Jim McAndrew: 1969 World Champion & 1973 NL Champion Mets Pitcher (1968-1973)
After suffering a knee injury while playing basketball, he switched full time to baseball. McAndrew attended the University of Iowa where he was spotted by New York Mets scouts, who were there to watch first round draft pick Steve Arlin pitch against McAndrew.
The Mets ended up drafting McAndrew in the 11th round of the inaugural MLB draft of 1965, one round after Nolan Ryan was selected. He earned a degree in psychology at college, married his high school sweetheart Lynn & had a son right away.
At first, he thought of quitting baseball when he didn’t reach the majors instantly, but his wife Lynn told him to try to stick it out.
McAndrew then credits former Mets GM Bob Scheffing for helping coach him when Scheffing was still director of player development.
In the minors McAndrew was pitching relief out of the bullpen until Whitey Herzog, the new Director of Player Development ordered his manager to make him a starter. That's the point where McAndrew's career took off as he excelled as a starter.
In 1967 McAndrew was 10-8 with a 1.47 ERA at AA Williamsport striking out 120 batters in 153 innings.
In 1967 McAndrew was 10-8 with a 1.47 ERA at AA Williamsport striking out 120 batters in 153 innings.
In 1968 at AAA Jacksonville, he was 8-3 with a 2.54 ERA striking out 117 batters in 117 innings.
MLB -Mets Career: That July the Mets called him up for an emergency start to fill in a spot starting a game in a double header against the St. Louis Cardinals.
On July 21st, McAndrew got his first career start going up against that years Cy Young winner, St. Louis Cardinals Hall of Famer; Bob Gibson. In his MLB debut he only allowed one run over six innings but the Mets were shut out by Bob Gibson in a 2-0 loss.
McAndrew was supposed to go back to AAA Jacksonville, but when Nolan Ryan was called away for military duty, he remained on the staff.
He suffered bad luck right off the bat, losing his next four starts despite giving up two runs or less in three of those four games.
On August 4th at Dodger Stadium, in McAndrew's second start, he gave up two runs to the Dodgers but Mike Kekich threw a one hit 2-0 shutout over the Mets.
Next, McAndrew gave up just one run over seven innings at San Francisco but the Giants Bob Bolin tossed a four-hit shutout over the Mets at Candlestick Park.
On August 17th, in McAndrew's Shea Stadium debut, the Houston Astros Don Wilson & John Buzhardt combined for another shut out against New York, putting McAndrew at 0-4 even though he didn’t allow more than two runs in any of his starts. His ERA was just 1.82.When the Giants & Juan Marichal beat the Mets 13-3 at Shea Stadium McAndrew fell to 0-5.
On August 26th, he finally got his first win in St. Louis, beating Hall of Famer Steve Carlton but had to throw a five hit shutout to get a 1-0 win.
After two straight losses, he won his last three decisions of the season.
On September 11th at Wrigley Field in Chicago, McAndrew pitched 8.2 innings of shut ball striking out a season high seven. He was relieved after a base hit to Don Kessinger & Glen Beckert reaching on an error. Mets relievers Bill Short & Cal Koonce closed out the 1-0 win over Fergie Jenkins. Jerry Grote's RBI double was the only run of the game.
Two Hit Victory: On September 17th, at Shea Stadium McAndrew pitched a two hit, two run complete game win against Ken Holtzman & the Chicago Cubs. Willie Smith provided a two run double in the 4th inning & the next Cub hit didn't come until Al Spangler's 8th inning single. McAndrew matched his season high seven K's & walked four.He closed out the year with a fantastic 2.28 ERA although he had just a 4-7 record due to lack of run support. McAndrew pitched in 12 games striking out 46 batters walking 17 in 79 innings of work.
1969 Mets Championship Season: In Spring Training 1969 he pitched well enough to make a very talented pitching staff & impressed Gil Hodges.
But Jim's bad luck troubles continued into this season as well, this year mostly due to arm & finger problems. He would be versatile pitching in both a starting & relief role.
In the second game of the season, he pitched just one inning giving up three runs, three hits & three walks to the Expos. He came back two days later to close out a loss to St. Louis. On April 14th, he made a start at St. Louis giving up HRs to Dick Allen & Deron Johnson taking a loss. After two no decisions he was sidelined with an injury until late May.
After a loss to San Diego, he began the year at 0-2, not getting his first win until late June. On June 24th in the nightcap of a twin bill sweep of the Phillies at Shea, Jim pitched eight scoreless innings in a combined two hit shutout with Ron Taylor in a 5-0 win. In the top of the 6th inning, Jim even drove in two runs with a two run single off Ray Washburn.
Complete Game Win: On June 30th he threw a complete game victory, allowing two runs on just three hits in a 10-2 win in St. Louis. He now had only allowed just two earned runs over his last 17 innings.
In July he made two starts taking a loss to the Expos & made two relief appearances as well.
On August 2nd, Jim pitched seven shutout innings, in a 1-0 win over Ron Reed & the Braves at Shea. Cleon Jones provided the only run with an RBI single. In his next starts he took a loss to the Reds, then to the Astros when Tom Griffin & Fred Gladding combined for a shut out over the Mets.
