Mets: Top ten teams of all time

By Rich Sparago

Dec 31, 2016

Oct 21, 2015; Chicago, IL, USA; A detailed view of the World Series logo on the hat of New York Mets third baseman David Wright (5) after the New York Mets defeated the Chicago Cubs in game four of the NLCS at Wrigley Field. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports /

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What they did: They won the National League East with a 108-54 record.

Key Players:

Keith Hernandez (.310 BA, 13 HR, 83 RBI)

Darryl Strawberry (27 HR, 93 RBI)

Len Dykstra (.377 OBP, 31 SB)

Bob Ojeda (18-5, 2.57 ERA)

Dwight Gooden (17-6, 2.84 ERA)

What made them special: The 1986 Mets were the culmination of a progression that began in 1983 with the acquisition of Keith Hernandez. Young pitchers, such as Gooden, Fernandez, and Darling came up. Gary Carter came via trade from Montreal. Darryl Strawberry got better every year, and finally it all came together.

As has been chronicled many times, it almost didn’t come together. The Mets did not roll through the postseason as they did the regular season, coming close to losing on a couple of occasions. But they won. There was a parade. There were supposed to be more. There weren’t.

But for those of us who experienced 1986, what a year it was. The regular season was a formality. The team considered itself champions in Spring Training. It was nice to see how much they could humiliate the other team (or beat them up) every night.

But as I’ve written before, enjoy baseball success. It can be very fleeting. Just ask the 1986 Mets.

Number 1: 1986