Remembering Mets History (1982) Joel Youngblood Plays For Two MLB Teams On The Same Day
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Joel Youngblood had been with the Mets since 1977, the versatile outfielder had a strong arm & hit .274 with a .742 OPS in his Mets career. Joel also played infield positions second base, third base & two games at short stop for the Mets. In 1981 he represented the Mets on the NL All Star team in the 5-4 win at Cleveland. Overall, he was a good player on a bad team, who never found a permanent position for two long.
In 1980 as the new Mets ownership took over, things began to change. When a young Mookie Wilson arrived with the Mets, there was even less room for Youngblood.
Personally, Youngblood felt he was good enough to start on the poor club, if he didn't get a chance to play full time, he asked to be traded. He also knew his days in New York were numbered.
New York Mets Manager, George Bamberger, was well aware that a trade was being negotiated for his All-Star outfielder.Mets Game: As the Mets were in Chicago playing the Cubs. Met Manager, George Bamberger, penciled in Youngblood as the Mets cleanup hitter, in the line up for that game.
In the top of the 1st inning, Youngblood struck out against Hall of Fame pitcher, Ferguson Jenkins. In the top of the 3rd inning, with the bases loaded & the Mets leading 1-0, Youngblood singled off Jenkins scoring Wally Backman & pitcher Craig Swan.
In the middle of the next inning, Mookie Wilson was put in the game, replacing Youngblood in the outfield. After getting the RBI hit, Joel thought he was having a good day at the plate & wondered why he was being removed from the game.
In the dugout he went over to ask his manager about the move. Manager George Bamberger informed him that he had just been traded to the Montreal Expos. Bamberger also stated that, the Montreal team was short players & wanted Youngblood to join the ball club as soon as he could. They were asking to see if he could make it to that night's Expo game scheduled in Philadelphia.
In the top of the 1st inning, Youngblood struck out against Hall of Fame pitcher, Ferguson Jenkins. In the top of the 3rd inning, with the bases loaded & the Mets leading 1-0, Youngblood singled off Jenkins scoring Wally Backman & pitcher Craig Swan.
In the middle of the next inning, Mookie Wilson was put in the game, replacing Youngblood in the outfield. After getting the RBI hit, Joel thought he was having a good day at the plate & wondered why he was being removed from the game. In the dugout he went over to ask his manager about the move. Manager George Bamberger informed him that he had just been traded to the Montreal Expos. Bamberger also stated that, the Montreal team was short players & wanted Youngblood to join the ball club as soon as he could. They were asking to see if he could make it to that night's Expo game scheduled in Philadelphia.
Youngblood exited the Mets dugout, saying goodbye to his teammates, telling them what had happened. In the locker room he showered, packed his bags and got a cab to the airport.
It was then he realized he forgot his glove at Wrigley Field. He told the cab driver; he'd give him a big tip, but he had to go back to the ballpark to get the glove, real fast then get to the airport.Quotes- Joel Youngblood: "And I knew that would take away from the time I had, and I was jeopardizing my opportunity to make that flight. But I’d played with that glove for years. So, I went back, got my glove, and the cab got me to the airport in probably another 30 minutes. It was a 6:05 flight – 7:05 Philly time.”
He eventually caught the next flight from Chicago O'Hare Airport to Philadelphia, arriving at Veterans Stadium just as the night game began.
There in the visitors' locker room, the Expos already had a uniform waiting for him. It had his long last name &uniform number already stitched in on the back of it.
Expos Game: Youngblood now a Montreal Expo, got dressed and walked into his new team’s dugout, getting greeted by Montreal manager; Jim Fanning.Fanning inserted him in right field, replacing Jerry White in the 6th inning. In the top of the 7th inning, Youngblood came to bat collecting a base hit off the Phillies future Hall of Famer, Steve Carlton.
Two Hits Off Two Hall of Famer Pitchers: Youngblood made baseball history, becoming the first player to get two hits on the same day for two different teams. It must also be noted that he accomplished the feat, against two future Hall of Fame pitchers.
At the end of 1982, he would become a free agent & sign with the San Francisco Giants.