Standing at a powerful 6’1’’ and 206 pounds, Tom Seaver was a devastating sight for any hitter to see. Besides the intimidating mound presence, Seaver’s slider, curveball, dirty rising fastball, and later a changeup proved that he was in control of the at bat. In his 20 year career spanning from 1967 to 1986, Seaver was able to win 311 games, strike out 3,640 batters (sixth most all time), post a 2.86 ERA, and throw an absurd 231 complete games with 61 of them being shutouts. He also threw 4,782.2 innings, good for nineteenth most all time. 23 years after being born in Fresno, California, Seaver received the National League Rookie of the Year with the Mets by winning 16 games, posting a 2.76 ERA, and striking out 170 batters in 251 innings of work.
1969 was a great year for the Mets. They won their first World Series in franchise history and Tom Seaver took home the Cy Young award. For the first of three times, Seaver led the National League in wins to go along with a 2.21 ERA in 273.1 innings. He would the Cy Young award again in 1973 by pitching 290 innings and leading the league in strikeouts with 251, ERA with 2.08, WHIP with 0.98, and tied for the lead with 18 complete games. Two years later, he would win a league leading 22 games and strike out 243 batters, leading him to claim the Cy Young.
Though the Mets pitching staff was centered around him, Seaver was traded midseason to the Cincinnati Reds for a bunch of hopeful stars. Needless to say, the Reds got the better package making this deal one of the most lopsided trades in the history of baseball. Seaver never won the Cy Young again, but he was able to put up five double digit win seasons.
For the last five years, Seaver bounced around with the Mets and White Sox before calling it quits with the Red Sox in 1986. The Fresno native was able to put up record numbers and collect 12 All Star during his Major League tenure. Seaver went into the Hall of Fame on the first ballot in 1992 wearing a Mets cap. The Mets retired Seaver’s jersey number 41 on June 24, 1988. Whether you remember him as a Met or Red, Tom Seaver is among legends with his Hall of Fame statistics.
References
Baseball Reference
ESPN
MLB.com
Mets.com