1973 N.L. Champion Mets Second Baseman: Felix Millan (1973-1977)

Felix Bernardo Martinez Millan was born on August 21, 1943, in Yabucoa, Puerto Rico. He earned the nicknamed “the Cat” for his quickness & a reference to the cartoon character Felix the Cat.

The five foot eleven, right hand hitting second baseman was first signed by the Kansas City A’s at the start of the 1964 season.

He was then chosen by the Milwaukee Braves in the first year draft, later that season. The sold hitting Millan hit .290 at A ball Daytona Beach, followed by two seasons batting over .300 at the next minor league levels. He made his MLB debut on June 2, 1966 with the newly relocated Atlanta Braves, batting .275 the rest of the season.

After the 1967 season he took over the Braves regular second baseman position from Woody Woodward. In 1968 he established himself as a regular, as he hit .289 playing in 149 games, hitting over 20 doubles for the first of four straight years.

In 1969 the steady Millan played in every regular season game becoming one of the league’s best defensive second baseman. He won his first Gold Glove, leading all N.L. second baseman in put outs (373) & assists (444) while posting the league’s second best fielding percentage (.980%).

He had 174 hits (9th in the NL), with 23 doubles, 6 HRs 57 RBIs & 11 sacrifice hits (6th in the NL) while batting .267.

That year he also made his first of three straight All Star teams. In the third inning of the 1969 All Star Game at Washington D.C., Millan drove in the Mets Cleon Jones & Johnny Bench with a double off Oakland’s Blue Moon Odom. In the 1969 NLCS against the New York Mets he hit .333 with three walks and a .467 on base percentage.

In 1970 he had career highs in batting with a .310 average, on base % (.352%) runs scored (100) & stolen bases (16) . He also hit 25 doubles with 5 triples 2 HRs & 37 RBIs as the Braves fell to a fifth place finish.

After hitting .289 in 1971, his average dropped to .257 in 1972 and despite winning another Gold Glove the Braves decided to trade him for some pitching to help out their staff.


On November 1st, 1972 the Mets made one their best trades of that era, acquiring Millan & pitcher George Stone in exchange for Gary Gentry & Danny Frisella. Millan would become a large piece of the 1973 Mets NL Pennant team, solidifying the middle with double play partner Bud Harrelson.

The Cat was always one of the toughest men in baseball to strike out, he would average the fewest strikeouts per at bat in the league, from 1973-1975. He would never strike out more than 28 times in a season while wearing a Mets uniform & in those years he averaged well over 600 at bats per season.

Millan had a strange batting stance where he would use a small bat and choke way up on the handle in order to make contact. It almost looked as though the bottom of the bat would hit him in the stomach. Millan was just what the Mets needed in 1973, a solid #2 hitter who played every day & got on base a lot.

On Opening Day 1973 he was the first Met to cross the plate for the season when he scored on Cleon Jones two run HR against the Philadelphia Phillies. But in his first month in New York, he struggled batting just .158 through April. Millan went on a ten game hit streak in May, gathering thirteen hits from May 7th through May 12th before missing two weeks due to injury.

In June he had a nine game hit streak & peaked his average over .300 mid way through the month. On June 13th he hit a rare HR, helping Tom Seaver & the Mets to a 3-1 win against Tom Bradley & the San Francisco Giants.

He won the Player of the week award, for the week of June 17th, with an incredible 16 hits, & three RBIs, raising his average to .300. That week he enjoyed a four hit day against the San Diego Padres & two three hit days against the Giants. On July 10th, Millan had a walk off game winning single, driving in Willie Mays. The hit came off off Jim York, to beat the Houston Astros 2-1.

On July 14th the Mets were tied 2-2 in Cincinnati going into the 9th inning, when Jerry Grote tripled. Ted Martinez came in to pinch run & scored on a Passed ball from Don Gullet that got by Johnny Bench. Wayne Garret then singled & Millan blasted a HR, sealing the Mets 5-2 win. He had driven in a run earlier as well.

He then had an 18 game hitting streak in July leading to August; and enjoyed ten different games where he had three hits or more in the summer alone. He was batting over .300 into early August but fell off a bit from there keeping himself in the two nineties.

On August 22nd, he singled to score Cleon Jones tying up the game against the Los Angeles Dodgers, in the 9th inning. He advanced to second base & scored the winning run on John Milner's base hit.

He had a great stretch run to the NL East title, hitting safely in eight of the first ten games of September. Each of those games were multi hit games, including a four hit day on September 7th, in the second game of a twin bill in Montreal. Back on September 2nd, he hit one of his three HRs of the season, although the Mets took a late heart breaking loss to the Cardinals in St. Louis. This led to a bench clearing brawl involving Millan & Cards catcher Tim McCarver.

In a key divisional game in Pittsburgh on September 18th, Millan came to bat with two on in the top of the 9th inning & the Mets down 4-1. He tripled off Ramon Hernandez driving in two runs & then scored the go ahead run on a Ron Hodges pinch hit single. The win brought the Mets within 2 1/2 games of the first place Pirates. The mets then faced the Pirates the next day & would take over first place beating Pittsburgh four of five games. Millan hit safely in all four games, drove in & scored two runs.

In the final series at Wrigley Field in a rainy Chicago, the Mets needed to win two games to clinch the NL Eastern title. Millan hit safely in all three games, He went 2 for 5 scoring a run in the clincher on October 2nd, the last game of the regular season. In the month he had 34 hits, including 14 multiple hit games. He also drove in nine runs & scored ten runs, playing a solid defense.

He was primarily a singles hitter, gathering 155 singles in 1973, (2nd in the NL). He led the team in batting average (.290) games played (153) at bats (638) hits (185) triples (4) hit by pitches (6) & sacrifice hits (18). His 18 sac hits were second most in the league. He also hit 23 doubles, with three HRs 35 walks a .332 on base % & 37 RBIs. The New York sports writers voted him the “1973 Met of the Year” and he even earned some votes for the NL MVP.

