New York Mets: 1986 Champions Trivia Quiz

Answer: They would not only win that year, they would dominate

Davey made the bold statement to the press, which caught everyone by surprise. He said that the Mets would dominate, and win the division by double-digits (ten games or more). Johnson took over the managerial job of the Mets in 1983, and improved them every year, eventually becoming the first manager in the history of the National League to guide a team to 90+ wins in each of the first five years or managing a team.

Answer: Darryl Strawberry

Strawberry, who was under intense pressure, was referred to by some scouts and writers as the black Ted Williams. He broke into the majors in 1983 and hit 26 home runs, along with 74 runs batted in. His 1986 season was one of his better years with 27 homers and 93 RBI, along with 28 stolen bases.

Answer: Ron Darling

Darling was acquired with pitcher Walt Terrell in a 1982 trade with the Texas Rangers. Darling won 136 games in the majors, mostly with the Mets. During the '86 season he won 15 games while losing only 6, struck out 184 batters and pitched to an earned run average of 2.81.

Answer: Sid Fernandez

"El Sid" as he was affectionately known was acquired from the Los Angeles Dodgers for Bob Bailor, and Carlos Diaz, in what turned out to be an extremely one-sided trade. Fernandez pitched for the Mets for the next 10 seasons, with 1986 being perhaps his best, with a 16-6 record and 200 strikeouts. Sid had a very awkward pitching motion which threw batters off.

He had a good fastball, but it appeared blazing because of his motion. He also played a vital role in the World Series that year, pitching in relief in Game 7 against Boston, and holding the fort down so to speak, until the Mets could rally and win the ballgame in the late stages.

Answer: Keith Hernandez

How lucky the Mets were that the St. Louis Cardinals were looking to rid themselves of Hernandez after some substance abuse accusations the prior year. According to some historians the Cardinals thought they were going to "punish" him by trading him to a last place team. Oops, didn't work out too well for them.

They received pitchers Neil Allen, and Rick Ownbey, who weren't too successful with their new team. Hernandez, however, anchored the infield for the next several years, including 1986, and was like a second pitching coach on the field.

He also was a Gold Glove first baseman, constantly making plays that would astound the spectator, and was one of the best clutch hitters of the 1980s. Keith batted .310 in 1986 with 13 homers (he never was a true power hitter) and 83 RBI.

Answer: Dwight Gooden

Call him "Dr. K". Dwight came to the Mets as a 19 year old rookie in 1984, and proceeded to win the 1984 Rookie of The Year Award, and why not? He simply took the National League by storm. He won 17 games as rookie, the most by a pitcher since 1964, pitched to a 2.60 ERA and struck out 276 batters, setting a rookie record.

After winning the National League Cy Young Award in 1985, he came back strong again in 1986 with a record of 17-6, a 2.84 ERA and 200 strikeouts. It was during the following off season when his career began to take an unfortunate downhill turn, with substance abuse allegations, which were later substantiated.

Answer: Ray Knight

Knight was acquired during midseason by the Mets who were looking for a third baseman. They had Hubie Brooks, but were looking for insurance and thought that Knight provided that. He went on to become an important piece of the 1986 puzzle. In 1986 he batted .298 with 11 homers and 76 RBI. He also played a vital role in the World Series that year.

Answer: Howard Johnson

Johnson came to the Mets following the 1984 Detroit Tigers championship season. Detroit was looking for pitching help, and the Mets obliged. They gave up starting pitcher Walt Terrell, who they had aquired two years prior, to get Johnson, who was a switch hitting infielder with power. Johnson ended up platooning with Ray Knight in 1985 and 1986, showing occasional flashes of brillance, but was a non-factor in the post-season. Johnson broke out in 1987, after Knight was let go by the Mets as a free agent, with a 36 home run season.

Answer: Gary Carter

"The Kid" was generally recognized as the last major missing piece to the puzzle that GM Frank Cashen had been putting together. He gave up four players to the Montreal Expos to get Carter, and the trade paid off handsomely. Carter helped nurture the mostly young pitching staff, hit in the clutch for the Mets, and was as good a defensive catcher as you could find. 1986 saw Carter hit 24 home runs and drive in a team high 105 runs.

He also had a big post season that year, especially in the World Series, where he hit two home runs in Game 3, and played a big part in Game 6 as well, driving in the tying run in the 8th inning, and then starting the winning rally in the 10th inning.

Answer: Bob Ojeda

Ojeda spent parts of four season with the Red Sox, and was considered one of their top pitchers for a couple of years. After the 1985 season, and the arrival of Roger Clemens, Ojeda was considered expedable and was traded to the Mets in an eight-player swap.

As fate would have it, the main player going to Boston was pitcher Calvin Schiraldi, who was a good minor league pitcher for the Mets. He would play an important role in the 1986 World Series as well. Ojeda was simply fantastic for the Mets in 1986 leading the team in wins with 18, while losing only 5 games, and pitching to a 2.57 ERA.

His wide assortment of pitches kept batters fooled and he was tough to hit even though he didn't possess an over-powering pitch of any kind.

