Late Seventies Mets Catcher: John Stearns (1974-1984)

John Harden Stearns was born August 21, 1951 in Denver Colorado. He was originally drafted in 1969 by the Oakland A's, but chose to attend the University of Colorado instead. He was a star baseball & football player there, earning the nick name “Bad Dude”. In 1972 he was drafted by the NFL's Buffalo Bills as a defensive back but did not sign.

The next year he was the second overall pick, drafted ahead of Robin Yount & Dave Winfield, by the Philadelphia Phillies. He was sent right up to AA level but only hit .241 and had seven passed balls behind the plate. The next year he batted .343 and got promoted to AAA, joining Gary Carter on the International League All Star Game.

He got promoted to the Phillies squad in September appearing in one game getting his first MLB hit. By December 1974 Bob Boone was catching in Philadelphia with a long future ahead of him.

In New York Jerry Grote was starting to age & the Mets believed a sist in Tug McGraw’s arm was going to ruin his career. So a trade was made sending Stearns, Del Unser & Mac Scarce to the Mets for Tug McGraw, Don Hahn & Dave Schneck. In 1975, Stearns began his Mets career as the backup to Jerry Grote, starting his first game catching Jon Matlack in St. Louis on April 16, 1975. He got his first career Mets hit that day as well.

At the end of April, in his Mets fourth game, he hit his first career HR at Wrigley Field in a 7-4 Mets loss. In his rookie year he would only hit .159 with 3 HRs & 10 RBIs in 59 games played. Looking back, Stearns said he looked at the lineup card one day, saw his name was on it & saw Tom Seaver was pitching. In the first inning Pete Rose stepped in as he gave a sign to Seaver. That’s when it hit him; he was now in the big leagues.

In 1976 he was sent back down to AAA Tidewater, where he hit .310 finishing in the top ten for the batting title. He got called back up to the Mets in September, getting 18 hits in his first 13 games back. He ended up taking over the catching duties from Jerry Grote & Ron Hodges the rest of the month.

On September 8th he had a three hit, three RBI day which included a HR at Wrigley Field in a Mets 11-5 win. Two days later he drove in a pair of runs in St. Louis , helping the Jerry Koosman to win #19 & the Mets to a 4-2 win.

On September 16th he was behind the plate as Jerry Koosman won his twentieth game of the year, the first time in his career he won twenty games. Koosman pitched a one run four hitter, in which Stearns drew three walks & scored a run. Stearns finished the year batting .262 with 2 HRs 6 doubles a 364 on base % & 10 RBIs. Behind the plate he threw out 53% of would be base stealers. He started his career by wearing the uniform number 16 but he ended up switching numbers with Lee Mazzilli and took over the number 12.

By 1977 he was the Mets main catcher, and on Opening day he drove in two runs, helping Tom Seaver to a 5-3 victory at Wrigley Field. On June 1st he hit a grand slam HR off Jackie Brown at Stade Olmpique in Montreal, to help beat the Expos 6-4. Later that month he hit a three run shot off Houston's Joe Sambito in an 8-2 Mets win at Shea Stadium.

On June 12th Stearns was battery mate to Tom Seaver in the last game he would pitch as a New York Met, before getting traded to the Reds. Seaver beat the Astros in Houston 3-1, Stearns hit a 9th inning double scoring Mike Vail. He went into July batting .300 leading the club in hitting.

That year he was chosen for his first All Star game, batting .290 with 10 HRs & a .550 slugging percentage by the break. He caught the final inning of the All Star Game, catching the final strikeout in the NL victory. He struggled in the second half, as his average dropped off forty points, finishing up batting .251, with 12 HRs 55 RBIs, a .370 on base percentage and leading the team in doubles (12) & walks (77).

Bad Dude as he became known, would always take one for the team, getting hit by seven pitches & leading them in that category the next two seasons. All time in his career he was hit by 25 pitches (11th on the Mets all time list). He caught 127 games behind the plate (5th in the league) was second in put outs (742) putting up a .982 fielding % while throwing out 40% of runners attempting to steal.

In 1978 he had a slow April, hitting just .197 with two extra base hits. But he gave himself a kick start in mid May, driving in runs in all but one game the week of May 7th-May 14th. On May 8th he tied up a game in the top of the 9th inning in Cincinnati with a single off Fred Norman. The Mets went on to win it in extra innings.

On May 27th Stearns had a three RBI day in the midst of a six game hit streak. In June he hit two HRs on a California road trip including a three hit day at Dodger Stadium.

In a game against the Pittsburgh Pirates, Stearns made a big play which help build his reputation. The Pirates big Dave Parker crashed into Stearns in a play at the plate, but Stearns stood his ground, & tagged out Parker to end the game. Parker ended up running into a brick wall when he ran into Stearns, fracturing his cheekbone, sidelining him for two weeks.

When the Phillies came to town, they actually thanked Stearns for standing up to their rival, the big Dave Parker. In July he got hot hitting safely in 14 of 16 games. On a mid July road trip he had back to back multi RBI games & then a four RBI day on July 20th against the Houston Astros at Shea.

