After the 1969 World Series it was expected that Shea Stadium would continue to rock for years. In fact, Mets attendance for 1970 was the highest ever as 2,697,479 fans crossed through Shea’s turnstiles. However the Mets won 17 fewer games in 1970 and finished in third place, 6 games behind the division winning Pittsburgh Pirates. The Mets simply lacked the magic they had shown the previous year.

Third baseman Ed Charles retired after the ’69 World Series. Then, in the first of many ill conceived trades, the Mets sent talented farmhand outfielder Amos Otis along with pitcher Bob Johnson to the Kansas City Royals for third baseman Joy Foy. Otis became a star for Kansas City helping them to a number of post season births while Foy fizzled and never amounted to much during the one year he played for the Mets. 1970 also saw the departure of J.C. Martin, Bobby Pfeil, Cal Koonce, Don Cardwell, and Rod Gaspar from the ’69 squad. Certainly these players were not perennial all stars but they made significant contributions to the championship the year before.

Over the next couple of seasons the Mets continued to flounder finishing no better than third place. The Mets still compiled winning records but no question, mediocrity had set in. Through 1972, Shea Stadium still continued to lead the Major s in attendance but fans were getting antsy. Gone were fan favorites Ron Swoboda and Donn Clendenon. At the end of 1971, one of the most troubling trades in Mets history was made. Nolan Ryan was sent to the California Angels for fading third baseman Jim Fregosi. This deal haunted the Mets for years to come. Ryan eventually struck out over 5000 batters, entered the Hall of Fame, and hurled 5 no hitters. After 45 seasons, the Mets have come close but are still waiting for that first no-no.

During spring training of 1972, Mets manager Gil Hodges, while playing golf, suffered a fatal heart attack just two days shy of his 48th birthday. The Mets and their fans were stunned. Shortly after Gil’s death, Yogi Berra was named manager. 1972 also saw the first player’s strike. The season started in mid April wiping 6 games off of each team’s slate. The Mets managed to finish no better than third place again but did finish 10 games over .500. It was their best record since the 1969 season when they won 100 games.

Prior to the ’72 season, the Mets made a trade with the Montreal Expos. The Mets traded Tim Foli, Mike Jorgensen, and outfielder Ken Singleton for Rusty Staub. Although Singleton went on to be an excellent Major League player with a long career, this trade paid dividends for the Mets however, not right away. Because of injury, Staub only played in 66 games during his first year with the club. With the Mets stagnant progress, their home attendance, although still good, dropped to third in the league.

In 1973, Staub along with first baseman Jon Milner, pitchers Seaver, Koosman, Jon Matlack, and George Stone helped the Mets reach the post season for the second time in the team’s short history. Staub had a productive season hitting .279 with 36 doubles, 15 homeruns and 76 RBI.

Unlike 1969, 1973 was a very peculiar season. I recall my interest waning once mid season rolled around because the Mets were so out of the race. On August 26, the Mets were in last place. While the Mets struggled, no other team in the division ever capitalized and took control. The St. Louis Cardinals led the East by 1.5 games with a record of 65-64. By contrast, the Mets held a record of 58-70. They were in last place but only 6.5 games out. From that point forward, the Mets went on a tear winning 24 of their last 33 games of the season.

One of the weirdest plays I recall from the end of the ’73 regular season happened at, where else, Shea Stadium. On September 20 in a tie game, the Pirates batted in the top of the 13th inning. Richie Zisk singled to left with one out. Manny Sanguillen then flied out. With two down, Dave Augustine, who entered in the game earlier as a pinch runner, came to bat. Augustine hit a drive to deep left over the head of left fielder Cleon Jones. Jones turned and ran to the wall. The ball hit the very top of the fence then bounced straight up into the air. The ball came back into fair territory where Cleon grabbed it bare handed. He turned and fired the ball toward the infield hitting the cut off man Wayne Garrett, who was now playing short. Garrett fired to catcher Ron Hodges who applied the tag to Zisk sliding into the plate. Batter out, inning over, unbelievable! There was no question something special was beginning to happen. The Mets won the division in Chicago on the last day of the season. It was an unbelievable conclusion to mostly an unforgettable season. It was the antithesis of 2007.

The 1973 Big Red Machine was heavily favored over the Mets in the NLCS. While the Reds harbored a tremendous offensive powerhouse, the Mets had those great arms. Seaver, Koosman, and Matlock were an awesome threesome. Had the Mets had any consistent offense during the season, they could have run away with the division.

