New York Mets facts for kids

Quick facts for kids New York Mets
2024 New York Mets season
Established in 1962
Team logo Cap insignia
Major league affiliations
National League (1962–present) East Division (1969–present)
Current uniform
Retired numbers	14 17 24 31 36 37 41 42 Shea Ralph Kiner Bob Murphy
Colors
Blue, orange, white
Name
New York Mets (1962–present)
Other nicknames
The Metropolitans The Amazins The Metsies The Miracle Mets (1969) The Amazin' Mets (1969) The Bad Guys (1986)
Ballpark
Citi Field (2009–present) Shea Stadium (1964–2008) Polo Grounds (1962–1963)
Major league titles
World Series titles (2)	1969 1986
NL Pennants (5)	1969 1973 1986 2000 2015
NL East Division titles (6)	1969 1973 1986 1988 2006 2015
Wild card berths (4)	1999 2000 2016 2022
Front office
Principal owner(s)	Steve Cohen Alexandra M. Cohen
President	Steve Cohen (CEO)
President of baseball operations	David Stearns
General manager	Vacant
Manager	Carlos Mendoza
Mascot(s)	Mr. Met Mrs. Met

The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East Division. They are one of two major league clubs based in New York City, the other being the American League's (AL) New York Yankees. One of baseball's first expansion teams, the Mets were founded in 1962 to replace New York's departed NL teams, the Brooklyn Dodgers and the New York Giants. The team's colors evoke the blue of the Dodgers and the orange of the Giants.

For the 1962 and 1963 seasons, the Mets played home games at the Polo Grounds in Manhattan before moving to Queens. From 1964 to 2008, the Mets played their home games at Shea Stadium, named after William Shea, the founder of the Continental League, a proposed third major league, the announcement of which prompted their admission as an NL expansion team. Since 2009, the Mets have played their home games at Citi Field next to the site where Shea Stadium once stood.

In their inaugural season, the Mets posted a record of 40–120, the worst regular-season record since MLB went to a 162-game schedule. The team never finished better than second-to-last in the 1960s until the "Miracle Mets" beat the Baltimore Orioles in the 1969 World Series, considered one of the biggest upsets in World Series history despite the Mets having won 100 games that season. The Mets have qualified for the postseason ten times, winning the World Series twice (1969 and 1986) and winning five National League pennants (most recently in 2000 and 2015), and six National League East division titles.

Since 2020, the Mets have been owned by billionaire hedge fund manager Steve Cohen, who purchased the team for $2.4 billion. As of 2023, Forbes ranked the Mets as the sixth most valuable MLB team, valued at $2.9 billion.

As of the end of the 2023 regular season, the team's overall win–loss record is 4,727–5,075–8 (.482).

Franchise history

1960s: Founding and first World Series

After the 1957 season, the Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Giants relocated from New York to California to become the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Francisco Giants, leaving the largest city in the United States with no National League franchise and only one major league team, the New York Yankees of the American League (AL). With the threat of a New York team joining the new Continental League, the National League expanded by adding the New York Mets following a proposal from William Shea. In a symbolic reference to New York's earlier National League teams, the new team took as its primary colors the blue of the Dodgers and the orange of the Giants, both of which are colors also featured on the Flag of New York City. The nickname "Mets" was adopted: being a natural shorthand to the club's corporate name, the "New York Metropolitan Baseball Club, Inc.", which hearkened back to the "Metropolitans" (a New York team in the American Association from 1880 to 1887), and its brevity was advantageous for newspaper headlines.

The 1962 Mets posted a 40–120 record, a major league record for the most losses in a season since 1899. During the 1963 season the team featured a pitcher, Carlton Willey, who was having a great year, pitching four shut-outs, when he incurred an injury and finished with a 9–14 win–loss record. The '63 squad also had Duke Snider, who hit his 2,000th hit and later his 400th home run and earned a berth to the 1963 All-Star Game. In 1964, the Mets hired Yogi Berra as a coach under Casey Stengel's coaching staff.

In 1966, the Mets famously bypassed future Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson in the amateur draft, instead selecting Steve Chilcott, who never played in the majors. But the following year, they acquired future Hall of Famer Tom Seaver in a lottery. Seaver helped the 1969 "Miracle Mets" win the new National League East division title, then defeat the Atlanta Braves to win the National League pennant and the heavily favored Baltimore Orioles to win the 1969 World Series.

1970s: Second pennant and the "Midnight Massacre"

In 1973, the Mets rallied from 5th place to win the division, despite a record of only 82–79. They shocked the heavily favored Cincinnati Reds' "Big Red Machine" in the NLCS and pushed the defending World Series champion Oakland Athletics to a seventh game, but lost the series. Notably, 1973 was the only NL East title between 1970 and 1980 that was not won by either the Philadelphia Phillies or the Pittsburgh Pirates. Star pitcher Tom Seaver was traded in 1977, on a day remembered as "the Midnight Massacre", and the Mets fell into last place for several years.

1980s: Success, Wilpon takes over and second World Series championship

In January 1980, the Payson heirs sold the Mets franchise to the Doubleday publishing company for $21.1 million, a record amount at that time. Nelson Doubleday, Jr. was named chairman of the board while minority shareholder Fred Wilpon took the role of club president. In February, Wilpon hired longtime Baltimore Orioles executive Frank Cashen as general manager who began the process of rebuilding the Mets much in the same way he developed the Orioles in the late 1960s and early 1970s.

The franchise turned around in the mid-1980s. During this time the Mets drafted slugger Darryl Strawberry (#1 in 1980) and 1985 Cy Young Award winner Dwight Gooden (#5 in 1982). Former National League MVP and perennial Gold Glove winner Keith Hernandez was obtained by the Mets in 1983 from the St. Louis Cardinals. This began a rivalry between the two teams that lasted throughout the rest of the 1980s, during which the teams would swap NL East titles between 1985 and 1988, Mets players openly trolled the Cardinals, and Cardinals fans nicknamed the Mets "pond scum."

After finishing their first three campaigns of the 1980s decade in either 5th or 6th (last) place, in 1984, new manager Davey Johnson was promoted from the helm of the AAA Tidewater Tides. He led the Mets to a second-place, 90–72 record, their first winning season since 1976.

