Meet the Mets I n baseball the defense controls the action No play can start until the pitcher throws the ball That explains why the New New York Mets have always built their teams around pitching Of Of course even the best pitcher needs good fielders behind him Over the years the Mets have also found some of baseball’s fastest and finest glove men Mets fans cheer as loudly for a great pitch or sparkling defensive play as they do for a solid hit The players know this In fact they appreciate how well the fans understand baseball The Mets enjoy playing in a city with millions of people watching them There may be a lot of pressure but it is is also a lot of fun This book tells the story of the Mets They have had many amazing seasons plus a few they would like to forget Through it all one thing has never changed No other team comes to the ballpark each day with more smiles than the Mets The Mets dugout often is as busy as the city the team plays in 5
Glory Days O nce upon a time New York was a three-team baseball town nce upon a ttiime NNew YYorkk was a tthhree-tteam bbasebballll ttown The Dodgers played in Brooklyn the Giants played in Manhattan and the Yankees played in the Bronx The Dodgers and Giants left for California in 1958 For four seasons the National League NL had no teams in New York That changed in 1962 when the NL added two new clubs the Mets and the Houston Colt 45s now known as the Astros The Mets moved into the Giants old stadium while a new one was built for the team in Queens In their early years the Mets played right across the river from the Yankees who were champions of the American League AL In order to attract fans the Mets used players who had once been famous in the city These players included Gil Hodges Duke Snider Charlie Neal Roger Craig Gene Woodling and Clem 6
Labine Their manager was Casey Stengel who had been a member of the Giants Dodgers and Yankees He got help in the dugout from New York baseball legend Yogi Berra Other Mets who were familiar to old-time baseball fans were Richie Ashburn Frank Thomas Gus Bell and Roy McMillan Unfortunately these players were no longer stars The Mets were terrible on the field In their first four seasons they finished last each year Even though the Mets usually lost millions of fans still came to see them The team made a lot of money and used it to develop talented young players This strategy worked In 1969 the Mets won the NL pennant and the World Series The team’s pitchers were the best in baseball New York’s staff included Tom Seaver Jerry Koosman Gary Gentry Nolan Ryan and Tug McGraw Their best defensive players were Jerry Grote Bud Harrelson Tommie Agee and Cleon Jones LEFT Gil Hodges and Duke Snider traded their Dodgers uniforms for Mets uniforms in 1962 ABOVE The team made news when Yogi Berra joined his old Yankees manager Casey Stengel on the Mets in 1965 7
