The odds of
the Mets winning the World Series in 1969 was 100-1. Do you believe in miracles?
I went to 9
games at Shea that summer despite playing in a baseball league where we played
5 games a week. One of the games
included a no hitter by Bob Moose of the
Pirates.
The July
series against the Cubs was the first pivotal games the Mets had ever played. It included the famous "black cat"
game and a one hitter by Tom Seaver.
My father,
ever the dutiful husband, took my mother to the Opera in the city yet snuck in
a transistor radio with an ear plug to hear one of the games clandestinely
during the Opera. He and I went to the
final game of the series won by the Cubs on a Ron Santo
home run into the second deck in left off Gary
Gentry.
I was at the
doubleheader against the Expos which the Mets swept in mid-September to pass
the Cubs into first place. I listened by
radio to the September doubleheader against the Pirates in Pittsburgh which the
Mets won each game 1-0 behind Don Cardwell and Jerry Koosman.
I watched on T.V when the Mets clinched first place against the Cards at
Shea. Delirium swept Shea as the fans
stormed the field after the game. That
scene would be repeated twice more that year.
A casual
acquaintance at Nassau College suddenly became a dear friend when he offered me
a ticket for game 3 of the playoffs at Shea.
We cut classes and took the train to Shea arriving just in time to see
the Mets fall behind in the first on a 2 run
homer by Hank
Aaron. The Braves had the bases
loaded with none out when Gil Hodges brought in Nolan Ryan in relief of Gary
Gentry. Ryan struck out the side
and the Mets went on to win the game and the pennant.
After losing
the first game of the World Series to the vaunted Baltimore Orioles the Mets
won the next four games behind great pitching, outstanding catches by Tommie Agee and Ron Swoboda and
timely homers by light hitting Al Weis and Donn Clendenon.
Do you
believe in miracles?
Nirvana in
1969.
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