1997 New York Mets season

Major League Baseball team season

1997 New York Mets

League| National League
Division| East
Ballpark| Shea Stadium
City| New York
Record| 88–74 (.543)
Divisional place| 3rd
Owners| Fred Wilpon and Nelson Doubleday, Jr.
General managers| Joe McIlvaine, Steve Phillips
Managers| Bobby Valentine
Television| WWOR-TV/SportsChannel New York
(Ralph Kiner, Tim McCarver, Fran Healy, Howie Rose, Gary Thorne)
Radio| WFAN
(Bob Murphy, Gary Cohen, Ed Coleman)
WADO (spanish)
(Juan Alicea, Billy Berroa)
| <- 1996 | Seasons | 1998 ->

|
|

The 1997 New York Mets season was the 36th regular season for the Mets. They went 88–74 and finished third in the National League East. They were managed by Bobby Valentine. They played home games at Shea Stadium. It was their first winning season since 1990, despite not making the playoffs.

## Offseason

[edit]

* November 25, 1996: Paul Byrd and a player to be named later were traded by the Mets to the Atlanta Braves for Greg McMichael. The Mets completed the deal by sending Andy Zwirchitz (minors) to the Braves on May 25, 1997.[1]
* November 27, 1996: Rico Brogna was traded by the Mets to the Philadelphia Phillies for Ricardo Jordan and Toby Borland.[2]
* December 20, 1996: Robert Person was traded by the Mets to the Toronto Blue Jays for John Olerud and cash.[3]
* March 22, 1997: Héctor Ramírez was traded by the Mets to the Baltimore Orioles for Scott McClain and Manny Alexander.[4]

## Regular season

[edit]

For the first time since 1990, the Mets finished the regular season with a winning record. Their offensive output was led by their corner infielders, the 23-year old third baseman Edgardo Alfonzo and the two-time former world champion first baseman John Olerud, the latter of whom was acquired in a trade with the Toronto Blue Jays. Alfonzo, in his first full season as a starter, led the team with a .315 average and 163 hits while Olerud notched a .294 average and drove in 102 runs to lead the Mets in that category. Catcher Todd Hundley, a year removed from his record setting 1996 campaign, led the team in home runs with 30 and added 86 RBI, one of five Mets to record 70 or more (joining Alfonzo, Olerud, Bernard Gilkey, and Butch Huskey).

After a year out of baseball, Rick Reed joined the Mets' starting rotation and led them with a 2.89 ERA. Bobby Jones led with fifteen wins, with Reed recording thirteen. John Franco saved 36 games, his most since 1988.

### Jackie Robinson tribute

[edit]

On April 15 the Mets hosted ceremonies marking the 50th anniversary of Jackie Robinson's first game with the Brooklyn Dodgers before their game against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Shea Stadium.[5] The ceremony was attended by President Bill Clinton and commissioner Bud Selig announced that Robinson's jersey number, 42, would be retired permanently across baseball.[5] The Mets won the game 5-0.[6]

### Subway Series

[edit]

Interleague play was brought to MLB in 1997 and the Mets played New York Yankees in June as part of the first ever regular season games that counted in the standings between the two teams (they had previously an exhibition game until 1983 during the season). The series took place at Yankee Stadium, and Mets won the first game by a score of 6-0.[7]

### Season standings

[edit]

* v
* t
* e

NL East Team  | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road

|
|
|
|
|
|

Atlanta Braves | 101 | 61  | .623  | —  | 50‍–‍31  | 51‍–‍30
Florida Marlins | 92 | 70  | .568  | 9  | 52‍–‍29  | 40‍–‍41
New York Mets | 88 | 74  | .543  | 13  | 50‍–‍31  | 38‍–‍43
Montreal Expos | 78 | 84  | .481  | 23  | 45‍–‍36  | 33‍–‍48
Philadelphia Phillies | 68 | 94  | .420  | 33  | 38‍–‍43  | 30‍–‍51

