The Mets had just come off their best season in years. It was their first winning season since 1976, & there was a lot to be excited about with a talented young players, as well as solid veterans. The off season brought the game's best all around catcher to New York; in Gary Carter.
The Mets already had the games newest exciting pitcher; Dwight Gooden who's blazing fastball burned rookie strike out records all across the league. All this brought a new revived excitement to Shea Stadium & it was the place to be in '85.
The '85 season opened up at Shea, a crowd of 46,781 came out to see Davey Johnsons Mets take on Whitey Herzog's St. Louis Cardinals. The Mets & Cardinals were starting to become bitter rivals at this point in Mets history. Manager Whitey Herzog had been the Mets Director of Player Development in the sixties, and lost out on a managerial job to Yogi Berra. He left the organization bitter. Then his ongoing feud with Keith Hernandez since their Cardinal days, only fired things up to a much higher level.
The Opening Day pitchers were the Mets rookie phenom of 1984; Dwight Gooden, getting his first Opening Day start & the Cards sent Joaquin Andujar to the hill.
The 1985 Mets Opening Day lineup:
Wally Backman 2B
Mookie Wilson CF
Keith Hernandez 1B
Gary Carter C
Darryl Strawberry RF
George Foster LF
Howard Johnson 3B
Rafael Santana SS
Dwight Gooden P
The wild game began in the 1st inning, as Mookie Wilson singled & stole second. Keith Hernandez rubbed it in the Cardinals face right away with a base hit, bringing in Mookie. Gary Carter came to bat for the first time as a Met to a huge ovation. He was hit by a pitch & two men were on. Darryl Strawberry walked & with two out & the bases loaded, Andujar walked Howard Johnson with the second Mets run.
In the 2nd, Jack Clark led off with a HR making it 2-1 Mets. In the 3rd, Lonnie Smith singled & went to third on Tommy Herr's double. Gary Carter was charged with a passed ball as Smith came in to score. tying the game.
The Mets answered in the 3rd, as George Foster hit a solo HR.
In the home 4th, Gooden helped his cause with a base hit. Next, Wally Backman reached on an error and with two outs Keith Hernandez brought in another run with a base hit, making it 4-2 New York.
The Mets added another in the 5th, Foster singled & Rafael Santana doubled him in, 5-2 Mets.
But the Cardinals fought back, back to back singles in the 7th knocked Gooden out of the game & brought in Doug Sisk. Smith got former Met Mike Jorgensen to strike out & Lonnie Smith to ground out. But then Tommy Herr singled, bringing in the two runners making it a one run game.
In the 9th Sisk, couldn't close it out. Willie McGee had a one out pinch hit single & Lonnie Smith got hit by a pitch. Tommy Herr singled again, loading up the bases with one out. Sisk got Terry Pendleton to strike out but he walked Jack Clark, tying up the game at five.
The Mets threatened in the 9th, as HoJo singled & pinch hitter Rusty Staub walked with two out. Wally Backman then reached on an error but (former Met) Neil Allen got Mookie Wilson to fly out. Allen was the player traded to St. Louis for Keith Hernandez.
In the 10th, Allen started the inning by striking out Hernandez. Then the newest Met, became the newest Mets hero.
Gary Carter blasted a walk off game winning HR giving the Mets the 6-5 win. Carter raised his hands in the air as the Shea crowd went wild with joy. It was a time of high fives & cocky Mets attitudes , for one of the best Mets eras in history. The winning pitcher was Tom Gorman for the Mets, Allen the loser.
The Mets finished second to the Cards that year, falling short in the final week of the season. The Cards got to the World Series but lost to the Kansas City Royals.
Albert Francis Gionfriddo was born on March 8th, 1922 in Dysart, Pennsylvania. The Italian American outfielder served in World War II returning to debut with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1944 for just four games.
In 1945 he would be the Pirates regular outfielder, on the fourth place club, in his only full season. He hit .284 striking out just 22 times in 406 at bats, hitting 2 HRs with 42 RBIs 18 doubles 9 triples (6th in the league) & 74 runs scored. He stole 12 bases (10th in the league) while posting a .376 on base %.
In 1947 he was traded to the Brooklyn Dodgers along with $100,000 for five players including future MLB manager Gene Mauch. He would play just one season in Brooklyn but that’s where he would be forever remembered. On the regular season he only hit .177 with six RBIs in 37 games, but it was in the World Series where he became a hero.
In Game #4 of the 1947 World Series, the AL New York teams pitcher Bill Bevan had a no hitter going into the 9th inning. Carl Furillo walked and Gionfriddo came in to pinch run for him. After another walk, Cookie Lavagetto got the first & only Dodger hit of the game. the hit scored Gionfriddo as well as Furillo for the dramatic Brooklyn victory.
In Game #6 the Dodgers were leading 8-5 in the 6th inning when Gionfriddo was brought in as a defensive replacement to play left field. With two men on base, Joe DiMaggio blasted a shot to the 415 foot mark in deep left center field. Gionfriddo raced across the field and reached over the fence to make the catch robbing Dimaggio of a HR. Gionfriddo’s hat flew off, and DiMaggio in a rare show of emotion kicked the dirt while approaching second base.
