The Evan and Tiki crew continued to reveal the list of the 20 best New York sports draft picks of the last 50 years, and this time, two Mets make the next round of reveals, as do two Big Apple hockey legends.
Here are numbers 16-13 on the countdown, with the next four players being revealed on Thursday afternoon:
16: Brian Leetch, 1st round, 1986
The Rangers were a consistently mediocre team when they took Leetch ninth overall, and less than a decade later, he was a cornerstone on the last Blueshirts team to hoist the Stanley Cup. Leetch won the Conn Smythe in that unforgettable Rangers season, adding to a trophy case that also includes two Norris nods, the 1988-89 Calder trophy, and of course, a Hall of Fame induction.
15: Clark Gillies, 1st round, 1974
Staying on the ice, the Islanders added one of their most accomplished players in franchise history with the fourth overall pick in Gillies, who had no trouble living up to the hype. At 20 years old, he led the league in games played as a rookie, and did it again a year later. When it was all said and done, Gillies was a pillar of New York’s four straight Stanley Cups, was named to two All-Star teams, and was inducted into the Hall of Fame.
14: Darryl Strawberry, 1st round, 1980
Darryl Strawberry carried a load of expectations on his back as a No. 1 overall pick, and all he did was win Rookie of the Year by hitting 26 home runs in 1980, then earned seven straight All-Star nods with the Mets. His 1988 season was one of the best in Mets history, posting a .911 OPS with a league-leading 39 home runs en route to a Silver Slugger award and finishing second in the MVP voting. He also helped the Mets to their last World Series title in 1986.
Strawberry will finally be forever immortalized in Queens this year when his number his retired at Citi Field.
13: Dwight Gooden, 1st round, 1982
You can’t talk about Darryl without Doc, who was another must-see Mets prospect in the 1980s, and the most dominant Met starter until Jacob deGrom reached his peak. Gooden’s early years with the Mets were pure brilliance, leading the league in strikeouts back-to-back years to start his career, and posted a league-leading 1.53 ERA in his second season with New York. In 1986, Gooden pitched to a 2.84 ERA and helped the Mets to their most recent championship.
Like Strawberry, Gooden’s number will hang forever at Citi Field.