On August 1st Stearns started the month with a three run HR off The Phillies Steve Carlton, helping the Mets to a 5-1 victory at Philadelphia. Three days later he had a three RBI night in St. Louis as the Mets beat the Cards 8-3. In July & August he drove in 33 runs, then ended the year with a September eight game hit streak.

On September 8th Stearns went into the Record book, when he stole first base in the first inning of a game against the Montreal Expos. Stearns stole his 24th base of the season against pitcher Bob James & catcher Gary Carter. The steal broke the old National League modern day record of 23 set in 1903 by Johnny Kling.

In 1978 he batted .264 with a .364 on base % & led the team in doubles (24). He had career highs in HRs (15) RBIs (73) & games behind the plate (141). Defensively he was second in the league in put outs , assists, errors & stolen bases allowed. He was third in catching runners stealing (53) 38% with a 985 fielding %.

In the fourth game of the 1979 season, Stearns started a bench clearing brawl with the Montreal Expos. It began as Gary Carter tried to score on Mets pitcher Pete Falcone's throwing error. Outfielder Eliot Maddox threw Carter out at home plate, but Stearns felt Carter had tried to elbow him with a cheap shot.

Stearns went after Carter, attacking him & starting up the melee’. That season Stearns began to see more action in the outfield, as well as first & third base. This was to help reduce some of the wear & tear on his body. He caught 121 games and played in a career high 155 games overall. He was selected to the 1979 All star team again even though he was only batting .242 at the break.

On a bad Mets team, he was certainly their best everyday player. At the end of May he went on a 13 game hit streak, topped by a three hit, three RBI day in Atlanta on June 3rd. On July 112th he had a walk off RBI single against the Los Angeles Dodgers, scoring Lee Mazzilli thrilling 12,000 Shea fans. In the first week of August he drove in runs in six of the first eight games, proving to be one of the teams better offensive players when healthy.

On September 8th, he singled off Pittsburgh's Jim Bibby scoring Lee Mazzilli with the games walk off game winning run. Stearns drove in runs in three straight games from there. At the end of September he drove in runs in four games of the final week. That year the Mets finished last 63-99. Stearns finished the season with a career best 131 hits & 29 doubles. He only hit .243, with 9 HRs, 66 RBIs (second on the club) a .312 on base % & 15 stolen bases (second on the club) while getting thrown out just as many times.

In 1980 he started out well & found himself batting .348 at the beginning of May. In the final week of that month he drove in runs in five of seven games hitting safely in six straight. On June 26th his 7th inning single off the Cubs Dick Tidrow put the Mets ahead for good in the 4-3 win at Wrigley Field. Two days later he doubled off the Phillies Ron Reed in the top of the 11th inning, scoring Joel Youngblood in a 2-1 extra inning win in Philadelphia.

In a June game, two drunken fans stormed the field and as security guards were chasing the two drunks around were trying to catch them, Stearns grew irritable. He left his position behind the plate ran into left field tackeling one of them down to the ground. That ruckus ended there. On the Fourth of July another classic Stearns even occurred. In a game at Shea Stadium against the Montreal Expos, rookie pitcher Bill Gullickson threw a pitch at the head of the Mets Mike Jorgenson. Stearns jumped from the dugout, ran to the mound and leveled Gullickson to the ground.

In the midst of all these Stearns stories, comes my favorite of all which took place in Atlanta. During a game against The Braves, their mascot Chief No-a-Homa was annoying Stearns by teasing him. Bad Dude Stearns screamed at the mascot and proceeded to chased him off the field.

He was still hitting over .290 into July and made another All Star team, getting to bat in the game for the first time in his career. He went 0-1 grounding out in the 5th inning against the American League's Tommy John in the All Star Game held at Dodger Stadium. After the All Star game he continued to hit well, with four multi hit games. On July 25th he drove in both Mets runs in Pat Zachary's six hit shutout over the Reds. The next day he broke his finger on a foul tip, which ended his season. He finished up hitting a solid .285 with no HRs 25 doubles a .346 on base % & 45 RBIs playing in just 91 games.

He missed the first two weeks of 1981 with an injury, then slowly came back to play more at third & first base. He was back behind the plate in May, and started hitting well until the MLB baseball strike stopped play. In mid May he hit safely in nine of ten games, which included two four hit games as well. On September 18th he hit an 8th inning two run game winning HR off Steve Carlton to beat the Philadelphia Phillies. He finished up hitting .271 in 80 games, stealing 12 bases, but his power production was still down with one HR & 12 doubles.

Behind the plate he only caught 66 games with a .985 fielding % & throwing out 36% of would be base stealers. In 1982 he came back strong, and hit .313 in the first month. On April 24th he drove in the only run of a game against the Montreal Expos, with a double off Ray Burris.

In May he hit a HR off San Francisco’s Greg Minton, stopping Minton’s streak of 254 innings without allowing a long ball. On June 20th Stearns tripled in the top of the 10th inning at St. Louis off relief ace Bruce Sutter, he drove in two runs leading the Mets to a 5-4 win. He hitting well over .300 in the first half making his last All Star appearance.

