Mets Walk-Offs And Minutiae

It's 10:40 on Saturday night, and though I'm really looking forward to writing some postseason stuff, I'm rather fatigued, so I'll post briefly on other matters Frank Robinson will manage his final game on Sunday bringing to a close a career in baseball that spanned more than 50 seasons. There are a lot of things that could be said about Frank Robinson, but let's just offer up this piece of information, courtesy of MikeMav.com : Since 1957, no-player has had more walk-off RBI than Frank Robinson's 27. For those curious, only one came against the Mets- a walk-off home run against Danny Frisella on July 18, 1972. The man who ranks second on the walk-off RBI list in that span will learn his fate on Monday. Dusty Baker and the Cubs will likely part ways but I have a feeling he won't be out of work for that long. Remember that there were many wishing, not too long ago, that Baker was managing the Mets. It's a shame that his tenure ended with a season ruined b...

Potential Opponent Astros (NL Central champs) Mets walk-off wins vs opponent * 19 (includes one when the team was known as the Colt 45's) Mets walk-off losses vs opponent * 35 Postseason walk-off history vs opponent * The Mets won Game 3 of the 1986 NLCS, 6-5 over Houston, on Len Dykstra's 2-run home run in the last of the 9th. They won Game 5, 2-1 on Gary Carter's single in the bottom of the 12th. http://metswalkoffs.blogspot.com/2005/10/heightened-perspective.html http://metswalkoffs.blogspot.com/2005/10/i-kid-you-not.html Most recent walk-off win vs opponent * April 13, 2005, when Jose Reyes singled off Dan Wheeler in the 11th inning to give the Mets a 1-0 win. Longest walk-off win vs opponent * It took 14 innings for the Mets to beat the Astros in Game 2 of a doubleheader on May 31, 1970, winning on Duffy Dyer's pinch-hit single. Noteworthiest walk-off win vs opponent * The 2 playoff games are in their own category. For regular season, there are two really good one...

Third in a series...   Potential Opponent   * Cardinals (NL Central champs)   Mets Walk-Off Wins vs Opponent   *31   Mets Walk-Off Losses vs Opponent   * 32   Postseason Walk-Off History vs Opponent   * None, though I prefer to think of a walk-out instead of a walk-off, when while walking down the Shea Stadium ramps following Game 4 of the 2000 NLCS, my dad turned to me and said "Mike Hampton will pitch the game of his life tomorrow."   Most Recent Walk-Off Win vs Opponent   *   August 22, 2006, when the Mets rallied from a 7-1 deficit to beat one-man-show Albert Pujols on Carlos Beltran's 2-run home run off Jason Isringhausen.   Longest walk-off win vs opponent   * September 29, 1993, when the Mets beat the Cardinals 1-0 in 17 innings at the close of a season of misery. Kenny Greer earned his first and only major-league win as human scourge Jeff Kent drove in the winning run with...

Second in a series looking at the Mets walk-off history against potential first-round foes. Potential Opponent * Padres (NL West champ or wild card) Mets walk-off wins vs opponent * 19 Mets walk-off losses vs opponent * 24 Postseason walk-off history vs opponent * None Most recent walk-off win vs opponent * On July 19, 2005, Chris Woodward hit a 2-run home run off Chris Hammond to give the Mets a 3-1 11-inning victory. Longest walk-off win vs opponent * Twice the Mets have beaten the Padres in walk-off fashion in a 15-inning game. The first came on September 3, 1983, on a Brian Giles (same name as the current Padre) sacrifice fly. The second was on April 27, 1994 on Fernando Vina's single. http://metswalkoffs.blogspot.com/2006/04/life-of-brian.html Noteworthiest walk-off win vs opponent * Mike Piazza's two-run home run off Trevor Hoffman on April 28, 1999, gave the Mets a 4-3 win. The Padres had won their previous 181 games when leading after eight innings. Most unusual walk-of...

First in a series looking at the Mets walk-off history against potential first-round foes. Repeat after me: "I will not be concerned by the Mets foibles at the finish...I will not be concerned by the Mets foibles at the finish...I will not be concerned by the Mets foibles at the finish." Potential Opponent Dodgers (NL West champ or wild card) Mets walk-off wins vs opponent: 29 Mets walk-off losses vs opponent 36 Postseason walk-off history vs opponent None to speak of, though the Dodgers did beat the Mets in the 1988 NLCS, and the Mets came within a few feet of a walk-off in Game 4 (the Mike Scioscia HR game) when, after Darryl Strawberry popped out, Kevin McReynolds flied out to shallow center to end the game against Orel Hersisher and the Dodgers, with the Mets trailing by a run in the last of the 12th inning. Most recent walk-off win vs opponent * May 20, 2001- Tsuyoshi Shinjo wins it for Armando Benitez with a walk-off single off Terry Adams with 2 outs in the last of the...

