1997 New York Mets season

The New York Mets' 1997 season was the 36th regular season for the Mets. They went 88-74 and finished 3rd in the NL East. They were managed by Bobby Valentine. They played home games at Shea Stadium.

Offseason

• November 25, 1996: Paul Byrd and a player to be named later were traded by the Mets to the Atlanta Braves for Greg McMichael. The Mets completed the deal by sending Andy Zwirchitz (minors) to the Braves on May 25, 1997.^[1]
• November 27, 1996: Rico Brogna was traded by the Mets to the Philadelphia Phillies for Ricardo Jordan and Toby Borland.^[2]
• December 20, 1996: Robert Person was traded by the Mets to the Toronto Blue Jays for John Olerud and cash.^[3]
• March 22, 1997: Héctor Ramírez was traded by the Mets to the Baltimore Orioles for Scott McClain and Manny Alexander.^[4]

Regular season

• April 15, 1997: The Mets hosted ceremonies marking the 50th anniversary of Jackie Robinson's first game with the Brooklyn Dodgers before their game against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Shea Stadium.^[5] During the ceremonies, Robinson's jersey number, 42, was retired by Major League Baseball.^[5] The Mets won the game 5-0.^[6]
• June 16, 1997: The first interleague game between the New York Mets and New York Yankees took place at Yankee Stadium. The Mets won the game by a score of 6-0.^[7]

Season standings

Notable transactions

• June 3, 1997: 1997 Major League Baseball Draft
  • Garrett Atkins was drafted by the Mets in the 10th round, but did not sign.^[8]
  • Jeremy Guthrie was drafted by the Mets in the 15th round, but did not sign.^[9]
• August 8, 1997: Lance Johnson and players to be named later were traded by the Mets to the Chicago Cubs for Brian McRae, Mel Rojas and Turk Wendell. The Mets completed the deal by sending Mark Clark to the Cubs on August 11 and Manny Alexander to the Cubs on August 14.^[10]

Roster

Player stats

Batting

Starters by position

Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At Bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting Average; HR = Home Runs; RBI = Runs Batted In

Other batters

Pitching

Starting pitchers

Other pitchers

Relief pitchers

Farm system

LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: Pittsfield, GCL Mets^[11]

References

1. ^ Paul Byrd page at Baseball Reference
2. ^ Rico Brogna page at Baseball Reference
3. ^ John Olerud page at Baseball Reference
4. ^ Scott McClain page at Baseball Reference
5. ^ ^{a b} Smith, Claire (April 16, 1997). "A Grand Tribute to Robinson and His Moment". New York Times: p. A1. 
6. ^ Olney, Buster (April 16, 1997). "Mets' Own Melting Pot Provides Victory Blend". New York Times: p. B14. 
7. ^ http://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=199706160NYA
8. ^ Garrett Atkins page at Baseball Reference
9. ^ Jeremy Guthrie page at Baseball Reference
10. ^ Brian McRae page at Baseball Reference
11. ^ Johnson, Lloyd, and Wolff, Miles, ed., The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball, 3rd edition. Durham, N.C.: Baseball America, 2007

External links

• 1997 New York Mets
• 1997 New York Mets team page at www.baseball-almanac.com