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The 1969 New York Mets season was the team's eighth as a Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise and culminated with them winning the World Series over the Baltimore Orioles. They played their home games at Shea Stadium. The team was managed by Gil Hodges. The team is often referred to as the "Amazin' Mets", a nickname coined by Casey Stengel, who managed the team from their inaugural season to 1965, or the "Miracle Mets".
The 1969 season was the first season of divisional play in Major League Baseball. The Mets were assigned to the newly-created National League East division. In their seven previous seasons, the Mets had never finished higher than ninth place in the ten-team National League and had never had a winning season. In fact, they lost at least one hundred games in five of the seasons. However, they overcame mid-season difficulties while the division leaders for much of the season, the Chicago Cubs, suffered a late-season collapse. The Mets would finish 100–62, eight games ahead of the Cubs. The Mets went on to defeat the National League West champion Atlanta Braves three games to none in the inaugural National League Championship Series and went on to defeat the American League champion Baltimore Orioles in five games. First baseman Donn Clendenon was named the series' most valuable player on the strength of his .357 batting average, three home runs, and four runs batted in. On Saturday, August 22, 2009, many of the surviving members of the 1969 championship team reunited at the New York Mets' present park, Citi Field.
Three future Hall of Fame members were on the Mets' roster: pitcher Tom Seaver (who won twenty-five games en route to winning the Cy Young Award), a young Nolan Ryan (playing in his third season), and New York Yankees legend Yogi Berra (who briefly played for the Mets in 1965) was their first base coach. Berra would be inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1972, Seaver in 1992, and Ryan in 1999. The Baltimore Orioles boasted four future Hall of Famers on their roster: pitcher Jim Palmer, outfielder Frank Robinson, third baseman Brooks Robinson, and manager Earl Weaver.
1969 New York Mets
Roster
Pitchers
- 27 Don Cardwell
- 31 Jack DiLauro
- 29 Danny Frisella
- 39 Gary Gentry
- 38 Jesse Hudson
- 38 Al Jackson
- 29 Bob Johnson
- 34 Cal Koonce
- 36 Jerry Koosman
- 43 Jim McAndrew
- 45 Tug McGraw
- 31,33 Les Rohr
- 30 Nolan Ryan
- 41 Tom Seaver
- 42 Ron Taylor
Catchers
* 10 Duffy Dyer
- 15 Jerry Grote
- 9 J. C. Martin
Infielders
- 12 Ken Boswell
- 5 Ed Charles
- 22 Donn Clendenon
- 1 Kevin Collins
- 11 Wayne Garrett
- 3 Bud Harrelson
- 23,28 Bob Heise
- 7 Ed Kranepool
- 1 Bobby Pfeil
- 6 Al Weis
Outfielders
- 20 Tommie Agee
- 17 Rod Gaspar
- 18 Jim Gosger
- 21 Cleon Jones
- 25 Amos Otis
- 24 Art Shamsky
- 4 Ron Swoboda
Manager
- 14 Gil Hodges
Coaches
- 8 Yogi Berra (first base)
- 52 Joe Pignatano (bullpen)
- 54 Rube Walker (pitching)
- 53 Eddie Yost (third base)