There are only 2 home games remaining in the regular season (maybe one by the time you read this) and we've been waiting more than a month for the Mets to win via walk-off for the 12th time in 2006 (the last such triumph came on August 22). One thing that I rediscovered in my personal life this past week is the value of patience, so I'm not clamoring for this kind of victory as much as I might have been not too long ago. Sometimes the Mets require their fans to wait, and wait, and wait, for a walk-off that never comes. I can tell you that as good as the 1968 season was for the New York Mets, it was not a good year for walk-offs That year, the most victorious (73) in franchise history to that point, the Mets had only three walk-off wins, all of which came within a 6-day span. So had I been alive and inspired to blog that season, I would have had to have been awfully creative the rest of the year. The last of the three walk-off victories that season came on May 21, in the team...

I know that I've said in the past that I don't wish to review Mets walk-off defeats, but I'm in one of those moods today where I'll type anything for the sake of blogging. So, let's play catch-up from Saturday, a defeat that seemed rather frustrating at the time, but felt a little bit more worthwhile (if such a thing could) after Monday's celebration * Saturday's walk-off defeat was the 365th in Mets history and the 5th this season. * It was the 30th to take place against the Pirates. Ronny Paulino joins a fine list of Pirates luminaries that have defeated the Mets with a walk-off hit, including Hall of Famers Roberto Clemente and Willie Stargell, as well as ex-Mets Richie Hebner, Duffy Dyer and Bobby Bonilla. Ronny Paulino has as many walk-off hits against the Mets as Barry Bonds does. In fact, he was the first Pirate to deliver a walk-off hit IN SEPTEMBER against the Mets since Bonds did in 1990. * Much to my surprise, it is the first time in Pirates histo...

The Mets clinched the NL East on Monday, but if you're coming here, chances are that you knew that (and a whole lot more) already. So we do as we usually do in these circumstances- try to provide a perspective with which you may not be familiar. To do so, we offer up the following pieces of information, and yes, we try to work in some walk-off notes on occasion. PLEASE NOTE: That we are referring only to NL East clinching information and thus minutiae related to the wild card clinchings in 1999 and 2000 is not being utilized. * This win marked the fifth time the Mets clinched the NL East title, with the previous opponents being the Cardinals (1969), Cubs (1973 and 1986) and Phillies (1988). The Marlins are the third team against whom the Mets had both a walk-off victory AND an NL East clinching victory in the same season (1969 Cardinals, 1988 Phillies are the other two) * September 18 marked the second-earliest division clinching in Mets history, trailing only 1986 (September 17)....

answers to the trivia quiz posted here http://metswalkoffs.blogspot.com/2007/09/our-special-bonds-ron-darling-questions.html 1) The leadoff hitter in Ron Darling's major-league debut was Joe Morgan and Darling struck him out. The winning pitcher in that game? Former Met Tug McGraw. 2) Telling you it was a Hall of Famer that Darling whiffed most should narrow it down enough such that one of your first couple of guesses should be the correct one, Ryne Sandberg. 3) The first three batters to HR off Darling were Claudell Washington (10 of the Mets 61 HR in 1980), Gary Carter (4 grand slams for the Mets) and Juan Samuel (traded for HR-hitter of significance Len Dykstra) 4) The other Yale-educated Mets pitcher was an original Met, Ken Mackenzie , who was 5-4 for the 1962 Mets (others were 35-116) and 3-1 for them in 1963. 5) The two future Mets drafted between Terry Blocker and Ron Darling were Kevin McReynolds (6th by the Padres) and Darryl Boston (7th by the White Sox). 6) The la...

We interrupt the celebration soon to come with a funny story. It was a few years ago that I found myself amongst other media members in the Minnesota Twins clubhouse at Fenway Park, and following a victory over the Red Sox, I wanted to hear what their manager had to say. Ron Gardenhire's post-game press conferences aren't that different from others that you may have seen or heard on TV, except that this one had one exception. I had been standing still for the better part of the first couple of minutes of questions, than after one particular inquiry and response, I took about a half-step back. Gardenhire noticed. He motioned to the writer who asked the question and said: "Did you just do something, because that guy (pointing to me) has a look on his face like you just farted or something." The mood-lightening worked, as everyone had a good chuckle, and the Q&A continued unimpeded. I did a little research and discovered that Gardenhire has a rep of being a bit of a ...

