The 5 biggest "what ifs" in Mets history

After 61 seasons of New York Mets baseball, the franchise has been the last team standing only twice. The main cause of that could be from bad ownership and management but even with those negatives getting in the way, the Mets have had golden opportunities over the years to add to that weak list of World Series championships. 

The future of the Mets certainly looks bright with Steve Cohen at the top of what hopefully is a powerhouse in 2023 and beyond. Today, though, we’re looking back at the biggest “what ifs” of the past. 

1) What if the NY Mets never traded Nolan Ryan?

It was December 1971. The Mets were fresh off back-to-back 83-79 seasons following the 1969 World Series title. They had built a loaded pitching rotation that featured Tom Seaver, Jerry Koosman, Gary Gentry, Jon Matlack, and Nolan Ryan. General Manager Bob Scheffing felt as though the Mets needed to make improvements to their offense so he decided to trade one of those starting pitchers. They guy he traded went onto to become an 8-time All-Star, pitch seven no hitters, and reach the Hall of Fame as one of the best pitchers this great game has ever seen. That pitcher would be Nolan Ryan. 

Had the Mets not shipped the 23 year old at the time, the 1970s could have looked a lot different. Would New York have won the 1973 World Series if they had another Hall of Fame pitcher still in the rotation? Would they have still decided to trade Tom Seaver in 1977 if the Mets continued to win in the 70s?

The 1970s is still known as one of the worst decades in Mets history and maybe keeping Nolan Ryan would have resulted in a lot more winning. 

2) What if Tom Seaver didn’t pitch Game 6 of the 1973 World Series?

Just four years after winning their first World Championship in 1969 and in their second season without Nolan Ryan, the Miracle Mets were on their way to doing it again. The baseball world was watching a team that had only won 82 games in the regular season, hold a three-games-to-two lead over the defending champion Oakland Athletics, who won 94 games. 

New York decided to go with a three-man rotation for the entire series. Jon Matlack pitched Games 1, 4, and 7. Jerry Koosman got the nod for Games 2 and 5 and it was Tom Seaver in Games 3 and 6. 

With the teams heading back to the Coliseum in Oakland for games six and seven, the Mets would have two chances to clinch the title. Instead of saving Seaver for a possible 7th game, Owner Joan Payson insisted to Manager Yogi Berra that Seaver should start Game 6. Berra listened to his owner and watched Tom go out there, on just three days' rest. New York would go on to lose the game and was forced to be without their ace in a winner take all game that saw the A’s clinch a World Series title for the second consecutive season. 

If Berra gave Seaver that extra day of rest, would he have pitched better in Game 7, leading the Mets to another championship? 

3) What if the Mets won the 1988 NLCS?

The 1986 New York Mets are one of the best teams Major League Baseball has ever seen. Well, similarly to the 1973 team, New York was looking to repeat history just a couple of years later. In 1988, New York won 100 games and was the clear favorite heading into the NLCS against the 94-win Dodgers. 

The Amazins grabbed a 2-1 series lead but Los Angeles would steal Game 4, and win Game 5 the next day, to flip the series in their favor. Then in Game 7 at Dodger Stadium, NLCS MVP Orel Hershiser shut down the Amazins’ offense, throwing a complete game shutout to win the series.

The Dodgers went on to the Fall Classic and Kirk Gibson would create one of the greatest moments in MLB History. The Silver Slugger Award winner that season was dealing with injuries, keeping him out of the lineup in Game 1 against the Oakland Athletics. That didn’t stop him from getting a chance as a pinch hitter in the bottom of the 9th against one of the game's best closers, Dennis Eckersley. Gibson hit a walk-off 2-run HR that changed the outlook of that series. The Dodgers went on to win the World Series in five games. 

So, had the Mets beaten Los Angeles in the NLCS we would have never seen that famous Kirk Gibson home run. Would the Mets have defeated the Athletics in the 1988 World Series? It would have been fascinating to see them try and get revenge for 1973. 

4) What if Mike Piazza charged the mound in the 2000 World Series?

The 2000 MLB season saw the Mets-Yankees rivalry reach its climax. For the first time since 1956, the World Series featured two New York teams, as it was the Mets vs. the Yankees for all the marbles. 

After the Yankees came from behind to win Game 1, the Bronx Bombers sent Roger Clemens to the Yankee Stadium mound for Game 2. In the top of the first inning, Mike Piazza came to the plate. On the 4th pitch of the at-bat, Clemens came inside with a fastball and Piazza was able to foul the pitch off with his bat shattering in half. The barrel ended up in the hands of the Yankees’ right-hander and instead of calmly tossing it to the side, he threw it at Piazza who was just a couple of feet up the first base line. 

Piazza, in utter shock, took a couple steps towards the mound but did nothing other than exchange words with Clemens. Both players remained in the game and Clemens went on to throw 8 shutout innings in another Yankees victory. They would go on to win the series in five games. 

Had the Mets catcher chosen to charge the mound to fight Clemens, both players probably would have been ejected from the game in just the first inning. Would the Mets have won Game 2 and changed the complexion of the series? Hard to say their odds wouldn't have increased.