If you hang out with fellow Mets fans, you'll spend years talking about Mets 8 games and Braves 7 games while straddling the water cooler or at the drinking fountain. And it will probably lead to other important adjacent subjects.
Was that the best regular season game in Mets history? Find it by combing through all 9,963 Mets games on Retrosheet, or just go for the obvious. I mean, it certainly was.
Was Francisco Lindor's one-out, two-run home run in the ninth inning on Monday the biggest home run in Mets history? That's a little more subjective. This is one man's list and one man's orders. I'm glad to hear what will almost certainly be a completely different list than yours.
10. Daniel Murphy, Game 5, 2015 NLDS
The solo shot off Zack Greinke in Game 5 of the 2015 NLDS at Dodger Stadium was the swing that clinched the series victory for the Mets.
9. Darryl Strawberry, Game 5, 1986 NLCS
He took the seed from Nolan Ryan and pushed the Astros into overtime for a decisive victory.
8. Lenny Dykstra, Game 3, 1986 NLCS
Houston's Dave Smith hit a walk-off two-run home run, turning the Mets around and making it 2-1.
He is the 9th person to win Game 3 of the NLCS.
7. Al Weiss, Game 5 of the 1969 World Series
It's also the least likely since he's only hit seven other home runs in his 10-year career. However, in the 7th inning, the score was tied at 3, and the miracle became a reality.
6. Benny Agbayani, Game 3, 2000 NLDS
The Mets scored a walk-off victory, 3-2, in the 13th inning of overtime against Giants' Aaron Fultz, giving them the decisive blow the next day.
5. Mike Piazza, September 21, 2001
Baseball means less than the others, but it's in a category that has more impact on its own.
4. Robin Ventura, Game 5, 1999 NLCS
It wasn't technically a home run, as Todd Pratt got in the way as he was cruising the bases, but everyone saw the ball go over Shea's right-field wall.
3. Pratt, Game 4, 1999 NLDS
Replacing the sick Piazza, he hit a home run off Matt Mantei to Shea in center field, winning the Mets' series against Arizona.
2. Lindor, Monday
Considering the stakes and how the team suffered a kneecap in the previous inning. Maybe it's recency bias. Time will tell.
1. Ray Knight, 1986 World Series Game 7
Knight's shot off Calvin Schiraldi in the seventh inning only resulted in the Mets winning the World Series. This has to sit at number one until the next one comes along.
(Honorable Mention: Don Clendenon, 1969, right after the Cleon Jones “shoe-polishing” incident in the inning before Weiss, Strawberry off the clock in St. Louis in 1985, Kirk New against the Nationals in September 2015) Wenhouse/Kelly Johnson and Wilmer Flores “tears of joy” in the bottom of the 8th inning against Washington on Monday, July 31, 2015.