After the break he had elbow problems sidelining him for the rest of the year. He finished the 1982 season up with a career best .293 average, tying for the team lead with Mookie Wilson with 25 doubles. He had 103 hits hitting 4 HRs 3 triples a .349 on base % & 17 stolen bases. Defensively in 81 games he threw out a career best 40% of would be base stealers. By 1983 the elbow injury had made it difficult for him to throw at all & he only appeared in four games all year.

In 1984 he did play in eight games getting his last career hit on the last day of the season. He attempted a minor league come back in 1985, but the injuries cut his career short, and at age 34 he officially retired from baseball.

In his 11 year career he played in 810 games (19th on the Mets all time list), hitting .260 with 696 hits (19th on the Mets all time list), 152 doubles (13th on the all time Mets list) , 46 HRs, 10 triples, 91 stolen bases (14th on the Mets all time list-tied with Cleon Jones) 312 RBIs 323 walks (18th on the Mets all time list) & a .341 on base %.

In 699 games behind the plate he had a .985 fielding percentage throwing out 37% of would be base stealers. He is fourth on the Mets All Time list in games caught behind the plate (678).

Retirement: After baseball Stearns coached & managed at the minor league levels. In 1996-1997 he was promoted to the MLB level coaching the Baltimore Orioles at first base.

From 1998 -2001 he coached under Bobby Valentine for his old Mets club as Valentines bench coach. In 2003, he became manager of the Binghamton Mets then the AAA Norfolk Tides in the next year.

In 2005, he was New York's minor league catching coordinator & then left the organization in 2006. He moved to the Nationals system, currently managing at the AA level.

Trivia: Younger fans witnessed Stearns's enthusiasm and excitability while he was a Mets coach in 2000. He was wearing a microphone for Fox television when the Mets' Mike Piazza hit a run-scoring double in Game 1 of the 2000 NLCS.

Stearns's audible reaction of "THE MONSTER IS OUT OF THE CAGE!!" became a rallying cry for the entire series, which the Mets won four games to one.

Family: His brother Bill Stearns was a catcher who advanced as far as AAA in the minors.

Former New York Giants All Star Catcher: Harry "the Horse" Danning

Harry Danning was born September 6, 1911 in Los Angeles California. Harry was signed by the New York Giants and made his debut at the Polo Grounds in 1933. He earned the nick name “Harry the Horse” after Damon Runyon’s famous Broadway character of that time. Runyon covered the Giants for a local paper and was elected to the sports writers’ wing of the Hall of Fame. 

Danning was on the Giants 1933 World Champion squad but only appeared in three games and saw no World Series action. From 1934-1937 he was the Giants backup catcher to Gus Mancuso, who hit .300 twice in that period. In 1934 Danning himself hit .330 in 97 at bats with a HR & 7 RBIs. His average fell over the next two seasons, hitting a low .159 (11-69) in 1936.

Danning rebounded & was a member of the 1937 NY Giants N.L. pennant winning ballclub, hitting .288 with 8 HRs 12 doubles & 51 RBIs in 93 games in played.

Post Season: In the 1937 World Series after going hitless in Game #3, he had three hits and two RBIs in Game #4, helping Carl Hubbell to a 7-3 Giants victory.

By 1938 he was the Giants regular catcher, playing on the same team as Hall of Famers; Bill Terry, Travis “Stonewall” Jackson, and Hubbell. He handled Hubbell’s screwballs well and was a good defensive catcher. He was voted to the All Star team four straight seasons, coming in the top ten in the MVP voting twice.

He would lead the league in throwing out base runners attempting to steal in both 1939 & 1940. He threw out 50% or better five times in his career & 40% or better eight of his ten seasons. Harry the Horse also led the league in put outs three times, assists & games caught twice as well as errors & passed balls one time each.


He went on to hit over .300 and hit 25 plus doubles three straight seasons from 1938-1941. In 1939 he was in the top ten in the league in hitting, batting .313, with 16 HRs 24 doubles 74 RBIs a .359 on base % & 249 total bases. On June 9th 1939, he helped the Giants set a record, as one of five players to hit HRs during a single inning.

The next season (1940) he drove in a career high 91 runs (9th in the league) while hitting 34 doubles with 13 HRs. He hit for the cycle in a June game that year as well. In 1941 his average dropped to .244 with 7 HRs & 56 RBIs. He rebounded to .279 the next season, but at age 30 he was released that December as Gus Mancusco returned as the Giants catcher in the twilight of his career.


Retirement: After baseball Danning served in the military during World War II, and later became a minor league coach. Outside of baseball he spent time as a car dealer, magazine distributor & Met Life insurance executive.

His older brother Ike Danning, played one season with the St. Louis Browns in 1928. Harry retired to Indiana and lived until the age of 93, passing in 2004. He was the last surviving member of the 1933 Giants World Champion team.