In 1985, they acquired Hall of Fame catcher Gary Carter from the Montreal Expos and won 98 games, but narrowly missed the playoffs. In 1986, they won the division with a record of 108–54, one of the best in National League history. They then won a dramatic NLCS in six games over the Houston Astros. The sixth game of the series lasted sixteen innings, the longest playoff game in history until 2005. The Mets came within one strike of losing the World Series against the Boston Red Sox before a series of hits and defensive miscues ultimately led to an error by Boston's Bill Buckner which gave the Mets a Game 6 victory. The Mets won their second World Series title in seven games.

In 1987 the Mets declined to re-sign World Series MVP Ray Knight, who then signed with the Baltimore Orioles and also traded away the flexible Kevin Mitchell to the Padres for long-ball threat Kevin McReynolds. Weeks later Mets' ace Dwight Gooden was admitted to a clinic. Despite Gooden struggling in the first few months of the 1987 season, "Dr. K" rebounded, as did the team. It was during the tough times that the Mets made a great long-term deal, trading Ed Hearn to the Kansas City Royals for pitcher David Cone.

The rivalry with the Cardinals culminated in the 1987 season, when the Mets surged to challenge them for the NL East title but suffered two painful losses. The first came on Seat Cushion Night where Tom Herr hit a walk-off grand slam. A greater loss came on September 11 in a game against St. Louis, 3rd baseman Terry Pendleton hit a homer to give the Cardinals a lead, and eventually the NL East title. One highlight of the year was Darryl Strawberry and Howard Johnson becoming the first teammates' ever to hit 30 homers and steal 30 bases in the same season.

The Mets rebounded the following year to post a 100–60 overall record and win their division in 1988, but lost in the NLCS that year to the Los Angeles Dodgers and declined into the 1990s.

1990s: Struggles and return to the postseason

1991–92

During the 1991 season, the Mets were actually in contention for much of the season, closing to within 2.5 games of the front-running Pirates at one point. In the latter half, however, the bottom completely fell out and Harrelson was fired with a week left to go in the season, replaced by third base coach Mike Cubbage for the final games. Jefferies was once again a distraction as he released a controversial statement to be read on WFAN radio:

When a pitcher is having trouble getting players out, when a hitter is having trouble hitting, or when a player makes an error, I try to support them in whatever way I can. I don't run to the media to belittle them or to draw more attention to their difficult times. I can only hope that one day those teammates who have found it convenient to criticize me will realize that we are all in this together. If only we can concentrate more on the games, rather than complaining and bickering and pointing fingers, we would all be better off.

This was seen as the end for Jefferies in New York as he would be traded to the Kansas City Royals in the offseason. The season ended on a high note, however, as David Cone pitched a one-hit shutout against the Phillies at Veterans Stadium, in which he struck out 19 batters, tying the National League regulation game record (first set by former Met Tom Seaver). With all of the personal problems swirling around the Mets after the 1986 championship, the Mets tried to rebuild using experienced superstars. They picked up Eddie Murray for over $3 million, Bobby Bonilla for over $6 million. They also traded McReynolds and Jefferies for one-time World Series hero Bret Saberhagen and his $3 million contract, along with signing veteran free agent pitcher Frank Tanana for $1.5 million. The rebuilding was supported by the slogan, "Hardball Is Back".

The experiment of building a team via free agency quickly flopped as Saberhagen and Coleman were soon injured and spent more time on the disabled list than on the field, and Bonilla exhibited unprofessional behavior towards members of the press, once threatening a reporter by saying, "I'll show you The Bronx" [1]. Popular pitcher David Cone was dealt to the Toronto Blue Jays during the 1992 season for Ryan Thompson and Jeff Kent. While the move was widely criticized by fans of both teams, the Jays went on to win the 1992 World Series. Their descent was chronicled by the book The Worst Team Money Could Buy: The Collapse Of The New York Mets (ISBN: 0-8032-7822-5) by Mets beat writers Bob Klapisch and John Harper.

1993

The lowest point of the experiment was the 1993 season when the Mets lost 103 games. In April of that year, Coleman accidentally hit Gooden's shoulder with a golf club while practicing his swing. In July, Saberhagen threw a firecracker under a table near reporters. Their young pitching prospect Anthony Young started the 1993 season at 0–13 and his overall streak of 27 straight losses over two years set a new record. After Young's record-setting loss, Coleman threw a firecracker out of the team bus window and injured three people resulting in felony charges that effectively ended his Mets career; the Mets placed him on paid administrative leave for the remainder of the season, and announced less than a month before the end of the season that he would never play for them again. Only a few days later, Saberhagen was in trouble again, this time for spraying bleach at three reporters. The meltdown season resulted in the worst record for a Mets team since 1965. In addition, two of the three remaining links to the 1986 team, Howard Johnson and Sid Fernandez, departed after the season via free agency.

1994 shortened season

The following season saw some promise for the troubled Mets, as first baseman Rico Brogna and second baseman Jeff Kent became fan favorites with their solid glove work and potential 20–25 home run power, Bonilla started to become the player the Mets expected, and a healthy Saberhagen, along with promising young starter Bobby Jones and John Franco, helped the Mets pitching staff along. In the strike-shortened 1994 season the Mets were in 3rd place behind first-place Montreal and Atlanta when the season ended on August 12.

1995–1997: Working Their Way Back

1995 season

When the strike finally ended in 1995, the Mets finally showed some promise again, finishing in 2nd place (but still 6 games under .500) behind eventual World Series champion Atlanta.

The 1995 season marked the emergence of pitchers Bill Pulsipher, Jason Isringhausen, and Paul Wilson. The trio were dubbed Generation K, a group of talented young hurlers who were destined to bring the Mets into greatness, much like Tom Seaver, Jerry Koosman and Nolan Ryan did in the 1960s. However, all three players succumbed to injury, preventing them from reaching their full potential. Of the three of them, only Isringhausen would accomplish much of significance in the majors, but as a reliever, eventually reaching 300 career saves.

