25 Years Ago: Mets Clinch NL East Division Title

Do you remember where you were 25 years ago today?  If you were alive and a Mets fan, you definitely should.

On September 17, 1986, the Mets became champions of the National League East for the first time in 13 years, riding the arm of a young Dwight Gooden en route to a 4-2 victory over the Chicago Cubs.  The game marked the first career start for Dave Magadan, who went 3-for-4 with two RBIs.

The Cubs scored both of their runs on the "strength" of Rafael Palmeiro's two-run HR.  It was only the second home run of Palmeiro's career, a career that saw him blast 584 more longballs and wave one finger at Congress.

Despite Palmeiro's homer, manager Davey Johnson kept Gooden in the game for the ninth inning, when he could have used either of his co-closers (Jesse Orosco and Roger McDowell).  He also inserted Keith Hernandez at first base for the final inning.  It was Hernandez's bout with the flu that kept him out of the starting lineup and allowed Dave Magadan to get his first major league start at first base.

Gooden began the ninth inning by walking Cubs catcher Jody Davis.  Shawon Dunston (who himself had a key moment in Mets history during the 1999 NLCS) then grounded into a fielder's choice, with Davis retired at second base.  Pinch-hitter Chris Speier then singled to put the tying runs on base.

Two on, one out, no call to the bullpen.  It was Doc's game to win or lose.

Dwight settled down after the single to Speier, striking out pinch-hitter Jerry Mumphrey.  With two outs, Chico Walker stepped up to the plate.  Let's go to Steve Zabriskie and Rusty Staub for the play-by-play:




As Rusty Staub said, it was "13 years of waiting" for the Mets and their fans (Rusty himself was a key member of the last Mets team to win a division title in 1973), but the team finally clinched the National League Eastern division crown 25 years ago today, on September 17, 1986.

By losing four straight games on the road to Philadelphia and St. Louis (the Mets did win the final game of their two-game series in St. Louis on September 16), the Mets allowed themselves the opportunity and luxury of winning the division title in front of the Shea faithful.

Although millions of fans will now claim to have been there, a total of 47,823 fans tore into the field after the final out was recorded.  We don't know if any of those fans caught the flu from coming into close contact with Keith Hernandez after he caught the final out of the game, but we do know that the city had caught Mets fever.

On September 17, 1986, the Mets were champions again.  They'd go on to win the championship of the National League 28 days later and the World Series 12 days after that, but it's that first taste of champagne that's the sweetest.

Can you believe it's been 25 years already?

Justin Turner "Un-Vail-ed"

It seems like a lot of people have sent the Justin Turner bandwagon into overdrive. From #JustinTurnerFacts on Twitter (tip of the blue Mets cap to The Daily Stache for creating what has become a trending topic on Twitter) to this guy who's written too many blogs on him recently, Justin Turner seems to be on everyone's mind. Even a certain renowned writer who has an equal amount of "faith" and "fear" in his team has weighed in on Turner's recent accomplishments.

Needless to say, I noticed a connection between Justin Turner and Rusty Staub that has nothing to do with their hair color. Unfortunately, it's not one most Mets fans would want to make.

Let's hop into the DeLorean and set the time coordinates to 1975. At the time, the Mets were in a transitional phase. Yogi Berra was fired in August, replaced by Roy McMillan. 1969 World Series hero Cleon Jones was released outright. However, the Mets did produce their highest team batting average to date (.256), saw Dave Kingman belt a franchise-record 36 home runs and watched Rusty Staub become the first player to drive in 100 runs in a single season.

That team also produced a young outfielder named Mike Vail.

Mike Vail was a hitting machine at AAA-Tidewater in 1975, hitting .342 in 115 games. He was also a clutch hitter, driving in 79 runs despite hitting only seven home runs for the Tides. On August 18, he made his major league debut as a pinch-hitter. He singled in his first at-bat. Two days later, he made his first start and went 0-for-5. He wasn't held hitless again until September 16, when ironically, he did not collect a hit in an 18-inning victory over the St. Louis Cardinals, going 0-for-7 in the extra-inning affair.

Vail's 23-game hitting streak set the franchise record, unsurpassed until 1984 when Hubie Brooks hit in 24 consecutive games. After hitting .302 in 38 games in 1975, Vail made Rusty Staub expendable in the minds of the front office, who traded Le Grand Orange to the Detroit Tigers for the rotund and past-his-prime Mickey Lolich.

