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NY Mets free agent retrospective: Former Phillies All-Star who hit .105 in Flushing

The Mets really were getting a star player at the end of his career.
ByTim Boyle|
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Jul 15, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; New York Mets manager Terry Collins (L) talks with Philadelphia Phillies bench coach Larry Bowa (R) prior to action at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images
Jul 15, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; New York Mets manager Terry Collins (L) talks with Philadelphia Phillies bench coach Larry Bowa (R) prior to action at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images | Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

Rarely does an August free agent signing have much relevancy. On August 20, 1985, the New York Mets were reminded of this. A longtime NL East rival and member of the Philadelphia Phillies, Larry Bowa, had been released a week earlier by the Chicago Cubs. Hitting a light .246/.285/.318 in 212 plate appearances, the two-time Gold Glove winner was at the tail end of his career. The Cubs moved on and the Mets seized an opportunity to sign what they hoped could be a decent enough depth piece to play some middle infield and run for them.

At the time 39-years-old, the already low expectations weren’t even met.

Remembering Larry Bowa’s short and ineffective Mets tenure

Bowa was as close to zero on offense in his 22 plate appearances. A single and a double in his 19 at-bats had him finishing with a .105/.190/.158 slash line. It was bad enough to make a pitcher blush.

Defense was the true calling card of Bowa’s major league career. Six times in his career he led all shortstops in fielding percentage. Even if you don’t put much weight into fielding percentage, there’s no denying he was one of the best defensive shortstops in his era. His 19.1 defensive WAR is better than any Mets player at any position. Although accumulative and not an exact measure of effectiveness, the point is he was always reliable with the glove surpassing someone like Bud Harrelson. This changed in his brief time with the Mets.

Bowa made 2 errors in only 17 chances at shortstop for the Mets. The one sure thing he was supposed to bring the Mets didn’t happen.

The 1985 Mets finished 3 games out of a playoff spot. Their 98 wins fell short of the 101 the St. Louis Cardinals had. As much of a rabbit hole as it would have been to discover Bowa’s errors cost them games, it’s not true. One flub came in a Mets win. The other happened with two outs in a 3-0 loss. The following batter struck out to erase the error.

A better Immaculate Grid answer than Mets player, Bowa would retire after the season. A future manager known for his temper, his time with the Mets was practically lost in time.

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