In the Series Gionfriddo went hitless in three at bats, but stole a base, scored two important runs, plus made one of the top catches in World Series history. The next season he was back in the minors & spent nine years there as a player, before becoming a minor league manager.
In his brief four season MLB career he played in 228 games batting .266 with 154 hits two HRs 58 RBIs 22 doubles & 12 triples.
Retirement: He retired from pro ball by 1960 and became a scout for the Cincinnati Reds. He was an athletic director in Santa Barbra California & opened a restaurant there as well. He suffered a heart attack & passed away while playing golf in Solvang California in 2003, at the age of 81.
Jeffrey Franklin Kent was born on March 7, 1968 in Bellflower, California. In high school he had a serious run in with his baseball coach which got him removed from the team. He then attended the University of California (at Berkley) playing for the Golden Bears.
The six foot one right hand hitter, was drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 20th round of the 1988 draft. He played three brief seasons in the minors, showing power hitting 16 HRs in 1990 at AA ball.
He got onto the Blue Jays Opening Day roster in 1992 debuting on April 12th getting his first career hit that day, a 6th inning double. Two days later he hit his first career HR off Lee Gutterman & the A.L. New York club. In 1992 he played 65 games for Toronto hitting 8 HRs with 35 RBIs and batting .240, through the end of August. On August 27, 1992 Kent & Ryan Thompson were traded to the New York Mets in the trade for pitcher David Cone.
Kent debuted at Shea Stadium on August 28th in a double header against the Cincinnati Reds. He went hitless in the first game, then in the second game had two hits & drove in three runs. Three days later he hit his first Mets HR, while playing both ends of another double header against the Atlanta Braves.
Kent refused to be treated as rookie when arriving in New York, not participating in any hazing that went on to initiate rookies. He insisted his rookie status was left behind in Toronto. Although he angered some of his team mates he did show class by moving over to short stop at the end of the season, allowing Willie Randolph to play his final career game at second base.
In 37 games as a Met he would hit .239 with 3 HRs 8 doubles & 13 RBIs. Kent would become the Mets primary second baseman for the next three & a half seasons, through 1996.
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He began 1993 slow hitting just .213 in April & having hit just two Hrs through May. He didn't hit for a high average but his power numbers & run production picked up in the summer.
At the start of the month he had two games where he drove in three runs & during a ten game span from July 17th through the 27th, Kent drove in runs in eight games. In mid August he drove in runs in five of eight games, hitting HRs in consecutive games on August 21 & 22.
In September he drove in twenty runs including RBIs in his last five games of the season. On September 10th Kent drove in four runs against the Chicago Cubs with three hits & a HR. On September 26th he hit a grand slam HR against the Montreal Expos, driving in five runs leading the Mets to a 9-3 win. Three days later in a classic 17 inning pitcher's duel, Kents walk off base hit won it for the Mets off the St. Louis' Cardinals pitcher Les Lancaster. In his first full season with the Mets he hit 21 HRs second on the club to Eddie Murray. Kent hit 24 doubles driving in 80 runs with seventeen multi RBI games, while batting .270.
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In 1994 on Opening Day he had four hits, including a three run HR at Wrigley Field helping the Mets to a 12-8 victory over the Cubs. He drove in a pair of runs in his first three games of the year & had a huge April with 8 HRs 26 RBIs, finishing the month batting .375 placing him amongst the tops in the N.L.
In May he remained hot, going into the first week of June batting .323 with 11 HRs. In June he hit safely in 17 of twenty games raising his average above .300.
On July 22nd he hit a grand slam against the San Francisco Giants at Shea leading the Mets to a 6-3 win. In an eight game stretch in mid June he drove in runs in all but one game for a total of eleven RBIs. The seasons ended in early August due to a baseball strike & Kent finished with 14 HRs & was pretty much the team’s offensive leader, leading the team in batting (.292) RBIs (68) hits (121) doubles (24) & triples (5). He helped the Mets climb out of the cellar to third place.
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He was sidelined until late April starting out his 1995 season, and struggled out of the gate. Although he hit 5 HRs in May he was batting just .202 in the middle of the month. In June he began to get hit, having eleven multi hit games & by early August he brought his average up to just under .290 . He finished the year out pretty strong with 20 RBIs in September hitting safely in 20 of 25 games.
On the season he hit 20 HRs with 65 RBIs both second best on the club to Rico Brogna. Kent had 22 doubles with a .327 on base % and hit for a .278 batting average.
Although his numbers were good, Kent was not a good fit in New York. He earned the reputation as being difficult in the club house, not getting along with team mates. He was very isolated and kept to himself not participating in team off the field activities. He had a quick temper which presented a whole bunch of other issues with the media.
By 1996 he wasn’t too popular around Shea Stadium, the Mets had had enough of his poor attitude & they began to shop him. By July he was hitting .290 with 9 HRs 20 doubles & 39 RBIs when he was traded along with Jose Vizcaino to the Cleveland Indians for Carlos Baerga. It looked like a good deal at the time but this did not turn out to be a good deal for New York.
Kent was out of Cleveland after the season ended, getting traded to San Francisco for Matt Williams. There he became one of the game’s best run producers & power hitters of his era. In the next decade he would hit over .290 eight times, drive in over 100 runs eight times, hit 30 or more HRs three times & 40 or more doubles four times.