Former Italian American Player of the Day: Knuckleballer Tom Candiotti (1983-1999)

Thomas Caesar Candiotti was born August 31. 1957 in Walnut Creek, California. The knuckle ball pitcher was originally drafted by the Royals in 1980 but was claimed in the Rule 5 by the Milwaukee Brewers. After two seasons he was traded to Cleveland, and led the league with 17 complete games, posting a 16-12 record and a 3.57 ERA. He had an off season the next year losing 18 games, then went on to win 13 games or more for the next four years.

In 1991 he signed with the Dodgers as a free agent, and had the second best ERA in the league at 2.65 but lost a league leading 15 games. He then posted four losing seasons and one .500 season before going 10-7 in His Final contract year (1997). That off season he then signed on with Oakland. He once again led the league in losses going 11-16 and retired after the 1999 season.

His knuckle ball gave him longevity, pitching over 200 innings nine times, giving him 2725 over his 16 year career. He also had 1735 career strikeouts (97th all time) including five seasons of 140 or more. He was a better pitcher than his stats may show, he definitely was a work horse who put in a lot of innings with quality starts & low earned run averages.

He pitched until he was 42 years old finishing with a 151-164 record & a 3.73 ERA. He pitched in over 2725 innings in 451 games throwing 68 complete games &11 shut outs. He got to pitch in two post seasons; 1991 with Toronto going 0-1 & in 1996 with the Dodgers getting no decision.

Candiotti is an accomplished bowler averaging over 200 in Arizona Bowling leagues. He has earned himself a spot in the Bowling Hall of Fame in St. Louis & is only the second pro athlete to be inducted.

Retirement: After baseball he worked as a special assistant to the GM in Cleveland, then went to broadcasting. He did games for ESPN as well as working on Baseball Tonight & covering the Little League World Series. He is currently a broadcaster for Arizona Diamondbacks games.

Tug McGraw (Part Two) 1973 Mets N.L. Championship Year "You Gotta Believe"

In 1973 Tug started out the season with another Opening Day save after relieving Tom Seaver to finish off the Philadelphia Phillies. In the first month of thee 1973 season he had four saves and was posting a 1.59 ERA, just like the Tug McGraw of old. But in mid May he began to struggle, he only notched one save from that point through mid June and he was getting hit hard.

In an early May game he blew a four run lead against the Houston Astros, giving up a three run HR to Bob Watson. He was charged with seven runs overall on that day. He did get credit for three saves following that game but then allowed two HRs to the Pittsburgh Pirates, blowing a save while taking a loss. His ERA soared to 5.19 & over the next two months. He blew four saves, took two losses dropping to 0-4 on the year & only notched three saves.

On June 28th he came in relief in the 7th inning against the Philadelphia Phillies, Greg Luzinski & Tommy Hutton led the way & lit him up for four runs. In the second game of a July 1st double header he gave up a walk off HR to the Chicago Cubs Randy Hundley at Wrigley Field. Another terrible outing came two days later in Montreal on July 3rd, when he allowed seven earned runs in relief to the Expos.

That day he said he felt like he had no idea how to throw a baseball. It was as if he had never played baseball in his life. He blew another save against the Atlanta Braves and had an ERA over six when Yogi Berra decided to use him as a starter.

His first start was July 17th in Atlanta but it was also a nightmare. He allowed seven runs on ten hits over six innings pitched but the Mets bailed him out with a seven run 9th inning, led by a pair of two run HRs from Rusty Staub & John Milner. Also pinch hitters Jim Beachamp & Willie Mays drove in runs as well with key hits.

The team also struggled through injuries to some its key players, and in the middle of summer was below .500, in last place eleven games out. By August McGraw’s record had slipped to 0-6, and then one afternoon it all seemed to make sense. He was having lunch with an old friend of Gil Hodges, a man named Joe Badamano who was a motivational speaker.

Badamano told Tug “you got to believe in yourself & think positive”. That’s it Tug said to himself, “You gotta believe”. He kept repeating it to himself, his team mates, & to the fans. Then in a famous closed door team meeting with chairman of the board; M. Donald Grant, a rally cry was born.

"You Gotta Believe": Rumors were swirling in the press about who was to be fired in the Mets organization, The newspapers actually had a poll asking the public who the Mets should let go; the manager Yogi Berra? the General Manager Bob Scheffing? Or the Chairman M. Donald Grant? Since Berra was the most popular guy, he was voted to stay.

Grant gave the team a pep talk, telling them the front office was behind them and still believed in them. Then it happened; McGraw jumped up and shouted, “You gotta believe! You gotta believe!” right in the middle of the Grants speech.

Grant wasn’t sure if he was being mocked or supported. He stormed out of the room with his brass of upper management behind him. Some of his teammates laughed thinking Tug was actually mocking the chairman of the board.

Ed Kranepool went over to Tug telling him he should straighten things out with Grant to cool him off. McGraw went over to talk with Grant, and sure enough he was upset. It took a couple of weeks but things began to turn around for the best as the team got healthy.

On August 22nd McGraw finally earned his first win, after a 9th inning comeback win by the Mets, with key hits from Felix Millan & John Milner. That week Tug earned two saves & another victory at St. Louis against the Cardinals. At the end of August 1973 the Mets were still in last place, ten games under .500 but only six games behind the first place Cardinals.

