Reese Kaplan -- Mets History, First Base Edition

Over the years the Mets have been blessed and cursed with people assigned to man first base for them.  It would be a great trivia champion indeed who could pull names like Rico Brogna who played parts of three seasons with the Mets, banging out a .291 AVG with 36 HRs and 126 RBIs.  Unfortunately he was plagued with ankylosing spondylitis, a form of spinal arthritis that feared the Mets enough that they bundled him off in trade to the Phillies. He did keep the condition more-or-less under control but his entire major league career was limited to 9 seasons, most of which was part-time work after leaving the Phillies.  

Of course, the Mets have had some awesome first baseman as well.  To most fans Keith Hernandez is the archetype first baseman, capable with the bat, the brains and the glove to be an asset wherever he was playing.  Hernandez’s high water mark for HRs was 18 and he topped out at 94 RBIs. Both are highly respectable numbers but a little on the light side for a first baseman which is often where you tried to hide a strong hitter with limited defensive skills.

Another name held in high regard for the Mets at that position was Carlos Delgado who came in trade from the Marlins.  Mike Jacobs was a borderline player for a few more years. Yusmeiro Petit has had a very long career as a setup reliever.  Pitcher Grant Psomas never cracked the majors. Yes, that was a sweet deal. For his Mets career Delgado he played the equivalent of three full seasons spread over four years, averaging 35 HRs, 113 RBIs and batting .267.  Yes, his numbers were the kind people expected from a first baseman.

Also with the club for a short period of time is perhaps the most complete player they ever had there -- John Olerud.  He played three full seasons, averaging 21 HRs, 97 RBIs and batting .315 while manning 1st base nearly as well as Keith Hernandez.  That’s more power, run production and a higher batting average. He unfortunately left to explore a free agency with Seattle but his number started dropping a bit before closing out with the Yankees and Red Sox in part-time roles. 

Of course, no discussion of first basemen could be complete without the contributions of Donn Clendenon who came over from Montreal to help the NY Mets achieve their first-ever World Championship in 1969.  During his 202 ABs he was on a 36 HR pace which would have been his best-ever season in the majors. He lasted parts of two more years, but his 1969 contributions were a lot like what Yoenis Cespedes did for the club in 2015.  

Obviously Pete Alonso has the potential to obliterate the memories of these other players based upon his Rookie of the Year season in 2019 that saw him finish with a record setting 53 HRs and 120 RBIs.  Right now it’s all projection on what he might do in the future while everyone awaits games starting up once again.

There were a great many decent if not memorable first basemen who played for the club over the years but this collection seemed to stand out a bit from the crowd.  Who stands out in your mind as a stellar Mets first baseman?