1996 season

The Mets dismal 1996 season was highlighted by the play of switch hitting catcher Todd Hundley breaking the Major League Baseball single season record for home runs hit by catcher with 41. Center fielder Lance Johnson set single-season franchise records in hits (227), triples (21), at bats (682), runs scored (117). Johnson's 21 triples also led the National League, the highest amount by an NL player since 1930.

1997

In the off season, the Mets acquired first baseman John Olerud from the Toronto Blue Jays for pitcher Robert Person.

In 1997, the Mets finally bounced back with an 88–74 record, missing the playoffs by only four games, and the team improved by 17 wins from 1996. On June 16, the Mets beat the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium in the first ever regular-season game played between the crosstown rivals 6–0. Mets starter Dave Mlicki pitched a complete game shutout to pick up the win. In 1997, Hundley's great season was derailed by a devastating elbow injury and required Tommy John surgery.

1998

The Mets season in 1998 began with an unforgettable opening day game at Shea Stadium on March 31 against their division rival Philadelphia Phillies, marking the first time that a regular season baseball game was played in New York in March. Both of them were involved in the longest scoreless opening day game in the National League and the longest one in the MLB since 1926 when the Washington Senators beat the Philadelphia Athletics 1–0 in 15 innings. The Mets won the game 1–0 in 14 innings when backup catcher Alberto Castillo delivered a full-count, two-out, pinch-hit single to right with the bases loaded off Philadelphia closer Ricky Bottalico.

During the season, the Mets acquired Mike Piazza in a blockbuster trade that immediately brought star power and credibility to the Mets that had been lacking in recent years.

After the Piazza trade, the Mets played well, but missed the 1998 postseason by only one game. With five games left in the season, the Mets could not win a single game against both the Montreal Expos at home and the Atlanta Braves on the road. Following the 1998 season the Mets re-signed Mike Piazza to a seven-year, $91 million contract, the Mets traded Todd Hundley to the Los Angeles Dodgers. Trades netted the Mets Roger Cedeño, Armando Benítez, and the Mets signed free agents Robin Ventura, Rickey Henderson, and Bobby Bonilla.

1999

The Mets started the 1999 season well, going 17–9, but after an eight-game losing streak, including the last two to the New York Yankees, the Mets fired their entire coaching staff except for manager Bobby Valentine. The Mets, in front of a national audience on Sunday Night Baseball, beat the New York Yankees 7–2 in the turning point of the 1999 season. Both Mike Piazza and Robin Ventura had MVP-type seasons and Benny Agbayani emerged as an important role player. It was a breakout year for Mets second baseman Edgardo Alfonzo and Roger Cedeño, who broke the single season steals record for the Mets.

After the regular season ended, the Mets played a one-game playoff against the Cincinnati Reds, Al Leiter pitched the best game of his Met career as he hurled a two-hit complete-game shutout to advance the Mets to the playoffs. In the NLDS, the Mets defeated the Arizona Diamondbacks 3 games to 1. The series-clinching victory included a walk-off home run by backup catcher Todd Pratt. The Mets would lose however in the 1999 National League Championship Series to the Atlanta Braves, in six exciting games which included the famous Grand Slam Single by Robin Ventura to win game 5 for the Mets. The Mets were at one point down 3–0 in the series.

The Mets struggled for much of the 1990s, finishing with a losing record for six consecutive seasons between 1991 and 1996.

2000s: The Subway World Series and new ballpark

In 2000, the Mets finished the season with a 94–68 record and clinched a wild card spot in the playoffs. In the NLDS, the Mets defeated the San Francisco Giants 3–1 in the series and the St Louis Cardinals in the NLCS. After winning the National League pennant, the Mets earned a trip to the 2000 World Series against their crosstown rivals, the New York Yankees, for a "Subway Series". The Mets were defeated by the Yankees in five games. The most memorable moment of the 2000 World Series occurred during the first inning of Game 2 at Yankee Stadium. Piazza fouled off a pitch which shattered his bat, sending a piece of the barrel toward the pitcher's mound. Pitcher Roger Clemens seized the piece and hurled it in the direction of Piazza as the catcher trotted to first base. Benches briefly cleared before the game was resumed with no ejections.

During the 2001 season, the Mets finished with a record of 82–80 finishing third in the division. After the September 11 terrorist attacks Shea Stadium was used as a relief center and then saw the first sporting event in New York City since the attacks, in a game vs. the Atlanta Braves on September 21. In the bottom of the 8th inning the Mets were trailing 2–1 when Mike Piazza came to bat with a runner on first. Piazza dramatically sent Shea into a frenzy by crushing a home run to give the Mets a 3–2 lead and the eventual win. The game is considered to be one of the greatest moments in the history of the franchise.

In 2002, despite the off-season signings of Tom Glavine, Mo Vaughn, and Roberto Alomar, the Mets finished the 2002 season with a 75–86 overall record and last in the NL East. During that same season the Mets dealt with off field distractions when co-owners Wilpon and Doubleday were in a legal battle which was later settled with Wilpon becoming the sole owner on August 23 that year.

The Mets nearly missed the playoffs in 2001 and struggled from 2002 to 2004. In the aftermath of the 2004 season, the Mets hired a new general manager, Omar Minaya, who immediately turned the franchise around by signing pitcher Pedro Martínez and hiring a new manager, Willie Randolph. The Mets finished 2005 four games over .500, and the franchise's resurgence was complete by 2006 as they won 97 games and the NL East title behind new acquisitions Carlos Beltrán and Carlos Delgado, as well as young superstars José Reyes and David Wright. The Mets eventually succumbed to the St. Louis Cardinals in Game 7 of the National League Championship Series.

In 2007, the Mets entered the final 17 games in the season with a seven-game lead in the NL East. But the team went on an ill-timed losing streak, losing 11 of the next 15 games, resulting in the Philadelphia Phillies winning the division by one game.

The Mets held a more modest 3.5-game lead after 145 games of the 2008 season, their final season at Shea Stadium. On June 16, Omar Minaya fired Willie Randolph, Rick Peterson, and Tom Nieto. Jerry Manuel was named interim manager. While their 7–10 mark down the stretch was better than the previous season's 5–12, it still allowed the Phillies to pass them once again for the division crown.

