Saturday Seasons: 1983: The Last of the Lean Years

The 1982 season that began with much optimism ended in another disastrous finish: the sixth consecutive season that the team finished last or in fifth place.

General manager Frank Cashen thought he had made moves to improve the team: With the acquisition of George Foster to complement Dave Kingman and Ellis Valentine, on paper at least, this would be the most powerful lineup in team history. Yet, Dave Kingman was the only one that met expectations in the power department, but he provided little else. Neither did the hope that manager George Bamberger could revitalize the Mets anemic pitching staff materialize, either.

So for Cashen, it was back to the drawing board for 1983.

Cashen's first move was to deal the disappointing Mike Scott to the Houston Astros in exchange for Danny Heep. With 1982 right fielders Joel Youngblood and Ellis Valentine gone, Heep would help fill a need in the outfield. To bolster the rotation, Cashen pounced on the Reds' pronouncement that an injury-plagued Tom Seaver might be available and brought back "The Franchise."Cashen added an additional veteran presence on the mound by acquiring Mike Torrez from the Boston Red Sox.

Yet when the Mets broke camp to begin the 1983, there was not much optimism from the Shea faithful that this season would be any different than the previous six.

Yes, it would be exciting to see Tom Seaver take the mound every fifth day, but there were gaping holes. Where rightfield was perceived to be a strength at the start of 1982, the 1983 cast featured a combination of Mike Howard, Mark Bradley and Gary Rajsich. After Foster's down year, no one knew what to expect from him. Additionally, John Stearns was not sufficiently recovered from an elbow injury he suffered during the 1982 season, leaving the catching responsibilities to be shared between Ron Hodges and Ronn Reynolds. And finally with the Mets' porous middle infield, manager Bamberger elected to go with two rookies up the middle known for good gloves but no bats: Jose Oquendo and Brian Giles.

Yet all this did not deter over 55,000 fans from jammin into Shea Stadium on April 5 to see their beloved ace take on Steve Carlton and the Philadelphia Phillies, reviving the old rivalry from the mid-Seventies. Fans were not disappointed, as Seaver held the Phillies scoreless over six innings and walked off with a 2-0 shutout with with relief help from Doug Sisk.

But it was downhill from there, and with the team desperate for offense, Cashen, despite misgivings over whether he was ready, called up Darryl Strawberry from Tidewater to make his Mets debut on May 6th against the Cincinnati Reds. Despite, striking out 4 times in his first game, Strawberry showed of his prodigious power by smacking a foul home run.

In his debut in the major league, Darryl Strawberry of the New York Mets fouls off a pitch in game against the Cincinnati Reds at Shea Stadium in New York on May 7, 1983. Strawberry struck out three times, popped out in foul territory once, and walked twice. He was brought home on the game winning three-run homer by George Foster in the thirteenth inning. The Mets won 7-4.

After 46 games into the season, with the Mets winning only 16 of them, George Bamberger came to the conclusion that continuing to manage this team was hazardous to his health and headed home to Florida to continue fishing. After failing to entice Earl Weaver to take over the helm, Cashen named the gentle giant Frank Howard as interim manager.

But the biggest move of the year came on June 15, when Cashen traded Neil Allen and Rick Ownbey to the St. Lous Cardinals for first baseman Keith Hernandez. While he was a hero for the Cardinals in the 1982 World Series, Hernandez' relationship with manager Whitey Herzog had deteriorated to the point that the pitching-starved Redbirds were willing to deal Hernandez.

From the Mets' side, Allen, the team's relief ace for the previous three seasons, was struggling in 1983 and had told the Mets the thought it was because of a drinking problem. The Mets sent him to a physician who determined his issue was stress, not alcohol. The Cards, who had Bruce Sutter as their closer, inserted Allen, a converted starter, into their rotation, and in his first game -- against the Mets -- Allen tossed eight scoreless innings and struck out Hernandez twice.

But in the long term, the Mets got the best of the deal. And even though the Mets ended the season with a 68-94 record and another sixth place finish, there was light and the end of the tunnel. Strawberry, in his rookie season, hit .257 with 26 home runs, 74 RBI and 19 stolen bases, easily winning Rookie of the year honors. Hernandez, post trade, batted .306 with 9 home runs, 37 RBI and an .858 OPS in 95 games. Mookie Wilson led the team with 176 hits, batted .276 and stole 54 bases. George Foster had a bounce back year with 28 home runs and 90 RBI. Tom Seaver and Mike Torrez combined to win 19 games and Walt Terrell, acquired in the Lee Mazzilli trade., pitched in with 8 victories and even added two home runs in one game.

The biggest revelation was the emergence of Jesse Orosco as a closer who won 13 games, while saving 17, with an eye-popping 1.47 ERA.

But there was even more to be optimistic about for 1984. Ron Darling, the second pitcher acquired in the Mazzilli trade , was ready to make his mark in the Major Leagues, while in Lynchburg in the Carolina League there was an 18 year old phenom who won 19 games, while striking out 300.

Dwight Gooden would hit the majors in 1984, and the years of losing would be over.