The Law of Unintended Consequences really kicked into overdrive. Joe Torre chose Bob Gibson to replace Willie as the living legend coach in the dugout. Ater the Mets selected Roger Clemens in the 12th Round of the 1981 draft out of community college, Gibson supposedly gave him a negative scouting report when the Mets invited him to work out for them in Houston, and the Mets (again, supposedly) opted not to sign him (or, perhaps, simply not meet his asking price) largely based on that report.
History might have been very different. I mean, how stunningly embarrassing would it have been if Piazza had that bat thrown at him by a teammate?