The New York Mets signed infielder José Reyes out of the Dominican Republic in 1999, when he was just 16 years old. The signing turned out to be one of the great finds in the history of the franchise.
Between 2003 and 2011 -- his first stint in Queens -- Reyes slashed .292/.341/.441, while stealing 370 bases. Across parts of nine seasons, Reyes led baseball in hits once, stolen bases three times and triples on four occasions. The speedy shortstop made four All-Star Game appearances, and even won a batting title in his contract year of 2011, when he hit .337.
Reyes would return to the Mets for the final three seasons of his career, but after stints with the Miami Marlins, Toronto Blue Jays and Colorado Rockies, he was no longer the same player.
Had the Mets re-signed Reyes after the 2011 season, he may very well have gone down as a franchise icon. Instead, he departed in free agency to sign a six-year/$106 million deal with the division-rival Marlins. Reyes still has a tremendous legacy with the organization, but fell short of cracking our list of the nine greatest players in Mets history:
9. Carlos Beltrán (2005-2011)
Carlos Beltran is one of the greatest players in Mets history.
(Chris McGrath/Getty Images)
Best Season as a Met: 2006 - .275/.388/.594 with 41 home runs, 116 RBIs, 95 walks, .982 OPS, 150 OPS+ and a 7.8 fWAR
Career Stats as a Met: .280/.369/.500 with 149 home runs, 559 RBIs, 449 walks, 878 hits, .869 OPS, 129 OPS+ and 29.0 fWAR
After turning in one of the great postseason runs in MLB history as a member of the 2004 Houston Astros, the Mets lured the five-tool outfielder to Queens with a lucrative seven-year/$119 million deal. It turned out to be one of the greatest signings that the franchise has ever made, as Beltrán won three Gold Glove Awards and made five All-Star Game appearances as a Met. We'll see if his role in the 2017 Astros' sign-stealing scandal prevents him from getting into the Hall of Fame. If he's ever enshrined in Cooperstown, Beltrán may very well go in with a blank cap, like Mike Mussina and Roy Halladay did. However, he played more games with the Mets than any other franchise.
8. Keith Hernandez (1983-1989)
Keith Hernandez is one of the greatest players in Mets history.
(Stephen Dunn/Getty Images)
Best Season as a Met: 1986 - .310/.413/.446 with 13 home runs, 83 RBIs, 94 walks, .859 OPS, 140 OPS+ and a 5.8 fWAR
Career Stats as a Met: .297/.387/.429 with 80 home runs, 468 RBIs, 471 walks, 939 hits, .816 OPS, 129 OPS+ and 25.1 fWAR
The Mets acquired Hernandez in June of 1983 from the St. Louis Cardinals, a team that he won a National League MVP as a member of and had helped to win a World Series the prior season. As a Met, Hernandez built a resume nearly as impressive, posting three top-10 finishes in MVP voting, including finishing runner up to Hall of Famer Ryne Sandberg for the award in 1984. Across six-and-a-half seasons with the Mets, Hernandez made three All-Star teams and won five Gold Glove Awards. Hernandez helped the Mets to win their second World Series title in 1986.
7. Darryl Strawberry (1983-1990)
Darryl Strawberry is one of the greatest players in Mets history.
(Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)
Best Season as a Met: 1988 - .269/.366/.545 with 39 home runs, 101 RBIs, 85 walks, .911 OPS, 165 OPS+ and a 5.3 fWAR
Career Stats as a Met: .263/.359/.520 with 252 home runs, 733 RBIs, 580 walks, 1,025 hits, .878 OPS, 145 OPS+ and 35.7 fWAR
One of the most talented players that the game has ever seen, Strawberry spent the first eight years of his career on the Mets, putting himself on a Hall of Fame trajectory. He won the Rookie of the Year Award in 1983, and was an All-Star every year from 1984 to 1991. Strawberry was the runner-up to Kirk Gibson for National League MVP in 1988, and finished in the top 10 in MVP voting four times during his time with the Mets. Strawberry won the first of his three World Series titles as a Met in 1986.
6. Jerry Koosman (1967-1978)
Jerry Koosman is one of the greatest pitchers in Mets history.
(Malcolm Emmons/USA Today)
Best Season as a Met: 1976 - 21-10 with a 2.69 ERA, 121 ERA+, 2.83 FIP, 1.096 WHIP, 200 strikeouts, 17 complete games and a 4.9 fWAR
Career Stats as a Met: 140-137 with a 3.09 ERA, 113 ERA+, 3.12 FIP, 1.219 WHIP, 1,799 strikeouts, 108 complete games and 41.1 fWAR
One of three players in franchise history with their number retired, Koosman spent the first 12 years of his 19-season career with the Mets. Over that period, Koosman was a workhorse, pitching 225 or more innings on eight different occasions. Koosman -- just 26 at the time -- went 2-0 with a 2.04 ERA in the 1969 World Series, helping "The Miracle Mets" to defeat the Baltimore Orioles for their first title in team history. In 1976, his finest individual season, Koosman finished second to Randy Jones in National League Cy Young Award voting.
5. Jacob deGrom (2014-Present)
Jacob deGrom is one of the best players in Mets history.
