Brandon Allen, Jose Reyes, and the '69 Mets
Fascinating that the Diamondbacks promoted Brandon Allen and appear committed to playing him at first and batting him fifth until he makes it or bottoms out. First has been a sinkhole in Arizona this year, and the White Sox clearly no longer viewed Allen where Baseball America placed him - as their sixth best prospect - having dished him off six weeks ago for Tony Pena.
Allen moved up to AA at age 22 last year and managed 14 homers (and 41 strikeouts) in 41 games. When Chicago promoted him to AAA in the middle of this campaign, he produced no such flourish (1 HR, 8 RBI, .262, in 15 games). But in the more hitter-friendly confines of the Coast League he absolutely tattooed the ball (12 HR, 32 RBI, .324 in 38 games, with only 25 strikeouts, and six steals to boot, and, for a standard lefty crusher, a startling.366 average against southpaws, in 41 AB). Baseball Prospectus translated his 2008 minor league numbers to a season of 22-73-.230 at the major league level in 2009.
The other jaw-dropper: Armando Benitez is back - at least for a trial. The Astros decided 16 saves in 34 appearances at Newark of the Atlantic League was worth a look at Round Rock. Nobody expects that the most erratic closer of the decade will get another shot at that job on the major league level, but given what the Mets hope to get (presumably from Boston) for Billy Wagner, Houston's interest in Benitez seems like a low-risk, potentially high-yield investment.
The mixture of rumors and reliable intel culled from a day at CitiField suggests Wagner will almost certainly be moved before the end of the month. Meanwhile, manager Jerry Manuel's assertion that he is assuming Jose Reyes won't play again appears to have been an authorized leak. Nobody has yet made the same admission about David Wright but his return seems just as unlikely as that of Reyes. Things are more vague about Carlos Beltran (I don't think the Mets want him to try, but he seems insistent on it), Carlos Delgado (maybe for the last two weeks), and J.J. Putz (who knows?).
I once asserted here that nobody wants to hear about anybody else's fantasy team but I was apparently the Flying Dutchman this year: in an NL-only league I used the first pick on Reyes, the second on Beltran, the third on Chris Young, and the fourth on Jay Bruce. All told I managed to induce four-season injuries (adding in Jesus Flores), another two long-termers (Kuo, and Myers), and one that led to a regular losing his job (Kelly Johnson). The point of mentioning this is that I've become something of an expert on the disabled list - and I'm cutting bait on Reyes and giving Beltran a little more time. I think Wright is also done, and I'm not sure if the Mets think they're better served giving Delgado his hoped-for last couple of weeks, or sticking with Daniel Murphy in hopes that he somehow clinches the job next year.
In the interim, the Mets were focused on the past: a very warm and cheering celebration of the '69 Miracle team, that ranged from a Habitat For Humanity event, a two-hour meet-and-greet with fans for a hefty charity fee, a truly entertaining news conference that centered on a reunion of Jerry Koosman, Nolan Ryan, and Tom Seaver, and then an on-field ceremony and simultaneous first pitches by those three, to Yogi Berra, Duffy Dyer, and Jerry Grote.
The picture is fuzzy at best - an enlargement from an iPhone, sorry - but it's worth it because Ryan insisted this was the first time he'd worn a Met uniform since the infamous trade in the winter of 1971-72 that sent him to the Angels for Jim Fregosi:
That's Nolan on the far left, Seaver - at his expansive and literate best - next to him answering fans' questions, Gary Gentry, Jim McAndrew (he of the unforgettable home town of Lost Nation, Iowa), reliever Ron Taylor (for the last 31 years, the team physician of the Toronto Blue Jays), and '69 Series stalwart Jerry Koosman.
Even media types of sufficient vintage to have covered the '69 teams - or at least their immediate successors - say that several of the stories told by the assembled Mets were new to public consumption. Shortstop Bud Harrelson noted that in conversations over the years with ex-Orioles like Brooks Robinson, he heard repeatedly that Baltimore's scouting report on Gary Gentry was wrong, and that he shocked them. "He pitched the third game. They had won the first, we had won the second. That's the decider. They didn't think Gentry was the kind of pitcher he was."