1973 Post Season- NLCS: In the 1973 NLCS against the Cincinnati Reds he batted .316 (6-19) scoring five runs, drawing two walks with a .381 on base percentage.


In Game #2 at Cincinnati’s Riverfront Stadium, Millan singled in the top of the 9th off Reds pitcher (future Met) Tom Hall. He then scored the Mets second run of the game on Cleon Jones base hit. The Mets would go on to win the game 5-0, riding on Jon Matlack's two hit shutout, evening the series at one game each.

In Game #3 at Shea Stadium, Millan’s second inning single to right field, scored Don Hahn to give the Mets a 3 -1. Millan also walked twice in the game as the Mets beat the Reds 9-2. It was in this game Bud Harrelson & Pete Rose had their famous brawl.


In Game #4 four Reds pitchers held the Mets down just three hits, in their 12 inning 2-1 win. Millan had two of those hits & drove in the Mets only run. In the Game #5 clincher, in the bottom of the 1st inning, Millan started a two run rally with a single to centerfield, off the Red’s Jack Billingham. He then scored on Ed Kranepool’s two run single. In the 5th inning he added a sacrifice bunt advancing Wayne Garrett, in a Mets four run rally. They went on to win the game 7-2 & headed to the World Series.

1973 World Series: In the opening game of the 1973 World Series against the Oakland A's, the sure handed Millan let a Bert Campaneris ground ball roll under his glove into right field. He anticipated a bounce that never came, pitcher Ken Holtzman scored from third base putting the A’s up 1-0. It was so shocking because Millan had only made seven errors all year.

Next, Mets pitcher Jon Matlack attempted to pick off Campaneris, but he botched the throw, allowing Campy to steal second base. He would score on Sal Bando’s base hit, in what would be the games winning run as the Mets lost the Opener 2-1 at Oakland.

In the extra inning Game #2 classic, Millan went 0-6, but hit a 10th inning fly ball to shallow left field which would have scored Bud Harrelson for the go ahead run. Harrelson tagged up & was called out at home plate, on a bad call from umpire Augie Donatelli.

The controversial play is legendary in Mets lore, as the usually calm manager Yogi Berra came running out of the dug out screaming in a tirade & Willie Mays, the on deck batter, stayed on his knees wondering in amazement how Donatelli missed the call.


The Series moved to New York & Millan had two hits in Game #3. After Wayne Garret led off with a HR, Millan then singled off Catfish Hunter, in the next at bat. He advanced to third on a Rusty Staub single & scored on a Hunter wild pitch.

Shockingly he made two more errors on the field, but none that caused any damage. In Game #4 he singled in the first inning off Kenny Holtzman and scored on Rusty Staub’s three run HR in the next at bat. He went hitless in the Mets 2-0 Game #5 win.

In Game #6 back at Oakland, Millan drove in the only Mets run of the game with an 8th inning single bringing them within a run. They would go on to lose the game 3-1 and move on to a Game seven where they fell short of a championship. Overall at the plate he only hit .188 in the series, going 6 for 32 with two extra base hits, a walk & a run scored.                                                                                                                       

In 1974 he started out well, he gathered a hit & an RBI on Opening Day in Philadelphia, although New York fell short 5-4 to the Phils. He was batting .357 by early May but struggled from there & was down to .253 by the end of June. Millan then missed over two weeks of action in July due to injuries.

In August he drove in runs in three straight games & on August 26th his 9th inning bunt single, scored Teddy Martinez with the tying run. Rusty Staub then came up with a walk off game winning single to beat the Houston Astros 5-4.

In a classic 25 inning game on September 11th, He set a record with 12 plate appearances, in the game he had four hits with a walk & a run scored.

On the season the Mets finished a disappointing fifth place. Millan played in 136 games leading the league in sacrifice hits with 24. His average fell off to .268, with one HR, 15 doubles, 2 triples, 33 RBIs a .317 on base % & 50 runs scored. At second base he was third in put outs (374) fourth in games played (134) fifth in errors (15) posted a .979 fielding % while turning 81 double plays.

He rebounded to have a good 1975 season, becoming the first Met in history to play in all 162 regular season games. Although he started out slow, he picked things up as the summer came on. On June 12th in Los Angeles he helped Jon Matlack in his three hit shut out by driving in the only two runs of the game. He hit a pair of RBI doubles off Dodger ace Don Sutton. Millan then began July with five straight four hit games, including a four RBI day at Shea Stadium to beat the Chicago Cubs. He then had a 19-game hitting streak, that included ten multi hit games & two four hit games as well.

On July 21st he singled four times against the Houston Astros Bob Forsch at Shea Stadium. Each time after that, Joe Torre grounded into double plays setting an MLB record. After the game Torre joked to the press "I'd like to thank Felix Millan for making this all possible".

On July 26th he had a four hit (all singles) four RBI day at Wrigley Field, leading the Mets to a 9-8 win. In August he was back over the .300 mark & drove in ten runs in the month. He entered September with a 13 game hit streak driving in another ten runs.

In 1975 Millan set a Mets career mark leading the club with 191 hits (5th in the NL) 676 at bats (second most in the league) & 37 doubles (6th most in the N.L.). He hit .283 on the season, driving in a career high 56 runs.

He led the league in getting hit by pitches (12) finished third in the league with sac hits (17) & singles (151). He posted a .329 on base %. At second base he turned his Mets career high 95 double plays, posted a .972 fielding % making a career high 23 errors (5th in the NL).

In the bicentennial 1976 year, he started out hot, hitting safely in 15 of the first 20 games, batting .346 at the end of April.