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He would get elected to five All Star teams and win the 2000 NL MVP Award putting up 33 HRs 41 doubles 125 RBIs & bat a career high .334. Although Barry Bonds had better numbers on the year, he was often intentional walked and pitchers chose to pitch to Kent.
He excelled in clutch situations & the fact that Bonds was always on base added to his RBI production. Kent had the most success of his career during his Giants years batting behind Barry Bonds, and playing for manager Dusty Baker, although he was still a very controversial figure.
He told the Giants he had broken his wrist while washing his truck, but reports said he was doing stunts on his motorcycle, which violated his contract. His relationship with Barry Bonds was constantly filled with tension and came to a head in a dugout shoving match in 2002. He left the team for free agency going to Houston once Dusty Baker was gone as manager.
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Post Season: He played in seven post season Series batting .276 overall with 9 HRs 23 RBIs 11 doubles in 49 games. In the 2000 NLDS against his old Mets team, he drove in just one run although he did hit .375 (6-16) with three runs scored.
In the 2002 World Series he hit 3 HRs with 7 RBIs batting .276 (8-29). In Game #5 at Pac Bell Park he hit two HRs in the Giants 16-4 victory over the Angels.
In the 2004 NLCS with Houston he hit a one of four Astros HRs in Game #1. He returned to hit another in Game #3 in the bottom of the first & hit yet another in Game #5. Overall he drove in seven runs in that series & hit .236.
Kent spent two seasons in Houston batting over .289 both seasons as well as driving in over 90 runs & hitting 22 or more HRs each time. In 2004 he signed a four year deal to play in Los Angeles with the Dodgers. His first season there was his best batting .289 with 29 HRs 36 doubles & 105 RBIs (8th in the league).
Now in his late thirties he began to slow down, having his last good year in 2006 hitting .302 with 20 HRs & 79 RBIs. Kent made two more post seasons with the Dodgers, he was one of the two runners tagged out at home plate by Paul Loduca in Game #1 of the 2006 NLDS against the Mets. He played his final career game in the 2008 NLCS against Philadelphia.
In his 17 season career he retired as the all time HR leader among second baseman with 377 (68th all time overall). Kent had 2161 hits (104th all time) 1518 RBIs (49th all time) 560 doubles (24th all time) 1320 runs scored (116th all time) & 2298 games played (107th all time).
Kent struck out 1522 times (51st all time) & his 801 walks are 247th all time.
Defensively at second base, he led the league in errors four times making 194 in his career (67th all) posting a .980 % (92nd all time).
His 4016 put outs are 19th all time, & his 2034 games played at second are 12th most all time.
Retirement: In 2009 he appeared on the TV series Superstars teamed up with actress Ali Landry.
In 2012 he was a contestant on Survivor: Philippines. He came the 9th contestant voted off & commented the one million dollar prize would only be worth $600,000 after Obama takes it.
Kent also donated $15,000 to the campaign to ban gay marriage in California.
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Galen Bernard Cisco was born on March 7, 1936 in St. Mary’s Ohio. Cisco attended Ohio State University and was the Captain & full back for the 1957 Buckeye’s National Championship team. He was also a star pitcher going 12-2 at the school getting inducted into their Sports Hall of Fame in 1995.
The five foot eleven right-hander chose a baseball career, signing with the Boston Red Sox in 1958.
He won 17 games climbing through the ranks of the minors in 1959, gradually became a relief pitcher over the next two seasons.
He made his MLB debut in 1961 going 2-4 earning his first win at Fenway Park against the Washington Senators in his second career start. He was 4-7 in 1962 when the Red Sox placed him on waivers where he was picked up by the New York Mets in September.
He immediately went to work, pitching four innings after relieving Craig Anderson in the 1st inning, in a game against the Houston Colt 45's on September 9th. The game ended in a 7-7 tie at Colts Stadium. In his next appearance he blew a save opportunity, when Cincinnati's Vada Pinson tripled home a run in the 8th inning. The Mets still ended up winning the game, as Choo Choo Coleman hit an exciting walk off game winning HR in the 9th inning.
Cisco pitched a complete game four hitter against the Chicago Cubs his next time out, finishing his Mets month at 1-1 in four appearances.
In 1963 he finished off the Mets Opening Day 7-0 loss to the St. Louis Cardinals at The Polo Grounds. He got a start on May 12th but took a 5-2 loss to the Braves in Milwaukee even though he pitched a complete game. On April 21st he threw another complete game, earning the win against the Braves at the Polo Grounds. In May he lost three straight decisions, before going 4-2 in the early part of the summer.
Cisco was used mostly as a reliever during the summer months, having his best outing on August 2nd against the Milwaukee Braves. He pitched ten innings, allowing just one unearned run on the evening. After that game he bested his record to 7-9, although his ERA was at 4.19.
But from there on he lost four straight starts & blew two saves, through the end of the season. From August 2nd on he did not earn any winning decisions for the 51-111, tenth place Mets.
He went on to lose 15 games that year (ninth most in the league) but it certainly wasn't worst on his own team. Three pitchers on the Mets staff lost more games than he did- Roger Craig 22 losses, then Al Jackson & Tracy Stallard both had 17 losses each. Cisco's record was 7-15 with a 4.34 ERA. He struck out 81 batters pitching 155 innings allowing 165 hits & 15 HRs. His ten wild pitches & seven hits batsmen were both tenth most in the league.