Understandably now almost-forgotten because his own career was shortened by injury, and the fact that the big three names of the '69 Mets staff went on to win a combined 857 career games, Gentry pitched 6-2/3 innings of three-hit ball (with Ryan finishing the shutout in relief - he was at that point not good enough to crack New York's rotation) against the Birds in the pivotal third game. The ever-delightful Ron Swoboda added that Gentry, a rookie in 1969, was at times the most-feared pitcher on the staff. "During the season, guys from other teams would ask me 'Is Gentry pitching?' and if I'd say no, they'd say 'good,' because they would rather face Seaver or Koosman. Gary's fastball jumped. It had a natural sink, just like a cutter. And amazingly, the Orioles didn't know." This crediting of the least long-lasting of the team's starters dovetails neatly with a quote Frank Robinson gave John Eisenberg for a history of the O's about seven years ago: "The key to the Series was Gentry. We got a scouting report that he had an average fastball, but he threw the ball right by us."
Looking back more in amazement than anger, Harrelson recalled the familiar story that Don Buford, who led off the bottom of the first of Game One with a homer off Seaver, muttered towards him as he rounded second, "You ain't seen nothing yet." Koosman repeated a second, less-frequently told story about a former Met farmhand who was in the Orioles bullpen for the series. "Jim Hardin, who I knew from the minors, came over and said, 'What are you doing here?' I was kind of surprised, I didn't know what he meant. 'What are you doing here? You don't belong on the same field as us.' I can't tell you how much that fired us up." One can only imagine.
Jerry Grote told a tale of mass psychology, of how Joe Namath's fulfilled boast before the 1969 Super Bowl that he guaranteed an upset victory over the Baltimore Colts had set a tone for an entire city, and its teams. "Suddenly we believed we could do it, and the Knicks started to believe they could do it, and the fans started to believe we both could do it. Sure enough, the Jets beat Baltimore, we beat Baltimore. If only the Knicks had beaten the Baltimore Bullets in the '69 playoffs, it would've been a clean sweep."
But my favorite story came from the gentleman shown posing for one of a hundred or more photos at the meet-and-greet:
That's Al Weis, whose home run off Dave McNally leading off the 7th inning of the deciding Game Five erased Baltimore's 3-2 lead. Weis, a native New Yorker (from Franklin Square, a quick hop from Shea) hit exactly seven other homers in his major league career, but it was he who would put the penultimate nail in the Orioles' fleeting hopes.
His father, Al told me, was at the game. "He goes out in the top of the seventh to get beers for everybody. I don't know if he forgot I would be hitting, or thought Gil Hodges would pinch-hit for me, or what, but he's just bought his four beers and is making his way back to his seat when the crowd goes nuts. He asks somebody 'what happened?' and this guy says 'Al Weis just homered to tie it up!' My father said he was so happy he threw his arms up in the air, and, with them, the four beers! So he didn't see my homer and he didn't get his beer!"
One last photo, of one of my favorite Mets - Ed Charles - who had signed with the Braves in 1953 and didn't reach the majors until 1962. He suffered endless travails in the just-integrated minors of the '50s, and in 1969 he announced the upcoming season would be his last. The poetry-writing, cerebral third baseman known as "The Glider" was emblematic of the quality of people on the team: well-rounded, thoughtful, socially-conscious. But it wasn't until just before this photo that I found out, to my delight, that he's a regular viewer. And that has a certain symmetry to it, because when he played third base in Game Four of the 1969 Series, there was a ten-year old kid sitting way out in left getting the unmatchable thrill of attending his first Series game. He's the other guy in this photo:
nice work covering this, Keith.
http://RememberingShea.blogspot.com
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The 69 Knicks did beat the Bullets in the playoffs, They lost to the Celtics in the Eastern Division finals
http://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/NYK/1969.html
54-28, Finished 3rd in NBA Eastern Division (Schedule and Results)
Playoffs:
(Won NBA Eastern Division Semifinals (4-0) versus Baltimore Bullets)
Lost NBA Eastern Division Finals (4-2) versus Boston Celtics
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In my first year following baseball, 1967, I look back in wonder at how the Red Sox were able to get to a 7th game of a World Series against that great St. Louis Cardinals team. I would wake up that summer at 6:00 in the morning, run down to the store to buy the Boston Globe and then spend the rest of the day pestering my brothers and uncle to get them to explain to me over and over what the Red Sox had to do to finish in first in a 4 team race. That's when I learned about the importance of the loss column. We faced the Twins with Jim Kaat and Dean Chance in the final two games of the season, 2 games we HAD to win, while at the same time depending on Detroit to lose their final game of the season. Jim Kaat, who was having a tremendous season, had to leave the first game early with either an injury or just plain tired arm. I'm not sure which. Jim Lonborg then beat Dean Chance in the last game of the regular season. The Tigers lost the second game of their doubleheader to clinch the pennant for us. Then in 1968, Denny McClain wins 31 games, yet it is Mickey Lolich who wins 3 games in the WS, beating Bob Gibson. 1969 gave us the Baltimore O's with McNally, Cuellar, Palmer, Brooks and Frank Robinson, Belanger, Blair and Boog Powell and Earl Weaver. Tom Seaver pitches an extra inning complete Game 4 to bring them one step closer to an unimaginable WS title for the Mets. I can remember seeing Seaver's picture everywhere after that WS, just as we saw with Joe Namath after the Jets won the SB in 1969.