Whichever way Tug McGraw meant his “You gotta believe” outburst to be, it became legendary. For Mets fans it will never be forgotten & always be associated with the team. It was also to be one of baseball’s greatest battle cries ever. “You Gotta Believe” led the Mets from last place all the way to the World Series.

McGraw turned his season around, he had a spectacular September winning five games (5-0) and earning ten saves. He posted a 0.88 ERA striking out 38 batters in 41 innings, allowing just two earned runs all month long. On September 7th in Montreal he pitched five innings of relief from the 10th through the 15th inning, and drove in two runs with a base hit to earn the 4-2 victory.

Over an incredible eight day stretch in mid September from the 12th -19th, he saved four games and earned two victories. In that stretch he pitched 11 innings allowing no runs & struck out 13 batters. This lifted the Mets to within 1 ½ games of first place.

During a crucial Series against the first place Pittsburgh Pirates, McGraw earned the win in the final game at Three Rivers Stadium. The next night at Shea Stadium he got the save pitching three innings of shutout relief. After two more Mets wins, including the famous “ball off the wall night” the Mets were above .500 and in first place passing the Pirates. “You Gotta Believe” was being shouted everywhere all over New York City!

Clinching Series: The Mets lost their final home game of the season & went to a four game Series at Wrigley Field in Chicago, to try to clinch the NL Eastern title. After three days of rain, they lost a 1-0 heartbreaker in the first game of a double header giving the Cardinals & Prates one final chance to catch them.

But Jerry Koosman won the nightcap & clinched at least a tie of the Eastern Division. In the last game of the season McGraw came in to relieve a tired Tom Seaver in the 7th inning with the Mets ahead 6-4. He pitched three shutout innings, striking out four Cubs to earn the save and clinch the Eastern Divisional title.

He finished the 1973 Mets Pennant year at 5-6 with 25 saves in 60 appearances, striking out 81 batters in 118 innings posting a 3.87 ERA. By now he had developed his trademark of slapping his glove on his thigh as he stormed off the mound. It was a signal of affection to his wife watching at home which really took off after the birth of their second son that month.

Post Season-1973 NLCS: In the post season McGraw continued his spectacular pitching. In the NLCS against the Cincinnati Big Red Machine, he did not appear until Game #4 since Tom Seaver, Jon Matlack & Jerry Koosman all had thrown complete games. Tug struggled a bit but did not allow any runs. He got out of jams pitching four innings, walking three and giving up three hits.

In the final Game #5 clincher at Shea Stadium, he came in the 9th inning to relieve Tom Seaver who was beginning to tire. Tug walked into a bit of a jam, although the Mets had a five run lead, the bases were loaded with just one out. He got Joe Morgan to pop up & Dan Driessan to ground out to John Milner at first base. McGraw covered first base as John Milner flipped the ball to him. Tug grabbed his hat and ran for his life as the Mets fans swarmed the field, tearing up anything they could. The incredible season comeback had the Mets advanced to the World Series for the second time in four years.

In the clubhouse celebration Tug McGraw sprayed champagne shouting “You Gotta Believe, You Gotta Believe”!! In his book “Screwball” Tug said the Mets felt punchy as they arrived in the San Francisco Bay area for the World Series. “We had been denounced, damned, cheered, mobbed, written up, screwed up & bombed out of our minds”.

Post Season-1973 World Series: In the 1973 World Series Tug was again Yogi Berra’s go to guy in the bullpen. He became a national star on television for the whole country to watch.


McGraw appeared in five of the seven games, earning a win, a save, posting a 2.63 ERA with 15 strikeouts in 13 innings pitched. He pitched a scoreless inning and a half in the Series Opener at Oakland’s Alameda Coliseum, but the Mets lost 2-1.


In the Game #2 ten-inning marathon in Oakland he pitched an incredible six innings of relief. He did allow four runs on five hits but also struck out eight Oakland batters. He earned the win as the Mets scored four runs off Rollie Fingers in the top of the 12th inning on RBI hits by Willie Mays, John Milner & Jerry Grote. McGraw even got a bunt base hit in the top of the 12 inning, and came around to score on one of Oakland infielder Mike Andrews two straight errors. The win evened the Series at one game each heading back to New York.

He appeared in relief of Tom Seaver in the 9th inning of Game #3 at Shea Stadium. This game  was a classic 2-2 pitching duel at that point with Seaver facing off against Catfish Hunter. Tug pitched two scoreless innings earning no decision. Oakland won it in the 11th inning when a passed ball got by Jerry Grote on a third strike & Ted Kubiak reached second base. He scored on a Campaneis single off Harry Parker.

In Game #5 back at Shea Stadium, McGraw relieved Jerry Koosman in the 7th inning with runners on second & third base. There was one out with the Mets leading 2-0. McGraw walked Deron Johnson to load the bases, but then got Angel Mangual to pop up & Bert Campaneris (who was killing the Mets in the series) to strikeout looking on a nasty screwball. McGraw pumped his glove on his thigh, shouting as he walked off the field to a wild Shea standing ovation.