The 1964 season started out with two April relief appearances, & then he was placed back in a starting role. He quickly lost two games, and had a busy May that saw him finish the month at 2-5 while posting a low 2.45 ERA.
On a classic Memorial Day double header at Shea Stadium, he pitched nine innings of relief in the second game of a 23 inning legendary epic game. Cisco entered the game in the 15th inning, & held the Giants to just two hits for through the 22nd inning. Then in the top of the 23rd he gave up RBI hits to Del Crandall & Jesus Alou.
Cisco ended up being the losing pitcher in the 8-6 Giants win. During this classic day the Mets & Giants played a record at the time 23 innings of baseball. The Shea Stadium concessions ran out of hot dogs as well as other foods. Short Stop Roy McMillan turned a triple play that day & pitcher Gaylord Perry later admitted he began toying with a spit ball for the first time during that game.
On June 5th he threw a complete game four hit shutout against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Shea, in a rare 8-0 Mets win. After the game he was still posting a fine 2.09 ERA, but the weak Mets offense wasn't scoring any runs & Cisco only had a 3-5 record. Soon he lost seven of his next eight starts and finished the year losing six of seven decisions. He ended up with 19 losses that year, second most losses in the league behind team mate Roger Craig. Overall he was 6-19 with a 3.62 ERA, two shut outs, five complete games & 78 strikeouts in 191 innings pitched. The Mets finished in last place again, 53-109.
In 1965 Cisco pitched mostly in relief the first two months, going 0-2 in both games he started. On June 3rd, he beat the Pirates in Pittsburgh allowing just two runs over seven innings. He found himself at 1-6 by mid July, but had a much better ending to his season. On July 25th he earned a win over the Philadelphia Phillies at Shea Stadium.
In his next start, On July 29th he pitched a four hit shutout at Wrigley field beating the Cubs 14-0. Cisco missed two weeks of action in both August & September.
He finished out the year going 4-8, appearing in 35 games posting a 4.49 ERA. He struck out 58 batters in 112 innings, walking 51 as well. At the plate he hit well, batting a career high .259 (7-27) driving in four runs. Cisco had driven in three runs in 1963 & four runs in 1964.
In 1966 he began the year at AAA Jacksonville going 11-6 but was released by the Mets in June. He was picked up by the Boston Red Sox, making just 11 appearances the following season. He finished his seven year career at Kansas City in 1969 with the Royals in their first season.
In 1970 he played in the minor leagues ending his playing career at AA Omaha.
Overall in his seven season career, he was 25-56 with nine complete games, three shutouts & two saves, posting a 4.56 ERA in 192 appearances. In four seasons as a New York Met he was 18-43 with a 4.04 ERA in 126 games.
Retirement: Following his playing career, Cisco became a respected pitching coach for the five different team over the next two decades. He began with the Kansas City Royals (1971-1979) & there his staff won three AL West titles.
He then went to the Montreal Expos under Dick Williams (1980-1984) getting a 1981 post season appearance. he then went with Williams to the San Diego Padres (1985-1987).
He moved on to the Philadelphia Phillies (1997-2000) & most successfully with the Toronto Blue Jays (1990-1995). In six seasons with the Blue Jays his staff won three consecutive AL East titles and two World Series Championships (1992-93).
Cisco is currently retired in St. Mary’s Ohio. There a Rotary club Award was named after him, honoring hometown youths in baseball.
Mauro Paul Gozzo was born on March 7, 1966 in New Britain, Connecticut.
The Italian American right handed pitcher was nicknamed “Goose” by his team mates. Gozzo was originally drafted by the New York Mets in the 13th round of the 1984 draft.
He went 11-4 with a 2.45 ERA at A ball Memphis in 1985. He followed up with a 3.10 ERA & A 9-4 performance in the Carolina League during the Mets 1986 Championship season.
In March of 1987 he was traded along with Ed Hearn & Rick Anderson to the Kansas City Royals in exchange for David Cone. He eventually went to the Toronto Blue Jays organization going 12-1 in 1989 & got called up to the big leagues. He went 4-1 with the Blue Jays that season, getting traded over to Cleveland the next year. He would win 10 games at the minor league level two more times, but only got into six MLB games over the next three seasons. He spent a year in Minnesota before returning to the New York Mets in 1993.
Gozzo went 8-11 with a 3.45 ERA at AAA Norfolk earning a September call up. He debuted with the Mets on September 6th, 1993 pitching the 8th inning in a 7-2 loss to the Houston Astros.
On September 18th, Gozzo earned a save against the Braves in Atlanta, closing out a 3-2 Mets win. He was credited with two holds along the way, but then on September 27th, he allowed a 9th inning tie breaking single to St. Louis’ Gerald Perry, which gave Gozzo the loss.
In 1994 he got a chance as a starter, going seven innings against the Cardinals in St. Louis on May 8th, to earn the victory. He then beat the Atlanta Braves in his next start going into the 7th inning. But he then lost his next two starts & was back in the bullpen by the end of June. He to wasn't too successful there, losing three of four decisions blowing a save & getting a credit for one hold. He finished the season at 3-5 with a 4.83 ERA striking out 33 batters, walking 28 in 69 innings pitched in 23 appearances.