### Record vs. opponents

[edit]

1997 National League record

* v
* t
* e

Sources: [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14]

Team  | ATL  | CHC  | CIN  | COL  | FLA  | HOU  | LA  | MTL  | NYM  | PHI  | PIT  | SD  | SF  | STL  | AL
Atlanta | — | 9–2 | 9–2 | 5–6 | 4–8 | 7–4 | 6–5 | 10–2 | 5–7 | 10–2 | 5–6 | 8–3 | 7–4 | 8–3 | 8–7
Chicago | 2–9 | — | 7–5 | 2–9 | 2–9 | 3–9 | 5–6 | 4–7 | 6–5 | 6–5 | 7–5 | 6–5 | 5–6 | 4–8 | 9–6
Cincinnati | 2–9 | 5–7 | — | 5–6 | 5–6 | 5–7 | 6–5 | 6–5 | 2–9 | 8–3 | 8–4 | 5–6 | 4–7 | 6–6 | 9–6
Colorado | 6–5 | 9–2 | 6–5 | — | 7–4 | 5–6 | 5–7 | 7–4 | 6–5 | 4–7 | 4–7 | 4–8 | 4–8 | 7–4 | 9–7
Florida | 8–4 | 9–2 | 6–5 | 4–7 | — | 7–4 | 7–4 | 7–5 | 4–8 | 6–6 | 7–4 | 5–6 | 5–6 | 5–6 | 12–3
Houston | 4–7 | 9–3 | 7–5 | 6–5 | 4–7 | — | 7–4 | 8–3 | 7–4 | 4–7 | 6–6 | 6–5 | 3–8 | 9–3 | 4–11
Los Angeles | 5–6 | 6–5 | 5–6 | 7–5 | 4–7 | 4–7 | — | 7–4 | 6–5 | 10–1 | 9–2 | 5–7 | 6–6 | 5–6 | 9–7
Montreal | 2–10 | 7–4 | 5–6 | 4–7 | 5–7 | 3–8 | 4–7 | — | 5–7 | 6–6 | 5–6 | 8–3 | 6–5 | 6–5 | 12–3
New York | 7–5 | 5–6 | 9–2 | 5–6 | 8–4 | 4–7 | 5–6 | 7–5 | — | 7–5 | 7–4 | 5–6 | 3–8 | 9–2 | 7–8
Philadelphia | 2–10 | 5–6 | 3–8 | 7–4 | 6–6 | 7–4 | 1–10 | 6–6 | 5–7 | — | 5–6 | 7–4 | 3–8 | 6–5 | 5–10
Pittsburgh | 6–5 | 5–7 | 4–8 | 7–4 | 4–7 | 6–6 | 2–9 | 6–5 | 4–7 | 6–5 | — | 5–6 | 8–3 | 9–3 | 7–8
San Diego | 3–8 | 5–6 | 6–5 | 8–4 | 6–5 | 5–6 | 7–5 | 3–8 | 6–5 | 4–7 | 6–5 | — | 4–8 | 5–6 | 8–8
San Francisco | 4–7 | 6–5 | 7–4 | 8–4 | 6–5 | 8–3 | 6–6 | 5–6 | 8–3 | 8–3 | 3–8 | 8–4 | — | 3–8 | 10–6
St. Louis | 3–8 | 8–4 | 6–6 | 4–7 | 6–5 | 3–9 | 6–5 | 5–6 | 2–9 | 5–6 | 3–9 | 6–5 | 8–3 | — | 8–7

### Notable transactions

[edit]

* June 3, 1997: 1997 Major League Baseball Draft
* Garrett Atkins was drafted by the Mets in the 10th round, but did not sign.[8]
* Jeremy Guthrie was drafted by the Mets in the 15th round, but did not sign.[9]
* August 8, 1997: Lance Johnson and players to be named later were traded by the Mets to the Chicago Cubs for Brian McRae, Mel Rojas and Turk Wendell. The Mets completed the deal by sending Mark Clark to the Cubs on August 11 and Manny Alexander to the Cubs on August 14.[10]

