Michael Joseph Piazza...he and his wife, Alicia, make their offseason home in Miami Beach, FL...graduated
from Phoenixville (PA) High School, where he was named league Most Valuable Player in baseball...also was
an American Legion MVP...played one year at Miami-Dade North Community College...was the Dodgers'
61st selection (62nd round), the 1,390th overall pick, in the June 1988 Free Agent Draft...a total of 1,433
players were drafted in 1988...received personal instruction from the late Hall of Famer Ted Williams at his
backyard batting cage in Pennsylvania when he was 12 years old...participated in the US-Japan Professional
Baseball Exhibition Series November 1-November 10, 1996 in Japan with then-teammate then-Hideo Nomo
and 24 other Major League All-Stars...batted .429 (6-14) with four RBI in seven games, and tied for the team
lead in home runs (two) and runs scored (four)...from 1994-2004, participated in the Annual Pepsi All-Star
Softball Game in Palm Springs, CA to raise money for the International Juvenile Diabetes Foundation...was
the recipient of two awards from the New York chapter of the Baseball Writers Association of American on
February 4, 2001...shared the Toast-of-the-Town Award with the Yankees' Derek Jeter and was the winner of
the first annual Yogi Berra Award, given to the best baseball player in New York...was the winner on Jeopardy
in February of 2001 beating Jane Krakowski ("Ally McBeal") and Kevin Sorbo ("Hercules")...honored in
December of 2001 by the Police Athletic League for his contributions to the community...from 1998-2001
donated over $100,000 to the Mets' Takin' it to the Fields program...The funds were distributed in the form
of grants to Youth Baseball Leagues to repair and improve their playing fields...toured Europe, including
Germany and Italy, for Major League Baseball International in the Fall of 2002...on the tour, Mike hosted
numerous clinics for children and met Pope John Paul II while in Italy.
2007
Completed his 16th season in the Major Leagues but after 15 years as a
catcher in the National League, he was used exclusively as a designated
hitter and pinch hitter in his first season in the American League... batted
.275 with eight home runs and 44 RBI and was limited to 83 games because of a two-month stint on the disabled list...the 83 games played were the
third fewest of his career and he did not reach double figures in home runs
for the first time since hitting one home run in 21 games in his first season
in 1992...his eight home runs brought his career total to 427, which ranks
39th in Major League history and 10th among players who were active at the
end of the 2007 season...his ML record total for home runs by a catcher
remained at 396...had a .313 on-base percentage and a .414 slugging percentage,
both of which were his lowest since 1992 (.284/.319)...now has a
.545 career slugging percentage, which ranks 29th in ML history (min. 5000
PA)...hit .315 with six of his eight home runs and 29 of his 44 RBI on the road...batted just .227 in Oakland...has a .320 (1164 for 3632) career average
on the road and .294 (963 for 3279) at home...hit seven of his eight
home runs off right-handed pitching...four of his home runs came against
Los Angeles and all of those came in Angel Stadium...those were his first
career home runs at Angel Stadium and he has now homered in 40 different
ballparks in his career...the only current ballparks in which he has not
homered are Busch Stadium, Comerica Park and the Metrodome...had one
home run and eight RBI in 26 games before the All-Star Break and seven
home runs and 36 RBI in 57 games after the break...was 5 for 9 (.556) with
10 RBI with the bases loaded and had the fifth best batting average in the
AL with the bases full...now has a .371 (59 for 159) career average with the
bases loaded with 14 grand slams...is one of 16 players in ML history with 14 or more grand slams in his
career...batted .320 during the day
and .254 at night...now has a .323
(646 for 2002) career average during
the day compared to .302 (1481
for 4909) at night...hit .283 with
eight home runs and 44 RBI in 73
games, including 71 starts, at designated
hitter...was also 1 for 11 (.091)
with a walk and two RBI as a pinch
hitter...made a team leading 57 starts in the four spot in the order and also
hit fifth 11 times and third three times...made his 15th consecutive Opening
Day starting assignment on April 2 at Seattle, the first 14 of which came as
a catcher...became the ninth different Opening Day starter at designated
hitter for the A's in the last 11 years...went 0 for 7 over
his first two games before compiling a season best ninegame
hitting streak from April 4 to 13 (15 for 37,
.405)...followed that up by going 1 for 22 over his next
five games...hit his first AL home run on April 5 at
Los Angeles, a two-out solo shot off Francisco
Rodriguez in the top of the ninth inning to a break a 3-
3 tie in the A's 4-3 win...that would be his only home
run in April, his fewest ever in April in a non-strike
season...his previous low was two in 2005...had a sixgame
hitting streak from April 26 to May 2 (9 for 23,
