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Bob Apodaca: Mid Seventies Mets Relief Pitcher (1973 - 1978) & Long Time Pitching Coach (1996 -1999)

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Robert John Apodaca was born on January 31, 1950, in Los Angeles, California. The five foot eleven Mexican / American right hander was drafted by the New York Mets during their pitching rich days in 1971. At A ball Visalia in 1971 he was 7-1 with a 3.60 ERA making a quick impression. By 1972 he was up at AA Memphis going 11-7 (second to only Randy Sterling in wins) with a 2.80 ERA becoming a highly touted prospect. The next year he was 6-3 posting a 1.80 ERA at AAA Tidewater the third best pitcher on the staff behind Sterling & John Glass. 1973 Mets Pennant Season: Apodaca made his debut in late September 1973, in a crucial game against the Pirates at Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh. He allowed one run & two walks in less than one inning of work giving him an infinity ERA. He did not appear in any other games that regular season nor the post season. 1974:  The next season he had a good spring training & made the 1974 Mets staff. How could M...
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Dave Wallace: 2000 N.L. Champion Mets Pitching Coach (1998-2000)

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David William Wallace was born on September 7th, 1947, in Waterbury Connecticut. In 2023 he as awarded the key to the City in a ceremony honoring him. The five-foot ten right hander attended the University of New Haven getting signed by the Philadelphia Phillies in 1969.  Minor Leagues: Wallace would spend nine seasons in the Phillies minor leagues, five of them at the AA level. Overall, he spent parts of twelve seasons in the minor leagues going 48-37 with a 4.11 ERA in 360 appearances.  MLB Career:   On July 18th, 1973 Dave made his MLB debut relieving Steve Carlton in a game against the Cincinnati Red having to face three future Hall of Famers in Johnny Bench, Tony Perez & Joe Morgan. Overall for the 1973 last place Phillies he made just four appearances, allowing nine earned runs in 3.2 innings posting a whopping 22.09 ERA. In May 1974 he made three more MLB appearances. On May 7th, he took a loss to the San Diego Padres as the only decision of h...
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Sean Manaea: 2024 Mets Wild Card Champions Top Pitcher (2024 - 2025)

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Sean Anthony Manaea was born February 1st, 1992, at Valparaiso, Indiana. His father Faalodi, is an American Samoan who met his wife, Opal, Sean's mother while stationed in Indiana during the Vietnam War. Sean did not visit Samoa until 2014 & began to embrace the culture. Nickname: Sean is known as "the throwin' Samoan". In 2013, Manaea was a first-round draft pick of the Kansa City Royals. MLB Career: In July 2015, he was traded to the Oakland A's for Ben Zobrist. Manaea spent six seasons in Oakland, making his debut in 2016 going 7-9 with a 3.86 ERA.  Over the next two seasons he was a 12-game winner each time, with a 4.36 ERA & 3.59 ERA respectively. He is just one of five pitchers in Oakland history to have at least five straight winning seasons. His three straight seasons of ten or more wins made him just the third A's pitcher to do that since 2004. No Hitter: On April 21st, 2018, Manaea threw a no hitter over the Boston Red Sox in Oakland. He...
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Geremi Gonzalez: Former Mets Pitcher Who Was Killed by Lightning (2006)

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  Geremis Segundo Gonzalez Acosta was born January 8th, 1975, in Maracaibo, Venezuela. Geremi was signed as a non-draft amateur free agent by the Chicago Cubs at age 16. MLB Career: After five seasons in the minor leagues, he was brought up to the major leagues debuting on May 27th, 1997, getting a start against the Pirates in Pittsburgh. He pitched 5.1 innings allowing three runs but earned his first career victory. He was placed in the Cubs rotation earning wins in seven of his first nine decisions. On June 23rd he tossed a four-hit shutout against the Cardinals at Busch Stadium. In his Rookie year he was 11-9 with a 4.25 ERA coming in ninth in the Rookie of the Year voting. After two seasons with the Cubs, he signed on with the Tampa Rays.  In 2003 he went 6-11 with a 3.91 ERA but was better than his record showed. In 17 starts that season he allowed three runs or fewer without much run support. In fact, he received the l...
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