Gozzo would not pitch in the majors again, he ended his six year playing career going 7-7 with one save, 55 strikeouts in 124 innings pitched over 48 games, posting a 5.30 ERA.
Retirement: He is now a director of a baseball team in the amateur athletic union.
Edward Francis Bouchee was born on March 7, 1933 in Livingston, Montana. The left handed hitting first baseman was signed out of Washington State University by the Spokane Indians. He batted .319 in his first season at A ball & then went off to serve two years in the Korean War.
After his military service his contract was purchased by the Philadelphia Phillies in 1955. He batted .313 at A ball Schenectady & then was promoted to AAA Miami in 1956. He hit .294 there making it to the majors for nine games in with the Philadelphia Phillies. In his first full season (1957) he had 168 hits, 84 walks (4th in the NL) & led the league in hit by pitches (14). He hit 17 HRs with 35 doubles (third in the NL) 76 RBIs batting .293 & posting a .394 on base % (third in the NL). At first base he led the league in errors (16) assists (125) & games (157). He came in second in the Rookie of the Year voting to his teammate Jack Sanford.
Drama: Personal Troubles came to haunt Bouchee the next year; first he was charged with indecent exposure, after exposing himself to two young girls. He pleaded guilty, spent a few months in a psychiatric institution in Connecticut & was placed on three years’ probation. He returned to the Phillies that July, but had no 1958 baseball card issued due to his troubles.
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Upon his return in 1959 Bouchee played 136 games posting a .986 fielding % (5th in the NL) leading the league at first base in assists (95) put outs (1127) & games (134). At the plate he had another solid year, hitting .285 with 15 HRs 29 doubles & 74 RBIs. In May of 1960 after 22 games, he was traded to the Chicago Cubs with future Mets pitcher Don Cardwell in exchange for Tony Taylor & Cal Neeman. He took over the Cubs first base job for the next two seasons, his offense fell off as he hit .237 in 98 games that season. In 1961 he played in 112 games, batting .248 with 12 HRs & 38 RBIs.
Bouchee would become an original Met in 1962, when he was chosen as the teams 30th pick in the 1961 expansion draft. On April 14th, 1962 he would appear as a pinch hitter, drawing a walk in the first game in Mets history at Sportsman’s Park. He got a hit two days later & went three for five as a pinch hitter before getting his first start.
On April 13th he his pinch hit was a three run HR, although the Mets lost the game 15-5. In his first start at first base he got three hits against the St. Louis Cardinals including another HR driving in two runs in the 9-4 Met loss. At the end of April Bouchee hit another three run HR, finishing the month with three HRs batting .320 with eight RBIs.
It all went downhill from there, his average fell to .160 by July & he didn't hit another HR all year. He was sent down to AAA Syracuse finishing out the season there hitting .287. Overall he played in fifty games for the ’62 Mets, nineteen as a backup first baseman & was also used as a pinch hitter. Bouchee hit.161 with three HRs, two doubles, ten RBIs & a .302 on base %.
In 1963 he played at AAA Buffalo batting .266 in 87 games finishing off his playing career. In his seven year career he batted .265 with 583 hits 61 HRs 114 doubles 290 RBIs & .368 on base %.
Retirement: After baseball he went on to hold a management position at the Adelco Auto Supply Company until his retirement. In January 2012 he passed away from complications with diabetes, he was 80 years old.
John Howard Fisher known as "Fat Jack", was born on March 4, 1939 in Frostburg, Maryland. The six foot two right hander was signed out of high school in 1957, at Augusta, Georgia by the Baltimore Orioles.
In 1958 he won 14 games going 14-12 at the low levels of the minors leagues, getting up to AAA Miami the following season. There he was 8-4 making it to the big leagues as part of the Orioles “kiddie corps” pitching staff, going 1-6 on the year. He made his debut in New York pitching three innings of relief allowing four runs on seven hits. He earned his first win pitching a three hit shutout against the Chicago White Sox on September 11th.
1960 was his only winning season, as he went 12-11 with a 3.41 ERA, striking out 97 batters in 197 innings pitched.
He went into the record books that season, giving up Ted Williams last career HR (#521) in Williams' final major league at bat. The next season he gave up another famous HR, this one was Roger Maris’ #60 tying him with Babe Ruth for the single season record.
Overall he was 10-13 in 1961, pitching ten complete games posting a 3.90 ERA, while leading the league with 10 wild pitches. He saved one game & pitched eleven games in relief as well making 25 starts. After another season in Baltimore (7-9) he was traded to the San Francisco Giants for Mike McCormick & two other players. After just one season in the Bay Area (going 6-10), where he led all N.L. pitchers in fielding, he was drafted away by the New York Mets before the 1964 season.
Fisher went into the Mets record books right away, by starting the first game ever played at Shea Stadium on April 17, 1964. According to Fisher, the crowd noise was so over whelming during the pregame, he asked manager Casey Stengel if he could warm up in the bull pen rather than on the mound. Due to this request, he credits himself with starting the tradition of having the starting pitcher warm up in the bullpen before a game. "I could actually feel the sound waves hitting me on the chest," he said of the game that day.
