Kevin Baez - His Mets Career 1990,1992,1993

Brooklyn born shortstop Kevin Baez enjoyed two cups of coffee with the Mets as a September call up in 1990 and 1992. His longest stint with the Mets came in 1993 when he appeared in 52 games. Unfortunately for Baez he was a slick fielder who could not hit and was not able to stick with the big club. In 63 games for the Mets over three seasons he hit just .170 with 7 RBI’s.


The Mets traded him to the Baltimore Orioles in March of 1994 for David Segui.

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Carlos Baerga - His Met Career 1996-1998

On July 29, 1996 the Mets acquired All-Star second baseman Carlos Baerga from the Cleveland Indians in exchange for Jose Vizcaino and Jeff Kent. Though Baerga was having an off year he was still considered by many to be one of the top hitters in baseball with a penchant for hitting frozen ropes. But it was obvious from the start that Baerga was not the same hitter. Injuries did play a factor but he still only hit .193 the rest of the season.

Mike Bacsik - His Mets Career 2002-2003

The Mets acquired Mike Bacsik from the Cleveland Indians in the same trade that brought them Roberto Alomar prior to the 2002 season.

He made his Mets debut on July 5, 2002 defeating the Florida Marlins 5 to 3 to earn his first major league victory. He would finish out the season with the Mets posting a 3 and 2 record with a 4.37 ERA. Bacsik made the team out of spring training in 2003 but struggled mightily posting a 10.19 ERA in 5 games and was sent back to the minor leagues in the middle of June where he finished out the season.

Mike Bacsik signed as a free agent with the Texas Rangers in the off-season.

In 16 games for the Mets Mike Bacsik won 4 and lost 4 while posting a 5.77 ERA.

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Wally Backman - His Mets Career 1980-1988

Wally Backman was a hardnosed gritty player who came to symbolize the feistiness and tenacity of the 1986 World Championship team.

He started his Met career as a September call up in 1980 and would spend parts of the next four seasons with the Mets. He showed signs of promise over that time but could never stick with the big club, injuries also played a factor. During that time he spent much of the time with the Mets Triple A affiliate the Tidewater Tides. It was in the minors where Backman caught the eye of manager Dave Johnson who liked his style of play. When Johnson was named the manager of the Mets in 1984 he immediately made Backman his starting second baseman. and leadoff hitter. Backman would hit .280 while stealing 32 bases as the Mets surprised many and won 90 games for their first winning season since 1976. He quickly became a fan favorite with his hardnosed style of play, leading the league in dirty uniforms.

Manny Aybar - His Mets Career 2005

Manny Aybar was a journeyman pitcher when the Mets signed him as a free agent prior to the 2005 season. He would go on to pitch 25.1 innings in 22 appearances for the Mets all out of the bullpen. Aybar didn’t have much success posting a 6.04 ERA and the Mets shipped him down to the minors in the middle of the season.


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Luis Ayala - His Mets Career 2008

The Mets acquired Luis Ayala from the Washington Nationals on August 17, 2008 in exchange for Anderson Hernandez hoping to bolster their beleaguered bullpen as they tried to hold off the Phillies and reach the postseason.

Ayala would pitch in 19 games for the Mets down the stretch winning one game while losing two and did manage to save nine games, but he also blew two saves and was unable to help the Mets avoid a second straight September collapse

Luis Ayala signed as a free agent with the Minnesota Twins following the season.

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Benny Ayala - His Mets Career 1974,1976

Benny Ayala made his Mets as well as his Major League debut on August 27, 1974 against the Houston Astros. In the second inning he hit a home run off of Tom Griffin becoming the first Mets player to hit a home run in their first Major League at bat.. That would pretty much be the highlight of his career while playing with Mets.

Ayala would finish out the 74 season with the Mets playing in 23 games hitting 235 with 2 homers and 8 RBI’s. After failing to make the team out of Spring Training in 1975, Ayala would play the entire season with the Tidewater Tides, the Mets AAA affiliate. He returned to the big club in 1976 but would last only 22 games hitting just .115 with a homer and 2 RBI’s. He was sent back down to the minors and would not return to Queens. The Mets traded him to the St Louis Cardinals prior to the 1977 season for Doug Clarey.

In 45 games for the Mets Ayala hit .202 with 3 homers and 10 runs batted in.