I'm sorry, I would have written sooner, and I'd write more now, except that my hands are incessantly and uncontrollably moving in an upwards/downwards slicing motion... I can take this time to tell you... * During Atlanta's reign of NL East dominance, the Mets did defeat the Braves in walk-off fashion on 9 occasions. If you wish to read about any of those that I have previously blogged, check these links... http://metswalkoffs.blogspot.com/2005/09/jerry-and-mets.html http://metswalkoffs.blogspot.com/2006/03/roger-and-out.html http://metswalkoffs.blogspot.com/2005/08/walk-off-most-foul.html http://metswalkoffs.blogspot.com/2006/05/fridays-leftovers.html

Answers to the queries posed here: http://metswalkoffs.blogspot.com/2007/09/our-special-bonds-im-keith-hernandez.html 1) This may have been referenced on the air, but in case it wasn't: Hernandez's last multi-homer game came against the Braves. The second of the two homers was hit against former Met Charlie Puleo. The first was the only hit Hernandez would have in 3 career AB against Tom Glavine . 2) Keith Hernandez didn't have a great '86 postseason against Mike Scott , but he pounded Scott in regular-season play. He hit .375 against Scott with six home runs, more than he hit against anyone else, though five of those six came against the Mets. 3) The only other Mets with a pair of 5-hit games: Rusty Staub and Mike Piazza . Piazza and Hernandez share the common bond of having had a five-hit game in a Mets loss, though both of Staub's came in wins. 4) Kudos if you had any recollection of this date in Mets history, when Pete Falcone pitched a fine game, allowing o...

We are on the precipice of a scenario by which this ballclub could become, by process of elimination, champions of the NL East. This is a feat, previously accomplished on four occasions, and it seems likely that this clinching, as we like to call it, will not come in walk-off fashion. That's perfectly acceptable, even here. The Mets have never cinched a division championship in walk-off fashion, though their first such celebration came a day after such an event. The baseball game of September 24, 1969 is well remembered for its conclusion, with Joe Torre hitting into a 6-4-3 double play, assuring the Mets of their first NL East crown. The contest of the previous day isn't as easily recalled, so we'll educate you in this space. The Mets entered September 23 with a magic number of three, and when Bill Stoneman and the Expos topped the Cubs that afternoon, the super-digit was sliced to just two. In order to reduce it to one and guarantee at worst, a tie for the title, the Mets...

It seems reasonably safe to say that the Atlanta Braves will not be winning the NL East this season and their remarkable run of consecutive seasons with division titles will conclude, perhaps by the weekend. It has been 16 years since the phrase "The Braves have been eliminated from winning their division" was uttered and chances are that in 1990, it wasn't, as Atlanta was a rather insignificant speck of dust on the baseball universe back then, finishing the campaign in last place in the NL West. It pleased me to know that on the particular day in early September, I happened to be in the stands with my dad at Shea Stadium, for a game between the Mets and St. Louis Cardinals, which had significant ramifactions in the battle for the NL East lead. This was one of those games in which you were glad to be the team that batted last, particularly considering that the pitching matchup pitted neophyte Julio Valera against Ken Hill. Todd Zeile's second-inning home run gave the ...

It makes sense, at least to me, that since I wrote about the quickest Mets walk-off wins a few weeks ago, that on Labor Day, it is appropriate to write about the slowest Mets walk-off wins (or rather, the ones they had to work the longest to get). Having already penned a lengthy essay on the true longest walk-off (Game 5 of the 1999 NLCS vs the Braves, 5 hours and 46 minutes), I shall skip that contest for now and limit my lookings to regular-season contests only. In their 44-season history, only twice have the Mets won via walk-off in a regular-season affair that required more than five hours to consumate. The first took place on April 28, 1985, with my best recollection being that I attended a Sunday street fair and listened to the conclusion on the radio. I missed quite a bit that day, apparently, 18 innings worth of baseball as a matter of fact. Though if I had watched just the beginning and ending, I would have been rather satisfied, though I would have missed a lot of minutiae ...