On April 20th he hit his only HR of the year, it came off the Cardinals Lynn McGlothen in an 8-0 Mets win at Busch Stadium. He had a twelve game hit streak in June, and then two ten game hit streaks in August & September respectively.

On the season he led the team with his .282 batting average, 150 hits, seven hit by pitches, and 139 games played. He hit 25 doubles, with one HR, 35 RBIs a .341 on base % & 55 runs scored while striking out only 19 times in 530 at bats. At second base he made 15 errors & posted a .979 fielding percentage.

In 1977 his season was cut short after 91 games. On August 12th in Pittsburgh, Pirates catcher Ed Ott slid hard into Millan at second base, trying to break up a double play. Millan shouted something at him and the catcher went after Millan. He grabbed him & slammed him hard into the Three Rivers Stadium Astroturf. His shoulder was seriously injured and he would miss the rest of the year.

He finished the season batting .248 the worst mark since his 1967 season with two HRs 11 doubles two triples a .294 on base % & 21 RBIs. That August 12th day day would turn out to be his last MLB game.

Retirement: After the Mets dismal 1977 season, Millan felt it was time to move on. In 1978 he went to play in Japan, having his contract bought by the Taiyo Whales. The following year he went on to win a Best Nine Award while winning the batting title in Japan, hitting .346.

After another good 1979 season, he had a bad year in 1980 & was released. In his three years in Japan, he struck out just 52 times in 1139 at-bats.

Honors: In 1989 he played in the Senior Professional League in Florida. Back in the seventies he founded the Felix Millan Little League in lower Manhattan.

 In 1993 they won the New York State Little league Series. Millan was on hand for the anniversaries of the 1973 Mets team, as well as the closing ceremonies of Shea Stadium in 2008.

He currently lives in Puerto Rico, appears at baseball card shows & at Mets Fantasy Camps.

In his 12 year career, Millan played in 1480 games, batting .279 with 1617 hits, 229 doubles, 38 triples, 22 HRs 403 RBIs 318 walks 700 runs scored & .posted a .322 on base %. Overall in his career he averaged a strike out every 23.9 at bats which is the 64th best ratio of all time.

At second base he played 1450 games (41st all time) with 3495 put outs (31st all time) 3846 assists (50th all time) posting a .980 fielding % turning 855 double plays.

Mets All Time List: Millan is second on the Mets all time list in games played at second base (674) just six games behind leader Wally Backman. In his five year Mets career, he is a .278 hitter, striking out only 92 times in 2677 at bats.

Jon Matlack, Felix Millan & Ron Swoboda

Millan is 17th on the All Time Mets hit list with 743 hits, sixth in hit by pitches with 36, twentieth in at bats (2677) 22nd in doubles (111) & 28th in games played (681).

IN 2013 he was on hand representing the New York Mets alumni, at the All Star Game Fan Fest.

1999 N.L. Wild Card Champion Mets Outfielder: Roger Cedeno (1999 / 2002-2004)

Roger Leandro Cedeno was born August 16, 1974 in Venezuela. The six foot one, switchhitter was signed out of high school in 1991 by the Los Angeles Dodgers as an amateur free agent.

The speedy Cedeno stole 40 bases in the Rookie League in 1992, followed up by a 28 stolen base year in 1993. At AAA Albuquerque in 1994 he stole 30 bases & hit .321 getting a call up to the Dodgers that season.

He was supposed to replace Bret Butler in centerfield, but it didn’t quite work out that way. Roger was back & forth to the minors over the next three seasons, batting .354 at AAA in 1997. He played four seasons in Los Angeles batting a best. 273 in 1997, while stealing only nine bases in 80 games. He saw more action in 1998 (105 games) but the Dodgers gave up on him after he batted just .242 with only eight steals.

In December 1998 he was traded along with Charles Johnson to the New York Mets for catcher Todd Hundley after the arrival of Mike Piazza in New York.

In New York, Cedeno became a big part of the Mets 1999 Wild Card season, helping them get to the NLCS. He set a Mets single season stolen base mark at the time, with 66 steals (second most in the NL). He hit a career best .313 and led the team with four triples. He scored 90 runs, hit 23 doubles playing in 155 games as the Mets main right fielder.

He debuted as a Met in the second game of the season entering an extra inning game against Florida in the 6th inning, getting a single in his first at bat. By early May he was hitting well enough to secure himself in the everyday lineup. He reached the .300 mark & began to steal alot of bases. He stole 23 bases in May, having seven games where he stole two or more bases. 

On May 14th 1999, he stole four bases in a game at Philadelphia against the Phillies. In the 1st inning he reached on an error then stole third base after he had advanced on a ground out.

He would score a run on John Olerud’s HR. In the 5th inning he singled and stole second base, scoring again on an Olerud RBI hit. In the 7th inning Cedeno singled, then stole second & third base , soon scoring his third run of the game.

On May 17th he stole three bases in a game against the Milwaukee Brewers. On June 7th in Tampa, Cedeno doubled to drive in Benny Agbayani in the top of the 10th inning, breaking a 7-7 tie, the run was the game winner.

He had a good year staying over the .300 mark & stealing bases while playing a solid outfield. He played in 149 games, 127 in right field, posting a .987 fielding % and had nine outfield assists.

1999 Post Season: NLDS: In the NLDS against the Arizona Diamond backs Cedeno did not start the first three games but got into each game in the later innings. He came in as a pinch hitter replacing Benny Agbayani in Game #3, & drove in a run with a 6th inning single off Dan Plesac.

In Game #4 he hit a key sac fly that scored the games tying run, setting the stage for Todd Pratt’s dramatic walk off HR. Overall Cedeno hit .286 (2-7) in the Series, as much of the playing time went to Rickey Henderson, Benny Agbayani, Shawon Dunston & Daryl Hamilton.