.391) to push his season average to .282...sprained his
right shoulder on May 2 at Boston in a collision with
Mike Lowell at third base and was placed on the 15-
day disabled list retroactive to May 3...had a six-game
rehab assignment, going 7 for 17 (.412) with two
doubles and a RBI in three games with Triple-A Sacramento
from July 13 to 15 and 3 for 9 (.333) with two
home runs and four RBI in three games with Single-A
Stockton from July 17 to 19...was reinstated from the
DL on July 20 and hit .272 (56 for 206) with seven
home runs and 36 RBI over his final 57 games...had
an eight-game hitting streak from July 21 to 30 and hit
.428 (15 for 35) with two home runs and 11 RBI during
the streak...homered on July 23 at Los Angeles to
snap a 24-game, 95-at bat homerless streak...it was
his second most consecutive at bats without a home
run in his career (98, May 9-June 16, 2005) and his
third most games...hit .341 in 10 games in July and his
season average was .305 at the conclusion of play on
August 1...then went 12 for 67 (.179) over his next 17
games to drop his average to .266...snapped out of the
slump on August 23 at Tampa Bay when he went 4 for
5 with two doubles, a home run and five RBI...it was
his 16th career game of five or more RBI, his first since
August 4, 2005 against Milwaukee when he also had
five...it was his 27th game of four or more hits...batted
.238 with 15 RBI in 26 games in August...started just
six of the A's final 18 games following the promotion
of Daric Barton on September 10... pinch hit in five
consecutive games from September 16-21 and was 0
for 4 with one walk.
2006
His 22 home runs on the season are the most ever for a Padres catcher. His 20 home runs while playing at the catcher position is also a franchise record, and was second overall among National League catchers this season (Brian McCann, 24). He finished the season with the lowest catcher's ERA in the Majors at 3.50. He is now 39th on the all-time home run list with 419 long balls. On July 21 at San Francisco, Piazza went 1-for-4, getting his 2,000th career hit. On July 25, he scored on a one-out double by Adrian Gonzalez, marking his 1,000th run scored. His home run and RBI total (68) marked his best season in those categories since 2002, while he was a member of the Mets (33 HR, 98 RBIs).
2005
Recorded five home runs and seven RBI in his last 13 starts with seven walks and
seven runs scored...hit his 397th career home run, September 29 vs. Colorado (off Sunny Kim), to move into
44th place on the all-time home run list...collected his 36th career multiple-home run game, September 25
at Washington (both off John Patterson)...those were his 395th and 396th career home runs, which moved
him into a tie for 44th place on the all-time home run list with Joe Carter...Hit his 391st career home run on August 3 vs. Milwaukee (off Victor
Santos) to move into 45th place on the all-time home run list...Collected his 1,200th career RBI and 632nd as a Met on July 14 vs. the
Braves to move into second place on the Mets' all-time RBI List, ahead of Howard Johnson (629)...fi nished
the season with 655 RBI with New York, trailing only Darryl Strawberry, who has 733...also moved into fourth
place on the club's all-time doubles list with 193...Selected to his 12th All-Star Game, 11th election...it was his 10th start
(did not start in 2000 because of injury), tying Johnny Bench and Ivan Rodriguez for the second most starts
by a catcher in an All-Star Game...Yogi Berra has a record 11 starts in the Midsummer Classic...went 0-for-2
in the game, which was held at Comerica Park in Detroit on July 12...On July 17, became the 26th Major League player to catch 1,500 or more games...has
caught 1,531 games in his career, seventh-most all-time in National League history behind Gary Carter (2,056),
Al Lopez (1,861), Gabby Hartnett (1,790), Benito Santiago (1,758), Johnny Bench (1,742) and Ernie Lombardi
(1,544)...ranks second in Mets' franchise history in games caught (824)...Jerry Grote is fi rst with 1,176...Sustained a hairline fracture of the pisiform bone (small bone at the base) in his left hand on
a foul tip in the sixth inning on August 16 vs. Pittsburgh...was placed on the 15-Day Disabled List on August
21, retroactive to August 17...activated from the DL on September 10...Drove in a season-high five RBI on August 4 vs. Milwaukee...it was his first five-
RBI game since August 13, 2002 vs. San Francisco...collected a season-high four hits, May 18 vs. Cincinnati
and May 5 vs. Philadelphia...cracked home runs in three consecutive at-bats for the first time in his career
(May 5 vs. Philadelphia through May 6 at Milwaukee)...his four RBI on May 10th at Chicago gave him 615 as
a Met, which moved him into third place on the club's all-time list...picked up his 35th career multiple-home
run game, May 6 at Milwaukee (off Doug Davis-2)...finished the year with 15 multi-RBI games: one, five-RBI
game; one, four-RBI contest; 10, three-RBI games and three games with two RBI...had 28 multi-hit games:
two four-hit contests; seven three-hit games and 19 two-hit affairs.