Even New York Mayor John Lindsay was shouting “You Gotta Believe” as Tug walked off the field. Koosman told McGraw about it as he reached the bench & Tug peeked out of the dugout to acknowledge the Mayor.

Tug and Jerry Koosman combined on a three hit shutout against the mighty A’s lineup. Cleon Jones’ RBI double in the second inning and Don Hahn's triple scored the only runs, putting the Mets ahead three games to two, as the Series shifted back to Oakland.


McGraw made one more appearance in Game #6 pitching the 8th inning with Oakland ahead 2-1. He allowed a single to Reggie Jackson but an error allowed Jackson to go third base. He scored on a Jesus Alou sac fly. In the inning he got a strike out & double play to end things. The Mets lost a heartgreaking Series in Game Seven.

Quotes: “Ten million years from now, when the sun burns out and the earth is a frozen ice ball, no one will care if I got this guy out or not” -Tug McGraw

Tug McGraw (Part One:) The Sixties / Early Seventies

Frank Edwin McGraw was born August 30, 1944 in Martinez, California. As a baby he would firmly tug his mother’s breast as she breast fed him, earning the lifelong nickname Tug. His mother was manic depressive and split on the family while on a weekend pass from a mental institution. He & his brothers were raised by their father, playing sports attending Catholic schools.

Tug’s brother Hank, was an outstanding catching prospect that was signed by the Mets scout Roy Partee in 1961. A couple of years later, he told the team to sign his brother Tug as well, or else he wouldn’t play. Hank spent 12 years in the minors, but would never reach the big league level. He was once famously suspended for not cutting his hair.

Tug was a left-handed pitcher still developing his pitching style. The Mets signed McGraw right out of junior college in 1964 as a bonus baby for $7,000. He made his pro debut pitching a no hitter at Cocoa Beach.

In April of 1965 he was on the Mets big league squad, making his MLB debut at the age of 20. He struckout Orlando Cepeda in the first game of a double header, and was so excited he needed a tranquilizer to calm himself down.

He earned his first save at Philadelphia pitching one inning of relief on May 24th, and three months later got his first career win. It was a complete game, two run, five strikeout performance against St. Louis at Shea Stadium.

His next outing was his most important win of the year, as he beat the Dodgers and Sandy Koufax. The great Koufax already had 21 wins that season, and had beaten the Mets four times & was 14-0 lifetime against them. McGraw allowed two first 1st inning runs, then settled down to shut out the Dodgers into the 8th inning. After winning back to back starts he lost his next five decisions finishing at 2-7 with a 3.32 ERA.

He struggled as a starter the next season going 2-9 with an ERA over five and was sent to AAA Jacksonville for most of the season. There he met former New York pitcher Ralph Terry who taught him to throw a screwball, while playing golf. It took him the rest of the year & all of 1968 at AAA ball to learn how to throw it right.

Tug had to fool the strict manager, Sheriff Robinson who didn’t want his young pitchers throwing any new pitches. But when he did, the pitch changed Tug’s career, it cut inside to right handers & away from lefties, making it very tough to hit the left hander.


He was 10-9 with a league leading 1.99 ERA at Jacksonville in 1967, & won another nine games the following year (10-9).

Tug was on the Mets 1969 roster, and got the win pitching six innings of relief on the second game of the season, beating the expansion Expos at Shea. He was 3-0 as a starter in mid May, when Gil Hodges called him into his office.

He told Tug, he thought he could be a huge asset to the club as late inning stopper out of the bullpen. He felt his screw ball would fool hitters late in the game, and that Tug could be very successful making himself a lot of money in that role, but left the decision up to him. McGraw agrees and the rest is history, he went on to become one of the first superstar relief pitchers in the game.

He saved five games in June and would go on to win six more games along the way, taking only three losses. During the pennant stretch drive, McGraw saved seven games and won three, losing only once while posting a 0.45 ERA. That September he earned the win against the Phillies the night Steve Carlton stuck out 19 batters, but two Ron Swoboda HRs won it for New York.


Overall, In 1969 McGraw struck out 92 batters in 100 innings pitched, going 9-3 posting 12 saves (8th in the league) and a 2.42 ERA over 42 games. Ron Taylor was still the Mets main closer that season, and Nolan Ryan was used in long relief in the post season. His only post season appearance was in Game #1 of the NLCS where he earned the save pitching three innings, allowing no runs, one hit & a walk.


Tug Graw quickly earned a reutation as a flaky guy, a free spirit who enjoyed living life to the fullest. He was a whole lot of fun to be around, like to party & spend time with the ladies. When he signed his next contact he said” I’ll probably spend 90% of this on good times, women & Irish whiskey. The other 10% I’ll probably justy waste.”

When he was asked if he preferred natural grass or Astroturf he said “I don’t know, I never smoked Astroturf”. One story says when the Mets team toured Vietnam in 1970, Ron Taylor had to slap a joint out of Tugs mouth, as he attempted to light up.

