Dipping Into The Archives Vol. 20

1991

I believe 1991 is the last season in which the yearbook is missing from my personal collection. Which is just as well; that was a good year to stay away from Shea Stafium. This was the season in which things really started to go to hell. The year ended with a 5th place finish, and Bud Harrelson was relieved of his managerial duties in the season’s final week. The year featured drama (of the bad kind), further shedding of players from the ‘86 team, and some puzzling acquisitions.

The key offseason change was Darryl Strawberry’s departure as a free agent. Because Straw soon suffered a career-changing back injury that doesn’t seem as bad in retrospect, but at the time the organization’s unwillingness to offer him a market level contract was a head scratcher. What made it worse was who they signed as his replacement - Vince Coleman. As a Cardinal he had tormented the Mets on the base paths for years, but at the same time he was a hitter that you could get out relatively easily. To use the old cliche, you can’t steal first. He was also a classic example of a guy whose game was better suited to artificial turf. He was the wrong guy at the wrong time, which would be proven in subsequent years. It’s also worth noting that Bob Ojeda was traded away as well in the offseason, bringing back old friend Hubie Brooks.

The reacquisition of Brooks was part of a strange obsession the team would have in obtaining players who would have made great all-star selections in any year from 1976-1985. But not so much in 1991. Rick Cerone was the regular catcher. Garry Templeton was a trade deadline pick up. There would be a lot more where that came from over the course of the next several years.

The Mets sent Tim Teufel to San Diego to get Templeton. He wasn’t the only ‘86er to be moved midseason. Ron Darling was shipped to Montreal in exchange for Tim Burke. Like many of these moves, it was absolutely justifiable. Darling was clearly on the decline, but it was still further evidence of the end of an era. For those keeping score at home, we are now down to only 4 remaining members of the championship team. (And one of those is Kevin Elster, who let’s be honest would rank near the bottom of the list of most essential members of that team.)

1991 was also the year of Mackey Sasser. As mentioned last time, Sasser had the first crack at replacing Gary Carter as the regular catcher and he proved to be a solid hitter whose defensive skills left a lot of room for improvement. After sustaining a shoulder injury in 1990, he had trouble throwing the ball which initially manifested itself as an inability to throw out base stealers. It got much worse in 1991, as his mental yips grew progressively worse and he was unable to complete the simple task of tossing the ball back to the pitcher without pumping his arm multiple times. It was painful to watch, opposing base runners exploited the issue by running at free will, and Sasser’s career was essentially ruined.

It was clear at the end of 1991 that the franchise was trending in the wrong direction. Frank Cashen would step aside as GM into a COO role, leaving the team in the hands of his successor Al Harazin. He would need to hire a new manager as well as replenish the major league roster. Some big names came aboard. How did that all work out? We’ll find out next week.

Lesson: Don’t Take Cabs

I haven’t seen the exact data to back this up, but my suspicion is that the Mets are the franchise that has had the greatest number of pitchers who had sustained injuries in taxi accidents. The tradition began with Tom Glavine losing two teeth in a crash. Luckily enough, the injuries weren’t severe enough to force him to miss playing time. Glavine was famously durable; he didn’t spend any time on the disabled list until his final season, when he was 42 years old. It would have been very ironic in a this can only happen to the Mets kind of way if an off field incident of all things would have disabled him. The next such accident would prove to be more consequential.

In 2006 key setup reliever Duaner Sanchez was involved in a taxi cab crash which resulted in a separated shoulder. As a result he missed the remainder of that season and all of the following. On top of that, the incident occurred at the trade deadline. The Mets were in the market for a starting pitcher but they needed to quickly pivot and acquire a bullpen replacement for Sanchez instead. The effects of that crash were more obvious the following season, as bullpen meltdowns played a large part in the infamous September 2007 collapse. It’s not a stretch to wonder how differently things would have gone if Sanchez was available.

The reason I bring that up now is because last week Mets pitcher Joey Lucchesi was involved in an accident the day before his final start of the season. Another car plowed into the Uber that he and his family were riding in. Thankfully no one was injured, but it’s high time the Mets heed the omens and keep their pitchers away from cabs. It’s 2023, they need to use a safer form of transportation for such precious cargo. I have to believe that the technology of teleportation will be perfected by the beginning of next season. What could possibly go wrong?