1999 NLCS: In the NLCS he got two hits in the opener at Turner Field against the Atlanta Braves.& In Game #2 he drove in Ronin Ventura with an RBI single off Kevin Millwood in the 2nd inning. After not playing in Game #3, he had a big Game #4 at Shea Stadium getting three hits going 3-4.

In Game #5 he came in to pinch run for Matt Franco in the 15th inning & scored what was the winning run on Robin Ventura’s Grand Slam single. Overall Cedeno hit .500 going 6-12 with a double, two stolen bases and an RBI.

That December he had good trade value and the Mets used it, trading him along with Octavio Dotel to the Houston Astros for Mike Hampton & Derek Bell. Hampton would be vital to the Mets effort in getting to the World Series that season.

In Houston, Cedeno missed three months of action after breaking his hand while sliding into first base head first. Overall he finished up hitting .283 playing in only 74 games. That winter he was dealt to the Detroit Tigers in a six player deal & spent one season there batting .293 with 55 stolen bases (2nd in the AL). In 2002 he returned to the Mets as a free agent, but his second stint in New York wasn’t as successful as his first.

He did steal 25 of 29 bases, but only batted .260 with a .318 on base % with 65 runs scored. He began the year with two hits, a walk & an RBI on Opening Day, in the Mets 6-2 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates. In May he had a ten game hit streak but struggled all year, never hitting above .260.

In June he got into a publicized argument with Roberto Alomar after teasing him about one of his old baseball cards. Manager Bobby Valentine had to sit the players down to straighten things out.


On September 19th he singled off the Cubs Will Cunnane in the bottom of the 9th inning driving in the game winning run. He also committed eight errors in the outfield, fourth most in the NL. That off season he was arrested for driving under the influence in Bradenton Florida after he was stopped for erratic driving.

In 2003 he hit only .267 stealing 14 bases with 7 HRs & 37 RBIs. His best offensive numbers came with his 25 doubles. Cedeno was once a popular player at Shea Stadium during the winning times, but now he heard the boos as he & the team struggled. Even in Spring Training Cedeno was hearing boos & worse things. He was finally traded to the St. Louis Cardinals for Wilson Delgado at the start of the 2004 season.

In St. Louis 2004 he hit .265 and went to the World Series as a reserve outfielder. It was in this historic Series that the Boston Red Sox won their first World Series since 1918.

In the NLCS against the Houston Astros he only batted .167 (1-6) but in Game #7 he singled in the 6th inning & scored the game’s tying run. Cedeno he made four appearances in the World Series going 1-3.

Overall he hit .265 that post season playing in 11 games. In 2005 he was released and signed with the Baltimore Orioles for the 2006 season. He showed up overweight and didn’t make the club.

After a ten year career he batted .273 with 865 hits, 213 steals, 40 HRs, 274 RBIs, 127 doubles a .340 on base % & 32 triples in 1100 games played. In the outfield he posted a .976% with 31 assists.

Remembering Mets History: (1977) The Felix Millan / Ed Ott Brawl

Friday August 12th 1977: Joe Torre's last place Mets (47-66) traveled to Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh for a double header with Chuck Tanner's second place Pirates (66-49).

The bad times were underway for the late seventies Mets and tonight marked the end of another key player's career from the 1973 NL Champion team.

In the 1st game of the twin bill, Jerry Koosman (8-13) took a 3-1 loss to the Pirates; Jim Rooker (10-6). Both pitchers went the distance, with Kooman giving up three runs on six hits & Rooker giving up the lone Met run on nine hits.

In the night cap Mets started Bob Myrick against Bruce Kison. In the 2nd inning Myrick himself, added an RBI base hit making it 1-0. Lee Mazzilli added a two run HR in the 4th putting the Mets up 3-2.

The Mets were battling, but the Pirates tied it up at 3-3 in the sixth inning. Met Manager; Joe Torre made a double switch bringing in Felix Millan to play second base, as Doug Flynn moved over to short stop, and Bob Apodaca was brought in to pitch. In the inning, Rennie Stennett reached on Lenny Randle's error and  Fernando Gonzalez double gave the Pirates a 4-3 lead. 

Next Apodaca intentionally walked Pirate catcher; Ed Ott to set up a double play.  The infamous Mario Mendoza came to bat (The term the "Mendoza line" was named after him, referring to a player batting under the .200 mark). Mendoza grounded to short stop Doug Flynn, he flipped to Millan at second base attempting the double play.

But the 200 lb. Ed Ott slid hard into Millan trying to break up the play. The usually mild mannered Millan, started shouting at Ott, then punched him in the face with the ball still in his hand. 

Ott a former college football player & wrestler, grabbed Millan and slammed him to the ground. The result was Millan breaking his collar bone & injuring his shoulder. He was taken off the field on a stretcher, and Ott was ejected from the game. 

Bobby Valentine came out to replace Millan on the field, & former Met catcher; Duffy Dyer replaced Ott. He would drive in the game winning run later in the 12th inning, with a base hit off Sonny Siebert.

Millan was done for the season and he never returned to the major leagues as he opted to play in Japan the next year. There he won a batting title & received the Best Nine Award.

Remembering Mets History: Ron Darling in the 1986 World Series

centerfieldmaz Looks back at Ron Darling's fine performances in the 1986 World Series.

Saturday October 18th, 1986- World Series Game #1 (Shea Stadium, New York):

There was much excitement in New York City as the World Series began. One of the best Mets teams ever assembled were popular favorites to win the World Series, their first Championship since 1969. Davey Johnsons club had won 108 games, 21 1/5 games ahead of the second place Phillies.