As Bob Murphy made the call, Fisher threw a strike on the outside corner of the plate christening the beginning of Mets baseball at the new Shea Stadium. Fisher pitched into the 7th inning that Opening day, although he allowed eleven hits, he only gave up three runs while getting no decision. That day he also allowed the first HR at Shea Stadium, to Pittsburgh’s future Hall of Famer; Willie Stargell.
Fisher got two more starts that April, taking a loss to the Pirates in Pittsburgh.
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He would have an up & down season that year; At the end of May he tossed back to back complete games where allowed just one earned run each time. He beat the Cubs at Wrigley Field & beat the Giants at Shea Stadium. On July 19th he allowed just two runs, in a complete game 3-2 win over the St. Louis Cards. By the All Star break Fisher was 5-8 and put up the same win loss record in the second half. On August 21st Fisher pitched a seven hit shutout at Shea Stadium against the Chicago Cubs. In September he was 1-2 & also pitched a few games in relief.
He finished up 1964 at 10-17 (5th most losses in the league) with a 4.23 ERA. He topped the staff in many categories, innings (227) hits (256), HRs (27) & a league leading 107 earned runs.
In 1965 he began the year with a good May winning three straight games, beating the Cardinals, Braves & Reds all at home. Wins on the road at Chicago & Pittsburgh brought him to 5-4 into early June, but then it got worse from there. Fisher then lost 12 of his next 14 decisions, including a terrible 0-6 September. On October 3rd, in the last game of the season, he pitched 13 innings at Shea Stadium against the Philadelphia Phillies. He allowed just three runs, but a top of the 13th RBI single to "Dr. Strange Glove" Dick Stuart, ended up being the game winning hit & he took the loss.
Fisher led the league in losses that season, going 8-24, he also allowed the most earned runs in the league, for the second straight year (111). He pitched in 253 innings which gave him a respectable 3.94 ERA, strangely the best ERA on the staff. More amazingly, he actually led the staff with his eight wins.
In 1966 he started out the year at 0-4, giving him eleven straight losing decisions, dating back to the previous season. He broke the string with a win against the San Francisco Giants, on May 14th, pitching into the 8th inning. He had a good June going 3-1 & pitching four complete games. On June 3rd he tossed a one run, three hitter at Shea Stadium, beating Don Drysdale & the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-2. On July 4th, in the second game of a twin bill, he pitched a one run complete game striking out seven Phillies in Philadelphia.
On July 20th, he pitched ten innings at Candlestick Park, against the Giants allowing just two runs, earning the victory. August brought wins against the St. Louis Cardinals Al Jackson & Ray Washburn both at home & on the road. In September he closed out the season with a four hit shutout in Houston & a six hit shutout at Shea Stadium against the same Astros.
1966 would be his best Mets season, as Fat Jack went 11-14 with a 3.68 ERA, striking out a career high 127 batters in 230 innings pitched, while walking just 54. He allowed 26 HRs which was 7th most in the league & his 229 hits allowed was tenth most. Fisher was always a good fielding pitcher, he led the league with 26 put outs.
In 1967 he started the third game of the year, allowing four runs on eight hits against the Philadelphia Phillies, taking the 5-1 loss. When the Phillies came to Shea, he beat them next time around 6-3. In May he pitched two consecutive games of eleven innings or more, but earned just one win, which came against the Cincinnati Reds.
He won his next start by beating the St. Louis Cardinals on a six hit, one run complete game performance, besting his record to 3-2. But then he lost five straight games from mid May until mid June, before getting another victory.
It took a two hit shutout against the Phillies at Connie Mack Stadium to earn another win. The rest of the year wasn’t much better; he lost eight of his last 12 decisions, although he pitched until the eighth inning or beyond eight more times. On July 14th he lost a 1-0 pitchers duel to the Reds Gary Nolan, Tony Perez ended the game with a 10th inning walk off HR.
Fisher again went on to lead the league in losses (18) & earned runs (115). He allowed 25 HRs (5th in the league) & 221 hits (3rd most). He was 9-18 pitching in 220 innings with a 4.80 ERA, he struck out 116 batters walking 68 in 220 innings pitched.
In his Mets career Fisher, led the league in losses twice & earned runs three times. Every year allowing the most HRs, hits & earned runs on the New York staff each as well.
In his four seasons with the Mets, he was 38-73 allowing 92 HRs, 427 earned runs while posting a 4.12 ERA in 160 appearances. On December 15, 1967, Fisher was traded along with Tommy Davis, Buddy Booker, and Billy Wynne to the Chicago White Sox for Tommie Agee and Al Weis.
Fisher went 8-13 in Chicago, and pitched just one more season (1969) in Cincinnati. In his eleven year career he went 86-139 with 1017 strikeouts in 1975 innings pitched posting a 4.06 ERA in 400 games pitched.
Retirement: After his pitching career, he was briefly a pitching coach before opening his own business. He opened Fat Jack's sports bar in Easton, Pennsylvania, running the establishment until he sold it in 1998. While living in Easton he lived just a few blocks from former Heavyweight boxing champ, Larry Holmes.
In 2008 he visited the skeleton of Shea Stadium as it was being demolished, after he had attended a banquet in Times Square for former ball players. "I guess it's trying hard to stand up, like we were as a young ballclub," said Fisher to the Daily News "It's a pretty sad scene."
