| << Yesterday | Today in Mets History |
Tomorrow>> |
5 Fact(s) Found
| 1963 |
The Major League Rules Committee, starting with the 1965 season, bans oversized catcher gloves, establishing a maximum glove circumference of 38 inches. The larger catcher's mitt, the 45-inch "Big Bertha," was devised in 1960 by Orioles manager Paul Richards to help his backstops catch Hoyt Wilhelm's knuckleball.
 Clint Courtney tries on an oversized catcher's mitt. |
| 1991 | The Mets sign 28-year-old Pirates' free-agent Bobby Bonilla, a highly touted outfielder who will hit only .249 during the first year of his contract for an underachieving fifth-place New York club, to a $29 million, five-year deal. The team will send the six-time All-Star to the Orioles for Damon Buford and Alex Ochoa near the trading deadline in 1995. |
| 1993 | Future Hall of Famer Eddie Murray, who hit .274 and averaged 96.5 RBIs during his two seasons in the Big Apple, leaves New York to sign a free-agent deal with the Indians. The Mets had signed the then 36-year-old first baseman as one of several acquisitions, including Bobby Bonilla, Willie Randolph, and Bret Saberhagen, in a futile attempt to improve the club's performance on the field. |
| 2008 | Mets COO Jeff Wilpon says the team's new ballpark will retain its name, Citi Field, despite suggestions from two NYC council members to name the venue Citi/Taxpayer Field. Citigroup, a struggling financial institution that received a federal bailout, pays the franchise $400 million over 20 years for naming rights to the stadium. |
| 2009 | The Braves and left-hander Billy Wagner agree on a $7 million, one-year deal for the southpaw to become the club's closer, replacing Rafael Soriano and Mike Gonzalez. The six-time All-Star, who missed most of last season due to elbow surgery, was traded by the Mets to the Red Sox in late August after the reliever showed he still had a live fastball in his initial appearance off the disabled list in New York. |
5 Fact(s) Found