The role of a 2nd baseman on most teams is about defense first with whatever offense can possibly be contributed. There have been numerous second basemen who got one side of the game or the other but couldn’t put everything together into a single unified player. Let’s take a look at some of the most memorable of Mets’ 2nd basemen.
Daniel Murphy was a guy who started out as an interesting fill-in at 2B. He had decent but not exceptional defensive skills and when he first ascended from the minors to the majors he was a singles and doubles hitter who could furnish an adequate batting average. HIs first full season with the Mets he hit 12 HRs, drove in 63 and hit for a .266 AVG while stealing 4 bases. Those are nice numbers, but nothing jumped out at you as a future star. However, in his second season while the power dropped his average rose to .320 and people started taking the man seriously. He finished his Mets career hitting .288 with an average of about 10 HRs per season and just under 70 RBIs. Again, for as much affection as fans had for the homegrown player, his numbers were not justifiable for the big bucks he would earn as a free agent. Of course, in his first season for the Washington Nationals he topped pretty much every mark he’d recorded thus far, including 25 HRs, 104 RBIs and a .347 batting average. He’s actually done better in the latter part of his career, but injuries have curtailed his power and he’s now shifted over to 1st base.
Edgardo Alfonzo was another player who the fans came to appreciate for all that he brought to the game. Rising up the minors as a decent stick and great glove, no one expected he would amount to that much in the majors. His first couple of seasons he was in the single digit range for HRs and was hitting in the upper .260s. He then put together a 10 HR season where he hit .315 in 1997 and people started taking him seriously. He then went onto multiple seasons of over 20 HRs and over 80 RBIs (including cracking the “century mark” once). He shifted all around the infield but most folks associate him with 2nd base.
Over parts of five seasons (adding up to about 3 full time seasons worth of numbers) Jeff Kent hit 22 HRs, 88 RBIs and hit .279. He did not get along with the teammates nor the management and after being one of the better acquisitions they’d ever obtained in trade, they sent him packing to Cleveland as part of a deal with Jose Vizcaino for former All Star Carlos Baerga and infielder Alvaro Espinosa. Of course, as Kent’s career evolved he was on what many felt was a Hall of Fame path, while the players received in exchange fizzled quickly.
Fiery Wally Backman actually leads all Mets second basemen in games played. For a little guy, he could make solid contact to go along with baserunning speed. During his Mets career Backman hit .283 with as many as 32 SBs during a single season. Power was not a part of the switch hitter’s game, having logged just 7 HRs over that 9 year span in Queens. He was a boisterous, argumentative and when he retired to become a manager these attributes were on public display every night (including some NSFW videos you can find online).
A few second basemen primarily known for their defensive acumen included Felix Millan and Doug Flynn. Both could save games with their gloves, arms and baseball smarts, but neither was able to muster enough with the bat to make them into the kind of star players you’d put on an all-time roster.
Then there were some big name players who didn’t cut the mustard upon arriving at Shea, including Carlos Baerga, Roberto Alomar and Greg Jefferies. The latter was not relying on his past accomplishments but he worked so hard (and in a somewhat unorthodox manner) to improve his game that he never really fit in.
Long stints at 2nd were held by the likes of Ken Boswell, Ron Hunt, Tim Teufel and Luis Castillo, but again none of this group were destined for greatness.
Who were your most memorable 2nd basemen?
5 comments:
Doug Flynn was an incredible fielder at 2B.
Kent - the one that got away. Well, Gregg Jeffries and Daniel Murphy too...the latter went to the division rival Nats and kept the Mets under the Nats’ feet.
I wrote often at the end of 2015 that the Mets should have signed Murphy, not let him walk, put him at first, and traded Duda to make room. Oh, well. Who wanted to go back to the World Series, anyway?
Mine will always be Ron Hunt.
Felix Millan had two seasons of .280, played 162 games, struck out about 3 times a year, a perfect number 2 hitter while playing great defense. Defense up the middle wins. Better Mets defense would have helped a lot in the 2015 WS. Fonzie would probably be my pick as the all around best. If only Fonzie had hit in the 2000 WS.
Mack, Ron Hunt was great. 50 HBP in a single season? Ouch.
What I remember of Ron Hunt was as an Expo, as I started following baseball in 1971. He choked upon the bat so high that his hands were almost in the strike zone when he would swing.
Much different from Don Baylor who would crowd the plate.
Bob W.
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