	STARTING LINEUPS Boston Red Sox				New York Mets
	Wade Boggs	3B			Mookie Wilson	LF
	Marty Barrett	2B			Lenny Dykstra	CF
	Bill Buckner	1B			Keith Hernandez	1B
	Jim Rice	LF			Gary Carter	C
	Dwight Evans	RF			Darryl Strawberry	RF
	Rich Gedman	C			Ray Knight	3B
	Dave Henderson	CF			Tim Teufel	2B
	Spike Owen	SS			Rafael Santana	SS
	Bruce Hurst	P			Ron Darling	P

John McNamara's Boston Redsox were 95-66 on the season & had just defeated the California Angels in the ALCS. Bruce Hurst (13-8 / 2.99 ERA / 167 K's) who would be a thorn in the Mets side all Series, got the ball for the opener facing off against The Mets; Ron Darling (15-6 / 2.81 ERA / 184 K's).

After Mets fan / actress; Glenn Close sung the National Anthem, Ron Darling took the mound & had a fantastic outing on the big stage.  Darling scattered just three hits over seven innings, striking out eight batters while walking three. In the 7th inning, Darling walked Jim Rice to start out the inning. He would advance on a wild pitch.

Then with one out, Rich Gedman grounded a ball to second base that went under the glove of Tim Teufel. The error allowed Rice to score in what turned out to be the only heartbreaking run of the game.  

Hurst shut out the Mets over eight innings allowing just four runs. Calvin Schiraldi closed it out in the 9th. The Mets found themselves down 1-0 in the series.




Wednesday October 22nd, 1986 -World Series Game #4 (Fenway Park, Boston)

 Starting Lineups

	New York Mets				Boston Red Sox
1	Lenny Dykstra	CF		1	Wade Boggs	3B
2	Wally Backman	2B		2	Marty Barrett	2B
3	Keith Hernandez	1B		3	Bill Buckner	1B
4	Gary Carter	C		4	Jim Rice	LF
5	Darryl Strawberry	RF		5	Don Baylor	DH
6	Ray Knight	3B		6	Dwight Evans	RF
7	Danny Heep	DH		7	Rich Gedman	C
8	Mookie Wilson	LF		8	Dave Henderson	CF
9	Rafael Santana	SS		9	Spike Owen	SS
	Ron Darling P				Al Nipper P

The Mets had dropped the first two games at Shea, but won Game #3 at Fenway Park. Down Two games to one in Game #4, the local boy; Ron Darling (15-6 / 2.81 ERA / 184 Ks) got a chance to pitch in the region he grew up in, against the team he rooted for.

Another Fenway sellout of 33,920 came out on a cool New England night, as Manager John McNamarra sent Al Nipper (10-12 / 5.38 ERA) to the mound for the Red Sox.

After taking a rough 1-0 loss in Game #1, Darling would get offensive support in Game #4.

It was another big night for " the Kid"- Gary Carter. Carter would collect three hits & blast a pair of HRs, driving in three runs. These nights were the icing on the cake for his spectacular Hall of Fame career.

His first HR was a two run shot (bringing in Wally Backman who singled) coming off Al Nipper in the 4th inning. Daryl Strawberry followed with a double & Ray Knight drove him in with a base hit, making it 3-0. Knight himself was just hot on his way to the Series MVP Award.

In the 7th inning, Lenny Dykstra hit his second HR of the Series, a two run shot off Steve Crawford.

In the 8th inning, Carter hit his second HR of the evening, a solo shot off also off Sox pitcher; Steve Crawford. Up to this point Carter had seven hits in the Series, (7-17 with 2 HRs & 7 RBIs).

Ron Darling went seven shut out innings, allowed just four hits, he struck out four but walked six. He was relieved by Roger McDowell who gave up two runs in the Red Sox 8th inning.

Jesse Orosco closed the game out, as the Mets won it 6-2 & evened up the World Series two games each. 

Trivia: The 1986 World Series games at Fenway Park, was where & when the famous  "Daaaaaaryl" chants actually started. 

The Fenway Park, right field Red Sox fans, began taunting Daryl Strawberry with those haunting “Daaaaaryl” chants. He responded by tipping his cap in sarcasm. 

The Met fans responded by taunting reliever (former Met) Calvin Shiraldi in Games Six & Seven.

Darling would get the start in the final Game #7 but not have a good outing. Darling would last just into the 4th inning, giving up three runs on six hits. The two big blows came in the 2nd inning, as he gave up back to back HRs to Dwight Evans & Rich Gedman.

Overall in the World Series Darling made three starts going 1-1 with a 1.53 ERA. He gave up four earned runs, on 13 hits, as he struck out 12 batters & walked 10 in 17.2 innings pitched. Darling was the Mets best starter in the series. If not for the 1-0 unearned run loss in Game #1 ,his performance would have been looked back at as even better. 

Remembering Ron Darlings 1988 NL Eastern Champion Season With A Career High 17 Wins

As the Mets entered September in the 1988 season, they had an 81/2 game lead in the NL East. They pretty much knew they'd be facing the Dodgers in the NLCS, as LA was holding a six game lead in the NL West. 

The Mets were confident, over confident as it turned out & were heavily favored since they had their way walking all over the Dodgers in the regular season.

On September 2nd a crowd of 44,889 came out to Shea to see Ron Darling face Tim Leary. Darling blew through the game easily, pitching a complete game five hit shut out. It was one of his four shut outs on the season. 

Darling also struck out eight in the game, walking just one as the Mets rolled to an 8-0 win. Kevin Elster hit two HRs that day, Mookie Wilson & Greg Jefferies also hit HRs.

Darling would roll through September as maybe the Mets best pitcher, he went 4-0 in the month & closed out the year winning five straight, if you counted his August 27th start.

 On September 7th the Chicago Cubs rocked him for six runs & on the 12th he got a no decision while allowing just two runs in 8.2 innings against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Gary Carter's walk off HR off Jeff Robinson won it, as Randy Meyers earned the win, pitching to just one batter in relief of Darling.

