In 1969 for the first time in baseball history, the World Series would become the second and final round of a brand new playoff format. The Mets played the Atlanta Braves in the first ever National League Championship Series. When divisional play started, it was agreed that the first round, the league championship series, would be the best of five. It stayed that way until 1985 when it was expanded to the best of seven.

Atlanta hosted the first two games with the final three, if necessary at Shea. The Mets, who won the eastern division with such sound pitching and timely hitting, uncharacteristically pounded the Braves in the first two games at Atlanta County Stadium. They scored nine runs in the first game and eleven in the second to take a 2-0 lead back home for Shea Stadium’s first baseball post season game.

On a Monday afternoon with Gary Gentry on the mound, the Mets trailed early. After Gentry allowed the first two to reach base in the third, he was replaced by Nolan Ryan. Ryan got out of the jam by striking out two and a fly ball to left. The Mets scored three runs in the fifth, fueled by a Wayne Garrett two run homerun, giving the Mets a lead they would not give up. The Mets defeated the Braves by a score of 7-4 to win the National League pennant. As they had after the division championship, the crowd stormed the field. The Mets became the first New York National League champion since the Brooklyn Dodgers won the pennant in 1956.

The Baltimore Orioles were the power house of the American League in 1969. Like the Mets, the O’s had strong pitching and were excellent defensively. But unlike the Mets, Baltimore had a powerful lineup capable of scoring runs in bunches. Frank Robinson and Boog Powel provided the power. The rest of the lineup included Don Buford, Paul Blair, Brooks Robinson, Davey Johnson, Mark Belanger, and Elrod Hendricks. The Miracle Mets, as everyone was calling them, would be an unlikely victor in a series against the powerful Orioles.

The Orioles swept the Twins in the American League championship series. Baltimore would host the first two games of the World Series with the middle three at Shea. If necessary, game six and seven would be back at Memorial Stadium.

Tom Seaver matched up with Mike Cuellar in game one. After the Mets did not score in the first, Seaver gave up a homerun to his first batter. As Don Buford rounded third, he told Ed Charles the Mets hadn’t seen anything yet. For one day, he was correct. The Mets lost the opener 4-1 for only their second loss in the last fourteen games, going back to the regular season. Even though the Mets had proven themselves time and time again over the course of the season, it seemed like the Orioles would be an impossible team to concur.

On Sunday, Jerry Koosman took the mound in a crucial game against Baltimore twenty game winner Dave McNally. The Mets held a slim 1-0 lead on Donn Clendenon’s homerun to lead late in the game when the Orioles tied the score in the seventh. The Mets were able to scratch out a run in the ninth on three consecutive two out singles against McNally. Al Weis’s RBI single gave the Mets the lead. In the bottom of the ninth after two outs, two Orioles reached base. Ron Taylor relieved Koosman. Brooks Robinson grounded to third and was out at first on a close play. The Mets were able to squelch an Oriole rally and tie the series at one game apiece. The Mets had won their first World Series game ever. And with the series switching to New York’s Shea Stadium, the teams were tied with five games left to play.

The only way to describe game three was to say Tommie Agee. His two stellar catches in left center and right center easily saved five runs. He single handedly helped Gary Gentry and Nolan Ryan to shutout the Orioles with a 5-0 win. Plus, Agee led off the game with a homerun, something he did quite often in 1969. The Mets now held a 2-1 lead in the series.

Game one’s starters Tom Seaver and Mike Cuellar were back on the mound for game four. The game was a pitcher’s dual. Donn Clendenon homered for the second time in the series, giving the Mets a 1-0 lead that lasted late into the game. With the Orioles threatening in the top of the ninth inning, Ron Swoboda made one of the all time great World Series plays. With two runners on, Paul Blair hit a line drive into the left center gap that looked like it would score two runs. Swoboda made a Hail Mary dive with his body parallel and inches off the ground. His outstretched glove managed to reach straight out and snare the ball for the out. Ron got up and threw the ball back to the infield as Frank Robinson was able to score from third to tie the game. It was a game saving catch that kept Baltimore from taking the lead. With the score tied at one, the game went to extra innings.

In the top of the tenth, the Orioles threatened but did not score. In the bottom half of the inning, Jerry Grote doubled to left. Rod Gaspar ran for Grote. J.C. Martin bunted the runner to third. As he ran to first the throw from pitcher Pete Richert hit Martin in the wrist and caromed past the second baseman. Gaspar scored and the Mets won game four by the score of 2-1. The replay showed Martin was not in the runner’s lane and could have been called out for interference. The call did not occur and Oriole manager Earl Weaver never argued. The Mets were one game away from the unimaginable.

Jerry Koosman started his second World Series game in game number five. Again he faced Dave McNally. So far, Koosman was perfect in the post season having defeated the Braves in the NLCS and the Orioles in game two of the series. The Orioles took an early 3-0 lead. In the third inning, Oriole pitcher Dave McNally hit a two run homer. Frank Robinson hit a solo homerun to cap the inning. Knowing they had to win to get the series back to Baltimore, the Orioles had to feel good having scored early against Koosman who had been so dominant.

In the Mets sixth inning, Cleon Jones was hit in the foot by a pitch. At first, the home plate umpire did not make the call. The ball apparently hit off of Jones’s shoe then rolled into the Mets dugout. Gil Hodges came out of the dugout with the ball. As he spoke to the home plate umpire, Gil pointed to the ball showing the shoe polish¹. The umpire awarded Jones first base with manager Earl Weaver arguing to no avail. The next batter, Donn Clendenon, deposited a home run into the left field loge section. It was Clendenon’s third homerun of the series. The Mets trailed by a single run.

