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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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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.

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