2004
Hit his 352nd career home run as a catcher on a 3-1 pitch from Jerome Williams on May 5th vs. San Francisco in the first inning to become the All-Time Home Run Leader for catchers...Now has 358 home runs as a catcher...Tied Carlton Fisk for first place on the All-Time Home Run List for catchers with his 351st (Nomo) in the sixth inning at Los Angeles on April 27th...Is tied with Matt Williams for 54th place on the All-Time Home Run List with 378...Tony Perez and Orlando Cepeda are tied for 52nd place, each with 379 home runs...Is 12th among active major leaguers with 378 home runs...Registered his 11th campaign of 20 or more home runs...Has 201 home runs as a Met, second on the team's All-Time List behind Darryl Strawberry (252)...Also has 593 RBI with New York, fourth in club history behind Ed Kranepool (614), Howard Johnson (629) and Strawberry (733)...Now has 170 doubles as a Met, tied with Mookie Wilson for sixth place on the club's All-Time List...Tied for fourth in the National League with 14 intentional walks...Picked up his 1,800th career hit (against Brad Penny) in the sixth inning in Florida on July 10th...Was selected to his 11th All-Star Game, 10th start, July 13th at Minute Maid Park in Houston...Was 0-2 in the game...Was placed on the 15-Day Disabled List with inflammation in his left knee on August 11th, retroactive to August 7th...Was reinstated on August 31st...Mike was 3-6 with a double, sacrifice fly, walk and two RBI in two Major League rehabilitation games with St. Lucie (A) of the Florida State League...The four living Hall of Fame catchers; Yogi Berra, Carlton Fisk, Gary Carter and Johnny Bench were on hand at Shea to honor Mike on "Mike Piazza Night" on June 18th...Collected his 34th multiple-home run game, June 5th vs. Florida (Howard & Benitez)...The two solo home runs vs. the Marlins on June 5th gave him 370 career home runs, moving past Ralph Kiner and tying Gil Hodges for 56th place on the All-Time Home Run List...Those two home runs also moved Mike past Howard Johnson for second on the Mets All-Time Home Run List with 193...Ranks third on the Mets All-Time Home Run List at Shea with 88 home runs...Darryl Strawberry is first with 128 and Howard Johnson is second with 90 home runs at Shea...Had a 13-game hitting streak from May 13th-May 28th...Was 19-47 (.404) in those games with four home runs and eight RBI...Became the first catcher in modern history to hit three home runs in his team's first two games of the season (April 6th-April 7th at Atlanta)...Belted a two-out, two-strike, two-run home run in the ninth inning on May 16th off Houston's Octavio Dotel to tie the contest 2-2...The Mets eventually won the game, 3-2, in 13 innings...Hit a walk-off home run in the bottom of the 11th inning on May 6th vs. San Francisco off Jim Brower to give the Mets a 2-1 win...Made his first major league start at first base, April 11th vs. the Expos in San Juan...Had 10 putouts...Tied his career-high with his second, five-hit game (5-5) at Atlanta on April 7th...Also in that game, he had two home runs (Hampton, Nitkowski) for the 33rd multiple-home run game of his career...In that contest, he played first base in the seventh and eighth innings...Hit .303 vs. lefthanded pitching (27-89)...Also had a .319 batting average at home (68-213) and a .281 batting average at night (89-317)...Played in 68 games (66 starts) at first base...Performed in 50 games as a catcher (49 starts)...Also was the designated hitter eight times...Has 14 career grand slams, which is currently third among active players and tied for 11th all-time with Ken Griffey Jr., Mark McGwire and Gil Hodges...Robin Ventura is first among actvie players with 18 grand slams and Manny Ramirez is second with 17.
