Turner Field Power Usage

[G-Fafif]

The Mets lineup on Labor Day 2013 totaled 73 major league home runs in its collective career.

Young 7
Murphy 36
Satin 2
Brown 10
Lagares 4
Turner 6
Flores 1
Recker 7
Matsuzaka 0

Have no idea where this stands in Met acoustic annals, but it has to be down there. Taking a stab at precedent, I went to everybody's favorite power-free year, 1980, and the same date, which included two kids fresh off the farm (HR totals to date, entering 9/2/1980).

Wilson 0
Taveras 2
Mazzilli 53
Washington 56
Henderson 34
Maddox 18
Trevi�o 0
Backman 0
Pacella 0

Even spotting them two callups, the least powerful Met of all time in terms of most ABs with the club producing 0 HR and the pitcher...163 HR in that lineup, or 90 more than yesterday.

Two nights later, Brooks, also new, was in for Maddox, so subtract Elliott's 18. Youngblood, with 29, replaced Washington, for a net loss of of 27. Mike Scott pitched and was no more powerful a hitter than John Pacella. And you still have 118.

Could the Mets have fielded a lineup with less power than yesterday?

[Edgy MD]

I figured if you (a) take a punchless year (1979), ( follow a punchless player who played an otherwise high-power position (Gil Flores in right), and © look to September, where guys at the dawn of their careers might stumble into the starting lineup, you could easily top that number. I settled on 9/3/1979, taking on the Expos in Montreal.

1. Gil Flores RF 2
2. Frank Taveras SS 2
3. Lee Mazzilli CF 37
4. John Stearns 1B 41
5. Joel Youngblood LF 23
6. Elliott Maddox 3B 13
7. Alex Trevino C 0
8. Doug Flynn 2B 5
9. Ray Burris P 1

124. Not even close.

What I did learn is that Flores had one of the subbiest seasons you'll ever see in a subby career. Seventy games, but only 10 starts.

[batmagadanleadoff]

9/1/67 is close, but no cigar.

Harrelson
Jones
Johnson
Kranepool
Swoboda
Stahl
Buchek
Sullivan
Fisher

[batmagadanleadoff]

9/29/67 might do the trick. I'll do the math.

[batmagadanleadoff]

nope.

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

I went for a Piazza-less game 10 years ago today! Sept. 2003

Roger Cedeno 36
Danny Garcia 0
Timo Perez 17
Jason Phillips 12
Ty Wigginton 16
Raul Gonzalez 5
Vance Wilson 13
Jorge Velandia 0
Steve Trachsel 2

101 total, plus the one Timo would hit this day!

A few weeks later you have the same cast except Seo & Prentice Redman where Trax and Timo are. That's about 85.

[G-Fafif]

Found one, from just over 50 years ago, 8/31/1963:

Christopher 8
Kanehl 5
Hunt 8
Gonder 7
Hickman 26
Harkness 9
Carmel 3
Moran 0
Willey 2

That's 68 home runs entering that Saturday's showdown versus the Milwaukee Braves at the Polo Grounds. Al Moran chose this game to blast his only Met home run to up the lineup's total directly after the fact to 69. The Mets lost anyway, 4-3.

Before that, lineups always included somebody like Gil Hodges, Frank Thomas, Duke Snider (who Casey used to PH vs. Spahn), Charlie Neal, Jimmy Piersall...not much future but a powerful past.

[Edgy MD]

Yeah, I looked at 2003 also, focusing on Duncan minus Piazza, and the first I found was 9/14:

1. Cedeno, rf, 36
2. Garcia, 2b, 2
3. Perez, lf, 18
4. Phillips, 1b, 12
5. Wigginton, 3b, 16
6. Wilson, c, 13
7. Velandia, ss, 0
8. Duncan, cf, 0
9. Glavine, p, 1

That's 98. Perhaps a similar lineup could be found from earlier in the season when Piazza is hurt but Phillis and Wiggy haven't hit too many yet, but then Alomar or Vaughn might be there. Or Burnitz or Floyd. Can't have that.

How about... August 10?

1. Roger Cedeno, RF, 35
2. Jose Reyes, SS, 1
3. Jason Phillips, 1B, 8
4.Ty Wigginton, 3B, 13 (would hit his 14th that day)
5. Raul Gonzalez, CF, 5 (and done --- would never hit anothe)
6. Joe McEwing, LF, 23
7. Marco Scutaro, 2B, 2
8. Vance Wilson, C, 13
9. Al Leiter, P, 0

That's 100, without even help from Duncan. Who'da guessed that Cedeno would be such a powerhouse and ruin this shit for everybody involved?

[G-Fafif]

50 Years Ago yesterday: 9/2/1963, second game of Labor Day doubleheader @ PG, Reds 1 Mets 0

Hickman 27
Carmel 4
Hunt 8
Harkness 11
Hicks 11
Coleman 8
Schreiber 0
Moran 1
Hook 0

70: Better than 9/2/2013, not quite down to 8/31/1963's standards.

[G-Fafif]

50 Years Ago Thursday, 9/5/1963, STL 9 NYM 0 @ oldest Busch Stadium

E. Kranepool 2
T. Harkness 12
R. Hunt 8
J. Hickman 27
P. Green 12
D. Smith 0
Cannizzaro 0
A. Moran 1
G. Powell 0

TOTAL: 62

A new low!

[G-Fafif]

But it gets worse.

September 7, 1963, Reds 4 Mets 2 @ Crosley Field.

Kranepool 2
Hunt 8
Green 12
Harkness 12
Carmel 4
Hicks 11
Coleman 8
Moran 1
Stallard 0

That's 58. A major league lineup coming into a game with 58 home runs.

[Edgy MD]

Pumpsie Green and his .409 OBP batting third!

Pumpsie is the poor man's 1963 version of Richie Ashburn to me. If anybody had been paying attention to OBP, he'd've never disappeared.

[G-Fafif]

From this exercise, this essay.

[Edgy MD]

The key to plunging beneath 60 seemed to be playing Hicks instead of Hickman.

I'm thinking Casey may have been meaning to write Hickman's name into the lineup, but grew disengaged halfway through the name and trailed off.

[Edgy MD]

Cool, you just got a traffic bump from Rubin:

http://espn.go.com/blog/new-york/mets/post/_/id/77217/morning-briefing-a-day-of-rest-in-cleveland

[G-Fafif]

Edgy MD wrote: The key to plunging beneath 60 seemed to be playing Hicks instead of Hickman. I'm thinking Casey may have been meaning to write Hickman's name into the lineup, but grew disengaged halfway through the name and trailed off.

Would also explain Edna Stengel's dismay about her mail being forwarded to Hicksville.