50th Anniversary of the 1969 Mets: Donn Clendenon's Hot July Start

-
50th Anniversary of the 1969 World Champion "Amazing Mets"
The Mets acquired Donn Clendenon on the 1969 June trade deadline. The team was lacking the run producing, slugger Clendenon was. He was slowly put into the line up, as a pinch runner, pinch hitter & then in the platoon with Ed Kranepool at first base. He would score runs in his first two games but overall have just four hits in his first 22 Met at bats. 


On June 29th 1969 he drove in three runs & totaled four RBIs in his first two weeks. Then at the start of July, he went on a six game tear from July 1st to July 6th. 

Clendenon would collect ten hits, driving in ten runs, with three runs scored, a HR & three extra base hits. The Mets won four of six in that stretch, with two more wins dating back to his three RBI game on June 29th.

July 1st 1969:  The Mets dropped a twin bill in St. Louis to the Cardinals. It was in that second game Clendenon began his hitting tear for the week. He collected two hits with a pair of RBIs. In the July 2nd 6-4 win highlighted by Wayne Garrett's four RBI game, Clendenon drove in a run with two more hits.

Thursday July 3rd 1969- The Mets came off that double header loss taking the previous nights game, on this day they evened the series & left St. Louis going 2-2. The Mets sent Gary Gentry to the hill to face veteran Mud Cat Grant.

Gentry would go the distance, nine innings allowing one run on just five hits, he struck out five & walked two to earn his 8th win (8-6). Mud Grant had a tougher time with the Mets line up taking the loss.

Starting Lineups


Tommie Agee led off the game for New York with a HR. In the 4th, Cleon Jones who was batting .355 atop the NL, singled. Art Shamsky followed with a double & then Grant walked Wayne Garrett to load the bases. The man with the hot bat, the newest Met, Donn Clendenon singled to left field brining on two runs, making it 3-0.

Grant walked three more & threw a wild pitch in the inning, getting relieved after it was 5-0 Mets.

In the 5th Jones & Clendenon singled, Jerry Grote & Al Weis followed with base hits driving in both runners making it 7-0. Ken Boswell added an RBI double in the 8th, topping off the Mets 8-1 win.

Friday July 4th 1969: The Mets (43-34) now ten games over .500 moved on to Pittsburgh for an Independence Day game with the Pirates (38-41) at Forbes Field, in its final season. The leagues top Pitcher, Tom Seaver went on the mound for the Mets against Bob Veale.

Starting Lineups


In the Mets 2nd, Rod Gaspar reached on an error & advanced to second, he came all the way home on Jerry Grote's base hit. In the 3rd, Bobby Pfeil doubled to left field, Cleon Jones then drove him in with another base hit.

In the 4th, the Pirates got two runs off Seaver, including Willie Stargell's 11th HR of the season. Stargell would hit 29 HRs & drive in 92 runs in 1969.

In the 5th, Pfeil walked & Cleon Jones doubled putting two men on for the hot hitting Clendenon. Clendenon doubled to right field, driving in both runners making it 5-2. Al Weis brought in Clendenon with a double of his own.

In the 8th, Tommie Agee hit his second HR on as many days, his 12th of the year. Jerry Grote added an RBI single bringing in Rod Gaspar with the Mets eighth run. In the 9th the Mets sent eight men to the plate, collecting three more runs & six more hits in the inning. All this with two outs.

It began when Jerry Grote walked, Al Weis singled, pitcher Cal Koonce who had relieved Seaver in the 8th, then drove in a run with a base hit. Tommie Agee & Bobby Pfiel followed with RBI base hits of their own to make it 11-4 Mets.

The win gave Tom Seaver his league leading 13th of the year (13-3), he had now won seven straight & was already the Mets all time leading pitcher in wins with 45, just ahead of Al Jackson. In this game he went 7.2 innings, allowing four runs on seven hits, three walks & seven Ks, his season ERA was at 2.62.

Sunday July 6th 1969: Gil Hodges Mets  were now a solid ten games over .500 as they closed out the series at Forbes Field. Neither of todays starters, Jim McAndrew for the Mets & Luke Walker for Pittsburgh would fare too well.

In the top of the 1st,Bobby Pfeil would single for the Mets. The hot hitting Donn Clendenon then doubled to right field scoring Pfeil with the Mets first run.

In the bottom of the frame, McAndrew walked two Pirates & gave up an RBI hit to Roberto Clememte & then a three run HR to catcher Jerry May. Clemente would have a two RBI base hit the next inning, making it 6-1 Pirates. 

The Mets collected two runs in the 4th with RBI singles from Jerry Grote & Ron Swoboda. In the 5th inning, the Glider, Ed Charles hit a HR to narrow the Pirate lead to 6-4. 