Darling then beat the Montreal Expos on September 17th, pitching eight innings with only one strike out & two earned runs allowed. Another complete game victory, where he allowed just one run to the Phillies at Shea, followed that start on September 22nd. That win was #16 for Darling tying his career high set back in 1985.

He couldn't get a win in his next start but got one final chance to hit a career high victories total, on October 2nd on a start against the ST. Louis  Cards. That day he allowed five runs in just six innings, but the Mets bats provided him seven runs, so he won his 17th game of the year. It would be the most wins he ever earn in a single season. 

In 1988 Darling was 17-9 with161 strike outs & a 3.25 ERA in 34 starts in 240 innings, second best of his career.

In the NLCS against the Dodgers, Darling pitched Game #3 where he took a no decision. In six innings he gave up two earned runs while striking out five, the Mets did win the game 8-5. He went to the mound in the final Game #7 & was terrible, he gave up six runs in the 1st inning before getting pulled & Orel Hershiser shut the Mets out the rest of the way, ending the Mets late eighties glory days.

1986 World Champion Mets Pitcher & Emmy Award Winning Broadcaster: Ron Darling (1985-1991)

Ronald Maurice Darling was Born August 19th, 1960 in Honolulu, Hawaii to a Hawaiian-Chinese mother and French-Canadian father. He speaks both Chinese and French fluently.

His family moved to Millbury, Massachusetts, where he grew up and later attended Yale University. He had a majored in French and Southeast Asian history, and of course played baseball. Darling was one of the best baseball players in Yale’s history & pitched in the schools most famous game.

On May 21, 1981 Darling went up against St. John’s Frank Viola, and the two tossed no hitters until the 12th inning. In the 12th St. Johns got their first hit & won the game 1-0 on a double steal. In 1981 The six foot three right handed, Darling was the first round draft pick of the Texas Rangers. The following April he was traded to the New York Mets along with Walt Terrell, for the popular Mets player, Lee Mazzilli.

Darling pitched well at AAA Tidewater in 1983 going 10-9, but gave up 102 walks in 159 innings pitched. That September he was called up to the Mets staff, getting his first start on September 6th at Shea Stadium.

He pitched 6.1 innings giving up only one run against the Philadelphia Phillies, but earned a 2-0 loss. After losing his first three decisions, he pitched a complete game victory against the Pittsburgh Pirates on September 28th, finishing the year at 1-3 with a 2.50 ERA.


Darling got a spot on Davey Johnson’s 1984 starting staff behind Dwight Gooden & Walt Terrell. He won his first start in the second game of the season at Cincinnati, throwing six shutout innings against the Reds He won two starts in May including an eight inning, two hit shut out performance against the Houston Astros. He was 3-3 by the end of May with a 4.64 ERA and then rolled through the summer.

He won his next seven decisions, including 5-0 month of June, posting a 1.88 ERA. Darling threw a four hit shutout in St. Louis on June 14th beating John Stuper 6-0. On July 6th at Shea Stadium, he threw a four hit shutout against the Cincinnati Reds & Jeff Russell.

That summer the Mets stayed in contention for first place for the first time in a long time & there was a new excitement at Shea Stadium. He struggled from August on, going 2-6 the rest of the way. He was much better pitching at Shea Stadium than on the road, getting seven wins at home.

He finished the year at 12-9 with a 3.81 ERA gathering 136 strikeouts, walking 114 in 205 innings pitched. He came in fifth place in the Rookie of the Year voting, in the shadows of rookie super star Dwight Gooden. Darling quietly went about his business as New York's 1 & 2 pitchers were among the best in the league.

By 1985 Darling became known around the league as a good pitcher in his own right. He had a great pickoff move and was one of the best defensive pitchers in baseball.

He allowed just one run pitching seven innings in each of his first two starts of the year, but earned no decision each time, even though the Mets won both games. On April 26th he struck out eleven Pittsburgh Pirates, in his first victory tossing a five hit shutout. He won five straight decisions from May 7th through the middle of June capped off by a five hit shutout against the Chicago Cubs on June 17th at Shea.

Darling started out the first half of the season going 9-2 making his first All Star team although he did not pitch in the game. Darling had another good streak from August 19th through September 15th where he won six straight games, allowing two earned runs or less five times. Overall in that year he had seven no decisions where he had allowed two runs or less.

He finished up the year at 16-6 with his career best winning percentage (.727). His 2.90 ERA was 9th in the league, as he pitched 248 innings (8th in the NL) with 167 strikeouts (7th in the NL) throwing two shut outs. His weakness was giving up 21 long balls and leading the league with 114 walks.

In the second game of the 1986 season he allowed six runs at Philadelphia, losing to the Phillies 9-7. He only notched one victory in the month, it came in his second start his first at Shea where he always pitched better. Soon everything came together for the Mets and Darling was no exception. He won all five straight decisions in the month of May, pitching eight or more innings in three of the outings.



On May 27th at Shea Stadium he matched his personal career-high of 12 strikeouts in a five-hit complete game victory against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Once again Darling, pitched well at Shea Stadium, going 10-2 at home during the 1986 championship season.

In June after two straight losses, he won three straight decisions going into the All Star break. He shut out the Expos in Montreal for seven innings on June 16th but earned no decision.


Drama: On July 19, he and teammates Bob Ojeda, Rick Aguilera and Tim Teufel were arrested outside a bar in Houston, Texas for fighting with security guards, who were also off-duty police officers. In the highly publicized ordeal, the four were quickly released & ordered to pay $200 fines. Darling appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated & GQ magazine less than a month later.

His next start came in Cincinnati where he pitched eight innings, out dueling Tom Browning 3-2, allowing just five hits along the way. From mid August on he went 4-2 through the end of the season.

On September 15th, he pitched nine shutout innings, allowing just four hits in a game in St. Louis, but earned no decision as the Mets lost it in the 13th inning, when Roger McDowell walked in Willie McGee with the winning run. Darling ended the regular season with a 9-0 two hit, five inning shutout victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates in the last game of the regular season.

