Top 5 walk-off home runs in Mets history

The New York Mets have had some historic walk-off victories in franchise history. None is more memorable than Game 6 of the 1986 World Series. It’s a Major League Baseball moment even non-Mets fans know about.

For this list, we’re limiting it to just home runs. And for the sake of keeping it accurate, Robin Ventura’s grand slam single technically doesn’t count. He never made it around the bases.

Even with this removed, we have five other memorable Mets walk-off home runs to talk about.

5) Mets infielder Tim Teufel ends it with a grand slam on 6/10/1986

The least notable of all on this list, Tim Teufel’s dinger on June 10, 1986, deserves some attention for a couple of reasons. For one, it was in such an important year of the club’s history. Secondly, it was versus the Philadelphia Phillies. Third, it was a grand slam.

The Mets and Phillies were tied 4-4 in the bottom of the 11th when Teufel stepped up to the plate against Tom Hume who had just entered the game. There was no runner on second base to begin the inning so the Mets had to get there with a single and two walks. With only one out, Teufel needed nothing more than a deep fly ball to win the game. Instead, he chose to clear them all and himself with a walk-off grand slam.

Even more impressive, Teufel had just come off the bench as a pinch hitter for Wally Backman. On this particular night, there was no cold bat stepping up to the plate. Not known for his power, Teufel had one of the big hits for the Mets in a season where everything seemed to go their way.

4) Mets infielder Wilmer Flores kicks off the 2015 run with a home run on 7/31/2015

How do you officially let the rest of the National League know you’re going for a pennant? You send Wilmer Flores to the plate on July 31, 2015.

There was a whole lot of drama in late July of 2015. Flores thought he was getting traded from the Mets and shed tears on the field when he believed his tenure with the ball club was coming to a close. The moment won fans over as he showed genuine love for the team he played for.

Flores ended up staying with the Mets and the club went out and made an even bigger trade than the proposed deal for Carlos Gomez which would have sent him to the Milwaukee Brewers. With Yoenis Cespedes now in tow for the rest of the year, Flores helped kick off a spectacular run at the end of 2015 with his walk-off home run.

The homer, which led off the bottom of the 12th, came in a 1-1 tie against the National League East-leading Washington Nationals. The victory helped the Mets close the gap a little further in the division. Along with the addition of Cespedes, promotion of Michael Conforto, and some other moves, it was immediately viewed as a catalyst for the team turning themselves into a contender.

2) Mets catcher Todd Pratt plays hero on 10/9/1999

There’s a trend with these great walk-off home runs. Teufel was a part-time player. Flores was essentially a fifth infielder who played often. Agbayani was a starter for the Mets in only a limited capacity. The trend continues with Todd Pratt. On October 9, 1999, he had his quintessential Mets moment.

It was Game 4 of the NLDS when Pratt was starting in place of an injured Mike Piazza. You’d never notice the difference. On this day, Pratt looked like a home run-hitting catcher.

In the bottom of the tenth with one out, Pratt stepped to the dish to face Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Matt Mantei. The Mets were a win away from advancing in the postseason for the first time since 1986. They hadn’t been in the playoffs since 1988 but fell to the Los Angeles Dodgers in the best of seven NLCS. A long ball from Pratt secured the win.

Backup catchers aren’t supposed to triumph on the field like Pratt did on that October day. It’s against the odds. It’s against the way rosters at built.

But there’s a reason why we play the games. Magical moments like that can happen in the playoffs. On this day, it worked in favor of the Mets.

1 )Mets outfielder Lenny Dykstra hits a walk-off home run on 10/11/1986

The 1986 NLCS was a wild one between the Mets and Houston Astros. Mike Scott was dominant versus his former team and yet it was only his two appearances when they were able to take down the eventual champions.

Houston did almost win Game 3 on October 11. They went into the bottom of the ninth with a 5-4 lead and Dave Smith on the mound.

Wally Backman led off with a bunt single. A passed ball with Danny Heep at the plate helped move Backman into scoring position and put the pressure on the Astros. Smith was able to retire Heep before Lenny Dykstra took his turn to make walk-off home run history for the Mets.

On a 0-1 pitch, Dykstra went yard. The series, tied at 1-1 apiece at the start, suddenly became 2-1 in favor of the Mets. The come from behind victory was one of the most important of the season. It also stuck out as one of the greatest in postseason Mets history until only a few weeks later when they found themselves in the World Series making history.

Teufel, Flores, Agbayani, Pratt, and Dykstra are hardly the most memorable Mets of all-time. However, with one swing, each of them triumphant in creating five of the best walk-off home runs in Mets history.