It was the eve of the 1970 baseball season, and the Mets were still on top of the baseball world.
They continued to relish their improbable World Championship from a year ago, and still had their cast in place. Tom Seaver, Jerry Koosman, and Gary Gentry anchored one of the game’s best starting staff. Tug McGraw and Rod Taylor arguably were the best one-two punch in the bullpen.
They did release third baseman Ed Charles and their lone major acquisitions were veteran lefty Ray Sadecki and third baseman Joy Foy for a young outfielder and future star Amos Otis.
Outfielders Tommie Agee and Cleon Jones appeared to be on the verge of becoming a pair of the game’s biggest stars. Donn Clendenon apparently found his niche at first and as the cleanup hitter. There was help on the farm with Mike Jorgenson, Ken Singleton, Danny Frisella, and Tim Foli.
Another 100-win season and deep postseason run would have been a safe bet, and the thought of a cross-town New York dynasty was in the offing.
However, it proved to be one of the most disappointing seasons in New York Metropolitan history.
The Mets sputtered and had trouble getting out of first gear through the first two months of the season. They compiled a 25-23 record through May. Agee and Jones, who had strong starts the year before, struggled. Despite their woes, they remained within striking distance of the first-place Cubs.
June proved to proving ground, as they won 15 of 25 games – a streak of 10 wins in 15 games – and they were back in the hunt with the Cubs and Pirates. They stayed near the top of the standings in July, bobbing in and out of first place. Any doubts of a repeat quickly were being put to rest.
A doubleheader loss to the Padres is still seen as the tipping point for the season.
Then came August 1 and a doubleheader with the then lowly San Diego Padres on Banner Day. Unfortunately, another championship banner wouldn’t be flying at Shea Stadium.
The Mets then embarked on a 13-game road trip that ended with a 6-7 record. The trip dropped them three games off the pace with a 63-56 record. They stayed unbalanced throughout most of August until they rallied to move into a first-place tie with Pittsburgh on Sept. 9.
They managed just two more days in first place the rest of the way, consistently either two or three games shy of the top spot.
There was a final showdown with the Pirates in late September. Light-hitting Pirates’ shortstop Gene Alley and closer Dave Guisti ironically delivered timely hits with a triple and squeeze bunt respectively that resulted in a 9-5, 10th-inning victory. It left the Mets three games out on Sept. 20.
They gained a little ground, but the proverbial nail came with a three-one-run-game sweep by the Pirates in Pittsburgh Sept.25-27. Then there was a four-game split with the Cubs at home that closed the curtain with a 4-1 loss to Ferguson Jenkins Oct. 1.
The Mets finished with an 83-79 mark and three games out, a 19-game negative swing from their title tilt.
Agee (24 HR, 75 RBIs, .286, 31SBs) and Clendenon (22, 97, .288) had banner years. But Jones’ numbers (10, 63, .277) took a dip.
Seaver was at the top of his game, the ace posted an 18-12 record, with a 2.84 ERA. He racked up 283 strikeouts and 19 complete games.
While Seaver kept the staff afloat, Koosman (12-7, 3.14) and Gentry (9-9, 3.68) slightly faded.
McGraw (4-6, 3.28, 10 saves) and Taylor (5-4, 3.93, 13 saves) weren’t as effective. The staff did post a league-leading 3.45 ERA.
It was a shock for the Metropolitan faithful, but the Mets returned to the World Series in 1973. Yet, they failed to maintain their status and fell into mediocrity until a return to prosperity in the mid-1980s.