I can just imagine a 10 year old attending his first World Series game, sitting there in awe at the magnitude of such a moment. That's what childhoods are all about. How can you not love baseball. It's all about memories that last a lifetime. Both good and bad.
"There's a little roller up along first, behind the bag! It gets through Bill Buckner! Here comes Ray Knight and the Mets win it!" Vin Scully, Game 6, 1986 World Series, Shea Stadium
I had a bottle of beer in my hands that literally slipped through my fingers and crashed to the floor. So we packed up our champagne, got in the car and spent the next 24 hours in agony, with each and every member of my very large family all screaming at each other. Actually, that's what the entire city of Boston did. lol
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1948braves--I just cannot imagine what it was like for you in 1986 as a Red Sox Fan.
Fans like me who saw or was aware of their teams wins early in life really does not know suffering.
I was aware of the Yankees history even though I was 21 (was first aware of actually seeing WS win)
I saw the Jets win at 12
The Knicks win at 14 and the Isles win at 24,
So I saw plenty of tittles at an early age,
I was also overjoyed when the Mets won in 69 (13), Most New Yorkers rooted for the Mets in 69 even though the yankee fans will not admit that today.
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nutballgazette, 1986 was bad. 2003 was horrific. But the Pats/Giants Super Bowl really did it for me, only because the expectations were huge. I now look at baseball in a different way. Boston has had many titles in the last 7/8 years. So it's not the end of the world any longer for me. I think the NYY are going to win the WS this year. And I can finally say to myself - that's okay. We have been very fortunate up here in recent years and I have come to realize that you just can't win every year.
One of my favorite memories from the 1967 season was sitting on the floor, watching the Red Sox, while my mother sat with all 9 of her children and spoke about growing up on Beacon Street; how she spent her childhood going to either Red Sox or Braves games during the depression & WWII. How the kids would break into Fenway Park and borrow Red Sox equipment to play baseball on the streets. She talked about all the out of the town players she would see hanging around Kenmore Square - Yogi Berra is the one she remembered mostly. Ted Williams she saw all the time walking around and said he was very friendly to the neighborhood kids. She talked about how Babe Ruth used to go her aunt's house, drink beer and play poker. But mostly she spoke about the Braves, especially when Warren Spahn lived in her apartment bldg the year they went to the World Series in 1948 vs. Bob Feller and the Cleveland Indians. This was the only WS from 1947-1958 not to have a NY team playing. It was also the first WS which saw our first African American ballplayer pitch - Satchel Paige. It's very hard not to love this game and its history when you grow up with a mother who tells you the most wonderful stories. 1967 was the year which began my journey into baseball. And I think I have now become my mother in many ways. I love to tell stories.
But I do love to watch everyone up here, still living and dying with each Red Sox win or loss. The Sox/NYY fans are still at each other's throats. I can see so much of myself in them. That was me for most of my life. lol
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Excellent rendition of the anniversary celebration of the 1969 Mets.
First, I want to commend Mr. Olbermann, who was not noticeable at the event except as one of hundreds of other fans who adores baseball. He did NOT pull rank. He quietly went about meeting the players, the same as me and my son, even getting "the 26th man," Bobby Pfeil's autograph.
Second, the immense respect that each of the players and coaches had for one of my personal heroes, Gil Hodges, was evident. It was nice to hear their memories of Gil and what he meant to this team, as their leader.
Third, although I lived through 1969 and that year meant a lot to me as a kid (as it clearly did to the MC Howie Rose--who did a wonderful job), I also heard stories I hadn't heard before. The banter between the players was like watching an extended version of Kiners' Korner and it was nice to see the years melt away as Jerry Koosman, Jerry Grote, Cleon Jones, Duffy Dyer, Ed Charles, among others, stuck it to each other as only teammates could, in a good natured way.
