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| Mike Piazza provided too many great moments as a Met not too be a first ballot Hall of Famer |
Let's be honest, today was one of the more odd days in the history of Major League Baseball. For one, many of the guys on the ballot were in a grey with this whole steroid issue; they had more than the appropriate HOF stats, but had probably juiced in their day. Two, not one player was elected into the Hall, the second occurrence of such an oddity in the last 40 years. Third, which comes on the heels of the last reason, is the lack of a Mike Piazza election to baseball immortality.
Piazza is the greatest hitting catcher of All-Time. Not only does he lead all catchers with a 427 home runs, but he also hit .308 over a 15-year career behind the plate (played 16 years, one primarily as a DH). He also drove in 1,335 RBIs and also had six seasons of 30+ home runs and 100+ RBIs. It didn't even matter that he had a below average arm behind the plate or couldn't stop a wild pitch in the dirt, the guy was so unbelievable at the plate for so many years it's mesmerizing. Piazza most likely survived as a catcher because he barely used his knees when he swung. Unforgettable is his seemingly flick of the wrist home runs that came at such a frequent rate. He was so calm in the batter's box and at times was so unstoppable.
What is even more wild about Piazza's career is that his years as a Met were far more memorable than his years as a Dodgers, despite the fact the numbers weren't as good. He won Rookie of the Year in '93 as a Dodger, batting .318 with 112 runs batted in, and then didn't bat below .300 the rest of his time in L.A. That includes a mind-boggling '97 campaign when he batted .362/40/124. Those numbers are absurd even when you don't include the fact that he only sat 10 games that season as a catcher. He finished second behind Ken Griffey Jr. in the MVP voting and rightfully so, Griffey made a joke of the league by scoring 124 runs, smashing 56 homers and 147 RBIs; all three categories he led the league. But that's not the point. Piazza's remembered for his heroics in New York, even though he ripped the absolute cover off the ball as a Dodger.
Obviously his time as a Met was still extremely special, but in a different way. He batted .296 as a Met in the second half of his career, while hitting 220 homers and 655 RBIs. Piazza's value in Queens wasn't judged on stats though, he carried an overachieving Mets squad to back-to-back NLCS appearances including a National League Pennant in 2000. In those two years, Piazza's first full ones in N.Y., he batted .314 with 78 combined home runs and 137 RBIs. The catcher had some absolutely magical moments as a Met, but there was none bigger than the September 21, 2001 home run. Down 2-1 in the first game back since 9/11, Piazza hit an eighth inning bomb to give the Mets a 3-2 lead and an eventual win. It was the perfect moment by the perfect guy in a reeling city, giving the people at least a moment's rest from the horrific tragedy that occurred only 10 days earlier.
And that's exactly what Mike Piazza was, a hero. For any Met fan born after 1986, Piazza is the guy. Everytime he stepped up to the plate, you expected a big hit and most of time he delivered. He's the most memorable Met I've ever watched and I'm stunned that he's not in the Hall of Fame right now. I think a lot of people would agree with me that his mind-numbing stats as a Dodger combined with his numerous magic moments in Shea Stadium makes him an undeniable Hall of Famer. The fact that he is almost unanimously dubbed "The greatest hitting catcher of all-time," just makes this snub all that more stunning.
Since we can't enjoy Piazza's HOF speech this year, let's enjoy his greatest moment in a historic career.
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