In the 7th inning, weak hitting second baseman Al Weis led off with a solo homerun. Once again, weak hitting Al Weis provided a huge hit for the Mets. How is it that so often in the World Series, some of the biggest heroes turn out to be bench players? Weis’s homerun tied the game and now the crowd could sense that the Mets might be able to end the series in five games.

Jerry Koosman was like a machine on the mound, not allowing a run since the third inning.  The game was still tied heading to the bottom of the eighth. Cleon Jones led off with a double then moved to third on Clendenon’s ground out. Ron Swoboda doubled to left scoring Jones giving the Mets a 4-3 lead. After Ed Charles flied out, Jerry Grote reached base on an error. The pitcher attempting to get Swoboda at third threw wildly. Swoboda scored giving the Mets an important insurance run.

Frank Robinson walked to lead off the ninth putting the tying run at the plate. With two outs, Second baseman and future Mets manager Davey Johnson hit a fly ball to left field. It was after 4:00PM in the afternoon on October 16th. Cleon Jones went back, turned, and caught the ball in front of the warning track. He then kneeled down bowing his head as if to praise the baseball gods. The Mets, in only their eighth year of existence, were the world champions of baseball.

If it were a movie, no one would believe the story. Too far fetched they would say. It couldn’t happen in real life. But it did. And for those non Mets fans who subtly try to put down the ’69 squad’s accomplishment by calling them the Miracle Mets, there was nothing miracle about it. The Mets won 100 games, swept the Braves in the playoffs, and then in the World Series, defeated an extremely powerful Orioles team in five games.

During the regular season, the Mets authored an eleven, ten, nine, and seven game winning streaks. They won 38 of the final 49 games of the season. That’s not a miracle, that’s incredible baseball. And while the 1986 team gets the nod for being the most powerful of all Mets teams with 108 wins, no Mets team was more dominating in the post season than the ’69 Mets. They won seven and lost one. The 1969 Mets were the best post season Mets team of all time.

There were some things that happened during the season that does, perhaps, make you think of miraculous intervention. There was the double header in Pittsburgh when the Mets won both ends by a score of 1-0. In both games, the pitcher knocked in the only run. Or the game in St. Louis when Steve Carlton struck out nineteen Mets but yet lost the game on two Ron Swoboda two run homers. The black cat in front of the Cubs dugout and of course the shoe polish play in the World Series. Those events made you scratch your head but great teams put themselves in the position to win those odd contests. Make no mistake about it. The 1969 Mets were truly a great baseball team.

This coming season, Never Forget ’69 will post a brief daily column highlighting the day’s events 40 years previously as we honor that ’69 team.  

¹In the book Amazin’, The Miraculous Story of New York’s Most Beloved Baseball Team, author Peter Golenboch writes that the ball rolled into the dugout. Gil Hodges told Jerry Koosman to pick up the ball and rub it against his shoe. 

Extra Tidbit – The National League Parks the Mets played in 1969…

In 2009, the only ballparks in the National League still active from 1969 will be Dodger Stadium and Wrigley Field. Shea Stadium closed this year. The other parks that have bit the dust from 1969 are Connie Mack Stadium, Philadelphia; Forbes Field, Pittsburgh; Busch Stadium II, St. Louis; Jarry Park, Montreal; Candlestick Park, San Francisco; Jack Murphy Stadium, San Diego; The Astrodome, Houston; Crosley Field, Cincinnati; and Atlanta Fulton County Stadium, Atlanta. And four of the parks that replaced these oldies were replaced themselves. Busch Stadium II was replaced by Busch III, Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia was replaced by Citizen’s Bank Park, Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh was replaced by PNC Park, and Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati was replaced by Great American Ballpark. Jack Murphy Stadium, now QUALCOMM Park and Candlestick Park are still open for football.

Where are the 1969 Mets now…

CF       Tommy Agee – Deceased

SS        Bud Harrelson – Co owner of the Atlantic League’s Long Island Ducks

LF        Cleon Jones – Living in Mobile Alabama

1B        Donn Clendenon – Deceased

C         Jerry Grote – Living in Texas

RF       Ron Swoboda – Broadcaster for the New Orleans Zephyrs.

RF       Art Shamsky – Most recently managed in the Israeli League

2B        Ken Boswell – Living, whereabouts unknown

2B        Al Weis Living, whereabouts unknown

3B        Ed Charles – Lives in Queens, shows up to lots of Mets games

3B        Wayne Garrett - Living, whereabouts unknown

C         J.C. Martin - Living, whereabouts unknown

1B        Ed Kranepool – Lives in New York

OF       Rod Gaspar - Living, whereabouts unknown

IF         Bobby Pfeil - Living, whereabouts unknown

P          Tom Seaver – Running his own winery in northern California (HOF)

P          Jerry Koosman – Living in Minnesota

P          Gary Gentry - Living, whereabouts unknown

P          Nolan Ryan – Living in Texas (HOF)

P          Jim McAndrew - Living, whereabouts unknown

P          Don Cardwell – Deceased

P          Tug McGraw – Deceased

P          Cal Koonce – Deceased

P          Jack DiLauro - Living, whereabouts unknown

P          Dr. Ron Taylor – Toronto Blue Jays Team Physician

1969, Part 1

1969, Part 2