He finished the season posting a 2.18 ERA (third-best in the N.L.) with a 15-6 record (8th most wins in the league) 184 career high strikeouts (7th in the NL) four complete games, two shut outs, pitching in 237 innings making 34 starts (10th most in the NL). He lowered his base on balls allowed to 81, which was 33 less than the previous year. For the second straight year he led all NL pitchers in assists on the mound, and at the plate he added ten sacrifice hits.

Post Season: The 1986 NLCS was tied at one game each, when Darling started Game #3 at Shea Stadium. But he allowed four runs on seven hits and left the game losing 4-0 after six innings. The Mets recovered to win the game on Lenny Dykstra’s walk off HR in the bottom of the 9th inning.

Darling then opened the 1986 World Series against the Boston Red Sox at Shea Stadium. He pitched well in Game #1 allowing only one unearned run (coming on Tim Teufel’s error) with eight strike outs, through seven innings, but lost a hard-luck 1-0 game to Bruce Hurst, who blanked the Mets bats. With the Mets in danger of falling into a 3-1 series deficit, Darling started Game #4 at Fenway Park.

He pitched seven shutout innings in his home town, with four strike outs & six walks allowed. He got out of jams when he had to & extended his 0.00 ERA to 14 World Series innings as the Mets easily won this game 6-2.

In the legendary Game Six at Shea Stadium, Darling gave a high five to Mike Sergio who jumped out of a small airplane landing on the Shea infield in a parachute & a sign that read Lets Go Mets.

Game Six ran so long, past midnight, NBC had to start Saturday Night Live later than usual. That night Darling recorded a video message apologizing for the late start & the bit opened up the night's show.

Then he got the ball to pitch for the final Game # 7 to close out the Series.

The Sox scored three early runs in the second inning, including back to back HRs by Dwight Evans & Rich Gedman. Darling appeared tired & shaky getting only into the fourth inning. He was relieved by Sid Fernandez who shut down the Sox, and the Mets went on to win the World Championship.

In the World Series he was 1-1 posting a 1.53 ERA in 17.2 innings pitched with 12 strike outs & ten walks.

Darling & his model wife Terri were big hits at the ticker tape parade held in the Mets honor in New York City. The pretty couple enjoyed the spot light at many of the New York hot spots as well being treated like celebrities.         

He had a rough start as did the whole ball club coming off the Series Championship & the drama of Dwight Gooden’s drug problems. He was given the role of taking over as the ace of the staff when Gooden was off to rehab as the season began. He earned no decision in the second game of the season, pitching into the 7th inning in the Mets 4-2 win over the Pirates. In his next start he pitched eight innings at Philadelphia allowing five runs, but still got the win as the Mets scored seven runs in his support.

In April Darling was 2-1 but his ERA was over six. Then he didn't win a game in all of May or June, going 0-4 with eight no decisions. On June 28th he had a no-hitter going through seven innings in Philadelphia, but Greg Gross broke it up with a lead off triple in the 8th inning. Juan Samuel drove in the first run & the Mets wound up losing the game 5-4.

In July he began to get better then after the All Star break he really got it going, winning six consecutive starts. On August 7th he struck out eleven Chicago Cubs, pitching a four hit one run victory at Shea Stadium.

From July 7th through the end of the season he was 10-2 keeping the Mets in contention. On September 11th during the heat of the pennant race with the rival St. Louis Cardinals, Darling pitched six shutout innings against the Cards, when he tore his thumb fielding a Vince Coleman bunt.

He got to the bench & realized his season was over. Darling said; “They put me in my car and told me, ‘drive over to Roosevelt Hospital, take X-rays and they’re gonna repair your thumb.’ I said, ‘okay, fine,’ got in my car…and back in those days we parked out past center field…and as I got in my car Terry Pendleton’s homer nearly hit me in the head.”

The Mets lost the game and it was this night that people look back on as the Mets elimination from contention.

Without Darling their finish was even tougher, needless to say they finished second that year. He finished the year at 12-8 with a 167 strikeouts (7th in the NL), 96 walks (4th most in the NL) and a high 4.29 ERA, the worst of his first seven seasons.

In 1988, Darling bounced back strong; he pitched three hit complete game win at Shea beating the Expos for his firts win of the year. On April 22nd he shut out the Cardinals at Busch Stadium in another complete game. On May 8th Darling pitched a three hit one run victory over the Reds and went 4-2 in the month. In June he tossed another complete game, a seven hitter over the Pirates in a 9-0 Mets win.

Darling had ten wins in the first half of the season (10-5) with a 2.70 ERA. He had a great finish helping lead the team to another Eastern Division title, winning seven of nine games from July 31st through the end of the year. He won his last five decisions in August & September, tossing two complete games in that period. On September 2nd, Darling struck out eight Dodgers pitching a five hit shut out to beat former Met Tim Leary.

On September 22nd he beat the Philadelphia Phillies 3-1 allowing just six hits to clinch the NL Eastern title for New York, their second divisional title in three years.

Darling was an incredible 14-1 at Shea Stadium for the year and his ERA was twice as low at home than on the road. Overall he finished 1988 with a career high 17 wins (8th most in the league) going 17-9.

That year he was third behind David Cone (20 wins) & Dwight Gooden (18 wins) on the Mets strong staff. Darling pitched four shut outs (6th in the NL) & seven complete games. He threw 240 innings, with 161 strikeouts (10th in the NL) and 60 walks (lowest in his career up to that point) posting a 3.25 ERA. At the plate he batted .220 with six extra base hits, ten sac hits & four RBIs.

