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Mets: Three trades with the Astros that led to a World Series appearance

By Tim Boyle |
16 Oct 2000: General Manager Bobby Valentine of the New York Mets congratulates Mike Hampton #32 after the National League Divisional Series Game 5 against the St. Louis Cardinals at Shea Stadium in New York, New York. The Mets defeated the Cardinals 7-0.Mandatory Credit: Al Bello /Allsport
16 Oct 2000: General Manager Bobby Valentine of the New York Mets congratulates Mike Hampton #32 after the National League Divisional Series Game 5 against the St. Louis Cardinals at Shea Stadium in New York, New York. The Mets defeated the Cardinals 7-0.Mandatory Credit: Al Bello /Allsport
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4 Oct 2000: Mike Hampton #32 of the New York Mets looks on during the NLDS Game against the San Francisco Giants at Pac Bell Park in San Francisco, California. The Giants defeated the Mets 5-1.Mandatory Credit: Tom Hauck /Allsport
4 Oct 2000: Mike Hampton #32 of the New York Mets looks on during the NLDS Game against the San Francisco Giants at Pac Bell Park in San Francisco, California. The Giants defeated the Mets 5-1.Mandatory Credit: Tom Hauck /Allsport /

The New York Mets and Houston Astros have made some big trades over the last 50+ years. Three helped lead New York to a World Series appearance.

The New York Mets and Houston Astros are tied together in MLB history. They came into the league together. The pair even met in the 1986 postseason. The Mets were the victors in that best of seven series, setting up for a championship run.

These two organizations have also made plenty of trades over the years. Whether the Astros were in the American League or National League, they’ve never been shy about making a deal with the orange and blue team in New York.

Amazingly, three of those trades helped lead to a World Series appearance by the Mets. Going back from the most recent, these were the big trades between the Mets and Astros with a clear connection to winning.

One Year of a Star Pitcher

On December 23, 1999, the Mets traded Kyle Kessel, Roger Cedeno, and Octavio Dotel to the Astros for two veterans. They were outfielder Derek Bell and star pitcher Mike Hampton.

Kessel never made it to the big leagues while Cedeno lasted just one season in Houston. Dotel had some very good years with the Astros but bounced around throughout his career. For what it’s worth, he was part of the 2004 trade that brought Carlos Beltran to Houston.

The Mets directly got much more from the two players they acquired in this trade. Bell hit 18 home runs for the Mets and filled in nicely as the team’s everyday right fielder. Hampton had a much bigger impact, going 15-10 with a 3.14 ERA in the regular season.

Hampton was coming off a second-place Cy Young season down in Houston when he arrived in New York. He wasn’t nearly as amazing in 2000 yet still played a major role in leading the Amazins to the World Series.

In the postseason, Hampton struggled in his lone starts in the NLDS and World Series. However, he made up for it with two wins and 16 shutout innings in the NLCS. The performance earned him the series MVP.

Speaking of MVPs. More than a decade earlier, the Mets landed another important one in a trade with the Astros.

FLUSHING, NY – OCTOBER 27: Third baseman Ray Knight #22 of the New York Mets hits a home run and rounds the bases during game 7 of the 1986 World Series against the Boston Red Sox at Shea Stadium on October 27, 1986 in Flushing, New York. The Mets won the series 4-3. (Photo by T.G. Higgins/Getty Images)
FLUSHING, NY – OCTOBER 27: Third baseman Ray Knight #22 of the New York Mets hits a home run and rounds the bases during game 7 of the 1986 World Series against the Boston Red Sox at Shea Stadium on October 27, 1986 in Flushing, New York. The Mets won the series 4-3. (Photo by T.G. Higgins/Getty Images) /

Landing a World Series MVP

The Mets clearly lost the 1982 trade with the Astros which swapped Danny Heep for Mike Scott. Scott became a star in Houston and put together some incredibly impressive seasons.

On August 28, 1984, they made up for the mistake. The Mets landed third baseman Ray Knight for a player to be named later. The player became multiple players with Gerald Young, Manuel Lee, and Mitch Cook going down to Houston to complete the deal.

If you know anything about Mets history, you already see where this is going. Knight is one of only two players in team history to own a World Series MVP. It’s hard to win a World Series MVP without taking home a ring, too.

I won’t get into what the three players the Mets dealt away did in Houston. Whatever they accomplished pales in comparison to what the Metropolitans got out of Knight.

Knight’s 1984 season included 27 games in a New York uniform. He hit .280 in his 101 plate appearances. The next year, with 290 trips to the plate, he batted just .218. For the second straight year, the Mets were a competitive team, but not good enough to make the postseason.

Everything changed in 1986. The Mets captured the National League pennant after defeating the Astros and Knight played a major role in both the regular season and World Series.

In the first 162 games, Knight slashed .298/.351/.424. He drove 11 home runs and knocked in 76.

The real important games happened in October. After batting just .167 in the NLCS, Knight turned it up in the World Series. He .391/.440/.565. He had some of the biggest hits for the team and scored the game-winning run on the infamous Bill Buckner error.

New York Mets legendary catcher Jerry Grote (Photo by Jared Wickerham/Getty Images)
New York Mets legendary catcher Jerry Grote (Photo by Jared Wickerham/Getty Images) /

Stability Behind the Plate for a Decade

The first trade the Mets ever made with the Astros took place on October 19, 1965. Tom Parsons became the player to be named later in the deal which first brought longtime catcher Jerry Grote to New York.

Grote’s career in Houston got off to a rough start. In his first full season with the team in 1964, he batted only .181. Houston was clearly ready to move on.

Things weren’t much better in New York. Grote hit .237 in 1966 and .195 in 1967. He reached a new level in 1968. Grote found his big league swing and slashed .282/.357/.349. The surprisingly improved bat earned him the first of two All-Star selections.

Grote continued to hit well during his many years in New York. Even when he began sharing more time with John Stearns, Grote was a contributor both at and behind the plate. This is the guy who caught Tom Seaver plenty in the early years. He deserves at least a portion of the credit.

How Grote relates to a championship trip is quite obvious. He played for the 1969 Mets and gave them something every team needs: stability behind the plate.

Going one step further, Grote was also present with the 1973 Miracle Mets who made another run to the championship. Unfortunately, this one didn’t end with a parade in New York.

Grote may not have won any major award like Knight or put together any season that compares to what Hampton did in 2000. He gave this organization something different. He was the general behind the plate for more than a decade during a positive stretch for the franchise.

Next. Greatest Mets trades for a starting pitcher

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If we’re lucky, the Mets get another name on this list when J.D. Davis leads the team to the Promised Land.

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