In 2009, the Mets moved into the newly constructed Citi Field. On April 17, Gary Sheffield, who just days earlier was signed by the Mets as a free agent, hit his 500th home run against the Milwaukee Brewers. Sheffield became the first pinch hitter to reach this milestone, as well as the first to do it in a Mets uniform. The season was mainly a tough one for the Mets which was marred by numerous injuries suffered by its players, with 20 of them having been on the disabled list at one point or another during the season and losing star (and also replacement) players like J. J. Putz, John Maine, Óliver Pérez, José Reyes, Carlos Beltrán, David Wright, Carlos Delgado, Johan Santana, and Gary Sheffield.

As a result, the Mets finished in fourth place, with a record of 70–92 and failed to qualify for the playoffs for the third straight season. Mets players spent more than 1,480 days in the disabled list in 2009, more than any other team in the majors. Second-half turnarounds of Jeff Francoeur and Daniel Murphy helped the Mets finish the season with the best batting average in the National League, tied with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

2010s: Wilpon sells the team and Fifth trip to the World Series

In 2012, Mets owners Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz settled a lawsuit brought against them on behalf of the victims of Bernard Madoff's Ponzi scheme for $162 million. As a result of this agreement the liquidator, Irving Picard, agreed to drop the charges that Wilpon and Katz blindly went along with the scheme for their personal benefit. Picard had originally sought to recover $1 billion from the Wilpon family and Katz, but settled for $162 million along with the admission that neither the Wilpons nor Katz had any knowledge of the Ponzi scheme. In 2011–2012, Mets ownership sold twelve minority 4% shares (totaling 48%) of the franchise at $20 million apiece to provide a cash infusion of $240 million for the team.

Though the first half of the 2010s saw limited success for the Mets, who failed to finish with a winning record between 2009 and 2014, this period coincided with a number of milestones for the franchise, including the first no-hitter in franchise history by Johan Santana in 2012. R.A. Dickey won the NL Cy Young Award pitching for the Mets that same season.

On September 26, 2015, the Mets clinched the NL East division title, and thus their first postseason berth since 2006, by defeating the Cincinnati Reds 10–2. They defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NLDS, three games to two, and swept the Chicago Cubs in the NLCS for their first pennant in 15 years. In the 2015 World Series, they were defeated by the Kansas City Royals in five games.

The Mets returned to the postseason in 2016, marking only the second time in franchise history that the team qualified for the postseason in consecutive years. With an 87–75 record, the team qualified for the wild-card game, only to lose 3–0 to the San Francisco Giants. The Mets failed to make the playoffs for the rest of the decade, finishing no higher than third place in 2019 when they finished with a winning record of 86–76 (the highest of any team not to qualify for the postseason).

The end of the decade also coincided with David Wright's retirement, Jacob deGrom being awarded two consecutive Cy Young Awards (including for the 2018 season when the pitcher finished the year with a 1.70 ERA) and first-baseman Pete Alonso winning the 2019 Rookie of the Year Award and finishing the season with a major-league-leading 53 home runs, the most by any rookie in MLB history. On October 3, 2019, the Mets fired manager Mickey Callaway. On November 1, 2019, the Mets named Carlos Beltrán as the new manager replacing Callaway.

2020s: Steve Cohen Era

On January 16, 2020, Beltrán stepped down as manager before the start of the 2020 season due to his involvement in the Houston Astros sign stealing scandal. Two days later, the Mets hired Luis Rojas as manager. The team finished the shortened 2020 season with a 26–34 record and a last-place finish in the NL East.

On October 30, 2020, Steve Cohen became the majority owner of the Mets, owning 95% of the team, making him the current richest owner in baseball. He bought the team from the Wilpon family for $2.475 billion, with the Wilpons keeping the remaining 5%. On January 7, 2021, the Mets acquired pitcher Carlos Carrasco and all-star shortstop Francisco Lindor in a trade with the Cleveland Indians. On April 1, 2021, Lindor and the Mets agreed to an extension worth $341 million for the next 11 years. At the trade deadline, the Mets acquired All-star infielder & world series champion Javier Báez in trade with the Chicago Cubs. The Mets finished third place in the NL East with an overall record of 77–85.

On November 19, 2021, the Mets hired Billy Eppler as the new general manager. During the 2021–2022 off-season, the Mets signed free agents Nick Plummer, Starling Marte, Eduardo Escobar, and Mark Canha. On December 1, the Mets signed three-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer with a three-year $130 million deal. On December 18, the Mets announced hiring Buck Showalter as their manager via owner Steve Cohen's Twitter account. On April 29, 2022, Tylor Megill, Drew Smith, Joely Rodríguez, Seth Lugo and Edwin Díaz pitched the second no-hitter in franchise history. At the trade deadline, the Mets added 1B/DH Daniel Vogelbach from the Pirates, OF Tyler Naquin from the Reds, and OF Darin Ruf from the Giants. On September 19, 2022, Jacob deGrom set a new MLB record by allowing three or less earned runs in 40 consecutive games, breaking a record that was held by Jim Scott for over 100 years. On September 25, 2022 Pete Alonso broke the Mets single season RBI record which was previously set by former franchise stars Mike Piazza and David Wright. Also during the season, the Mets called up three of their top prospects Brett Baty, Mark Vientos, and Francisco Álvarez. The Mets won 101 games and tied with the Atlanta Braves for the best record in the NL East; however, the Mets were designated as a wild card team due to their losing record against the Braves. The Mets lost the 2022 National League Wild Card Series to the San Diego Padres.

In the offseason, the Mets lost Jacob deGrom to the Texas Rangers via free agency, but quickly replaced him by signing Japanese ace Kodai Senga and three-time Cy Young Award winner Justin Verlander to a two-year, $86.7 million contract. Despite this the Mets were unable to gain momentum from the previous season and missed the playoffs in the process. The team ended the 2023 season with a 75–81 record finishing fourth in the NL East Division.

On October 1, 2023, the Mets fired manager Buck Showalter. On October 5, 2023, Billy Eppler resigned as general manager. On November 13, 2023, the Mets named former Yankees Bench coach Carlos Mendoza as new manager.