I'm taking a little break from blogging for the rest of the week. I expect to have a new post up on Monday. Here are 5 random past entries that I liked, which can serve as your entertainment for the rest of the week Emmy-Night walk-off http://metswalkoffs.blogspot.com/2005/09/emmy-for-best-walk-off-goes-to.html Playgrounds, egg creams, and childhood walk-off memories http://metswalkoffs.blogspot.com/2005/08/ode-to-playgrounds-and-egg-creams.html "And we've got a brand new shiny one..." http://metswalkoffs.blogspot.com/2005/07/shiny-what.html "The Great American Mets Spelling Bee" http://metswalkoffs.blogspot.com/2005/10/minutiae-break-agbayani-list.html "Our Old friend, John..." http://metswalkoffs.blogspot.com/2005/06/his-old-friend-john.html

The 1971 Mets won't get their own night to honor their 35th anniversary, though in our world, they are a deserving group. That's because that club set a Mets record with 14 walk-off victories amongst their 83 triumphs. A 3rd-place finish, 14 games from the top, assured their status as a forgotten bunch. Monday and Tuesday mark the anniversary of this club's standard setting in the walk-off department, though such a record was not acknowledged then because the term "walk-off" had not yet been applied to this sport. We'll honor it here by recounting the events from those two contests. On August 28, 1971, the Mets did something they had never before done in their history- swept the Dodgers in a doubleheader. They triumphed in the first contest, 9-2, behind Tom Seaver, who went on to win the ERA title (1.76), and a 4-RBI game from first baseman Donn Clendenon. The second game was a closer matchup, a pitchers duel between Gary Gentry and future Hall of Famer Don Su...

It's an easy trick to remember Shawn Green's career total of eight walk-off RBI, since it coincides with the number of nights in every Jewish youngster's favorite holiday. Just in case you're having trouble, here's some helpful reminders. August 19, 1995 vs Royals, pinch-hit single (Jeff Montgomery) On the first night of Shawnukkah celebrate...That Shawn had 6 hits in his first 43 career pinch-hitting appearances, but since has gone 7 for his last 12. This is the only walk-off pinch-hit of his career to this point September 28, 1997 vs Red Sox, 2-run double (Tom Gordon) On the second night of Shawnukkah, celebrate...That this was the last day of the baseball season, and thus the last day in the playing careers of both Pete Rose and Ryne Sandberg May 28, 2001 vs Rockies, single (Ron Villone) On the third night of Shawnukkah, celebrate...That current teammate Paul Lo Duca, who was 6-for-6 in this 11-10 triumph, scored the winning run. September 20, 2001 vs Diamondback...

"Look over there in the corner of this wing. Right next to the one for Pete Rose. What's that, you may ask? It's Vince Coleman's Hall of Fame plaque. Yes, it's rather lengthy, but appropriately so. I'll read it to you... Overcame the adversity of having to play at Shea Stadium for five seasons to steal 1,492 career bases. The only player in baseball history to steal 100 or more bases in three straight seasons for two different teams, Coleman rejuvenated his career upon signing with the Mets prior to the 1991 season. Sparked miraculous efforts to win NL pennant in 1991, 1992, and 1993. His competitive spirit inspired teammates and fans alike, a la Jackie Robinson. Coined (and trademarked) the rallying cry "Ya Gotta Deceive!" If we're gonna talk Mets and Cardinals we have to talk a little Vince Coleman and the "Ya Gotta Deceive" Mets teams of 1991, 1992 and 1993. I was thumbing through "The Worst Team Money Could Buy" a while bac...

One of two posts for Wednesday, the other of which will recap Tuesday's win. It can be found here http://metswalkoffs.blogspot.com/2006/08/oy-vey-what-game.html It's August 23, so that means that we wish a happy 48th birthday to Julio Franco, a current Met whose exploits we previously chronicled rather tidily in the offseason at this link http://metswalkoffs.blogspot.com/2005/12/needle-in-haystack.html Unbeknownst to us at the time, Old Man Baseball actually has five walk-off hits, though he's been waiting more than 10 years since his last one. Anticipation was actually the theme of his most recent walk-off, back on July 2, 1996. Franco sat out that day with a bum hamstring against the last-place Royals and his teammates struggled a little bit with the bats against Tim Belcher. Indians starter Chad Ogea kept his team in the contest, despite 3 hits by current Met Michael Tucker and 2, with an RBI from wannabe Met Jose Offerman. The Indians took a 2-1 lead in the 8th when Oma...