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Pedro Astacio - His Mets Career 2002-2003

Pedro Astacio who was a solid pitcher for the Dodgers, Rockies and Astros was signed by the Mets as a free agent prior to the 2002 season. He was the Mets best pitcher to start the season going 11 and 4 over his first 22 starts and was mentioned as a possible All-Star. But over his final 9 starts fatigue and arm injuries took over and he won only 1 game while losing 7. He finished the season with a 12 and 11 record with a 4.79 ERA.

Astacio returned for the 2003 season but injuries sidelined him after just 7 starts and he was placed on the disabled list thus ending his time with the Mets. He was 3 and 2 when he was placed on the disabled list.

In 38 starts for the Mets Pedro won 15 games while losing 13 and posted a 5.20 earned run average.

He was granted free agency following the season where he signed with the Boston Red Sox.

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Bob Aspromonte - His Mets Career 1971

Bob Aspromonte a utility infielder who started his career with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1956 ended it in 1971 with the Mets. He was the last Brooklyn Dodger to play in the majors.

The Mets acquired the native Brooklynite on December 1, 1970 from the Atlanta Braves in exchange for Ron Herbel. Despite hitting just .225 for the Mets Aspromonte became somewhat of a fan favorite for the 1971 Mets. He would play in 104 games, mostly at 3rd base, for the Mets hitting 5 home runs while driving in 33.

His best game with the Mets would be on May 18 against his former team the Atlanta Braves. He hit two home runs and drove in 3 runs.

The Mets released him following the season ending his playing career.


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Tucker Ashford - His Mets Career 1983

Tucker Ashford, a journeyman utility infielder, was acquired from the Yankees on April 18, 1983. He made his Mets debut on May 6 the same day another Met made his debut, a fellow by the name of Darryl Strawberry. Strawberry would go on to become one the most popular and successful players in franchise history. Ashford would go on to have a rather uneventful career with the Mets playing in just 35 games in 1983 and would be traded to the Kansas City Royals following the season in exchange for pitcher Tom Edens.

Ashford would hit just .179 for the Mets while driving in two runs.

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Richie Ashburn - His Mets Career 1962

Richie Ashburn, a former all-star with the Phillies, has the distinction of being the first hitter in New York Mets history, he flew out to centerfield against Larry Jackson of the St Louis Cardinals. He would later score the first run in franchise history when Charlie Neal singled him home in the third inning.

In the Mets inaugural season, a season in which the Mets set the record for futility by losing 120 games, Ashburn was one of the few bright spots. In 135 games as the Mets primary lead off hitter, he hit .306 and was selected to be the teams first all-star.

Unfortunately for the Mets Ashburn was at the end of his career and 1962 would be his only season with the Mets, as he retired from playing following the season.

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Gerry Arrigo - His Mets Career 1966

The Mets purchased Gerry Arrigo from the Cincinnati Reds in May 20, 1966. He made his Met debut two days later pitching three innings of relief in the Mets 5-0 loss to the San Francisco Giants. Arrigo would go on to pitch in another 16 games for the Mets as both a starter and reliever. He would win three games and lose three games before being sold back to the Reds on August 16th ending his Met career.





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Tony Armas Jr. - His Mets Career 2008

Tony Armas Jr was a promising young pitcher who was plagued by injuries during his career while playing for the Montreal Expos and Washington Nationals.

The Mets took a chance on Armas by signing him to a minor league contract in 2008. He made his Met debut in July 1 against the St Louis Cardinals and pitched a strong six innings to earn the win. Armas would pitch in two more games for the Mets out of the bullpen before being sent back to the minors.

In three games for the Mets he was 1-0 with a 7.56 ERA.


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Kevin Appier - His Mets Career 2001

When Met pitcher Mike Hampton, who had helped the Mets reach the World Series in 2000, signed as a free agent with the Colorado Rockies following the season the Mets looked to replace his 15 wins by signing Kevin Appier. Appier had won 15 games for the Oakland A’s in 2000.

Appier had a decent if unspectacular season with the Mets winning 11 games while losing 10 with a 3.57 ERA. With the Mets making a late season push to make the playoffs Appier really turned it up down the stretch. In his final six starts Appier went 4-0 with the a 1.87 ERA. But despite his heroics the Mets fell short in their attempt to return to the postseason for the third consecutive season.

