Long Island Mike
09-16-2009, 05:49 PM
Everyone: Many remember the good times of the Mets in the 80s peaking with the 1986 World Championship team. Looking back it interests me how the Mets rose and fell in that decade. My own overview of that decade:
The 80s started slowly with the sale of the team to the Doubleday/Wilpon group. The years 1980-1982 the Mets were mediocre under managers like George Bamberger but slowly the farm system was showing signs of improvement.
1983 could be counted there also but slowly the seeds of something good were showing in the farm system with their young players and then the Mets made arguably the best trade in their history acquiring Keith Hernandez for Neil Allen and Rick Ownbey from the Cardinals.
1984 saw the improved Mets with young talent and Hernandez in a leadership role go 90-72 with manager Davey Johnson leading them.
Who can forget 19-year old Dwight Gooden's first year as a good example?
In 1985 they won 98-64 and fell short to the Cardinals-the Mets biggest 80s era rival-with more good moves like the Howard Johnson and Gary Carter trades back then. As much as I hated seeing Hubie Brooks and Mike Fitzgerald go to the Expos Carter gave the Mets another proven player in a leadership role to go along with Hernandez. Good things were happening...
1986: What a Year!!! The Mets win 108 games with it seemed to me everything peaking that year-a good mix of older stars with young talent all around! The year ended with the NLCS for the Ages against the Houston Astros and then the World Series against the Boston Red Sox-even though they started slow and lost the first two games they came thru to win that 7-game Series. Who can forget that 6th game comeback and that Mookie Wilson at-bat - arguably the most important single at-bat in Mets history!
The Mets won that 7th game on the 6th game momentum I thought.
Wow! That Dream DID work!!! A great time to be a Mets fan!!!
1987: The Mets fell short to the Cardinals again like they did in 1985 but the Mets started making questionable moves that would hurt them in the long run-like letting Ray Knight walk in a petty-to-me contract dispute and the Kevin Mitchell trade. That team should have been kept together as much as possible but when the METS have something good going...
The 1988 Mets had the possibility to be great also but in my opinion did not have that "killer" instinct or swagger the 1986 team had. As good as players like David Cone were that year that loss to the Dodgers-the eventual"Team of Destiny" in the NL playoffs that year still hurts many Met fans.
In 1989 the Mets showed promise but there were signs of a coming decline
like the Mets making perhaps their worst 80s era trade that year trading Lenny Dykstra and Roger McDowell-two well liked and pivotal 80s Mets- to the Phillies for Juan Samuel. Young players like Greg Jefferies did not handle the big stage of New York very well. A team decline by the end of the 1989 season was noticeable to Met fans.
These are my thoughts of the 80s from my memory about the Mets.
Anyone care to add or comment on them? Thanks to all in advance-
Long Island Mike
The 80s started slowly with the sale of the team to the Doubleday/Wilpon group. The years 1980-1982 the Mets were mediocre under managers like George Bamberger but slowly the farm system was showing signs of improvement.
1983 could be counted there also but slowly the seeds of something good were showing in the farm system with their young players and then the Mets made arguably the best trade in their history acquiring Keith Hernandez for Neil Allen and Rick Ownbey from the Cardinals.
1984 saw the improved Mets with young talent and Hernandez in a leadership role go 90-72 with manager Davey Johnson leading them.
Who can forget 19-year old Dwight Gooden's first year as a good example?
In 1985 they won 98-64 and fell short to the Cardinals-the Mets biggest 80s era rival-with more good moves like the Howard Johnson and Gary Carter trades back then. As much as I hated seeing Hubie Brooks and Mike Fitzgerald go to the Expos Carter gave the Mets another proven player in a leadership role to go along with Hernandez. Good things were happening...
1986: What a Year!!! The Mets win 108 games with it seemed to me everything peaking that year-a good mix of older stars with young talent all around! The year ended with the NLCS for the Ages against the Houston Astros and then the World Series against the Boston Red Sox-even though they started slow and lost the first two games they came thru to win that 7-game Series. Who can forget that 6th game comeback and that Mookie Wilson at-bat - arguably the most important single at-bat in Mets history!
The Mets won that 7th game on the 6th game momentum I thought.
Wow! That Dream DID work!!! A great time to be a Mets fan!!!
1987: The Mets fell short to the Cardinals again like they did in 1985 but the Mets started making questionable moves that would hurt them in the long run-like letting Ray Knight walk in a petty-to-me contract dispute and the Kevin Mitchell trade. That team should have been kept together as much as possible but when the METS have something good going...
The 1988 Mets had the possibility to be great also but in my opinion did not have that "killer" instinct or swagger the 1986 team had. As good as players like David Cone were that year that loss to the Dodgers-the eventual"Team of Destiny" in the NL playoffs that year still hurts many Met fans.
In 1989 the Mets showed promise but there were signs of a coming decline
like the Mets making perhaps their worst 80s era trade that year trading Lenny Dykstra and Roger McDowell-two well liked and pivotal 80s Mets- to the Phillies for Juan Samuel. Young players like Greg Jefferies did not handle the big stage of New York very well. A team decline by the end of the 1989 season was noticeable to Met fans.
These are my thoughts of the 80s from my memory about the Mets.
Anyone care to add or comment on them? Thanks to all in advance-
Long Island Mike