The Mets did well in 1976, finishing with the second-most wins in franchise history at the time (86), but that proved to be the final respectable season for the team until 1984. Rusty Staub went on to average 106 RBI per season for the Tigers from 1976-1978 (no Met drove in as many as 106 runs in a season until Darryl Strawberry collected 108 RBI in 1990). Mike Vail went kaplooie after being anointed as the "player of the future" following the 1975 season.

A basketball injury sustained during the off-season kept Vail on the disabled list for most of the 1976 season. Upon his return, Vail struggled, hitting only .217, scoring eight runs and driving in nine in 53 games. He performed slightly better in 1977, but still only produced a .262 batting average with eight home runs and 35 RBI in 108 games.

The so-called "player of the future" helped send the Mets back to their losing past. After being an excellent contact hitter in the minors, Vail struck out 114 times in 584 career at-bats for the Mets. He attempted eight stolen bases as a Met and was thrown out all eight times. Vail also made Jeff Francoeur look like a walking machine. From 1975-1977, Vail drew only 34 bases on balls, never walking more than 19 times in a single season for the Mets. This continued throughout his major league career, as Vail walked a mere 81 times in 10 big league seasons.

Now let's get back into the DeLorean, fire up the flux capacitor (anyone have a spare piece of plutonium lying around?) and return to 2011. Justin Turner just set the Mets' rookie record by driving in at least one run in his seventh consecutive game. Prior to his streak, Turner had only driven in six runs in his major league career. But like Vail, Turner was also an outstanding contact hitter in the minor leagues, hitting .309 and striking out only 279 times in 2,202 plate appearances.

Justin Turner is also playing third base, filling in admirably for the injured David Wright, who drove in over 100 runs last season. With just about every Met having the "untradeable" tag removed from them, could it be that history is about to repeat itself?

Let's hope not. Justin Turner is on quite a bit of a roll, but he will never be David Wright, even when the longtime third baseman reverts to his David K. Wright persona. At best, Turner will platoon with Daniel Murphy at second base until Terry Collins decides that one of them has won the job outright.

Justin Turner is a nice player whose 15 minutes of fame have stretched into a second week. He's not David Wright just like Mike Vail was not Rusty Staub. Let's enjoy his hot streak while it lasts, but let's not make the mistake the front office made in 1975 by anointing him "the player of the future". For now, Justin Turner is a player of the present. We'll let the future take care of itself.

Le Grand Justin Turner

Rusty Staub was beloved as a Met, setting numerous club records during his underrated career. So cherished was Rusty in New York that the team honored him with "Thanks Rusty Day" on July 13, 1986.

Mets players poured out of the dugout wearing red wigs in appreciation of Le Grand Orange, a key player in the march to the National League pennant in 1973 and one of the best pinch-hitters of all-time during his second stint with the Mets in the 1980s.

It's been 25 years since the Mets honored their red-headed sparkplug. Now the Mets have another in Justin Turner.

The arrival of Turner came "Justin" time for the Mets.

Justin Turner quietly put together a successful minor league career, hitting .309 in five minor league seasons. A doubles machine, Turner hit 124 two-baggers in the minors, a number surpassed by only 16 players in Mets history (including Rusty Staub, who hit 130 doubles for the Mets).

Now given the chance to play every day for the Mets due to injuries to Ike Davis and David Wright, Turner has flourished. Entering tonight's game, he was hitting .364, continuing his doubles onslaught with seven two-base hits in only 55 at-bats. With his first-inning RBI single, Turner broke Ron Swoboda's 46-year-old rookie record for consecutive games with an RBI (seven). Over those seven games, Turner has driven in 12 runs.

Terry Collins will have a dilemma on his hands when Ike Davis and David Wright return from their injuries to play first base and third base, respectively. Who will lose playing time between Daniel Murphy and Justin Turner? Will the lefty-swinging Murphy platoon with the right-handed hitting RBI machine? Has Turner earned the opportunity to play every day? Will someone be traded?

One thing's for certain. In the '70s and '80s, Mets fans were treated to the fantastic play of Le Grand Orange, Rusty Staub. It's been over a quarter century since Rusty announced his retirement. Now the fans have a new redhead to cheer. Le Grand Justin Turner is winning the hearts of Mets fans all over the city and making opposing pitchers see red every time he drives in another run. Not bad for a guy who only had four major league hits before 2011.