Following the season the Mets traded Kevin Appier to the Anaheim Angels for Mo Vaughn, a former American League Most Valuable Player who had missed the entire 2001 season due to injuries.


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Bob Apodaca - His Mets Career 1974 - 1977

Bob Apodaca made his Mets debut on September 18, 1973 exactly four years later he pitched in his last big league game. In between Apodaca showed promise as a relief pitcher but was often injured which significantly hindered his career.

His best season with the Mets was 1975 when he led the team with 13 saves and posted a 1.49 ERA in 84.2 innings. In his five seasons with the Mets Apodaca pitched in 184 games winning 16 games while losing 25 and saving another 26. He also posted a very respectable 2.86 ERA over 361.1 innings.

After missing the entire 1978 and 1979 seasons with arm injuries the Mets released him thus ending his big league career.

Bob Apodaca also served as the Mets pitching coach under Bobby Valentine from 1996-1999, but was fired midway through the 1999 season.

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Rick Anderson - His Mets Career 1986

After spending 8 seasons in the Mets minor league system Rick Anderson finally made it to the show on June 9, 1986 as a 30 year old rookie. In his major league debut Anderson threw seven solid innings against the Phillies allowing just 4 hits and no earned runs.

He would pinch in 15 games for the Mets during their World Championship season as both a reliever and spot starter. He posted a 2 and 1 record with 1 save in 49.1 innings with a 2.72 ERA.

Unfortunately the Mets decided to leave him off the postseason roster instead taking Randy Niemann who was a lefty.

Following the season Anderson was traded along with Ed Hearn and Mauro Gozzo to the Kansas City Royals for David Cone and Chris Jelic.

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Marlon Anderson - His Mets Career 2005, 2007-2009

Marlon Anderson was signed by the Mets as a free agent prior to the 2005 season with the organization looking to use him as a utility player and pinch hitter. He had a solid season for the Mets in 2005 hitting 7 home runs and batting over .300 as a pinch hitter.

The highlight of his 2005 season came on June 11 when he hit a pinch hit inside the park home run in the bottom of the ninth inning to tie game against the Anaheim Angels, a game the Mets would win in extra innings.

Jason Anderson - His Mets Career 2003

Jason Anderson was acquired from the Mets cross town rivals the New York Yankees on July 16, 2003 in exchange for Mets closer Armando Benitez. The Mets also acquired Anderson Garcia and Ryan Bicondoa in the trade.

He made his Met debut on August 29, 2003 pitching two innings of relief against the Philadelphia Phillies. He debut was inauspicious to say the least as he allowed three runs in two innings. Anderson would pitch a total of 10 2/3 innings in six appearances for the Mets posting a 5.03 ERA with 0 and 0 record

The Mets placed Jason Anderson on waivers in the off-season and was claimed by the Cleveland Indians thus ending his tenure in New York.

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Craig Anderson - His Mets Career 1962-1964

Craig Anderson was selected from the St Louis Cardinals organization in the 1962 expansion draft and would go on to pitch in 50 games as an original Met, the most of any pitcher in their inaugural season. On May 12th 1962 Anderson won both games of a doubleheader against the Milwaukee Braves pushing his record to 3 and 1. It would be his last victory of the season as well as his career. He would go on to lose his next 16 decisions in 1962 to finish with a 3 and 17 record.

Anderson spent the bulk of the next two seasons in the minors with the Mets Triple A affiliate the Buffalo Bisons, but did manage to make it back to the big leagues for two cups of coffee in 1963 and 1964. In seven appearances over the two seasons he went 0 and 3.

Chip Ambres - His New York Mets Career 2007

The New York Mets signed Chip Ambres, who had toiled in the Marlins, Red Sox and Royals organizations, to a minor league contract in December of 2005. He would make his Mets debut on July 20, 2007 when he pinch hit for Pedro Feliciano in the Mets 4 -1 victory over the Dodgers.

Two days later Ambres would be the hero as the Mets would once again defeat the Dodgers. With the game tied at four, Ambres singled home Lastings Milledge with the winning run in the 10th inning. It was his only hit in three at bats for the Mets and would be the highlight of his Met career. He was optioned back to Triple A New Orleans the next day where he finished out the season,

After the season he signed as a free agent with the San Diego Padres.

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