The Mets began as a franchise in the Continental League proposed by Branch Rickey. When the major leagues absorbed this potential rival, as they had so many others, by selling ML franchise rights to some of its sounder backers, the gap that had been left in New York City by the departure of the Dodgers and Giants after 1957 was filled by the expansion Mets. Chief owner Joan Payson, a millionaire, had been a Giants fan, and her team consciously played to the nostalgia of veteran fans. Before their first season, the Mets hired Casey Stengel and George Weiss, both recently let go by the Yankees, as manager and general manager. Gil Hodges, Don Zimmer, Gus Bell, Roger Craig, Clem Labine, Richie Ashburn, Frank Thomas, Gene Woodling, Duke Snider, Jimmy Piersall, Roy McMillan, Yogi Berra, Warren Spahn, and Joe Pignatano, all local favorites or former stars who would be remembered, played for the Mets in their first four seasons. (Johnny Antonelli and Billy Loes were purchased, but decided they would rather retire than play for the ragtag team.) The tactic was a bigger success as a promotional device than as a plan to win ballgames. The Mets, playing at the old Polo Grounds, went 40-120 in their first year, the worst record in the 20th century. But the fans, referred to as the "New Breed," were in the mold of the old Brooklyn Dodger fans, taking their team to heart as much for its faults as for its virtues, and in their enthusiasm introduced banners at the ballpark. At first, the painted bedsheets were quickly confiscated by park security, but local sportswriters pressured George Weiss, whose dignified Yankee sensibilities were offended by such unserious behavior, into allowing this new splash of color to thrive. The Mets became the first club to have an official Banner Day promotion.

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RELATED LINKS » 1965: End of Casey from The New York Mets Encyclopedia by Peter C. Bjarkman » 1968: Teams Score One Run in 24 Innings » 1970: Pitcher Strikes Out Ten Consecutive Batters » 1972: Tragic Loss of Gil Hodges from The New York Mets Encyclopedia by Peter C. Bjarkman » 1973: O, Charlie O. » 1975: Seaver from The New York Mets Encyclopedia by Peter C. Bjarkman » 1976: The Slugging of Dave Kingman from The New York Mets Encyclopedia by Peter C. Bjarkman » 1979: Retirement of Ed Kranepool from The New York Mets Encyclopedia by Peter C. Bjarkman » 1982: Player Gets a Hit for Different Teams in Different Cities on the Same Day » 1986: Buckner's Unfortunate Error » 1993: Young's Losing Streak Snapped at 27 Book Excerpts » "Starting in 1962, New York would have a team in the National League again": Stew Thornley » Casey Stengel with the Mets from The Man in the Dugout by Leonard Koppett » Unforgettable Moments in Mets History from The New York Mets Encyclopedia by Peter C. Bjarkman Submissions » Baseball Returns to Brooklyn, New York: You Can't Go Home Again by Sam Person » Ventura's Grand Slam: An Aaron, McCarver - But No Merkle by Mike Attiyeh » New York Weis Guy Responsible for Big Hit: Al Weis in the '69 World Series by Jonathan Brolin » The Mets Have Always Been Amazing by Harvey Frommer » Subway Series by Harvey Frommer » Baseball Names - and How They Got That Way! (Part 1) by Harvey Frommer » Baseball Names - and How They Got That Way! (Part 2) by Harvey Frommer Ask The Experts » How many players have won 10 games with both the Yankees and Mets? » Who has managed both the Yankees and the Mets? » What is the Mets single-season doubles record? » How many World Series have been won by a team from New York? » Who was the winning pitcher for the Mets in Game Seven of the 1986 Series? » How many one-hitters do the Mets have? Around the Web » Gambling probe clears Lo Duca from arizonarepublic.com » Answer Guy from nwsource.com » Floyd having too much fun to worry from suntimes.com » Being pulled doesn't sit well with Dempster from suntimes.com » Dempster still miffed over being yanked in 9th from suntimes.com » Zambrano smacks 4th homer, wins 11th from suntimes.com » Without Lee, Maddux halts skid, 8-7 from suntimes.com » Jose Reyes (New York Mets) from espn.com » Two Giants from thediamondangle.com Jump directly to Library content from any website!

