FLUSHING, N.Y., January 19, 2010 - The New York Mets today announced that Frank Cashen, general manager of the 1986 World Champion Mets, Dwight Gooden, the 1985 National League Cy Young Award winner, Davey Johnson, manager of the 1986 club, and Darryl Strawberry, the franchise's career home run leader, will be inducted into the Mets Hall of Fame on Sunday, August 1 prior to the Mets hosting the Arizona Diamondbacks at 1:10 p.m.
"It was very important to re-establish the Mets Hall of Fame Committee," said Mets COO Jeff Wilpon, who serves as Ex-Officio for the Selection Committee. "The committee made great choices and all four inductees played a vital role in our success during the 1980s. Each individual was a unanimous recommendation and on behalf of myself and the rest of Ownership I was pleased to approve them."
Gooden, Strawberry, Johnson and Cashen made their mark on the Mets in the 1980s and were key contributors for the 1986 World Championship team. This class will be the first to be inducted since Tommie Agee in 2002.
Cashen was general manager and the architect of the 1986 Mets, drafting and overseeing the development of Strawberry and Gooden, tapping Johnson as manager, and trading for established All-Stars Keith Hernandez and Gary Carter. From 1984-1991, the Mets averaged more than 95 victories, won the World Series in 1986, and a second NL East title in 1988. Cashen remained in the Mets front office as chief operating officer from 1980-1992.
Gooden has the second most wins (157) and strikeouts (1,875) in franchise history, trailing only Mets and National Baseball Hall of Famer Tom Seaver. Gooden holds the Mets record for most shutouts in a season (8) and owns the major league record for most strikeouts by a rookie in a season (276). "Doc" electrified Mets fans for 11 seasons, finishing his Mets career with a 157-85 record and a 3.10 earned run average. The righthander burst onto the scene in 1984, winning 17 games and the National League Rookie of the Year honors. He continued his dominance the following season by winning the pitching Triple Crown - leading the National League in wins (24), strikeouts (268) and ERA (1.53) - and capturing the Cy Young Award.
Johnson transformed the Mets into winners after seven straight losing seasons and has the highest winning percentage (.588) of any manager in club history. The Mets ran away with the NL East, winning a club-record 108 games, on their way to their second World Championship in 1986. Johnson's teams won an average of 95 games from 1984-1990 and took home a second division title in 1988 with 100 victories. He finished his Mets career with a 595-417 record.
Strawberry was one of the most feared hitters in Mets history, and is the club's leader in home runs (252), runs batted in (733), runs (662) and extra-base hits (469). The former No. 1 draft pick won the NL Rookie of the Year award in 1983 hitting 26 home runs. The rightfielder was a seven-time All-Star with the Mets and hit 25 or more home runs in each of his eight years with the team. In 1988, Strawberry led the league with a career-high 39 home runs as the Mets won their second NL East title in three years.
The Mets Hall of Fame now has 25 members. The 21 previous Hall of Fame members in order of the year they were inducted are: Joan Payson (1981); Casey Stengel (1981); Gil Hodges (1982); George M. Weiss (1982); William A. Shea (1983); Johnny Murphy (1983); Ralph Kiner (1984); Bob Murphy (1984); Lindsey Nelson (1984); Bud Harrelson (1986); Rusty Staub (1986); Tom Seaver (1988); Jerry Koosman (1989); Ed Kranepool (1990); Cleon Jones (1991); Jerry Grote (1992); Tug McGraw (1993); Mookie Wilson (1996); Keith Hernandez (1997); Gary Carter (2001); and Tommie Agee (2002).
The plaques of all the inductees will be one of the main attractions at the new Mets Hall of Fame and Museum which will open this season.
The Mets Hall of Fame committee was re-formed in November. The seven-member committee is comprised of a combination of media members with long-standing connections to the club and the Mets front office staff. The members are: Dave Howard, Executive Vice President, Business Operations who has been with the organization for 18 years; Jay Horwitz, Vice President, Media Relations who enters his 31st season with the team; Tina Mannix, Senior Director, Marketing who has been with the Mets for nine years; former Mets pitcher Al Jackson, a pitching consultant who is entering his sixth decade with the Mets; Marty Noble, the Mets.com beat writer who is entering his fifth decade covering the team; Gary Cohen, the New York native and voice of the Mets on SNY who has been a Mets broadcaster for 21 years; and Howie Rose, a Queens native and radio voice of the Mets on WFAN who has covered the team for 21 years on radio and television.
Taking home 60 percent of the vote, David Wright has been named the 2009 Met of the Year.