He can still be found at autograph shows signing "first pitch at Shea- Fat Jack".
Octavio Victor Rojas Rivas was born on March 6, 1939 in Havana Cuba. His father wanted him to be a doctor, but Cookie wanted to play baseball for the Havana Sugar Kings instead. He was eventually signed as a second baseman by the Cincinnati Reds in 1956 at the age of 17.
He got out of Cuba as it was going into political turmoil, debuting as the Reds starting second baseman in the first game ever played at the new Dodger Stadium in 1962. A week later he got his first career hit off the great Sandy Koufax.
After one season with the Reds he was traded to the Phillies as rookie Pete Rose was in the Reds plan as the second baseman of their future. Rojas earned the starting second base job in Philly, leading the league in fielding percentage three straight seasons. He batted over .290 twice, including .a 303 average (8th in the league) in 1965 as he made his first All Star team. He would spend seven seasons in Philadelphia being amongst the league’s top ten in singles & sacrifice hits twice. In 1967 he led the league with 16 sac hits batting .259.
In October 1969 he was part of the famous Curt Flood trade, as he, Dick Allen and Jerry Johnson went to the St. Louis Cardinals in exchange for Tim McCarver, Curt Flood, Joe Hoerner & Byrone Browne. Flood refused the trade and challenged the reserve clause, but was soon forced out of the game since no one really backed him that early on. Rojas will forever be remembered for sporting thick frame eye glasses during his playing days.
Rojas struggled mightily in St. Louis & by June he was sent to the Kansas City Royals for Fred Rico. In K.C. he became one of the American League’s best second baseman of the early seventies. In 1971 he batted .300 with a .357 on base % & posted a .991 fielding percentage quickly becoming a Royals fan favorite.
He made four straight All Star teams from 1971-1974, making history as well. In the 1972 Mid Summer Classic at Atlanta he became the first AL player born outside of the United States to hit a HR in an All Star Game. The HR came in the 8th inning off Montreal's Bill Stoneman, it was a two run shot (scoring Carlton Fisk) putting the AL ahead. The NL would tie it & win the game in the bottom of the 10th on a Joe Morgan base hit.
Rojas posted fielding percentages over .980% through the 1975 season & never made more than 13 errors in a season during his A.L. years.
Rojas was a good contact hitter, who didn’t strike out too often, only going down on strikes fifty times or more twice in his entire career. He was a pure singles hitter, who didn’t hit for power, (like most second baseman of his era) never hitting more than 9 HRs in a season.
In 1973 he had career highs in RBIs (69) & doubles (69) while batting .276. He played in two ALCS with the Royals, batting .333 overall with an RBI in the 1976 series.
He was eventually released by the Royals after the 1977 season, at the age of 38, with the arrival of long time Royal second baseman Frank White. In his 16 year playing career Rojas would play 1833 MLB games with 1660 hits, 254 doubles, 25 triples, 54 HRs & 593 RBIs while batting .263 lifetime.
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Retirement: After his playing days he became a coach & major league scout. Rojas had two brief stints as manager; first with the California Angeles (1988) & second with the Florida Marlins (1996) for just one game after Rene Lachemann was fired. He was only the third Cuban born manager to ever manage in the major leagues.
Rojas joined the New York Mets, as the team's third base coach under Bobby Valentine from 1997-2000. During the 1999 post season Rojas came down the coaching line and argued a foul ball call with umpire Charlie Williams. He then got into a shoving match and was suspended for five games.
He returned as the third base coach during the Mets 2000 Mets pennant season, before leaving the organization. He went on to serve as bench coach for the Toronto Blue Jays from 2001-2002.
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Broadcaster: Rojas currently does Spanish television broadcasts for the Florida Marlins. He is the father of former MLB player Victor Rojas who currently works on the MLB Network.
Family: His son Victor Rojas is a Los Angeles Angels TV broadcaster & his son Mike Rojas is the Detroit Tigers bullpen coach.
Carl Anthony Furillo was born March 8th 1922 in Stony Creek Mills, Pennsylvania. The strong six foot right handed Furillo, grew up four miles outside of Reading Pennsylvania and played on their local baseball team.
He threw the ball so hard, and had such a strong throwing arm, he earned the nickname “The Reading Rifle”. A first his coaches tried to convert him to a pitcher, but he was too wild, and it was dangerous to stand in at the plate against him.
After serving military service in World War II he got to the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1946 at the age 24.
In his rookie year he took over as the Dodgers right fielder, hitting .284 with three HRs 18 doubles, six triples, 35 RBIs & a .346 on base % in 117 games. By 1947 he was batting .295 and developed into one of the leagues top hitters for average. He would bat over .300 five times in his career, & would hit over the .290 mark, a total of eleven times in his fifteen year career. Furillo played in seven World Series while making two All Star teams as well.
In the Dodgers 1953 pennant season, he had one of his best seasons, winning the NL batting title hitting .344. His good hitting in his career had him compete for the batting title five times, as he finished in the leagues top ten in that category five separate seasons.
Also in 1953 he had career highs in doubles (38) & on base % (.393). He hit 21 HRs with 92 RBIs while scoring 90 runs for the first of three straight seasons. He won the batting title even though his season was cut short due to an injury, as he played in 132 games that season. The famous Dodgers Giants rivalry heated up once again, as Furillo got plunked on the wrist by Giants pitcher Ruben Gomez.