Casey Stengel was largely responsible for the new team's image. He could see from the beginning that the Mets weren't going to win, so he clownishly played to the writers, providing a constant flow of funny quotes and stories and diverting attention from the cold facts.

George Weiss did his best to find promising young players, coming up with All-Star Ron Hunt in 1963 (he finished second to Pete Rose in Rookie of the Year voting). The club moved into Shea Stadium in 1964 and outdrew the pennant-bound Yankees. By the late 1960s the club, guided by GM Johnny Murphy and director of player development Whitey Herzog, had developed some of the best pitchers in the league. In the storied 1969 season a homegrown rotation anchored by Tom Seaver, Jerry Koosman, and Gary Gentry, with Nolan Ryan as a spot starter and Tug McGraw in the bullpen, took the "Miracle Mets" to a completely unexpected World Championship under manager Gil Hodges. The pattern was set for the 1970s: great pitching, below-average hitting. In mid-1972, in a move reminiscent of their earliest years, the Mets acquired Willie Mays, a favorite of Mrs. Payson's, so the Hall of Famer could finish his ML career in the city where it had started. During this time the Mets became known for their bad trades, most often ascribed to chairman of the board M. Donald Grant. The two worst trades shipped Nolan Ryan to the Angels for Jim Fregosi, and Amos Otis to the Royals for Joe Foy.

The Mets finished in third place for three years (1970-72) and then had another surprise pennant in 1973 under new manager Yogi Berra. Their record of 82-79 (.509) is the worst ever for a league champion. But they beat the 99-63 Reds in the NLCS, and took the A's to seven games in the World Series.

In September 1975 Joan Payson died. The loss of her financial resources relegated the team to an era of penny-pinching. They remained respectable through 1976 but then collapsed into the cellar for three straight seasons.

In 1980 the team was purchased for $21.3 million by Fred Wilpon, a real-estate magnate who had pitched for Brooklyn's Lafayette High School while Sandy Koufax played first base, and Nelson Doubleday of the publishing family. They appointed former Orioles GM Frank Cashen executive vice president and general manager, and he rebuilt the team from the bottom up. The team finished fifth in 1980 and '81, and last in 1982 and '83, but contended in 1984 under new manager Davey Johnson, finishing second. Once again, the Mets' success was based on pitching, with Rookie of the Year Dwight Gooden leading a staff that included Ron Darling, Sid Fernandez, and Jesse Orosco. But this time the Mets had an offense too. Darryl Strawberry, the number-one pick in the nation in 1980, won the Rookie of the Year award in 1983, the same season the Mets acquired clutch-hitting Gold Glove first baseman Keith Hernandez from the Cardinals. Howard Johnson and Gary Carter were added in 1985. Bob Ojeda joined in 1986 as the Mets dominated, going 108-54. They won a dramatic LCS over the Astros, winning a 16-inning clincher called by some the greatest game ever played, and came back in the World Series to beat the Red Sox in seven. They remained the favored team in the NL through 1989, but won only the 1988 NL East title in the three seasons following their World Championship. (SH)