Tug also like to cut hair. He would volunteer to cut the homeless’ hair on the Bowery; and in the military when on reserve duty. He once cut Ralph Kiners hair, on Kiners Korner. Kiner joked, it took him four months to grow it back. Tug had also served his time in the military reserves as a Marine, in the mid sixties.

In the winter of 1970 he injured his ankle on a toboggan run with team mate Ron Swoboda. He told the club he hurt it slipping on ice while throwing out the garbage at home. He began the season, earning a save on Opening Day against the Pittsburgh Pirates as the Mets raised the World Championship banner. It was the first Opening Day game the franchise had ever won.

He would save four more games through May but also take two losses & blow another save. He was still sharing the closing chances with Ron Taylor & by the All Star break McGraw had seven saves posting a 3.64 ERA with a 1-3 record. He didn’t have to many more save opportunities earning just one more save until the end of August. In September he pitched a five inning relief outing at Shea against the Montreal Expos,, although he allowed three runs he still got the win as the Mets scored ten runs, winning10-5.


In his next appearance he pitched six scoreless against the Cardinals but earned no decision. McGraw earned another win that month in Philadelphia pitching 2.2 scoreless innings. He also was credited with a pair of saves that month. He finished the year at 4-6 with ten saves (second on the staff to Taylor) 81 strike outs, 49 walks 90 innings & a 3.28 ERA in 57 appearances.

By 1971 he was now sharing the closer duties with Danny Frisella, together the two made for one of baseball’s best relief combos. In 53 games Frisella was 8-5 with a team leading 12 saves. McGraw would then have his best season up that point as well. He started the year with an extra inning win against the Cincinnati Reds on April 11th, combining on a 12 inning shutout with Tom Seaver.

Things picked up as the summer rolled in, In June he made ten appearances going 2-1 with three saves. On June 19th he pitched five shutout innings against the Phillies at Shea Stadium but earned no decision. By the All Star break he was 6-3 with six saves and a 1.90 ERA.

In the second half of the season he never let his ERA climb above the two mark & was very effective going 5-1 with three saves the rest of the way. His screwball made him especially tough on right handed hitters, and overall the league just hit .189 against him. McGraw would end up 1971 with eight saves, but more importantly he won 11 games (3rd most wins on the staff) going 11-4. He posted a .733 winning percentage & a 1.71 ERA. He struck out a career high 109 batters in 111 innings while walking just 41 in 51 appearances.

McGraw started out 1972 with another Opening Day save, as he combined with Tom Seaver on a shutout against the World Champion Pittsburgh Pirates. On this day the Mets honored Gil Hodges by retiring his uniform #14, after Hodges had suddenly passed away during Spring Training due to a heart attack. Tug started out the year 2-0 with seven saves before taking his first loss in mid May. Yogi Berra was now the manager and he began to use Tug as the main reliever on a regular basis, although Frisella still posted nine saves while finishing 31 games .


By the All Star break Tug already had 13 saves and an ERA of just 2.00, as he was named to his first All Star team. It was the only time in his career he would pitch in the midsummer classic. He pitched two innings and struck out the side in the 9th inning, which included Reggie Jackson, Bobby Grich & Norm Cash. He earned the victory for the National League when Cincinnati’s Joe Morgan drove home the winning run in the bottom of the 10th inning.

For the second half of the season, McGraw was even better; from August 12th through September 22nd he blew just one save opportunity, going 3-0 recording eight saves. He finished the year with a club record at that time; 27 saves (2nd in the league) a Mets mark that that stood until 1984. He posted an 8-6 record with an identical 1.70 ERA from the previous year.

That year he allowed just three HRs in 106 innings pitched and was being recognized as a star player, as relievers were finally earning some recognition. Even Cincinnati Reds manager Sparky Anderson called him “the Seaver of saves”.

Tug McGraw (Part Three): Beyond His Mets Career

In 1974 the Mets struggled, and McGraw was no exception. Tug had arm problems and couldn’t recover. A lump was found in his shoulder and it was even feared he may have had cancer. He went 6-11 with only three saves and a 4.16 ERA, in 88 innings he gave up 96 hits and 41 earned runs.

The Mets organization believed McGraw was done and his arm was permanently damaged. On December 3, 1974, It was the first of many sad days to come in Mets history when the fan favorite and one of the most popular Mets ever was traded to the Philadelphia Phillies along with Don Hahn and Dave Schneck in exchange for John Stearns, Del Unser and Mac Scarce.

At the time of the trade, McGraw was the all-time Mets leader in saves & games pitched. He still ranks high on many of the Mets all time records: McGraw finished his Mets career at 47-55 (17th most wins) with 85 saves (5th all time) & a 3.17 ERA. He made 361 Mets appearances (6th all time) with 618 strike outs (11th all time) 350 walks (12th all time) in 792 innings pitched (17th all time) .

Beyond the Mets: After the trade, he was diagnosed with a simple cyst and after successful surgery to remove it, McGraw recovered completely. With the Phillies, he continued his role as a reliable relief pitcher. He posted ERA’s under three for the next three seasons, and had double figures in saves two straight seasons. He saved 14 games in 1975, eleven in 1976 and nine games in both 1977 & 1978.

