Tom Seaver, the galvanizing force who steered the New York Mets from National League laughing stock to a stunning World Series title in 1969, has died. He was 75.
Seaver’s death was announced on Wednesday and after he died earlier this week from complications of Lewy body dementia and Covid-19. Seaver spent his final years in Calistoga, California.
Seaver’s family announced in March 2019 he had been diagnosed with dementia and had retired from public life. He continued working at Seaver Vineyards, which he founded with his wife, Nancy, in 2002 on 116 acres in northern California.
“He will always be the heart and soul of the Mets, the standard which all Mets aspire to,” Mike Piazza, a former Mets catcher and Hall of Famer, tweeted when Seaver’s dementia diagnosis was announced.
Mike Piazza
(@mikepiazza31)Tom Seaver was a larger than life baseball Icon, he embodied all that is desired in a player and a man, dedicated, loyal, sincere and fiercely competitive. Showed strength and dignity during his recent suffering. He will be missed #Mets #TomSeaver
Nicknamed Tom Terrific and The Franchise, the revered Seaver was a five-time 20-game winner and the 1967 NL Rookie of the Year. He went 311-205 with a 2.86 ERA, 3,640 strikeouts and 61 shutouts during an illustrious career that lasted from 1967-86. He became a constant on magazine covers and a media presence, calling postseason games on NBC and ABC even while still an active player.
“He was simply the greatest Mets player of all-time and among the best to ever play the game,” Mets owner Fred Wilpon and son Jeff, the team’s chief operating officer, said in a statement.
Seaver was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1992 when he appeared on 425 of 430 ballots for a then-record 98.84%.
“Tom was a gentleman who represented the best of our national pastime,” Commissioner Rob Manfred said in a statement. “He was synonymous with the New York Mets and their unforgettable 1969 season.”
“After their improbable World Series championship, Tom became a household name to baseball fans a responsibility he carried out with distinction throughout his life,” he said.
Seaver’s plaque in Cooperstown lauds him as a “power pitcher who helped change the New York Mets from lovable losers into formidable foes.”
He changed not only their place in the standings, but the team’s stature in people’s minds.
“Tom Seaver hated to lose,” said Jerry Grote, his longtime Mets catcher. “In May of 1969, we had a celebration in the locker room when we reached .500 for the first time. Tom said, ‘We want more than .500, we want a championship.”’
Among baseball’s worst teams from their expansion season in 1962, the Mets lost more than 100 games in five of their first six seasons and had never won more than 73 in any of their first seven years. With cherished Brooklyn Dodgers star Gil Hodges as their manager, a young corps of pitchers led by Seaver, Jerry Koosman, Gary Gentry and a still-wild Nolan Ryan, and an offense that included Cleon Jones and Tommie Agee, the Mets overtook the Chicago Cubs to win the NL East with a 100-62 record in 1969.
They swept Hank Aaron and the Atlanta Braves in the first NL Championship Series to reach the World Series against heavily favored Baltimore, which had gone 109-53. Seaver lost the opener 4-1 in a matchup with Mike Cuellar, then pitched a 10-inning six-hitter to win Game 4, and the Mets won the title the following afternoon.
Seaver pitched for the Mets from 1967-77, when he was traded to Cincinnati after a public spat with chairman M. Donald Grant over Seaver’s desire for a new contract. It was a clash that infuriated baseball fans in New York.
