Teammates

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

Pete Falcone

[Edgy MD]

Keith Hernandez is an excellent answer, having more than a few mentioned Hunt being his first roommate, teaching him how to recover quickly from athletic trauma, despite playing only a dozen games with the 1974 Cards. Keith and Wally would rule the right side of the Mets infield for most of the 1983 to 1989 span.

[Edgy MD]

Eight Ron Hunt/Wally Backman teammates:

Rusty Staub
Keith Hernandez
Mike Joregensen
_______________
_______________
_______________
_______________
_______________

Apart from our lefty-swinging firstbasemen, five Hunt-Backman bridges remain:
[list:1d7ymo0k][*:1d7ymo0k]One destroyed a highly promising career.[/*:m:1d7ymo0k]
[*:1d7ymo0k]One tried to reinvent pitching.[/*:m:1d7ymo0k]
[*:1d7ymo0k]One has already appeared in this thread.[/*:m:1d7ymo0k]
[*:1d7ymo0k]One appeared as Pete Rose's defensive replacement in his first All-Star Game and made the play for the last out.[/*:m:1d7ymo0k]
[*:1d7ymo0k]The last played 18 years in the bigs and I can tell you almost nothing about him. He played for the Mets, but touched Hunt's career and Backman's during tenures with other teams. (He may deserve his own thread.)[/*:m:1d7ymo0k][/list:u:1d7ymo0k]

[MFS62]

Jim Dwyer?
Later

[Edgy MD]

Jim Dwyer is indeed the last of those bullet points, having joined Hunt during those final 14 games for the Cardinals in 1974, and many years later crewed with Backman on the 1989 Twins. In between, he played 11 games for the 1976 Mets. He may have even worn a pillbox hat.

You don't see a whole lot of careers like Jim's. Eighteen years, but only three times getting into as many as 100 games, peaking at 107.

Eight Ron Hunt/Wally Backman teammates:

Rusty Staub
Keith Hernandez
Mike Jorgensen
Jim Dwyer
_______________
_______________
_______________
_______________

[seawolf17]

Ellis Valentine?

[MFS62]

Thanks. It was your comments about an 18 year career and relative obscurity ("not knowing much about him") that got me thinking.

Later

[Edgy MD]

seawolf17 wrote: Ellis Valentine?

Ellis came up in 1975, a season after Hunty took his final bow. He did, however, have a brief-but-torrid relationship with Backman on the 1981-1982 Mets.

Ellis, man. Had the best season of his career in 1980 and got dumped to the Mets for a reliever less than two months into the next season, and never put together more than two productive weeks in the rest of his career.

Seemingly below market value though it was, Valentine for Reardon turned out to be a great trade for the Expos, but has cocaine ever been more associated with a such a dramatic career downturn?

I mean, besides Harvey?

Eight Ron Hunt/Wally Backman teammates:

Rusty Staub
Keith Hernandez
Mike Jorgensen
Jim Dwyer
_______________
_______________
_______________
_______________

[seawolf17]

Ah. 1974 is a good clue. Gary Carter, then.

[Edgy MD]

Gary Carter is correct! If only kinda! Kid 8 debuted on the 1974 Expos on September 9, four days after Hunt was selected off waivers by the Cardinals. But I like to think Carter came up on September 1 and I also like to think Hunt shared a shower with the rookie at some point. Who wouldn't? That guy LOVED showering!

[youtube:98dg3s14]hIIQULPkWnk[/youtube:98dg3s14]

And from 1985 to 1988 he would become a regular showerer with Wally Backman. Probably the best part of Wally's day.

Carter would make the All Star squad as (still) a rookie in 1975, splitting his time between the outfield and catcher, and his ASG debut was as a ninth-inning sub for Pete Rose, Making the game-ending out by corralling a fly off the bat of Rod Carew, securing the National League's annual win.

Rusty Staub
Keith Hernandez
Mike Jorgensen
Jim Dwyer
Gary Carter
_______________
_______________
_______________

[stevejrogers]

Mike Marshall?

[Edgy MD]

Yup, Dr. Mike is our mutual teammate who tried to change pitching. He joined Ron on the 1970-1973 Expos and later finished his career enjoying Back-MANIA! with the strike-stricken 1981 Mets.

Two guys remain: the destroyer of careers and the thread recidivist.

Rusty Staub
Keith Hernandez
Mike Jorgensen
Jim Dwyer
Gary Carter
Mike Marshall
_______________
_______________

[Frayed Knot]

Seaver

[Edgy MD]

Ron was with the Mets through 1966, and Seaver emerged in 1967. Close.

We have a pitcher and an outfielder remaining.