Fourth, being an Ed Kranepool fan, I can't let an article go without mentioning his name.
Lastly, the lovely day was marred, in part, by the lack of support for the Mets in the stands. CitiField (I still call it Shea) was filled with Phillie fans, which was a real turn-off. The Mets' injuries this year really didn't give them a fair shot at the pennent but I hope the owners do whatever they can to make this stadium a METS stadium, rather than a homage to the Brooklyn Dodgers. Jackie Robinson must be every baseball fan's hero but this stadium needs something, anything, named for the great Mets of the past, starting with Gil Hodges.
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Olberman, you are an arrogant *****! Have a nice day!
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And what, pray tell, brought that on?
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I'm sure that concealed within those asterisks was something pertaining to baseball.
Awesome stories, KO.
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Nice article.
...nice shirt, too.
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Hi Keith! Awesome stories and awesome photos! The 69 Mets were definitely a special group of guys and it is cool that they get the props they deserve.
Am digging your Hawaiian style shirt!
Keep it rocking,
~Kathleen
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Holy hell. I never knew that about Jim McAndrew. I live less than half an hour from Lost Nation. (You can tell I'm from Iowa because I measure distance in minutes.) I have family that is from Lost Nation and I have been going to Lost Nation since I was a little boy and I never knew that. That is amazing to me that I never knew that. I am a huge baseball fan and even though I was born 19 years after the 1969 season, I despise many of the '69 Mets because I am a Cubs fan. It's not the fault of any of those Mets that the Cubs blew it, but still.
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The 1969 ceremony was great to watch on TV too, and seeing interviews with all the players was a real treat. More Cleon Jones on TV please! Ed Charles seems like a true gentleman as well. But there's no way David Wright misses the end of the season. He'll fight tooth and nail to get back in the lineup after his 15 days are up.
http://pickmeup.mlblogs.com/
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Keith, terrific post, as usual. What a special day that must have been. And I will add Vin Scully's comment, made annually on a Dodger broadcast but sometimes more often: it is a crime that Gil Hodges is not in the Hall of Fame.
Nice, too, that the last surviving member of the legendary Mets broadcasting trio, Ralph Kiner, was there. This reminds me of Lindsey Nelson's stories about that team, and for obvious reasons he loved to talk about it. One was Casey Stengel's perfectly logical explanation of their success: "they did it slow, but fast." Think about it.
Lindsey loved Koosman. He said Jerry claimed he had a brother Orville who pitched while Jerry caught, but when Jerry started throwing the ball back harder, Jerry became the pitcher. Lindsey noted that, so far as he knew, no one had ever seen Orville Koosman.
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1948braves..Thanks for your responce and thoughts and stories.
I guess 2004 was my version of your Giant/Pats SB, At the time I was going through quad Bypass Surgery, The day of game 5.
I stayed the night before the Surgery at my Brothers, and when Roberts stole 2nd I told my brother that if the sox tie the game they would win the game and the series.
And when I woke up late Monday Night and the Nurse told me the Sox won game 5 I knew the Sox would win the Series.
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As a baseball loving NYer--I happen to be a Yankee fan, as you can surmise from my moniker--it was very cool to see the '69 Mets team honored. And thanks to KO and all of you here who have shared your great stories and anecdotes.
One last thing: because of the celebrations and some of the honorees being invited to the Mets TV broadcasting booth, I ended up watching most of that evening's game. (It was a distant second to the occasion. Sorry.) The one interaction that sticks out for me was Ralph Kiner mentioning that his guests on Kiner's Korner were paid $100 per appearance. So, when Cleon Jones joined him and the rest of the Mets' announcers in the booth and was very chatty and funny, Kiner wondered why he had been so low-key on KK. "'Cause you never paid me." Laughs all around.
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Great story about Kiner's Korner. Two classics about Mets interviews, one of them well-known.
One is Kiner having on Choo-Choo Coleman and asking him, "What's your wife's name and what's she like?" Choo-Choo said, "Her name's Mrs. Coleman and she likes me, Bub." So Ralph waited until he had run out of questions, then asked the most logical question imaginable: How did he get that nickname. Choo-Choo sat there for what seemed like an eternity, then said, "I don't know."
The other one is apropos of Cleon Jones's lack of payment. Lindsey Nelson once interviewed Chris Cannizzaro on the pre-game show, where the gift was a knife set. One of the knives was chipped, and Lindsey said Chris asked him about it nearly every day. Lindsey said something like, "I don't handle the knives. I just ask the dumb questions."
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