The 3 worst Mets General Managers in team history ranked

1. Joe McDonald was the GM of the New York Mets who took them from the penthouse to the outhouse.

Joe McDonald became the General Manager of the New York Mets at the end of what was probably the greatest time period in their history. He took over from Bob Scheffing who was at the helm from 1970 through the 1974 season.

Scheffing had taken over after Johnny Murphy passed away. And he had kept the organization in a steady mode following the 1969 Miracle Season and through the 1973 Ya Gotta Believe campaign. However, things began to fall apart in 1974 and Scheffing paid the price.

McDonald was hired after having moved up the organization’s ladder. And although he was handed the General Manager title…he wasn’t the one running the show. He had the misfortune of having M. Donald Grant controlling everything.

The 1975 to 1979 period is probably the darkest era in New York Mets history. Yes, guys like Amos Otis and Nolan Ryan were traded in two of the Mets worst trades before McDonald even took over. But the rest of the team was systematically dismantled, in some of the most bizarre trades, during this period.

For example, the Mets traded Wayne Garrett and Del Unser for Jim Dwyer and Pepe Mangual. They traded Rusty Staub for Mickey Lolich and Billy Baldwin. How about Dave Kingman for Bobby Valentine? They traded…come on…everyone knows this one…Tom Seaver for Pat Zachry, Doug Flynn, Steve Henderson, and Dan Norman.

The Mets were absolutely brutal. It was painful to watch.

McDonald will always be remembered as the GM who traded Tom Seaver. And that’s enough to be considered the worst GM in Mets history.