The Mets split the first two games in Cincinnati (the NLCS was still a best of 5 at that time). Seaver lost the first game 2-1 and Jon Matlack pitched a 2 hit shutout in game two as the Mets evened the series. The final games would be played at Shea Stadium. For the second time in 4 years, Shea would host another post season.

Game three was one for the ages. The light hitting Mets pummeled the Reds behind excellent pitching from Jerry Koosman. Rusty Staub homered in his first two at bats and by the fifth inning the Mets were leading 9-2. In the top of the fifth inning, Pete Rose was forced at second base. He slid hard into Bud Harrelson preventing the short stop from completing the double play. As Rose started up he elbowed Harrelson in the jaw which triggered a huge brawl. Mets and Reds were everywhere. The crowd went wild. Once a semblance of order was restored, Reds pitcher Pedro Bourbon walked away from the pile wearing a Mets cap. Once he realized he had the wrong hat, Bourbon took a bite out of the bill.

When Rose took the field after the inning ended, the crowd threw objects at him. Rose and the rest of the Reds left the field after a small bottle nearly clocked him in the head. Mets players had to go out to left field and calm down the fans for fear of having the game forfeited. Rose continued to be booed and tormented the rest of the game. The good news was the game did get to be completed and the Mets took a 2-1 lead in the series.

The Reds tied the series the next evening in another pitchers duel but the Mets prevailed in game five behind Tom Seaver. Again it was the Mets bats that did in the Reds as they clinched their second NL pennant by a score of 7-2.

The Mets lost the World Series in 7 games but did manage to win two of the three games played at Shea. To this day, fans argue that Berra should have never let Seaver pitch on short rest for game 6. George Stone, who had been so effective down the stretch, should have been given the start. If necessary, a rested Tom Seaver would have been ready for game 7. The end of the 1973 World Series was more significant than fans realized. It was also the end of an era. This group of Mets players would never again experience glory. For the rest of the decade, the Mets stumbled.

In 1974 and 1975, Shea Stadium became the only place to see Major League Baseball in New York City. At the end of 1973, the city began a two year renovation of Yankee Stadium. The Yankees moved to Shea Stadium for two seasons. As a Mets fan it was difficult to watch the cross town enemy playing on our sacred ground. During Yankee games, the Mets logo on the rear projection screen atop the scoreboard was changed to the Yankee top hat logo. More importantly, and perhaps to the detriment of Shea, baseball was played almost everyday for that two year stretch. There was not a lot of time for maintenance work to be performed, especially when there were big crowds coming in for every game. Also, in 1975, the New York Giants were still waiting for the completion of their new stadium in the Meadowlands of New Jersey. They too moved into Shea Stadium. For 1975, the Mets, Yankees, Jets, and Giants all played at the Big Shea. Once the Yankees and Giants moved to their new digs in 1976, Shea looked a bit run down. The teams that were left to play there, the Mets and Jets, did not do much to alter the perception.

Attendance began to shrink as Mets management did nothing to get the team back to respectability. A couple of significant events occurred in 1975. Joan Payson, the team’s principle owner, died and chairman of the board M. Donald Grant took over the helm. Grant never met a dollar he didn’t like. In 1977, after a long contract dispute, Grant sent Tom Seaver to the Cincinnati Reds. At that point, it felt as if it could not get any worse. That move sparked the next great event to occur in Shea Stadium history, Tom Seaver pitching against his former team on Sunday, August 21, 1977. Seaver defeated the Mets 5-1 and the largest crowd of the season (over 46,000) cheered for him and booed the Mets. It was surreal and strangely sad.

The 70s continued to spiral out of control for the Mets. Joe Torre became the first player-manger in Mets history but shortly after he focused purely on managing. Through the rest of the decade, the Mets did not manage more than 66 wins in a season. Shea Stadium, which used to be bright and so full of life, became a run down ghost town. In 1979, the Mets drew 788,905 fans. Only two clubs had worse attendance. Meanwhile the Yankees were drawing over 2 million in newly renovated Yankee Stadium winning two World Series. The management of the Mets let it slip away. What was a Mets town for more than a decade was now a Yankee town. It would take great work to reverse the tide. The Mets were sold to a new ownership group in 1980. In the next installment of Shea Stadium we will look at the rebirth of the Mets and the many renovations to the building they played in.

Shea Stadium, Part I

Shea Stadium, Part II