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Love watching the Mets play? Then you probably already have a running mental list of your favorite players throughout history. Here are a handful of legendary Mets, listed in no particular order, who have made many fans’ lists after proving they’re among the greatest:
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Tom Seaver
Tom Seaver, consistently ranked as the best Mets player of all time, played for the team from 1967 to 1977 and again briefly in 1983. In his first year on the Hall of Fame ballot in 1992, he won 98.8 percent of the vote, the largest percentage in history. He also won three Cy Young Awards.
David Wright
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While Wright still plays for the Mets today, he is considered one of the best throughout the club’s history. He made his Major League debut in 2004 and currently serves as captain and third baseman for the Mets. He’s a seven-time All-Star and two-time Gold Glove award winner who leads the franchise in hits, runs, RBIs, doubles, walks, and batting average. He is also the only Mets player to have a .300 career average after more than three seasons.
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Keith Hernandez
To many people, Keith Hernandez is considered the best first baseman in all of baseball history. He joined the Mets midseason in 1983. The next year, he led the team to a world championship. After playing for the Cardinals, Hernandez acquired six of his 11 Gold Glove awards while playing for the Mets. In 1987, he served as the team’s first captain.
Dwight Gooden
Dwight “Doc” Gooden started playing for the Mets in 1984 when he was just 19 years old. That year, he struck out 276 batters and won Rookie of the Year, making him the youngest player to win the award. The following year, he won the Cy Young Award after racking up a 24-4 record and a 1.53 earned run average. By the end of his career with the Mets in 1994, he had a record of 157-85.
Darryl Strawberry
In the years he played for the Mets, from 1983 to 1990, Darryl Strawberry totaled 252 home runs. The year he joined the team, he won Rookie of the Year. In his seven later seasons, he also made the All-Star team. With the Mets, he averaged 31.5 homers and 91.6 RBIs per year, but he later went to finish his career with the Yankees.
Jerry Koosman
Jerry Koosman played for the Mets from 1967 to 1978. He managed to miss several awards during his career by coming in second, including Rookie of the Year in ’68 and the Cy Young award in ’76. However, he was an All-Star in ’68 and ’69. Koosman secured several victories that secured his reputation as one of the top Mets players, including the 1969 game that led to the Mets’ first championship in the World Series.
John Matlack
Overlapping with Koosman’s time on the team, Matlack managed to surpass Koosman as the Met’s number two starter. Matlack made three All-Star teams and led the league in shutouts twice. He also claimed the title of Rookie of the Year in 1972.
Carlos Beltran
While his run with the Mets didn’t look promising at first thanks to a poor first season, Beltran went on to play for the Mets from 2005 to 2011, and managed to rack up some pretty impressive stats. In his six seasons, he made five All-Star teams. He also won three Gold Gloves, and in 2006, he set the team record for the amount of runs scored at 127. That same year, he tied the team record for home runs at 41.
Gary Carter
Gary Carter — nicknamed “Kid” — was a fan favorite who played for the Mets between 1985 and 1989. Known as a fantastic catcher, Carter was elected into the Hall of Fame in 2003. He was named an All-Star 11 times.
Which Mets players throughout history are your favorite?