## Roster

[edit]

1997 New York Mets

Roster
Pitchers

* 39 Juan Acevedo
* 46 Brian Bohanon
* 43 Toby Borland
* 54 Mark Clark
* 49 Joe Crawford
* 31 John Franco
* 27 Pete Harnisch
* 44 Jason Isringhausen
* 28 Bobby Jones
* 48 Ricardo Jordan
* 18 Takashi Kashiwada
* 11 Cory Lidle
* 26 Barry Manuel
* 36 Greg McMichael
* 38 Dave Mlicki
* 25 Yorkis Pérez
* 35 Rick Reed
* 40 Armando Reynoso
* 51 Mel Rojas
* 50 Ricky Trlicek
* 99 Turk Wendell

|  | Catchers

* 30 Alberto Castillo
* 9 Todd Hundley
* 43 Todd Pratt

Infielders

* 6 Manny Alexander
* 13 Edgardo Alfonzo
* 8 Carlos Baerga
* 15 Matt Franco
* 12 Shawn Gilbert
* 19 Jason Hardtke
* 17 Luis López
* 10 Kevin Morgan
* 5 John Olerud
* 0 Rey Ordóñez
* 10 Roberto Petagine

|  | Outfielders

* 29 Steve Bieser
* 3 Carl Everett
* 23 Bernard Gilkey
* 42 Butch Huskey
* 1 Lance Johnson
* 56 Brian McRae
* 6 Carlos Mendoza
* 22 Alex Ochoa
* 10 Gary Thurman
* 33 Andy Tomberlin

|  |

Manager

* 2 Bobby Valentine

Coaches

* 34 Bob Apodaca (pitching)
* 20 Bruce Benedict (bench)
* 52 Randy Niemann (bullpen)
* 53 Tom Robson (hitting)
* 4 Cookie Rojas (third base)
* 51 Mookie Wilson (first base)

## Player stats

[edit]

### Batting

[edit]

#### Starters by position

[edit]

Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in

Pos  | Player  | G  | AB  | H  | Avg.  | HR  | RBI

|
|
|
|
|
|
|

C | Todd Hundley | 132 | 417 | 114 | .273 | 30 | 86
1B | John Olerud | 154 | 524 | 154 | .294 | 22 | 102
2B | Carlos Baerga | 133 | 467 | 131 | .281 | 9 | 52
SS | Rey Ordóñez | 120 | 356 | 77 | .216 | 1 | 33
3B | Edgardo Alfonzo | 151 | 518 | 163 | .315 | 10 | 72
LF | Bernard Gilkey | 145 | 518 | 129 | .249 | 18 | 78
CF | Lance Johnson | 72 | 265 | 82 | .309 | 1 | 24
RF | Butch Huskey | 142 | 471 | 135 | .287 | 24 | 81

#### Other batters

[edit]

Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in

Player  | G  | AB  | H  | Avg.  | HR  | RBI

|
|
|
|
|
|

Carl Everett | 142 | 443 | 110 | .248 | 14 | 57
Alex Ochoa | 113 | 238 | 58 | .244 | 3 | 22
Luis López | 78 | 178 | 48 | .270 | 1 | 19
Matt Franco | 112 | 163 | 45 | .276 | 5 | 21
Manny Alexander | 54 | 149 | 37 | .248 | 2 | 15
Brian McRae | 45 | 145 | 36 | .248 | 5 | 15
Todd Pratt | 39 | 106 | 30 | .283 | 2 | 19
Steve Bieser | 47 | 69 | 17 | .246 | 0 | 4
Alberto Castillo | 35 | 59 | 12 | .203 | 0 | 7
Jason Hardtke | 30 | 56 | 15 | .268 | 2 | 8
Shawn Gilbert | 29 | 22 | 3 | .136 | 1 | 1
Roberto Petagine | 12 | 15 | 1 | .067 | 0 | 2
Carlos Mendoza | 15 | 12 | 3 | .250 | 0 | 1
Andy Tomberlin | 6 | 7 | 2 | .286 | 0 | 0
Gary Thurman | 11 | 6 | 1 | .167 | 0 | 0
Kevin Morgan | 1 | 1 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0