(Al Bello/Getty Images)
Best Season as a Met: 2018 - 10-9 with a 1.70 ERA, 218 ERA+, 1.98 FIP, 0.912 WHIP, 269 strikeouts, one complete game and a 9.0 fWAR
Career Stats as a Met: 77-53 with a 2.50 ERA, 157 ERA+, 2.64 FIP, 1.011 WHIP, 1,505 strikeouts, four complete games and 38.9 fWAR
While he hasn't necessarily been a workhorse, a healthy deGrom is one of the most dominant pitchers baseball has seen in the last 25 years, and perhaps ever. He won back-to-back National League Cy Young Awards in 2018 and 2019, and was so dominant in just 92 innings in 2021 that he still managed to finish ninth in voting for the award. There may come a day where some question if the 2014 National League Rookie of the Year has enough of a body of work to be a Hall of Famer, but there's no one that would argue that at the height of his powers, the flamethrower has been the most dominant pitcher in the sport.
4. Mike Piazza (1998-2005)
Mike Piazza is one of the greatest Mets players ever.
(David Seelig /Allsport)
Best Season as a Met: 2000 - .324/.398/.614 with 38 home runs, 113 RBIs, 58 walks, 1.012 OPS, 155 OPS+ and a 5.8 fWAR
Career Stats as a Met: .296/.373/.542 with 220 home runs, 655 RBIs, 424 walks, 1,028 hits, .915 OPS, 136 OPS+ and 24.5 fWAR
Piazza was traded twice during the 1998 season, first from the Los Angeles Dodgers to the then-Florida Marlins, and then from the Marlins to the Mets. In trading Preston Wilson, Geoff Goetz and Ed Yarnall for Piazza, then-general manager Steve Phillips made one of the greatest trades in MLB history. Piazza solidified his place as the greatest hitting catcher of all time during his seven-and-a-half seasons with the Mets, slashing .296/.373/.542 with 220 home runs, 655 RBIs and a .915 OPS. While he did help the Mets to reach the 2000 World Series, Piazza's most iconic moment with the team came when he hit a go-ahead home run in the team's first game back after 9/11. Piazza was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2016, and his plaque features him wearing a Mets cap, despite some excellent seasons as a Los Angeles Dodger. That same summer, the Mets retired Piazza's No. 31.
3. David Wright (2004-2016; 2018)
David Wright is one of the greatest players in Mets history.
(Nick Laham/Getty Images)
Best Season as a Met: 2007 - .325/.416/.546 with 30 home runs, 107 RBIs, 94 walks, .963 OPS, 149 OPS+ and an 8.4 fWAR
Career Stats as a Met: .296/.376/.491 with 242 home runs, 970 RBIs, 762 walks, 1,777 hits, .867 OPS, 133 OPS+ and 52.0 fWAR
Injuries may have prevented Wright from solidifying himself as one of the greatest third basemen in MLB history, but there's little doubt that he's one of the best players to ever wear a Mets uniform. "Captain America" was the type of player that everyone wanted on their team, because at his peak, he was an excellent defender that was going to hit north of .300 and hit around 30 home runs. From here, the Mets should probably retire the seven-time All-Star's No. 5 at some point.
2. Dwight "Doc" Gooden (1984-1994)
Dwight Gooden is one of the greatest players in Mets history.
(Tim DeFrisco/Getty Images)
Best Season as a Met: 1985 - 24-4 with a 1.53 ERA, 229 ERA+, 2.13 FIP, 0.965 WHIP, 268 strikeouts, 16 complete games and an 8.9 fWAR
Career Stats as a Met: 147-85 with a 3.10 ERA, 116 ERA+, 2.77 FIP, 1.175 WHIP, 1,875 strikeouts, 67 complete games and 52.3 fWAR
Gooden had one of the most dominant starts to a career that a pitcher has ever had, going 91-35 with a 2.62 ERA, 2.46 FIP and edging out Roger Clemens for the league-lead in fWAR among pitchers between 1984 and 1988. Mind you, Gooden was 19 in his first major league season, and when he won the 1985 National League Cy Young Award, he was just 20 years old. While Gooden struggled against the Boston Red Sox in the 1986 World Series, he was tremendous in the NLCS against the Astros, as he posted a minuscule 1.06 ERA in two starts. In total, Gooden is the all-time leader among Mets starting pitchers in win-loss percentage, home runs per nine and championship win probability added.
1. Tom Seaver (1967-1977; 1983)
Tom Seaver is one of the greatest players in Mets history.
(Malcolm Emmons/USA Today)
Best Season as a Met: 1971 - 20-10 with a 1.76 ERA, 194 ERA+, 1.93 FIP, 0.946 WHIP, 289 strikeouts, 21 complete games and a 9.1 fWAR
Career Stats as a Met: 198-124 with a 2.57 ERA, 136 ERA+, 2.67 FIP, 1.076 WHIP, 2,541 strikeouts, 171 complete games and 67.1 fWAR
The original "Tom Terrific," Seaver is, by just about any metric, one of the 10 greatest starting pitchers in MLB history, if not higher. As a Met, Seaver won the 1967 National League Rookie of the Year Award and three NL Cy Young Awards. Additionally, Seaver led baseball in ERA on three occasions, WHIP three times, FIP four times and strikeouts five times. Seager was the best player on the first Mets team to win a World Series, and dons a Mets cap on his Hall of Fame plaque. Seaver's No. 41 is retired by the Mets, the team that he made 10 All-Star teams as a member of.
Previous Entires in This Series
- The 9 Greatest Players in Giants History
- The 9 Greatest Players in Astros History
- The 9 Greatest Players in Expos/Nationals History
- The 9 Greatest Players in Rangers History
- The 9 Greatest Players in Mariners History
LISTEN NOW on the Audacy App
Sign Up and Follow Audacy Sports
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
