One Defining Distinction

[Guest AG/DC]

It strikes me that history records a non-descript tenure for the vast majority of Mets coaches. Surely these guys must have made an impresson if you paid close enough attention.

I'm counting on you to have paid close enough attention. Give me a defining distinction for each of the Mets coaches ever, alphabetically. If you don't know one, find one. If you can't find one, subpoena one. Try and stick to baseball, but if we have to go with, "He was fat and old," then, so be it. Keep in mind that doesn't distinguish too many coaches from one another, though.

We'll start with the recently departed Manny Acta.

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

Manager in waiting.

[Guest AG/DC]

Fuckin' young one too.

Sandy Alomar, Sr.

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

Sent more men to their death in 2007 than GWB.

[Guest AG/DC]

Ouch, no place on Mt. Coachmore for you.

Bob Apodaca.

[Guest AG/DC]

Sure, I'll take that one.

Bob wore a stopwatch around his neck as pitching coach. I don't know what he was timing.

Don Baylor.

[stevejrogers]

Did some work helping awareness for Multiple Myeloma during his tour of duty.

[Guest AG/DC]

Bruce Benedict, 1997-1999.

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

I had lots of his baseball cards as a kid.

[Guest AG/DC]

Which doesn't distinguish his coaching tenure.

[Frayed Knot]

AG/DC wrote: Bruce Benedict, 1997-1999.

Reffed major college basketball during the off-season

[Guest AG/DC]

That's cool. Doesn't say much about his Met tenure, but beggars and choosers, I guess.

Yogi Berra (1965 - 1971) is up. And just to keep me from having to keep jumping in...

Mickey Brantley 1999
Tom Burgess 1977
Phil Cavarretta 1975 - 1978
Chris Chambliss 2002
Guy Conti 2005 - 2007
Chuck Cottier 1979 - 1981
Mike Cubbage 1990 - 1996
Rick Down 2005 - 2007
Gene Dusan 1983
Doc Edwards 1990 - 1991
Dave Engle 2001 - 2002
Bobby Floyd 2001, 2004
Barry Foote 1992 - 1993
Jim Frey 1982 - 1983
Matt Galante 2002 - 2004
Bob Gibson 1981
Harvey Haddix 1966 - 1967
Mel Harder 1964
Bud Harrelson 1982, 1985 - 1990
Don Heffner 1964 - 1965
Solly Hemus 1962 - 1963
Rickey Henderson 2007
Whitey Herzog 1966
Chuck Hiller 1990
Rogers Hornsby 1962
Vern Hoscheit 1984 - 1987
Charlie Hough 2001 - 2002
Frank Howard 1982 - 1984, 1994 - 1996
Al Jackson 1999 - 2000
Darrell Johnson 1993
Deron Johnson 1981
Howard Johnson 2007
Red Kress 1962
Dave LaRoche 1992 - 1993
Cookie Lavagetto 1962 - 1963
Jerry Manuel 2005 - 2007
Dal Maxvill 1978
Willie Mays 1974 - 1979
Tom McCraw 1992 - 1996
Clyde McCullough 1963
Roy McMillan 1973 - 1976
Bill Monbouquette 1982 - 1983
Johnny Murphy 1967
Randy Niemann 1997 - 1999, 2001 - 2003
Tom Nieto 2005 - 2007
Salty Parker 1967
Greg Pavlick 1985 - 1986 , 1988 - 1991, 1994 - 1996
Sam Perlozzo 1987 - 1989
Rick Peterson 2004 - 2007
Gary Pettis 2003 - 2004
Joe Pignatano 1968 - 1981
Bill Robinson 1984 - 1989
Sheriff Robinson 1964 - 1967, 1972
Tom Robson 1997 - 2000, 2002
Cookie Rojas 1997 - 2000
Red Ruffing 1962
Vern Ruhle 2003
Dick Sisler 1979 - 1980
Denny Sommers 1977 - 1978
Warren Spahn 1965
Tom Spencer 1991
Rusty Staub 1982
John Stearns 2000 - 2001
Mel Stottlemyre 1984 - 1993
Steve Swisher 1994 - 1996
Bobby Valentine 1983 - 1985
Rick Waits 2003
Rube Walker 1968 - 1981
Dave Wallace 1999 - 2000
Denny Walling 2003 - 2004
Wes Westrum 1964 - 1965
Ernie White 1963
Mookie Wilson 1997 - 2002
Bobby Wine 1993 - 1996
Eddie Yost 1968 - 1975

[stevejrogers]

Nobody don't like Yogi! Well, that was the title of that one-man play about Berra that was produced a couple of years ago.

Except for one current Newsday columnist who thought Yogi was a hypocritical POS for going back on his pledge never to step inside Yankee Stadium.

Don't worry AG/DC I'll take the next few coaches off =

[Guest AG/DC]

Back to Yogi's Mets coaching tenure. When Ron Swoboda set the then Mets homer for homers by a rookie, he lost a homer on an umpiring decision at Crosley Field, where a ball was in play if it hit off the concrete (!) outfield wall, but a homer if it hit off the wood wall behind it. Swoboda's apparent first-inning grand slam was ruled in play and Coach Berra was furious and got himself ejected in a subsequent argument, leading to perhaps the greatest Berra-ism of his career coaching the Met basepaths: "Anybody who couldn't hear that ball hit the wood is blind."

[MFS62]

Do we have to do them in order? I don't know if I will be able to contain myself if I have to wait with my Frank Howard comment.

Later

[Guest AG/DC]

Tell it to somebody on the street.

[Guest AG/DC]

Sure, I'll tell you one thing about Mickey Brantley. He replaced Tom Robson in the Steve Phillips' June 1999 gutting of Bobby Valentine's coaching staff. They went out and salvaged the Yankee series by pounding Roger Clemens, before somebody named Todd Erdos shut them down.

They hit the rest of the way, better than they did before or after his tenure --- which ended with the season --- but it took a few years for him to get another big-league job. The Blue Jays hired him in 2005, and he quickly went from a base coach to hitting coach, where he remains under former Metly colleague John Gibbons.

[metirish]

Dave Engle - Good organizational guy makes it to the big club as hitting coach but seemed out of his depth , that was a tough season for the team though as they faltered after making the WS in 2000.

IIRC Engle went back to work in the minor system for the Mets.



Side Fact - First player to homer in the MetroDome.

[Guest sharpie]

Tom Burgess was surely referred to as "Smokey" by Ralph Kiner at least one time.