### Pitching

[edit]

#### Starting pitchers

[edit]

Note; G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Player  | G  | IP  | W  | L  | ERA  | SO

|
|
|
|
|
|

Rick Reed | 33 | 208.1 | 13 | 9 | 2.89 | 113
Dave Mlicki | 32 | 193.2 | 8 | 12 | 4.00 | 157
Bobby Jones | 30 | 193.1 | 15 | 9 | 3.63 | 125
Mark Clark | 23 | 142.0 | 8 | 7 | 4.25 | 72
Brian Bohanon | 19 | 94.1 | 6 | 4 | 3.82 | 66
Armando Reynoso | 16 | 91.1 | 6 | 3 | 4.53 | 47
Jason Isringhausen | 6 | 29.2 | 2 | 2 | 7.58 | 25

#### Other pitchers

[edit]

Note; G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Player  | G  | IP  | W  | L  | ERA  | SO

|
|
|
|
|
|

Pete Harnisch | 6 | 25.2 | 0 | 1 | 8.06 | 12

#### Relief pitchers

[edit]

Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Player  | G  | W  | L  | SV  | ERA  | SO

|
|
|
|
|
|

John Franco | 59 | 5 | 3 | 36 | 2.55 | 53
Greg McMichael | 73 | 7 | 10 | 7 | 2.98 | 81
Cory Lidle | 54 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 3.53 | 54
Takashi Kashiwada | 35 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 4.31 | 19
Juan Acevedo | 25 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 3.59 | 33
Mel Rojas | 23 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 5.13 | 32
Ricardo Jordan | 22 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 5.33 | 19
Joe Crawford | 19 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 3.30 | 25
Barry Manuel | 19 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5.26 | 21
Turk Wendell | 13 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4.96 | 10
Toby Borland | 13 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 6.08 | 7
Ricky Trlicek | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8.00 | 4
Yorkis Pérez | 9 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 8.31 | 7

## Farm system

[edit]

See also: Minor League Baseball

Level  | Team  | League  | Manager

|
|
|

AAA | Norfolk Tides | International League | Rick Dempsey
AA | Binghamton Mets | Eastern League | Rick Sweet
A | St. Lucie Mets | Florida State League | John Gibbons
A | Capital City Bombers | South Atlantic League | Doug Mansolino and John Stephenson
A-Short Season | Pittsfield Mets | New York–Penn League | Doug Davis
Rookie | Kingsport Mets | Appalachian League | Ken Berry
Rookie | GCL Mets | Gulf Coast League | Mickey Brantley and Doug Flynn

League champions: Pittsfield, GCL Mets[11]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Paul Byrd page at Baseball Reference
2. ^ Rico Brogna page at Baseball Reference
3. ^ John Olerud page at Baseball Reference
4. ^ Scott McClain page at Baseball Reference
5. ^ a b Smith, Claire (April 16, 1997). "A Grand Tribute to Robinson and His Moment". New York Times. p. A1.
6. ^ Olney, Buster (April 16, 1997). "Mets' Own Melting Pot Provides Victory Blend". New York Times. p. B14.
7. ^ "Box Score of Game played on Monday, June 16, 1997 at Yankee Stadium".
8. ^ Garrett Atkins page at Baseball Reference
9. ^ Jeremy Guthrie page at Baseball Reference
10. ^ Brian McRae page at Baseball Reference
11. ^ Johnson, Lloyd, and Wolff, Miles, ed., The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball, 3rd edition. Durham, North Carolina: Baseball America, 2007