23 Scoreless Innings Streak: At the end of August, McAndrew threw three straight complete games, while matching a club record at the time tossing 23 consecutive scoreless innings.
Two Hit Shut Out: On August 20th at Shea Stadium, he threw a two-hit shutout over the Giants, striking out six &walking three in a 6-0 victory over Gaylord Perry.
Back to Back Shut Outs: On August 26th in the second game of a double header sweep at San Diego, he blanked the friars on a five hit 3-0 shut out where he walked no one while fanning six.
nine innings but got no decision in the extra inning loss.
On September 10th, the Mets were tied for first place with the Chicago Cubs, when McAndrew got the start in the second game of a doubleheader with the Montreal Expos. He pitched 11 innings allowing just two runs on four hits, striking out seven Expos, when Ken Boswell’s RBI single won it in the 11th inning.
Jim took a loss to the Pirates & a no decision to the Cardinals finishing out his regular season.
He made 21 starts in 27 appearances. At the bat he batted .135 going 5-37 with a double & three RBIs.
1969 Post Season: Due to the strong Mets staff, he did not pitch in the post season as the Mets won the World Series.
Jim McAndrew Day: On November 1st 1969 his home town of Lost Nation Iowa held Jim McAndrew Day in the World Champion's honor.
Shut Out: On June 8th at the Houston Astrodome, he threw a five-hit shutout walking just one batter while striking out five. It was his fourth career shut out & first of the season.
Complete Game: On June 16th at Shea, McAndrew gave up just one run to the Big Red Machine earning his second straight win to get to 3-4. He had given up just one earned run in is last 18 innings.
On June 23rd, he came in relief in the 10th inning of a tied game at Wrigley Field & earned the first save of his career when Duffy Dyer provided a 10th inning two run HR.
From June 26th to July 16th he then lost four of five starts giving up four runs or more each time, including a season high six runs on July 11th to Montreal.
the Padres Clay Kirby who had a no hitter going through eight innings. The Padre Manager, Preston Gomez lifted Kirby for a pinch hitter in the bottom of the 8th inning down 1-0. McAndrew struck out the pinch hitter, Cito Gaston. In the top of the 9th the Mets scored two runs off reliever Jack Baldschun earning McAndrew the win.
On July 25th he earned his second save of the year. pitching two scoreless innings against the Dodgers at Shea. On July 28th, he pitched his fourth complete game win, this time beating the Giants to get to 6-8 on the season.
From August 16th thru September 12th, McAndrew pitched four complete games allowing just six runs over 51 innings for a 1.06 ERA, to go 4-0. In that time the Mets tied for first place on three different occasions.
On September 14th the Mets were tied with the Pittsburgh Pirates in first place but they lost eight o eleven games including six of seven to the Pirates to fall out of the pennant race. On September 27th he was the losing pitcher in Pittsburgh after a series sweep. Jim finished out the season losing three straight decisions, although he gave up two runs in two of those games.
He finished the year 10-14 leading the club in losses (14) & shut outs (3) pitching in 32 games. He posted a 3.56 ERA with 111 strike outs in 184 innings, walking just 38 batters to give him one of the league’s best strikeouts to walk ratios.
On April 25th, he had his worst game of the year giving up seven runs (six earned) in a loss to the Cubs at Wrigley Field.
Pre Game Warm Up Injury: In early May during re game work outs, he was knocked out cold while shagging fly balls in the outfield when he collided with pitcher Gary Gentry. McAndrew awoke in a hospital with stitches in his head, unaware of what had happened before regaining his conciseness. He was out of action nearly three weeks returning at the start of June.
The injury affected his pitching as McAndrew would not earn another win until September 4th. On June 2nd he made a start in San Francisco lasting just 1.1 innings. He then made eleven relief appearances finishing off three games with a blown save loss as well.
He was back in the rotation on August 15th & gave up four runs taking losses in two straight starts against the Giants.
On September 4th he won his first game of the season & his first victory in almost a full year. He struck out a season high eight batters shutting out the Phillies for 6.2 innings at Veterans Stadium. On September 14th, he beat the Expos at Shea for his second win of the long season.
He ended the year 2-5 with a 4.38 ERA, striking out 42 batters & walking 32, allowing while 10 HRs in 90 innings pitched. He made ten starts in 24 appearances. The Mets finished third 83-79 that season.
1972: After the tragic passing of Gil Hodges just before the start of the 1972 season, new manager Yogi Berra put McAndrew back in the bullpen, working as a reliever.
On April 23rd in the sixth game of the season, McAndrew earned a relief win when Jim Beauchamp won the game in the 12th inning with a walk off single against the Cubs.
After two more relief appearances, McAndrew was back in the rotation by mid-May. On May 11th, in the second game of a twin bill split with the Dodgers at Shea, he took the loss giving up a season high six runs in six innings.
On May 14th he earned a save in relief, then went back to a starting role where he won four straight games. From May 18th to June 6th he went 4-0 posting a 1.16 ERA to get to 5-1 on the season while lowering his ERA to 2.14.
At the All-Star break McAndrew was 6-3 with a 2.99 ERA.