World Series championships

Throughout the 60-year history of the franchise, the Mets have won 2 World Series Championships in total.

Season Manager Opponent Series Score Record 1969 Gil Hodges Baltimore Orioles 4–1 100–62 1986 Davey Johnson Boston Red Sox 4–3 108–54 Total World Series championships: 2

Culture

Fan support

In 1998, the Independent Budget Office of the city of New York published a study on the economic effect of the city's two Major League Baseball teams. The study found that 43% of Mets fans lived in one of the five boroughs of New York, 39% in the tri-state area outside the city, and 12% elsewhere. Mets fans were more likely to be found in Queens, Brooklyn, and the Long Island counties of Nassau and Suffolk. Mets, Yankees, and Toronto Blue Jays fans are shared in Western New York. Notable fans of the Mets include Jerry Seinfeld, Kevin James, Julia Stiles, Ty Burrell, Bill Maher, Ben Stiller, Jimmy Kimmel, Hank Azaria, Jim Breuer, Jon Stewart, Chris Rock, Matthew Broderick, Dylan O'Brien, Glenn Close, Billy Joel, Ad-Rock, MCA, Nas, 50 Cent, Nicki Minaj, Chris Christie, Patrick Mahomes, and Donovan Mitchell.

The 7 Line Army

The "7 Line Army" are a group primarily consisting of passionate and die-hard Mets fans occupying the Big Apple Section of Citi Field during home games for the Mets. The group was founded in 2012 by Darren Meenan who owns The 7 Line, an apparel company that produces Mets-themed clothing.

Mascots

Mr. Met is the official mascot of the New York Mets. He was introduced on the cover of game programs in 1963, when the Mets were still playing at the Polo Grounds in northern Manhattan. When the Mets moved to Shea Stadium in 1964, fans were introduced to a live costumed version. Mr. Met is believed to have been the first mascot in Major League Baseball to exist in human (as opposed to artistically rendered) form.

Mrs. Met (formerly Lady Met) is the female counterpart to Mr. Met, and the couple sometimes appears with 2–3 smaller "children".

The Mets have had two mascots other than Mr. and Mrs. Met at different points in its history. The franchise's original official mascot was Homer, a beagle trained by Rudd Weatherwax that lived at the Waldorf-Astoria, was sponsored by Rheingold Beer and had his own platform behind home plate at the Polo Grounds. The dog was not included in the ballclub's transition to Shea Stadium. The brainchild of team owner Lorinda de Roulet's daughter Bebe, Mettle the mule represented the Mets for only the 1979 season. The name was the result of a contest won by Dolores Mapps of Mercerville, New Jersey whose explanation was that it typified the team's "spirit, ardor, stamina and courage, all of which the Mets have in abundance." Mettle was not retained after the franchise was sold to Nelson Doubleday Jr. and Fred Wilpon the following year.

Theme song

"Meet the Mets" is the Mets' signature song, written in 1961, one year before the first season, by Bill Katz and Ruth Roberts. It is played on the radio, during television broadcasts and at Mets' home games. Other songs traditionally sung at Mets home games include "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" and the Sicilian song "Lazy Mary" during the seventh-inning stretch and Billy Joel's "Piano Man" in the middle of the eighth inning.

"Let's go Mets" meme

In 2021, an internet meme involving the fan chant "let's go, Mets" began spreading through social media, particularly Twitter and TikTok. The meme is largely based around fictional characters unexpectedly expressing support for the team, such as Kingpin from Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse and characters from the video game Genshin Impact.

Uniform and logo symbolism

The Mets' colors are blue and orange, originally chosen to honor the city's history of National League baseball; blue for the Brooklyn Dodgers, and orange for the New York Giants. Blue and orange are also the colors of New York City, as seen on its flag.

In 1998, black was added to the color scheme, although beginning with 2012 the black elements in the uniform began to be phased out, and were eliminated in 2013.

Logo

The primary logo, designed by sports cartoonist Ray Gotto, consists of "Mets" written in orange script trimmed in white across a blue representation of the New York City skyline with a white suspension bridge in the foreground, all contained in an orange circle with orange baseball stitching across the image. Each part of the skyline has special meaning—at the left is a church spire, symbolic of Brooklyn, the borough of churches; the second building from the left is the Williamsburgh Savings Bank Building, the tallest building in Brooklyn at the time of the team's founding; next is the Woolworth Building; after a general skyline view of midtown comes the Empire State Building; at the far right is the headquarters of the United Nations. The suspension bridge in the center symbolizes that the Mets, by bringing National League baseball back to New York, represent all five boroughs; many of New York's major bridges are suspension designs. In 1999, the logo received a slight alteration; a small "NY" originally placed to the left of the team script was removed. No other notable changes have ever been made to the logo.

The cap logo consists of an orange, interlocking "NY" identical to the logo used by the New York Giants in their final years, and is on a blue cap reminiscent of the caps worn by the Brooklyn Dodgers.

With the introduction of black as an official color, an alternate team logo was created in 1999. It is identical to the original logo, but the skyline is black instead of blue and the "Mets" script is blue trimmed in orange and white instead of orange trimmed in white (the alternate black jerseys displayed the primary blue and orange logo on the left sleeves in 1998; in 1999 this was changed to the alternate black and blue logo). The logo fell into disuse after the Mets dropped the alternate black jerseys and caps in 2012. When the team brought back the black jerseys in 2021, they feature the blue and orange logo patch instead of the black and blue logo.

Uniform color and design

Currently, the Mets wear an assortment of uniforms.

The home uniforms are white with blue pinstripes and feature "Mets" in blue script with an orange outline across the chest, and block letter player names and numbers also in blue with an orange outline. The uniforms are paired with a blue cap featuring an "NY" logo in orange, plus blue undersleeves, belts and socks.

The gray road jerseys feature a radially-arched "NEW YORK" in Tiffany-style letters across the chest, block letter player numerals and names in blue outlined in orange, and blue placket and sleeve piping. Like the home uniforms, the road grays are worn with the same blue caps, undersleeves, belts and socks.

