is one of 132 Mets to hit the double figure mark in home runs with the team. His 10 home runs put him in the same company as (again, among others) Bruce Boisclair and Richie Hebner.

I'll close this out with two others, which I find amusing at a time in which little about the Mets intrigues me. Jeff Francoeur is now the 147th-most prolificic home run hitter in Mets history. His tally of 7 stands even with Dwight Gooden. That's one better than Omir Santos, whose half-dozen home runs locks him into 163rd place, right along with The Franchise, Tom Seaver.

Comments

Ceetar said…
Wright will hit more next year (hopefully with a better manager and coach) and ideally he'll be a Met for at least another decade and be the measuring stick all future prospects are measured against for some time.

I could see Beltran getting an extension/renewal of some sort, maybe grabbing another two years with the Mets as well.
Anonymous said…
I can't see how Wright won't break it, as long as he's on the Mets and healthy for the next eight years.

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