Answer: Lee Mazzilli

Mazzilli had been traded away from the Mets after the 1982 season in the deal that netted them Ron Darling and Walt Terrell. Mazzilli had spent time with Texas, the Yankees, and the Pittsburgh Pirates, and when the Pirates released him in 1986, the Mets were quick to pick him up for their roster to replace a disgruntled and non-productive George Foster. Mazzilli played an important role down the stretch for the Mets as a pinch-hitter and part-time outfielder.

Answer: 108-54

Yes they did. The Mets posted one of the best winning percentages in National League history, winning 108 games, posting a .667 percentage, and winning their division by an astounding 21-1/2 games over the second place Philadelphia Phillies.

Answer: Both had pitched for the Mets previously

Both Ryan and Scott started their careers with the Mets. Ryan pitched for the Mets as early as 1966, and was part of their championship in 1969. Scott started with the Mets in 1979, and was heralded as a top-notch starting pitcher but the Mets couldn't wait for him to develop, and he was traded to Houston following the 1982 season for outfielder Danny Heep.

Answer: Jesse Orosco

Orosco won three games in relief. The only game of the series won by a Mets starting pitcher was game two where Bob Ojeda was credited with the win. The Astros' Mike Scott was credited with both of his team's vicotries during the series.

Answer: Lenny Dykstra

The Mets starting pitcher, Ron Darling couldn't find his way in the first two innings, and Houston tagged him for 4 runs. Darling righted himself after that and the Mets were able to tie the game with 4 runs of their own in the 6th inning highlighted by a three run homerun by Darryl Strawberry.

The Mets gave the lead back the very next inning, when Houston scored an unearned run. It stayed 5-4 until the bottom of the ninth inning when Wally Backman, the second baseman for the Mets, bunted his way on base. Dykstra followed with what was the biggest hit of his career to that point, sending a fly ball down the right field line that cleared the wall and allowed the Mets to take a 2-1 lead in the best of seven series.

Answer: Billy Hatcher

It was Hatcher, a light hitting reserve outfielder for the Astros who hit a 14th inning home run off Jesse Orosco to re-tie the game after the Mets went ahead with a run in the top of the 14th inning. The Mets appeared destined to lose this game after Houston scored three first inning runs off Mets starting pitcher Bob Odeja.

He settled after that and kept the Mets in the game, although the Mets couldn't do much with Astros pitcher Bob Knepper. A loss in this game would mean that the Mets would have to face Mike Scott, who was virtually unhittable to them (under accusations of illegally "doctoring" the baseball) in game seven.

The Mets waited until the 9th inning to score three runs and tie the game. It then bacame a battle of the bullpens. After numerous scoring oppurtunities passed them by, the Mets finally went ahead in the 14th inning, only to have Hatcher hit his famous home run in the bottom half of the inning.

The Mets eventually won the game in the 16th inning, scoring three times, but the Astros didn't go down without a fight, scoring two times in their half of the 16th inning before finally succumbing.

Answer: Lenny Dykstra

Dykstra led off the game with a home run, and by the time the first inning was over, the Mets had scored four times off Boston starter Dennis "Oil Can" Boyd. Bob Ojeda pitched well against his former team and the Mets cruised to a 7-1 victory and only trailed in the series 2-1 at that point.

Answer: Dave Henderson

Henderson led off the 10th inning with a home run off Mets relief pitcher Rick Aguilera. The Mets had tied the game in the 8th inning and had blown a big chance to win the game in the 9th, after having two men on base with no one out. So the game went to the 10th inning and Henderson hit his home run.

The Red Sox added another run in the inning to go ahead by a 5-3 score. So going to the Mets half of the 10th inning, they were behind by two runs.

Answer: Wild pitch

It was so bad that a scoreboard operator accidently put up the message, "Congratulations Boston Red Sox 1986 World Champions", on the Shea Stadium message board after the second out. After the Mets scored the first run that inning, Calvin Schiraldi, the Boston pitcher, was replaced by Bob Stanley, who battled with Wilson. Wilson fouled off several pitches before Stanley threw one low and inside which forced Wilson to jump out of the way.

The ball went right past the catcher and was scored as a wild pitch, allowing the tying run to score from third base. So the Red Sox had blown a two run lead after two outs and nobody on base.

It got worse for them. Wilson fouled off several more pitches before hitting a slow ground ball to first base. Bill Buckner, the Red Sox first baseman, who had bad legs, bent dow to pick it up, but in his haste to pick it up and beat Wilson to first base for the final out, he allowed to ball to roll past him, and the winning run scored for the Mets, tying the World Series at 3 games each.

Answer: Ray Knight

Knight had a good series, batting .391 with 9 hits including a home run and five RBI, but it was when he got them that counted. He drove in the first run in the 10th inning of game six prolonging the game and setting the stage for Mookie Wilson's famous at bat.

He also homered in the sixth inning of game seven, putting the Mets into the lead to stay and ultimately winning the World Series. The Mets had fallen behind in game seven, as was their pattern in many games during the postseason. The had come from three runs down in the 6th inning to tie the game. Knight led off the Mets 7th with a home run to left center field putting the Mets in front by a 4-3 score.

They eventually won the game by 8-5 score to become World Champions. Knight then signed with Baltimore as a free agent for the 1987 season.