The blue alternate uniform, introduced in 2012, features the "Mets" script and block lettering and numbers in orange with white outline, and orange piping. The blue alternates are worn with a secondary blue cap featuring the "NY" logo in orange trimmed in white.

The black alternate uniform, introduced in its current form in 2022, is a modified version of the uniform worn from 1998 to 2012 and reintroduced for Friday home games in 2021. The lettering is blue with white trim and orange drop shadows, lacked the blue piping of the previous iteration, and has the primary logo (sans black) on the left sleeve. The set is worn with an alternate black cap featuring the "NY" logo in blue trimmed in white with orange drop shadows. Belts and socks worn with it are also black. Both the blue and black alternate uniforms are worn with plain white pants with blue piping.

The Mets' standard blue batting helmet, with the "NY" in metallic orange, is currently used for games worn with the primary home, road and blue alternate jerseys. A black alternate helmet is used in games with the black jerseys.

Players of note

Team captains

Four players have been team captains for the Mets:

• Keith Hernandez 1987–1989 (co-captain with Gary Carter)
• Gary Carter 1988–1989 (co-captain with Keith Hernandez)
• John Franco 2001–2004
• David Wright 2013–2018

Baseball Hall of Famers

New York Mets Hall of Famers
Affiliation according to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum
New York Mets Roberto Alomar Richie Ashburn Yogi Berra Gary Carter† Tom Glavine Rickey Henderson Gil Hodges Pedro Martínez Willie Mays Eddie Murray Mike Piazza * Nolan Ryan Tom Seaver * Duke Snider Warren Spahn Casey Stengel Joe Torre Players and managers listed in bold are depicted on their Hall of Fame plaques wearing a Mets cap insignia. † Inducted as an Expo, despite his request that his Hall of Fame plaque show the Mets and Montreal Expos, or just the Mets. * New York Mets listed as primary team according to the Hall of Fame

New York Mets Ford C. Frick Award recipients
Affiliation according to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum
Buck Canel Tim McCarver Bob Murphy Lindsey Nelson Names in bold received the award based primarily on their work as broadcasters for the Mets.

Retired numbers

The Mets have retired eight numbers in the history of the franchise.

Gil Hodges 1B, Manager Retired June 9, 1973 Keith Hernandez 1B Retired July 9, 2022 Willie Mays CF, Instructor Retired August 27, 2022 Mike Piazza C Retired July 30, 2016 Jerry Koosman P Retired August 28, 2021 Casey Stengel Manager Retired September 2, 1965 Tom Seaver P Retired July 24, 1988 Ralph Kiner Broadcaster Honored March 31, 2014 William A. Shea Proponent Honored April 8, 2008 Jackie Robinson All MLB Honored April 15, 1997

Major League Baseball retired Jackie Robinson's number 42 on April 15, 1997, when the Mets played the Dodgers at Shea Stadium. Butch Huskey wore the number throughout the rest of his Mets career because of a grandfather clause placed on the retired number by MLB. Mo Vaughn also wore 42 during his stint with the Mets, because of the same clause.

On the final opening day at Shea Stadium, April 8, 2008, the Mets unveiled a sign bearing the name "Shea" next to the team's retired numbers honoring William Shea and his contributions to the franchise.

In 2014, a special memorial logo honoring broadcaster Ralph Kiner, depicting a microphone along with his name and the years 1922–2014, was displayed on the left-field wall adjacent to, but not as a part of, the Mets' retired numbers, from 2014 to 2016. In the 2016 Mets yearbook, a sidebar in an article on Mike Piazza's upcoming number retirement implies that Kiner has been "retired" a la William A. Shea. This was confirmed when the Mets' retired numbers were moved to the roof facade during the 2016 season to accommodate Mike Piazza's number 31; the Kiner logo was placed next to the Shea and Jackie Robinson numbers, no longer separated from the others. On August 28, 2021, Jerry Koosman's No.36 was retired by the Mets. On July 9, 2022, the Mets retired Keith Hernandez's number 17. They retired number 24 worn by Willie Mays on August 27, 2022. On April 5, 2023, the Mets honored broadcaster Bob Murphy with a microphone logo alongside Kiner.

The Mets will retire Dwight Gooden's number 16 and Darryl Strawberry's number 18 in the 2024 season.

Numbers out of circulation but not retired

• 5: Not issued since the retirement of David Wright.
• 8: Not issued since Gary Carter was elected to the Hall of Fame in 2003 (as an Expo after requesting to go in as a Met). When the Mets honored Carter, they did not retire number 8, but instead gave him a replica of his Hall of Fame plaque depicting him as a Met instead of an Expo. Desi Relaford was the last Mets player to wear No. 8; Matt Galante, a coach, later wore the number. After Carter's death, the Mets honored him in a ceremony on Opening Day 2012, where they unveiled the "Kid 8" memorial logo (also worn on the uniform sleeve) on the outfield fence. However, the number 8 is still not officially retired.

Mets Hall of Fame

Key

Year	Year inducted
Bold	Member of the Baseball Hall of Fame
	Member of the Baseball Hall of Fame as a Met
Bold	Recipient of the Hall of Fame's Ford C. Frick Award