Over those years he pitched in three more NLCS going 0-1 with a save, as the Phillies lost each Series. McGraw would finish in the leagues top ten in saves, four more times after his Mets career. By 1979 he was 4-3 with 16 saves but posted an ERA over five.

In 1980, he finished fifth in the NL Cy Young Award voting, compiling 20 saves and a 1.46 ERA while helping the Phillies win their first ever World Championship. Without McGraw, the Phillies would have never done it. After coming off the disabled list on July 17 McGraw allowed just three earned runs the rest of the season posting an unbelievable 0.52 ERA. He recorded 11 of his 20 saves after July 31 and was 5-0 with five saves during the stretch run in September and October.

Post Season: In the NLCS against the Houston Astros, he appeared in all five games, saving two of them. In the World Series against the Kansas City Royals, he struck out ten batters in 7 2/3 innings, going 1-1 with two saves while posting a 1.17 ERA. His shining moment came in the fifth game, when he struck out his old Mets team mate, Amos Otis with the bases loaded in the bottom of the 9th to preserve the 4-3 victory.

In the final Game #6 McGraw squeezed out of bases-loaded jams in the final two innings. He saved game by striking out Willie Wilson, clinching the World Series title. There a forever stilling image of him leaping into the air with his arms raised will live forever in Philadelphia.

It was his third lifetime World Series save, and his five NLCS saves were a record at the time. In 26 post season games he was 3-3 with seven saves and a 2.24 ERA.


In 1981 he saved 10 games, it was his last season as a closer. By 1982 Ron Reed had taken over the role, and McGraw pitched through the 1984 season. In his 19 year career Tug McGraw posted a 96-92 record with 180 saves (56th all time). He struck out 1109 batters in 1514 innings posting a 3.14 ERA in 824 appearances (42nd all time). McGraw finished 541 games (29th all time) & was in the leagues top ten in that category eight times. His 6.5 strikeouts per nine innings pitched ratio is 155th all time.

Retirement: McGraw announced his retirement on Valentine's Day 1985, to celebrate; as he said "his love affair with baseball". He wrote a number of children's books, and two autobiographies, Screwball in 1974 & You Gotta Believe in 2001.

In the mid 1970s McGraw was involved with the creation of the nationally syndicated comic strip "Scroogie." In the 1980s and 1990s, he was a reporter for Action News in Philadelphia, usually doing sports or wacky stories. Through the years, Tug also appeared as a panelist on TV shows, hosted sports videos, & narrated "Peter and the Wolf".

Honors: He was inducted into the New York Mets Hall of Fame in 1993 and to the Philadelphia Phillies Wall of Fame in 1999. In 2003 he was invited to throw out the last pitch at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia. He was on hand for the Mets 20th anniversary reunion of the 1973 team as well as celebrations for the 1969 team.

He threw out the first pitch during the 2000 Mets NLDS Game #3 vs San Francisco.

Family: During his 1965 minor league season, McGraw fathered an illegitimate child named Tim. He was raised by an abusive truck-driving father, and at age 11 he discovered his birth certificate. He realized his true father was Tug McGraw. On two occasions McGraw refused to have any involvement with the boy before finally agreeing to finance his education, in return for cutting off all contact.

But during another meeting, he recognized himself in the youth, and they were reconciled. Tim McGraw became a major country music star, who married the beautiful Faith Hill. The father and son grew very close and Tug spent his final days at the Nashville home of his son Tim McGraw & Faith Hill.

Tug’s younger brother, Dennis, was sentenced to life in prison for murdering a neighbor in Vallejo, California. Hank McGraw, Tug's older brother, told Sports Illustrated that Dennis had been estranged from his siblings for more than 20 years, ever since an incident with a police officer sent him to a Psychiatric hospital. Their mother had once been treated at the same hospital.

Hank McGraw was a once promising prospect in the Mets organization but never made itto the big leagues. see full story: below

Passing: On March 12, 2003, McGraw was working as a spring training instructor for the Phillies when he was hospitalized with a brain tumor. Surgery performed to remove it revealed that he had cancer. Given three weeks to live by doctors, he managed to survive nine months. McGraw died of brain cancer at the home of his son, Tim McGraw, outside of Nashville.

Quotes: "Tug McGraw was one of the great characters of the game of baseball; He just had a joy for life and living. But what people sometimes Over look because he was always happy-go-lucky was what kind of competitor he was on the mound. No one competed with more intensity than he did. “-Hall of Famer Tom Seaver.

"He was full of life, love and spirit. His death is a reality check for us, just like when Tommie (Agee) died a couple of years ago. His passing drives home to me that you have to value every second that you are on this earth." former Mets teammate Buddy Harrelson.

The Tug McGraw Foundation: Was established by Tug McGraw in 2003 to raise funds to enhance the quality of life of children and adults with brain tumors and their families by stimulating and facilitating research that addresses the physical, social, emotional, cognitive, and spiritual impact of the disease.

Funding is directed to the Tug McGraw Center for Neuro-Oncology Quality of Life Research at Duke University Medical Center and to other research and medical institutions through a competitive grant program.