The Mets bullpen of Danny Frisella, Ron Taylor & Cal Koonce kept the Pirates scoreless, the rest of the way. The Mets struck back in the top of the 6th. Singles by Al Weis & Ron Swoboda put two men for Cleon Jones. Jones, who was batting .354 singled bringing in Weis with his team leading 51st RBI of the season. 

Next up, the hot Donn Clendenon hit a three run HR, to put New York in front 8-6. Clendenon's HR was just his 5th on the year, his forst since joining the Mets. He now had 29 RBIs on the season with 11 in the past week & 15 runs driven in since joining the Mets.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Former Mets Broadcaster: Fran Healy ( 1984-2005)

-
Image
Francis Xavier Healy was born on September 6, 1946 in Holyoke, Massachusetts. The big six foot five catcher, attended American International University at Springfield. In 1964 he was signed by the Cleveland Indians, spending five years in their minors leagues. In 1968 he was drafted as the 56th pick in the expansion draft, chosen by the Kansas City Royals. He would make his MLB debut playing six games there in 1969 & spending the next year in the minors. In October of 1970, he was traded to the San Francisco Giants for Bob Garibaldi. Healy played in 47 games for the 1971 Western Division Champion Giants, as the backup catcher to Dick Dietz. He hit .280 with two HRs & 11 RBIs. He did not play in the NLCS & after hitting just .152 the next year in 45 games, he was traded back to Kansas City. He became the Royals main catcher in 1973 playing solid behind the plate, throwing out 44% of would be base stealers. That year he had the distinction of catching Steve Busb
Read more

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

-
Image
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 first game of a double header, Jerry Koosman (8-13) took a 3-1 loss to Jim Rooker (10-6) & the Pirates. Both pitchers went the distance, with Koosman 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 Pittsburgh's  Bruce Kison.  In the 2nd inning Myrick himself added an RBI base hit making it 1-0 Mets. 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 Do
Read more

Remembering Bobby Ojeda's Tragic Boating Accident (1993)

-
Image
Steve Olin, Tim Crews & Bob Ojeda March 22 nd 1993: was an off day from Spring Training, for three Cleveland Indians pitchers; Former Mets 1986 World Champion pitcher; Bobby Ojeda, Tim Crews & Steve Olin. The three friends, took out an 18-foot open-air bass boat & went out fishing & gator hunting in the darkness of the evening on Lake Nellie in Clermont, Florida. Tragedy struck, when the boat rammed into a private dock that jutted out some 250 feet into the still waters. Two other Cleveland Indians personnel had arrived to meet the fishing party just as the horror took place. They heard Bob Ojeda saying they needed help. The two men jumped into the water and called out for someone to call 911. 27 year old pitcher; Steve Olin was killed instantly. 31 year old pitcher; Tim Crews was alive but was struggling to breathe suffering from massive head wounds. Bobby Ojeda was in & out of shock, he was suffering from head lacerations but was coherent. The
Read more

The 1970's Oakland A's Ball Girls- (MLB's First)

-
Image
In the days of the early seventies the Oakland A's won three straight Championships & changed the face of baseball forever.  The team's controversial owner was known to be cheap in paying his star players & known to meddle in the teams on field affairs. He drove managers crazy & even had Dick Williams resign after winning his second straight World Series. But Finley also revolutionized baseball in many other ways. He was instrumental in getting the designated hitter in the American League & have the World Series played at night, so fans could attend after work. He gave his players fancy names like Catfish, Blue Moon & True Blue.  When his star Reggie Jackson refused to shave his beard, he encouraged the whole team to grow facial hair by paying them $200 each.  The A's team even grew their hair long, a sign of the times. But before that baseball players had not had facial or long hair since the 1800's.  He introduced bright colored yello
Read more

Remembering Vixen Founder / Guitarist; Jan Kuehnemund (1961-2013)

-
Image
centerfieldmaz was shocked to learn of the sudden passing of Jan Kuehnemund, the founding member of the all female metal band Vixen. Jan was a fantastic guitarist, song writer & women pioneer in Heavy Metal. I am a huge fan of hard rock all girl bands & Vixen were one my long time favorites. Janice Lynn Kuehnemund was born November 18th, 1961 in St. Paul Minnesota. The female guitarist formed one of the first all female Metal bands in Minnesota with singer Janet Gardner while in high school in 1980. By 1985 they moved the band to Los Angles California, to be part of the Heavy Metal scene. In 1987 the classic Vixen line up of Jan Kuehnemund (lead guitar) Janet Gardner (vocals/ guitar) Share Pederson (bass) & Roxy Petrucci (drums) formed & released their debut album the following year. Vixen 1988 In a world of all male Heavy Metal bands during its heyday, Vixen were groundbreaking in being an all female metal band. The Runaways, with Joan Jett & Lita Ford
Read more