Year	No.	Name	Position(s)	Tenure
1981	—	Payson, Joan WhitneyJoan Whitney Payson	Owner President	1960–1975 1968–1975
	37	Stengel, CaseyCasey Stengel	Manager VP	1962–1965 1965–1975
1982	14	Hodges, GilGil Hodges	1B Manager	1962–1963 1968–1971
	—	Weiss, GeorgeGeorge Weiss	President	1961–1966
1983	—	Murphy, JohnnyJohnny Murphy	Chief Scout VP VP & GM	1961–1963 1964–1967 1968–1970
	—	Shea, WilliamWilliam Shea	Proponent
1984	—	Kiner, RalphRalph Kiner	Broadcaster	1962–2013
	—	Murphy, BobBob Murphy	Broadcaster	1962–2003
	—	Nelson, LindseyLindsey Nelson	Broadcaster	1962–1978
1986	3, 23, 53	Harrelson, BudBud Harrelson	SS Coach Manager	1965–1977 1982, 1985–1990 1990–1991
	4, 10	Staub, RustyRusty Staub	RF / 1B	1972–1975, 1981–1985
1988	41	Seaver, TomTom Seaver	P	1967–1977, 1983
1989	36, 47	Koosman, JerryJerry Koosman	P	1967–1978
1990	7, 21	Kranepool, EdEd Kranepool	1B	1962–1979
1991	12, 21, 34	Jones, CleonCleon Jones	LF	1963, 1965–1975
1992	15	Grote, JerryJerry Grote	C	1966–1977
1993	45	McGraw, TugTug McGraw	P	1965–1967, 1969–1974
1996	1, 51	Wilson, MookieMookie Wilson	CF Coach	1980–1989 1997–2002, 2011
1997	17	Hernandez, KeithKeith Hernandez	1B Broadcaster	1983–1989 2006–present
2001	8	Carter, GaryGary Carter	C	1985–1989
2002	20	Agee, TommieTommie Agee	CF	1968–1972
2010	—	Cashen, FrankFrank Cashen	GM & COO	1980–1991
	16	Gooden, DwightDwight Gooden	P	1984–1994
	5	Johnson, DaveyDavey Johnson	Manager	1984–1990
	18	Strawberry, DarrylDarryl Strawberry	RF	1983–1990
2012	31, 45	Franco, JohnJohn Franco	P	1990–2004
2013	31	Piazza, MikeMike Piazza	C	1998–2005
2020/2021	13	Alfonzo, EdgardoEdgardo Alfonzo	2B / 3B	1995–2002
	12	Darling, RonRon Darling	P Broadcaster	1983–1991 2006–present
	32	Matlack, JonJon Matlack	P	1971–1977
2023	–	Cohen, GaryGary Cohen	Broadcaster	1989–present
	20, 44	Johnson, HowardHoward Johnson	3B / SS / LF / RF	1985–1993
	22	Leiter, AlAl Leiter	P	1998–2004
	–	Rose, HowieHowie Rose	Broadcaster	1987–present

Rivalries

The Mets have notable rivalries with the Atlanta Braves, the New York Yankees, and the Philadelphia Phillies. The Braves rivalry is due to division realignment that put both teams in the National League East in 1994. Their rivalry with the Yankees has its roots in the histories of the New York Giants, Brooklyn Dodgers, and the Yankees and the fierce Subway Series matchups between the two teams. The rivalry with the Phillies stems from the geographic New York-Philadelphia rivalry, which is also seen in other sports.

Subway Series

The Mets – New York Yankees rivalry is the latest incarnation of the Subway Series, the competition between New York City's teams, the American League New York Yankees and the National League Mets. Until Interleague play started, the two teams had only met in exhibition games. Since the inception of interleague play the two teams have met every regular season since 1997, and since 1999 they have met six times each season, playing two three-game series, one in each team's ballpark. From the 2013 season however the number of games was reduced to four, two at each ballpark with the Mets winning six of the last eight games in that span. They have made the postseason in the same year five times: 1999, 2000, 2006, 2015, and 2022, and faced off in the 2000 World Series.

Atlanta Braves

The Braves–Mets rivalry is a rivalry between two teams in the National League East, featuring the Atlanta Braves and the Mets.

Although their first major confrontation occurred when the Mets swept the Braves in the 1969 NLCS, en route to their first World Series championship, the first playoff series won by an expansion team (also the first playoff appearance by an expansion team), the rivalry did not become especially heated until the 1990s, when a division realignment in 1994 put the Mets and the Braves in the NL East together (from 1969 to 1993, the Braves were in the NL West). The two teams faced each other again in the 1999 NLCS, and the Braves won the series four games to two. However, they would go on to lose to the Yankees in the 1999 World Series.

Philadelphia Phillies

The rivalry between the Mets and the Philadelphia Phillies from 2006 to 2008 was said to be among the "hottest" rivalries in the National League.

Aside from several brawls in the 1980s, the rivalry remained low-key before the 2006 season, as the teams had seldom been equally good at the same time. Since 2006, the teams have battled for playoff position. The Mets won the division in 2006 and contended in 2007 and 2008, while the Phillies won five consecutive division titles from 2007 to 2011. The Phillies' 2007 Eastern Division Title was won on the last day of the season as the Mets lost a seven-game lead with 17 games remaining while losing 12 of 18 games that season to the Phillies, including being swept at home in the first 3 games of the remaining 17, dropping their lead from 7 games to 3.5.

There's a long-standing bitter rivalry between the sports fans from New York City and Philadelphia, which are approximately two hours apart by car, which is also seen between New York Giants and the Philadelphia Eagles in the National Football League, and the New York Rangers and the Philadelphia Flyers in National Hockey League. Games between the two teams at Citi Field and Citizens Bank Park are often very intense, hard-hitting affairs, as each home crowd does its best to create an unfriendly, sometimes volatile atmosphere for any visiting-team fans.

Personnel

New York Mets 2023 spring training roster
40-man roster				Non-roster invitees		Coaches/Other
Pitchers -- Jeff Brigham 70 José Butto 59 Carlos Carrasco -- John Curtiss 39 Edwin Díaz -- Zach Greene -- Elieser Hernández 47 Joey Lucchesi 38 Tylor Megill 63 Bryce Montes de Oca 85 Stephen Nogosek  0 Adam Ottavino 23 David Peterson 62 José Quintana 43 Brooks Raley -- Stephen Ridings 30 David Robertson -- Tayler Saucedo 21 Max Scherzer 34 Kodai Senga 62 Drew Smith 35 Justin Verlander		Catchers 50 Francisco Álvarez -- Omar Narváez  3 Tomás Nido Infielders 20 Pete Alonso 22 Brett Baty 10 Eduardo Escobar 13 Luis Guillorme 12 Francisco Lindor 60 Ronny Mauricio  1 Jeff McNeil -- Danny Mendick 27 Mark Vientos Outfielders 19 Mark Canha 26 Khalil Lee  6 Starling Marte  9 Brandon Nimmo Designated hitters 28 Darin Ruf 32 Daniel Vogelbach		Pitchers -- Tommy Hunter -- Zach Muckenhirn -- Sean Reid-Foley -- Denyi Reyes -- Jimmy Yacabonis Infielders -- Jose Peraza Outfielders -- Abraham Almonte		Manager 11 Buck Showalter Coaches 79 Danny Barnes (assistant pitching) 49 Jeremy Barnes (hitting) 51 Eric Chavez (bench) -- Dom Chiti (bullpen) 56 Joey Cora (third base/infield) 88 Rafael Fernandez (BP pitcher) 55 Jeremy Hefner (pitching) -- Eric Hinske (assistant hitting) 54 Wayne Kirby (first base) 78 Eric Langill (bullpen catcher) 57 Dave Racaniello (bullpen catcher) 53 Glenn Sherlock (catching) 40 active, 0 inactive, 7 non-roster invitees 7-, 10-, or 15-day injured list * Not on active roster † Suspended list Roster, coaches, and NRIs updated December 27, 2022 Transactions • Depth chart → All MLB rosters