Post Season: Darling was terrible in the 1988 NLCS against the Los Angeles Dodgers. With the series tied 1-1, he fell behind 3-0 in Game #3 pitching in six innings before getting relieved by Roger McDowell. But the Mets came back to win the game 8-4.

In the deciding Game #7 he went up against Orel Hershiser, giving up six runs while getting knocked out in the second inning. The Dodgers won the game & moved on to the World Series, as the Mets season came to a shocking end.

In 1989 the Mets would finish second, six games behind the Chicago Cubs. Darling started out the year at 0-3 not winning his first game at the end of April. He would stay around the .500 mark all year. At the start of August he pitched two straight complete games, first allowing just two runs to the Expos & then allowing just one run to the Cardinals, both at Shea Stadium. On August 26th he allowed just one run while pitching into the 9th inning, in a 4-1 win against the San Francisco Giants.

During the summer, he hit HRs in back to back games that he started, the only two HRs of his career. That year he also had a career high, five RBIs while at the plate. In September he lost four of six decisions, although he allowed two runs or less in four starts.

That season Darling became the first Mets pitcher to win a Gold Glove Award making just four errors in 56 chances. He had a .500 season going 14-14 with 153 strike outs in 207 innings over 33 starts (7th most in the NL) posting a 3.52 ERA. He also threw 12 wild pitches, six most in the league.

In 1990 he struggled again and was sent to the bullpen for a while to work things out. He made 18 starts in 33 appearances, didn’t get any saves and went 7-9 on the year, having the first losing season of his career. In 126 innings he struck out 99 batters, walked 44 & posted a 4.50 ERA. The 1990 Mets fell short again, coming in second place four games behind the Pittsburgh Pirates.

In 1991 he was back on the starting staff again but continued to struggle. He was 2-4 by mid June & got himself to .500 by the end of the month. He pitched a two hit, eight inning shut outs in Montreal on July 3rd against the Expos, in a game which turned out to be his last good outing as a New York Met.

He was 5-6 by mid July, and on July 15, 1991 Ron Darling was traded to the Montreal Expos for pitcher Tim Burke. After just three games the Expos sent him to the Oakland A’s two weeks later, in exchange for two minor leaguers. On a good Oakland A's club Darling won his first three decisions, but then got wild & lost seven straight.

Overall in 1991 he was 8-15 with a 4.26 ERA for the three teams. In 1992 he made a solid return, having his last quality year. He pitched over 200 innings, going 15-10 with 99 strike outs & a 3.66 ERA. He tossed three shut outs (4th in the AL). On May 24th he he pitched a two hit shutout in his home town of Boston to beat the Red Sox. Later in the year on July 12th, he pitched another two hitter against the eventual World Champion Toronto Blue Jays. Later In the ALCS he pitched Game #3 against the Blue Jays & gave up two HRs taking the loss.

In 1993 he struggled, at 5-9 with a 5.16 ERA, as the A's fell to a 7th place last place finish, their worst run since 1979. Darling came back with a good 1994, leading the Athletics staff going 10-11 as the only pitcher in Oakland to win double figures. He posted a 4.50 ERA leading the league with 25 starts. He was released in 1995 ending his playing career.

In his 13-year career, he was 136-116 with 1,590 strikeouts (174th all time), 13 shut outs, 37 complete games in 2360 innings pitched and a 3.87 ERA. He made 364 starts (182nd all time) allowing 906 walks (156th all time) 97 wild pitches (111th all time) & 239 HRs (138th all time).

At the plate he is a .144 hitter with 76 hits in 526 at bats, 2 HRs 21 doubles & 21 RBIs.

Mets All Time List: In his Mets career he is fourth all time in wins (99) & innings pitched (1620). He is sixth all time in strike outs (1148) fourth in walks (614) seventh all time in shut outs (10) tenth in complete games (25) & sisteenth in games pitched (257).

Trivia:Darling was the last N.L. pitcher to win the Gold Glove award before Greg Maddux's remarkable streak of 13 consecutive Gold Gloves.

Retirement: Ron began his career as a broadcaster for the Oakland A's & also had a FOX show called Baseball Today.

In 2005 he was commentator for the inaugural season of the Washington Nationals. In 2006 he came home to the New York Mets on the new SNY Network as a color commentator & studio analyst.

Since 2007 he has worked the post season, for the TBS network. For his outstanding television work, he was won an Emmy Award. Darling lives in Manhattan with his wife. The Mets broadcast team of Darling, Kieth Hernandez & Gary Chen have created a website & hold various events with the proceeds going to charities.

In 2009 he published a book called "The Complete Game" which is broken down in chapters titled innings. The book expains the mind of an MLB pitcher breaking down what goes through his head in certain situations.


Family: In 2004, he married Joanna Last, a makeup artist for Fox Sports.

Previously he was married to Irish model Antoinette O'Reilly. She had small roles on television and in movies, using her married name: Toni Darling. During their marriage, they appeared in numerous magazine features together. They had two children, Tyler and Jordan Darling.

Darling & his wife live in Williamsburg Brooklyn. One of his favorite hangouts is Bamonte's Restaurant, this is the place I met him the first time.

Quotes:  Two blocks away is an Italian place called Bamonte’s. It’s an institution in Williamsburg. We all love the food there, but for me it’s also a historical place. After game days, Joe DiMaggio would go there — he’d get a seat at the corner table. More times than not, I get that seat, too, and to sit where DiMaggio sat and eat the chicken and sausage that DiMaggio ate, it’s just a huge thrill.

Honors: He threw out the ceremonial first pitch of Game #7 of the 2006 NLCS.

He was on hand for the 20th & 30th Anniversary tributes to the 1986 Championship teams.

He was also on hand for the Ralph Kiner Tribute night, and the closing ceremonies of Shea Stadium in 2008.

Trivia: Ron Darling has also had small roles in the films Shallow Hal, Mr. 3000 and The Day After Tomorrow.