2003
2003
Ended the year with an eight-game hitting streak...Hit .375 (12-32) with five runs scored, a double and two RBI in those contests.
Moved to first base in the ninth inning of the September 25th game vs. Pittsburgh...Recorded all three putouts...It was his first appearance at first base since July 26, 1993 as a member of the Dodgers vs. San Francisco...That was his only other appearance at first base in the majors.
Drove in his 539th RBI as a Met on September 26th at Florida to move past Edgardo Alfonzo (538) on the Mets All-Time List...Ed Kranepool is third with 614 RBI.
Singled in the first inning on September 21st vs. Montreal, off Tomo Ohka, for his 1,700th career hit.
Collected his 1,101st career RBI with a three-run home run on August 26th at Atlanta (Reynolds), making him just the eighth player, whose primary position is catcher, to reach the 1,100 RBI plateau...Yogi Berra is first with 1,430 RBI, followed by Ted Simmons (1,389), Johnny Bench (1,376), Carlton Fisk (1,330), Gary Carter & Bill Dickey (1,209) and Gabby Hartnett (1,179).
Placed on the 15-Day Disabled List on May 17th with a grade three strain of the right groin...Was injured while batting against Jason Schmidt in the first inning of the May 16th game at San Francisco...Was activated on August 13th...Played in five Major League Rehabilitation games with Norfolk (AAA)...Was 3-17 (.176) with two runs scored, a home run, two RBI and one walk.
Collected the 32nd multiple-home run game of his career May 13th at Colorado (Chacon).
Hit his 350th career home run, April 22nd, off the Astros Scott Linebrink...Was also his 73rd home run at Shea in a Mets uniform, tying him for third on the Mets All-Time List for home runs by a Met at Shea with Dave Kingman...Darryl Strawberry is first with 128 and Howard Johnson is second with 90...Now has 76 homeruns as a Met at Shea.
Missed four games from April 2nd-April 5th, after being suspended for his actions in a spring training game, March 12th at St. Lucie vs. the Dodgers.
Is second on the All-Time Home Run List for catchers with 347 home runs...Carlton Fisk is first with 351.
For the year, he had 17 multiple-hit games, 11 games with two hits and six games with three hits...Also had six multi-RBI games, one with two RBI, four with three RBI and one with five, August 13th vs. the Giants.
His two-run home run in the bottom of the 10th inning on May 10th gave the Mets a 4-2 victory over the Padres...It was his sixth career walk-off home run and first since July 29, 2001, when he touched up Philadelphiabs Rheal Cormier in a 6-5 win.
His three-run home run in the first inning on August 26th propelled the Mets to a 6-5 victory at Atlanta.
2002
Became the National League's All-Time Home Run Leader for catchers when he hit his 328th home run as a backstop, August 17th vs. Los Angeles off Odalis Perez, surpassing Johnny Bench who had 327 ... That home run also put Mike into sole possession of second place on the All-Time Home Run List as a
catcher ... Now has 335 home runs as a catcher ... Carlton Fisk is first with 351.
Won his 10th consecutive Louisville Silver Slugger Award.
Ranked sixth in the National League with an RBI once every 4.9 at-bats ... Was also sixth in the NL with a home run once every 14.5 at-bats.
Moved into third place on the All-Time List after hitting his 307th home run as a catcher, his first of 2002, on April 5th at Atlanta (Spooneybarger).
Collected his 28th career multiple-home run game on April 15th vs. Atlanta with two solo shots, both off Damian Moss.
Hit two home runs off the Diamondbacks' Rick Helling for the 29th multiple-home run game of his career on April 30th.
Also knocked in six runs, on April 30th at Arizona, a Mets' career-high ... The last time he knocked in six runs was for the Dodgers vs. Arizona on April 9, 1998 ... The last Met player to have six RBI in a game was Robin Ventura in Pittsburgh on April 16, 2000.
Had a season-high and team-high 11-game hitting streak, April 14th-May 2nd ... Hit .385 (15-39) during the streak.
Collected the 13th grand slam of his career (Boyd) May 17th at San Diego ... The slam gave him 1,001 RBI for his career ... Became the ninth player in Major League Baseball history, whose primary position is catcher, to reach the 1,000 RBI plateau.
Had a 10-game hitting streak from June 5th to June 15th ... Was 14-34 (.412) in those contests.
Belted two home runs, for his 30th career multiple-home run game on July 3rd at Philadelphia ... Also tied his season-high driving in six runs.