New York Mets staff

Office of the Chairman Owner/CEO – Steve Cohen Front Office Team President – Sandy Alderson General Manager – Billy Eppler Assistant General Manager, Baseball Operations – Ian Levin Assistant General Manager, Professional Scouting – Bryn Alderson Senior Vice President, Senior Strategy Officer – John Ricco Coordinators Director of Player Development – Kevin Morgan Director, Minor League Operations – Ian Levin Coordinator, Minor League & International Operations – Jen Wolf Research & Development – Ben Zauzmer International Field Coordinator – Rafael Landestoy Hitting Coordinator – Lamar Johnson Short-Season Hitting Coordinator – Ryan Ellis Pitching Coordinator – Ron Romanick Short-Season Pitching Coordinator – Miguel Valdes Catching Coordinator – Bob Natal Outfield Coordinator – Benny Distefano Rehabilitation Pitching Coordinator – Phil Regan Medical Coordinator – Mike Herbst Rehabilitation & Physical Therapy Coordinator – David Pearson Strength & Conditioning Coordinator – Jason Craig Mental Skills Coordinator – Dr. Derik Anderson Senior Advisor – Guy Conti Special Instructor – Bobby Floyd Special Catching Instructor - Ozzie Virgil Sr. Pitching Consultant – vacant Director, Latin America Operations – Juan Henderson

New York Mets Foundation

A registered 501(c)(3) charity, the New York Mets Foundation is the philanthropic organization of the New York Mets. Founded in 1963, it funds and promotes charitable causes in the Mets community. One of these causes is Tuesday's Children, is a non-profit family service organization that "has made a long term commitment to meet the needs of every family who lost a loved one in the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001". The Mets host the annual Welcome Home Dinner, which raised over $550,000 for the Mets Foundation in 2012. All proceeds were distributed to Katz Institute for Women's Health and Katz Women's Hospitals of North Shore-LIJ Health System and The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

Owners and executives

New York Mets broadcasters

Television

Most Mets games are carried by SportsNet New York (SNY), a joint venture of the Mets and NBC Sports Regional Networks. The team's terrestrial broadcast home is WPIX, where the team has broadcast games since 1999.

Longtime Mets radio announcer Gary Cohen does the play-by-play, having moved to television with the launch of SNY in 2006. Former Mets Keith Hernandez and Ron Darling are the color commentators with Steve Gelbs being the on-the-field reporter.

In early January 2016, Keith Hernandez re-signed with SNY. Reports indicate that Hernandez received a raise and three-year contract.

Radio

Since 2019, Mets games have been broadcast on WCBS-AM 880. Howie Rose is the main play-by-play announcer; Wayne Randazzo, who previously hosted the pre- and post-game shows, is Rose's partner. Longtime Mets beat reporter Ed Coleman took over the pre- and post-game role for most games. Starting in the 2023 Season, Randazzo will be replaced by Keith Raad as Randazzo will be doing the television broadcasts for the Los Angeles Angels.

The Mets' previous radio flagship was WOR-AM from 2014 to 2018. The Mets were previously carried by WFAN-AM, which inherited the team's broadcast rights from WHN when it took over its frequency in 1987, and in later years by WFAN-FM which simulcasts the AM signal.

Spanish-language broadcasts are aired on WINS 92.3 HD2 featuring Max Perez-Jimenez and Nestor Rosario, along with MLB.tv and SNY's second audio program channels. They had previously been on WEPN 1050. It was formerly broadcast on WQBU-FM 92.7, Que Buena from 2020 to 2021. Both English and Spanish broadcasts are also aired on the Audacy internet radio service.

Rose, who has spent much of his career covering the Mets, replaced Bob Murphy as Gary Cohen's broadcast partner in 2004 following Murphy's retirement. Cohen then left the radio booth for the SNY television booth in 2006 and was replaced by Tom McCarthy, who departed after two seasons and was replaced by Wayne Hagin. Josh Lewin joined the broadcast after the team parted ways with Hagin following the 2011 season; he departed when broadcasts moved to WCBS.

Coinciding with the move to WCBS, the Mets, abruptly and without public announcement (other than a brief e-mail to its affiliates days before the season began), stopped syndicating its games to other stations outside the New York City area, shutting down the New York Mets Radio Network.

Minor league affiliations

The New York Mets farm system consists of seven minor league affiliates.

Class	Team	League	Location	Ballpark	Affiliated
Triple-A	Syracuse Mets	International League	Syracuse, New York	NBT Bank Stadium	2019
Double-A	Binghamton Rumble Ponies	Eastern League	Binghamton, New York	Mirabito Stadium	1991
High-A	Brooklyn Cyclones	South Atlantic League	Brooklyn, New York	Maimonides Park	2001
Single-A	St. Lucie Mets	Florida State League	Port St. Lucie, Florida	Clover Park	1988
Rookie	FCL Mets	Florida Complex League	Port St. Lucie, Florida	Surprise Stadium	2013
	DSL Mets Blue	Dominican Summer League	Boca Chica, Santo Domingo	New York Mets Complex	2010
	DSL Mets Orange

See also

In Spanish: New York Mets para niños

• List of New York Mets managers
• List of New York Mets owners and executives
• List of New York Mets seasons
• List of World Series champions
• New York Mets award winners and league leaders