FROM THE BASEBALL CHRONOLOGY » September 22, 1935: The Boston Braves lose their 110th game for a new NL record, dropping a pair to the Phils, 7–5 and 4–3. Timely homers by Johnny Moore and Watkins win the games for the Quakers. The Braves will lose 115, which remains the record until the 1962 expansion New York Mets lose 120 in a 162-game schedule. The Braves winning percentage of .248 is a 20th Century low in the NL. » March 14, 1961: George Weiss is lured from retirement to become president of the New York Mets. » September 29, 1961: Casey Stengel, 71, agrees to come out of retirement to manage the National League expansion New York Mets next year. Stengel mulled the offer over for two months before accepting. » October 28, 1961: Ground is broken for the Flushing Meadows stadium, the future home of the New York Mets. » April 23, 1962: Jay Hook gives the New York Mets their first regular-season victory, a 5-hit 9–1 win at Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh is now 10–1 for the season, but will lose 13 of its next 17 games. » May 12, 1962: New York Mets relief P Craig Anderson wins both games of a doubleheader against the Braves to go 3–1. He will not win another game in the ML, losing his next 19 decisions, 16 of them this season. Ninth-inning home runs win the games as Hobie Landrith hits one in the opening 3–2 win and Gil Hodges closes a game-two 9–8 victory. » June 23, 1963: Jimmy Piersall of the New York Mets hits the 100th home run of his ML career—and his only one in the National League—and celebrates by running around the bases backwards. Dallas Green of the Phillies, who gave up the home run, is not amused. Neither is Commissioner Ford Frick, who is in the stands. Nor are the Mets who will hand Jimmy his walking papers in a few days. » August 7, 1963: In the Mets 7–3 win over the St. Louis Cardinals, Jim Hickman hits for the cycle, doing it in order. Both are firsts for the New York Mets. » July 21, 1976: Montreal trades Jim Dwyer and Pepe Mangual to the New York Mets for Del Unser and Wayne Garrett. » September 23, 1979: St. Louis legend Lou Brock steals the 938th—and final—base of his career in a 7–4 win against the New York Mets. He tops 19th century speedster Billy Hamilton by one. » January 24, 1980: Nelson Doubleday and Fred Wilpon head a group of investors which purchases the New York Mets for a reported $21.1 million, the highest price paid to date for a ML baseball franchise. Doubleday, whose publishing company supplied 80 percent of the purchase price, will serve as chairman of the board, while Wilpon, a former teammate of Sandy Koufax's at Brooklyn's Lafayette High School, will be president and chief operating officer. » November 6, 1980: Mariners GM Lou Gorman, who had been with the club since its inception, resigns to become vice president of the New York Mets. » June 3, 1983: George Bamberger resigns as manager of the New York Mets, whose 16-30 record is the big-leagues' worst. He will be replaced by Frank Howard, who managed the Padres in 1981. » April 14, 1985: At Atlanta, the Braves defeat the Padres 3-1 behind Rick Mahler and 2B Glenn Hubbard, who as a ML-record tying 12 assists. Second base also sees action on the Pads side as Tony Gwynn throws out two runners there. LaMarr Hoyt gives up the three Braves runs in four innings of work. In six days, on April 20, Juan Samuel, second sacker of the Phillies will be the next to match the 12 assists in a 7-6 Philadelphia win over the New York Mets. Monte Ward, for Brooklyn in 1892, was the first to make 12 assists. » September 1, 1985: The visiting New York Mets edge San Francisco, 4–3 with Keith Hernandez's 2-run homer climaxing a 3-run 9th inning. Siske, in relief of Ed Lynch, is the winning pitcher. In the 5th, Lynch lines to right field and is thrown out 9–3 by RF Joel Youngblood. It's the National League's 2nd 9–3 putout in two months. » March 19, 1999: The career of New York Mets righthander Paul Wilson is derailed again when he suffers a partially torn ligament in his pitching elbow while warming up before a three–inning stint in a minor-league game. An MRI will show a partial tear of the MCL in his elbow, and on March 30 he will undergo "Tommy John" surgery which will sideline him for the year. » June 28, 1999: Hack Wilson ups his RBI total for the 1930 season to 191. 69 years after the season, an RBI is added by the commissioner's office, which also gives Babe Ruth six additional walks, raising his career-record total to 2,062. "There is no doubt that Hack Wilson's RBI total should be 191," commissioner Bud Selig said. "I am sensitive to the historical significance that accompanies the correction of such a prestigious record, especially after so many years have passed, but it is important to get it right." The missing RBI came from the 2nd game of a doubleheader between Wilson's Chicago Cubs and the Cincinnati Reds on July 28, 1930 where Charlie Grimm was credited with two RBIs in the game and Wilson with none. Ruth's walks total is now 2,062. Ted Williams is second, trailing by 43, and Rickey Henderson of the New York Mets is third, 134 behind Ruth. » May 17, 2001: Desi Relaford of the New York Mets became the third position player this year to take the mound as he pitches the ninth inning of a 15-3 blowout by the San Diego Padres. Relaford displays a 91-mph fastball as he fires a perfect inning. Starter Steve Trachsel takes the loss and sets a club record by serving up four homers (to Alex Arias, Rickey Henderson, Ryan Klesko, and Bubba Trammell) in the 3rd inning. The Pads set a team record with 11 extra base hits.