The Franchise Wraps Up an Historic Career
Feb 4, 2019 14:09:55 GMT -5
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Post by Sha-Le Unique on Feb 4, 2019 14:09:55 GMT -5
If only the Braves hadn't jumped the gun so soon.
Tom Seaver could have been a lifelong member of the Atlanta Braves had they not tried to sign him while he was still pitching for USC. When signed in February of 1966, his contract was declared void because players at the time could not be signed while their season was ongoing. Thanks to this blunder, a special HOFFBL draft lottery occurred in which every team was asked if they wanted to match the Braves' $40,000 offer. The Indians, Mets and Phillies all threw their hats into the ring and when commissioner Chris Cosenza ended up drawing from a hat, the slip he pulled out read "New York Mets" and the rest is history.
For an expansion team like the Mets that had very little going for them in their first few years of existence, this turned out to be a critical luck of the draw selection. After spending just one season in the minors, Seaver made his MLB debut in 1967 and picked up the first of 320 wins on April 13, 1967. Seaver was an All-Star as a rookie and won 18 games, en route to the 1967 NL Rookie of the Year Award. He ended up making 6 trips to the All-Star Game and 4 as a Met in 1967 and 1975-1977.
Seaver teamed up with longtime teammate Gene Brabender to anchor the Mets' pitching staff when they won 7 straight division titles from 1970-1976. Only one pennant in 1972 resulted from this run, but the opportunities themselves would've never happened had it not been for Seaver's consistency. He had his first sub-3.00 ERA season in 1971 with a 2.93 ERA, followed by 22 wins and a 2.33 ERA in 1972. After a slight down year in 1973, Seaver went on the best stretch of his career from 1974-1982. In that 9-year span, his ERA was never above 2.50 and he led the NL in ERA from 1974-1977.
Seaver captured the first two of his 3 NL Cy Young Awards in 1975 and 1976, becoming one of, if not the best pitcher in the league during the mid-70s. Seaver continued his dominance with the Mets until a late-season waiver trade occurred with the Braves in September of 1980. Seaver finished out that season in Atlanta, then won his 3rd NL Cy Young Award in 1981, helping the Braves win their first World Series championship and accomplishing the one missing piece from his Mets years. Seaver had one final standout season in 1982, before getting traded to the Red Sox midway through 1983. An early season-ending elbow injury would end his career in 1984. At the age of 39, Seaver decided to call it a career after talking with his family.
"I love this game of baseball so much, but when I sat down and talked to my wife, she looked ready for me to be home all the time. Raising our daughters on her own while I've been playing and traveling the country is not always easy and even despite the unfortunate way my career ended, I need to always be there for my family. Recovering from elbow surgery and then training all over again in the offseason would be a lot for me at this point. I want to thank the Braves and Red Sox organizations for having me near the end of my career, but most of all, thank you to the Mets and their wonderful fans for making my almost 14 years in New York a joy. As a west coast guy, I wasn't sure what to expect in New York, but the fans have been the best. Thank you to all my coaches and teammates as well for always being there when it was time to go to battle and thank you to the medical staff for keeping me upright as I got older. This truly has been a dream come true!", stated Seaver in the retirement press conference he had at Citi Field after signing a one-day contract with the Mets to retire as a member of the team.
"Tom Terrific has meant so much to this team. He and Joe Torre are arguably the two franchise icons and although a ring never happened for us in the 70s, these guys were always there leading the way. Tom and Gene were two great pitching stars we were fortunate to have for so long. I remember the bullpen would always get extra rest whenever one of those two were on the hill. Maybe Jack Aker would be needed in the 9th, but that's how dependable they were. You'd expect 7-8 strong innings each outing with them," stated longtime Mets GM Shale Briskin.
"Tom was a great teammate and always looked to pick people up when they were down, both on and off the field. We'd have strikeout competitions every year to see who would have more strikeouts, while the loser would have to buy dinner in the offseason. As you can imagine, I was on the losing end most of the time, but it was fun competing with such a gamer like Tom who would never back down from any hitter, no matter how much of a feared slugger he was. Attack, attack, attack was what our pitching coach Rube Walker would keep preaching and Tom was always up for a challenge. Seeing him being a bulldog would give me more confidence in my pitching and it helped me be more consistent as I got older," stated Brabender through a conference call at his house.
"Tom was a pleasure to catch, even if his fastballs left my left hand in agonizing pain, it was worth it. Seeing the movement on his offspeed pitches was different than most because his breaking bad was never flat. His slider always dipped at the right time and that's how he was able to find so much success. Tom was as confident as anyone. The bigger the stage, the better he performed. Obviously, not all of our playoff series ended up going well, but he would always keep us in the game whenever he pitched. The offense unfortunately wasn't always there for him, but Tom certainly did his part. He's one of the all-time greats and I'm fortunate to have been his teammate," remarked longtime catcher Joe Torre, who was Seaver's battery mate for the majority of his career.
"I had never pitched in a big market before. I had only been in Cincinnati and St. Louis, which are middle market cities, but I knew New York was going to be a challenge in itself when I got traded there. I knew I'd have a good team around me, but I wasn't sure how much anxiety a bigger stage would effect me. When I met Joe and Tom and saw Tom pitching to Joe in person, I felt more at ease of being in New York. Tom was a great teammate and I wish him and his family nothing but the best in the next chapter of his life," said former teammate Don Kaiser.
"As a Latino player, all I wanted to do was fit in and be accepted by all my teammates. While I felt good early in my career in Cincinnati and Minnesota, I feel like my favorite years were with the Mets. And Tom Seaver was one reason why. He was a great down-to-earth player and was a good friend to everyone. He made sure every teammate was included in any team activities. I felt so appreciative of being with the Mets because of this. Tom, I will miss our late nights of stories and beers and wish you and your family the best. Thank you for being a great teammate, but an even better person," said former teammate Orlando Cepeda through a conference call with reporters.
A noted wine connoisseur, Seaver plans to move his family back to California so he can embark on starting his own winery. "My wife and I appreciate wine of the highest quality. When I'm not busy being a dad and following the Mets, I plan on spending a lot of time on learning the wine business," he said. Because of this, Seaver doesn't see himself getting back into baseball as a coach or broadcaster any time soon.
The Mets will retire Seaver's #41 with a special ceremony tentatively planned for mid-late July of next season. The Mets will open up a new team Hall of Fame to honor their greats of the past. Along with Seaver, Torre, Brabender, Cepeda, Gene Oliver, Dick Dietz, Steve Boros, Joe Foy and Jack Aker are all expected to be enshrined for their long and meritorious service.
"It's an exciting time to be a Mets fan, even with Tom retiring. We're going to spend 1985 putting together another great team, while also honoring the predecessors that came before this current squad," stated Briskin, who hopes to build on the 1984 NL pennant his team just won.
"I hope the Mets end up getting a championship soon. We came so close in 1972 and then to lose a Subway Series to the Yankees, that's a tough one, but I have faith in this current group. We'll see how it goes," remarked Seaver at the end of the press conference before opening up to questions from the media.
If anyone has earned the right to spend his retirement learning the wine business, Tom Seaver is definitely that guy after putting together an historic Hall of Fame career and possibly becoming the greatest player to ever wear a Mets uniform. And to think a random hat drawing could've had his career ending up elsewhere...