## External links

[edit]

* 1997 New York Mets at Baseball Reference
* 1997 New York Mets team page at www.baseball-almanac.com

* v
* t
* e

1997 MLB season by team

| AL East|

* Baltimore
* Boston
* Detroit
* New York
* Toronto

|

AL Central|

* Chicago
* Cleveland
* Kansas City
* Milwaukee
* Minnesota

AL West|

* Anaheim
* Oakland
* Seattle
* Texas

| NL East|

* Atlanta
* Florida
* Montréal
* New York
* Philadelphia

|

NL Central|

* Chicago
* Cincinnati
* Houston
* Pittsburgh
* St. Louis

NL West|

* Colorado
* Los Angeles
* San Diego
* San Francisco

* 1997 MLB draft
* 1997 All-Star Game
* 1997 World Series
* 1997 MLB expansion draft

* v
* t
* e

New York Mets

* Established in 1962
* Based in Queens, New York

Franchise|

* History
* Brooklyn Dodgers
* New York Giants
* New York Metropolitans
* 1962 expansion
* expansion draft
* Seasons
* Records
* No-hitters
* Award winners and League leaders
* Players
* New York Mets Hall of Fame
* Managers
* Coaches
* Owners and executives
* Broadcasters
* Kiner's Korner
* Radio network
* SportsNet New York
* Opening Day starting pitchers
* First-round draft picks
* Logos and uniforms

Ballparks|

* Polo Grounds
* Shea Stadium
* Citi Field

Spring training
Al Lang Stadium
Clover Park

Culture|

* Continental League
* Mr. Met
* Mrs. Met
* "Ya Gotta Believe!"
* Grant's Tomb
* Home Run Apple
* Generation K
* Sidd Finch
* The 7 Line Army
* Spider-Man's wedding (live performance)
* Rheingold Brewery
* Grimace
* Statue of Tom Seaver

| Books|

* Can't Anybody Here Play This Game?
* Sometimes You See It Coming

|

Movies|

* Game 6
* Frequency
* Mathematically Alive
* The Odd Couple

Music|

* "Let's Go Mets Go"
* "Lazy Mary"
* "Meet the Mets"
* "Narco"
* "New York Groove"
* "Ode to the Mets"
* "OMG"

TV show episodes|

* "The Boyfriend" (Seinfeld episode)
* "A Leela of Her Own" (Futurama episode)

Notable people|

* Alex Anthony
* Jane Jarvis
* George Kalinsky
* Michael Sergio
* Sign Man
* Cow-Bell Man

Lore|

* 2018 MLB Little League Classic
* Miracle Mets
* Bill Buckner's 1986 World Series error
* Grand Slam Single
* MLB Puerto Rico Series
* Rick Camp Game

Rivalries|

* Atlanta Braves
* New York Yankees
* Subway Series
* 2000 World Series
* Philadelphia Phillies

Key personnel|

* Owner: Steve Cohen
* President of Baseball Operations: David Stearns
* General manager: Vacant
* Manager: Carlos Mendoza

World Series
championships (2)|

* 1969
* 1986

National League
pennants (5)|

* 1969
* 1973
* 1986
* 2000
* 2015

Division titles (6)|

* 1969
* 1973
* 1986
* 1988
* 2006
* 2015

Wild Card (5)|

* 1999 (tie-breaker game)
* 2000
* 2016
* 2022
* 2024

Minor league affiliates|

* Triple-A: Syracuse Mets
* Double-A: Binghamton Rumble Ponies
* High-A: Brooklyn Cyclones
* Single-A: St. Lucie Mets
* Rookie: FCL Mets
* DSL Mets Blue
* DSL Mets Orange
* Player overview

Seasons (65)

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* 1969

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* 1970
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