Mosquitoes

I must admit that as a child I was freaked out by the impending killer bees invasion. I was certain that they were going to reap carnage over every warm portion of the world. I actually thought that I would need to take that into consideration when choosing colleges. I would be safe if I chose a school in a location where it would be too cold for the bees to survive. I think by now it’s safe to say that the bees hysteria was overstated. Unless they’re lulling us into a false sense of security we need not worry about the bees.

Mosquitoes are something entirely different. One of the many consequences of the warming planet is the fact that there are larger areas of the planet that are warm enough for mosquitoes to thrive. (Side note, why did Noah let the mosquitoes on the ark, while leaving out the unicorns? What was he thinking?) After years of medical science successfully reducing malaria, it’s making a comeback, even reaching the U.S. with cases in Florida and Texas. In addition Florida has been seeing cases of dengue fever.

These are just the latest examples of how out of whack our planet has become. I don’t need to tell anyone how unusual this summer’s weather has been. But hey, James Inhofe once brought a snowball onto the Senate floor, so there’s no need for any concern. It’s all good.

Feinstein

In 1992, California had the unusual distinction of voting for both of their Senators on the same day, due to a special election to fill the seat vacated by Pete Wilson when he became Governor. Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein won their respective races. Boxer went on to serve 4 terms with distinction before stepping aside to make room for the next generation. Feinstein chose a different direction, which unfortunately tarnished her reputation to a large extent.

All snark aside regarding her obvious infirmity in her later years, it’s too bad that that became the first thing most people think of upon her passing, as she had a significant career as a trailblazer in public service. From her pioneering role as San Francisco Mayor following the assassination of George Moscone to her tireless work to pass gun control legislation in the Senate, she was a significant political figure. But she clearly stayed too long.

I brought up Boxer because she could serve as role model for aging legislators. She did her time, and from all indications is living the good life in retirement. She frequently appears as a talking head on cable news, and I have to imagine that she does quite well on the speaking circuit. Doesn’t that sound like a better life than having to put on the old business attire and drag yourself to Washington well into your senior years? Is power really that addictive?

I say this about Feinstein or any other elderly Senator or Member Of Congress. You’ve served your country well, you’ve earned a cushy retirement. Feinstein in particular was clearly diminished both physically and mentally. It’s hard to say how much of her reluctance to walk away was her own doing or to what extent she was exploited by those around her, but it seemed almost cruel to parade her into the Senate chamber when her basic sense of awareness was questionable.

A Few Quick Updates

I had a bit of a brain fart when I speculated on Terry Francona’s chances of making it onto this year’s Hall Of Fame ballot. I forgot that a manager needs to be retired for a year before becoming eligible. So, he will need to wait until that particular committee meets again in 3 years.

Sadly, Tim Wakefield passed away at the age of only 57 from brain cancer. I don’t know how rapidly he deteriorated, but part of me hopes that he fell into unconsciousness days ago. I would hate to think that one of his final moments of awareness involved his knowing that Curt Schilling revealed such private medical info to the world without his approval.

More historical trends involving the Mets, as Buck Showalter was let go as manager. Both the Yankees and Diamondbacks famously won World Series titles the year following his dismissals from each team. The tradition did not continue after he was fired from his jobs in Texas and Baltimore, but that’s still 2 out of 4. I’ll take those odds. You can pencil the Mets in as 2024 World Series favorites.

With the end of the regular season comes the inevitable ending of several notable players’ careers. I’ll likely have more to say about the ways in which clubs honored their departing stars, but one farewell from yesterday really stood out. Joey Votto’s future is unclear, but there is zero chance that the Reds will pick up his hefty contract option. So unless they bring him back at a reduced salary, yesterday was his final game in a Cincinnati uniform. Taking a page from the script of Forget Paris, he was actually ejected following his first at bat. Whoops.

The WNBA Finals matchup is set, and as expected the two super teams will face each other. Defending champions Las Vegas takes on New York. Should be an outstanding series.

Zeptember Rolls Right Into Rocktober

We’re only a day away from postseason baseball and the annual reminder that John Smoltz is what happens when an “I’d rather be golfing” bumper sticker becomes a real boy. I expect a lot of exciting things to happen over the next month which will provide a lot of topics to discuss in this corner. Thanks for being part of the fun, & let’s do this again on Wednesday.