Furillo was infuriated that he charged the Giants dugout going after manager Leo Durocher for calling the pitch. A bench clearing brawl broke out & Furillo’s hand was stepped on causing him to miss the rest of the season. Furillo later said of the rivalry “We hated the Giants, I just hated that uniform”.
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He was never really considered a power hitter, but Furillo did hit 18 or more HRs five separate seasons. He had two 100 plus RBI seasons driving in over 90 runs, six different times on some very talented Dodger teams. Furillo had four seasons of hitting 30 plus doubles as well as three seasons of 90 plus runs scored.
The only flaw he had was his slow running, which earned him the name “skoonj” short for scungilli, which is a slow snail like sea creature that taste pretty good in a fradiavlo sauce. His slow running led him to hit into 207 career double plays (81st all time). In 1956 he led the league in that category with 27.
On the field Furillo was an outstanding outfielder, one of the best of his era. He played the tricky right field wall at Ebbets Field in front of the famous Abe Stark sign which read “hit this sign and win a suit”. Not many suits were won with Furillo near the sign, as very few balls ever got passed him.
The Reading Rifle would have ten or more outfield assists for nine straight seasons, finishing first or second in put outs six different times. He and once threw out Pittsburgh’s Mel Queen running to first base on what looked like a sure single. The Reading Rifle, led the league twice in assists (1950 & 1951) & was in the top three in fielding four times as well. He would end his career with 151 outfield assists, and a .979 fielding percentage. He turned 34 double plays, and only made 74 errors in 1739 games played.
Post Season: Furillo was one of the popular Brooklyn Dodgers famed; Boys of Summer. In his Dodgers days he won a Worlds Championship & seven pennants. In his first World Series in 1947, he hit .353 going 6-21 with two doubles & three RBIs. In Game #3 in Brooklyn, he doubled home two runs in the Dodgers six run second inning, off New York's Bobo Newsome. He batted .353 in the series, scoring a run in Game #6 helping the Dodgers in their 8-6 win.
In the 1949 Series he struggled, going 1-8 playing in just three games.
In the 1952 World Series, he was hitless in the first two games, then hit safley in four straight. In Game #5 he made a spectacular catch, reaching over the fence robbing Johnny Mize of a game tying HR in the 11th inning. The Dodgers won the game & went back to Ebbetts Field leading three games to two but lost the final two games. In that Series he had just four hits, two of them doubles going 4-23 (.174)
In the 1953 version of the subway series, Furillo began with an RBI base hitin the Game #1 loss in the Bronx. He had two hits then next day, then another hit in both Games Four & Five. In Game #6 Furillo hit a two run HR off Allie Reynolds, in the top of the 9th inning, to tie up the game. In the bottom of the 9th Clem Labine served up a walk & two hits as Brooklyn lost another series. Overall he hit .333 with four RBIs in that Series.
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Furillo was a member of Brooklyn’s 1955 Championship team, batting .314 on the season (7th best in the league). He hit a career high 26 HRs (fourth on his team) driving in 96 runs (also fourth on the team), making it three straight 90 plus RBI seasons for himself. That season he posted a .391 on base % as well as coming in second in the league in fielding.
Post Season: In the '55 World Series he started out going 3-4 in Game #1 with a HR off Whitey Ford and two runs scored in the Bronx. In Game #3 he had two hits with an RBI double off Tom Morgan, in the Dodgers 8-3 win in Brooklyn. Furillo hit safely in four straight games and went o-3 with a walk in Game #7.
Overall he hit .296 (8-27) with three extra base hits & three walks in the World Series.
He played in the last Brooklyn World Series in 1956 and then moved West with the club in 1957.
1957 would be his last season as a regular player, he hit .306 in Los Angeles that year. He played in the first Dodger World Series in Los Angeles in 1959. He was a reserve outfielder behind Duke Snider, Wally Moon, Don Demeter & Ron Fairly, seeing action in just 50 games, often as a pinch hittter.
Post Season: In Game #3 of the ’59 Fall Classic, Furillo came to bat with the bases loaded, in a scoreless game in the 7th inning as a pinch hitter. He drove a single up the middle, scoring Charlie Neal & Norm Larker with what were the winning runs.
In 1960 he tore his calf muscle after playing in just eight games, at age 38 his career was over as the Dodgers soon released him. He then sued the organization saying they released him to avoid the 15 year higher pension payout, as well as the fact they were avoiding his medical costs.
He won $21,000 in the settlement, but would be black balled from any jobs in baseball after that. The commissioner’s office denied any charges of him being black listed.
Lifetime in his 15 year career, Furillo hit .299 (211th all time) with 1910 hits 192 HRs 324 doubles 56 triples & 1058 RBIs in 1806 games played. In right field he played 1739 games (98th all time) with a .978 fielding % (87th all time) with 1135 put outs (86th all time).
Retirement: Furillo ran a butcher shop in Flushing, Queens during the sixties. He then worked for the Otis Elevator Co. and installed elevator shafts for the World Trade Center in the early seventies.
He moved back to the Reading, PA area in the late seventies and developed leukemia. He passed away in 1989 of an apparent heart attack in Stony Mill, PA at the age of 66.
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