Seaver, heart of Miracle Mets, dies
NEW YORK » Tom Seaver, the galvanizing leader of the Miracle Mets 1969 championship team and a pitcher who personified the rise of expansion teams during an era of radical change for baseball, has died. He was 75.
The Hall of Fame said Wednesday Seaver died Monday from complications of Lewy body dementia and COVID-19. Seaver’s family announced in March 2019 he had been diagnosed with dementia and had retired from public life.
He continued working at Seaver Vineyards, founded by the three-time NL Cy Young Award winner and his wife, Nancy, in 2002 on 116 acres in Northern California.
Seaver was diagnosed with Lyme disease in 1991, and it reoccurred in 2012 and led to Bell’s Palsy and memory loss, the Daily News of New York reported in 2013.
“He will always be the heart and soul of the Mets, the standard which all Mets aspire to,” Mike Piazza, a former Mets catcher and Hall of Famer, tweeted when Seaver’s dementia diagnosis was announced.
Nicknamed Tom Terrific and The Franchise, Seaver was a five-time 20-game winner and the 1967 NL Rookie of the Year. For his career, from 1967-86, he had a 311-205 record with a 2.86 ERA, 3,640 strikeouts and 61 shutouts. He became a constant on magazine covers and a media presence, calling postseason games on NBC and ABC even while still an active player.
He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1992 when he appeared on 425 of 430 ballots for a then-record 98.84%. His plaque in Cooperstown lauds him as a “power pitcher who helped change the New York Mets from lovable losers into formidable foes.” He changed not only their place in the standings but the team’s stature in people’s minds.
Supremely confident Seaver was a 12-time All-Star who led the major leagues with a 25-7 record in 1969 and a 1.76 ERA in 1971, and he won Cy Young Awards with New York in 1969, 1973 and 1975.
“From a team standpoint, winning the ‘69 world championship is something I’ll remember most,” Seaver said in 1992. “From an individual standpoint, my 300th win brought me the most joy.”