He did not pitch for 21 days due to the fact starters Tom Seaver, Jerry Koosman Gary Gentry & Rookie of the year Jon Matlack were all pitching so well.
Back to Back Complete Games: When he got the ball again, he won three straight games to start off August. On August 4th he allowed one run on three hits to the Cubs at Shea, then pitched an 8-3 complete game win at St. Louis.
Tenth Victory: After taking two straight losses, he pitched 8.2 innings in Cincinnati shutting out the Reds. With two on & two out in the 9th, Tug McGraw came on to close out the combined shut out. It was his tenth win of the season matching his career high set in 1970.
On September 12th he won a 4-3 game at Philadelphia giving him a career high eleven wins for the season. It ended being his last win for the year, as he lost his last three decisions. The Mets finished in third place at 83-73.
McAndrew finished with his best overall season going 11-8, with a 2.80 ERA. He struck out 81 batters & walked 38 while giving up 12 HRs pitching in 160 innings in 28 games (23 starts).
He got his first start six games into the season, taking a loss to the Phillies giving up four runs in 5.1 innings. In his next start he didn't get out of the 1st inning, serving up five runs to the Cubs.
On April 22nd, the second game of a double header split with Montreal McAndrew earned his first win. On April 26th, he won his second straight start allowing one run in seven innings to the Astros in Houston finishing April at 2-2.
On May 13th in Pittsburgh, although he gave up ten hits he earned the win which turned out to be his last winning decision on the year.
On May 24th in Los Angeles, Jim came into an extra inning game in the 19th inning. The Mets came up with four runs in the top of the 19th & McAndrew closed out the game, earning the save.
By July 3rd McAndrew took a loss at Montreal & had fallen to 3-7 with a 5.83 ERA. George Stone who had come over in the Gary Genrty trade was pitching well & eventually stayed in a starting role. McAndrew spent the rest of the year in the bullpen.
On August 5th, he did get one last start, coming in the second game of a double header with the Cardinals. In five innings he gave up four runs on twelve hits, taking the loss.
By that point Tug McGraw had secured the Met bullpen closing role & the starters were all healthy pitching their best. McAndrew only saw action in five more games through the end of the year.
In the Mets 1973 NL Pennant year he went 3-8 with a 5.89 ERA. He struck out 38 batters & walked 31 in 80 innings of work 23 games (12 starts). He threw four complete games and posted one save.
1973- Post Season: Although he was on the postseason roster, he didn’t see any action. Even though he was on two Mets World Series teams, McAndrew never pitched in a single post season game.
By that point Tug McGraw had secured the Met bullpen closing role & the starters were all healthy pitching their best. McAndrew only saw action in five more games through the end of the year.
1973- Post Season: Although he was on the postseason roster, he didn’t see any action. Even though he was on two Mets World Series teams, McAndrew never pitched in a single post season game.
In December of 1973, his run in New York was over, McAndrew was traded to the San Diego Padres in exchange for Steve Simpson.
McAndrew will always be remembered as a Met pitching in the shadows of some great pitchers during some good old days.
McAndrew will always be remembered as a Met pitching in the shadows of some great pitchers during some good old days.
Mets Career Stats: In six seasons as a Met, he was 36-49 with four saves & a 3.54 ERA. He struck out 424 batters with 213 walks in 729.2 innings of work. He made 146 appearances with 105 starts. He batted .098 going 19-194 with six doubles & 9 RBIs.Post Mets Career: In Spring Training 1974 Padres pitching coach Bill Posedel wanted his pitchers to take part in running drills. Although McAndrew had already had knee problems & with no exceptions had to partake in the drills. He re-injured his knee opted out of surgery & then injured his ribs.
In 1974, McAndrew pitched in just 15 games going 1-4 in San Diego getting released that June ending his seven-year career at just 30 years old.
twenty complete games. He posted a 3.65 ERA while striking out 424 batters & walking 213 batters in 771 innings, in 161 games with 110 starts.
Family: Jim & his wife Lyn had four children together. They later retired in Phoenix Arizona.
Their son Jamie McAndrew pitched two years for the Milwaukee Brewers going 3-4 lifetime with a 5.98 ERA in 15 games.
Their daughter Jamie McAndrew formed a strong friendship with teammate Duffy Dyer's daughter Cami.
Retirement: After baseball McAndrew worked as a sales manager in the coal industry for over 25 years. He worked out of Chicago, St. Louis & the Denver areas. Mets Honors: In 1993 the always smiling McAndrew was on hand for the 20th anniversary of the 1973 Mets Pennant team at Shea Stadium. In 2008 Jim was on hand for at the closing ceremonies of Shea Stadium.
In 2009 McAndrew attended the 40th anniversary of the 1969 Mets Championship team at Citi Field. In 2019 he returned for the 50th Anniversary of the Amazing Mets as well.
In 2009 McAndrew attended the 40th anniversary of the 1969 Mets Championship team at Citi Field. In 2019 he returned for the 50th Anniversary of the Amazing Mets as well.
Passing: On March 14th, 2024, McAndrew passed away in Scottsdale, Arizona after a brief illness, he was 80 years old.