Cracked his 155th home run as a Met on July 4th at Florida off Julian Tavarez, which moved him into thrid place on the club's All-Time Home Run List.
Participated in his 10th All-Star Game on July 9th at Milwaukee ... Was the NL's starting catcher and went 0-2 with an RBI.
Collected his 1,600th career hit, a single off Kirk Saarloos, on July 30th vs. Houton.
On July 31st vs. Houston, he collected his 700th career hit as a Met, a double in the second inning, which came in his 2,233rd at-bat ... Reached that milestone quicker than anyone else in club history ... Keith Hernandez held the previous mark, accomplishing the feat in 2,268 at-bats.
Hit his 327th career home run as a catcher on August 6th at Milwaukee, off Ben Sheets, to move into a tie for second place on the All-Time List with Johnny Bench.
Belted the fourth pinch-hit home run of his career on September 3rd (Game Two) vs. Florida (Almanza).
Hit his second grand slam of the season (Santiago) and the 14th of his career September 9th at Philadelphia ... The grand slam rallied the Mets from a 3-2 deficit to a 6-3 victory ... Had four home runs and 10 RBI in his last six games of the year.
Has 14 career grand slams, which is currently tied for second with Ken Griffey, Jr. and Manny Ramirez among active players ... Ventura leads all active players with 16.
Collected the 31st multiple-home run game of his career and his fourth of the season (Armas, Day), September 14th at Montreal ... Has one, three-home run game and 30 games with two home runs.
Picked up his 12th career National League Player of the Week honor for the week of September 9th-September 15th ... Batted .458 (11-24) with six runs, three doubles, four home runs and 10 RBI during that span.
On September 18th, drove in his 500th RBI, making him the sixth player in club history to accomplish the feat.
Had 36 multi-hit games this season: 33, two-hit contests and three, three-hit games.
Also had 25 multi-RBI contests: 15, two-RBI games; five, three-RBI games; three games with four runs batted in and the two contests with six RBI.
Finished the season by hitting .346 (18-52) with three doubles and five home runs in his last 15 games ... Also had seven home runs and 17 RBI in his last 17 games, and nine home runs and 22 RBI in his last 21 games.
Hit .278 (98-352) with 25 home runs and 72 RBI vs. righthanded pitching and .286 (36-126) with eight home runs and 26 RBI vs. lefties.
Was 22-63 (.349) on artificial turf.
Batted .296 (37-125) with 10 home runs and 47 RBI with runners in scoring position.
Ranks 12th among active major league players in home runs.
Is the active career leader among players with at least 1,000 at-bats with a .338 batting average on the road ... He is also the active career leader among
players with at least 500 at-bats with a .354 mark on turf.
Ranks fourth with a .321 career batting average among players with at least 2,000 at-bats ... Todd Helton is first with a .333 average.
2001
Picked up his ninth consecutive Louisville Silver Slugger Award.
Was named to the Sporting News' All-Star team.
Hit his 200th career double in the second inning of the April 12th game vs. Atlanta.
Drove in his 900th RBI on May 1st vs. Houston.
His home run in the fourth inning (Dempster) at Florida on May 31st was the 1400th hit of his career.
Suffered a fractured distal thalanx of the left big toe after fouling a pitch off his toe on June 29th at Atlanta.
Was selected to his ninth straight All-Star Game at SAFECO Field in Seattle ... Was the starting catcher and went 0-2 in the contest.
Hit his 300th career home run on July 13th vs. Boston's Derek Lowe ... He became the 90th player in major league history to reach that plateau ... Is the first player since Gary Carter, August 11, 1988 (at Wrigley Field) to hit his 300th home run in a Met uniform.
Belted his 124th home run as a Met, July 27th vs. Philadelphia to move into fourth place on the Mets All-Time Home Run List.
Has hit 20 or more home runs as a catcher for the past nine seasons to set a major league record ... Piazza had been tied with Yogi Berra who hit 20 or more home runs in 10 straight years, but all of Berra's home runs were not hit as a catcher.
Collected his fourth multiple-home run game of the season (Park and Carrera) and the 27th of his career on August 19th at Los Angeles ... His other two-home run games were: July 27th vs. Philadelphia, April 26th at Milwaukee and April 9th vs. Atlanta.
Collected his 300th home run as a catcher on August 21st vs. Colorado (Hampton) ... It was also his 30th home run of the season, making him one of four active players to reach the 30 home run plateau for seven straight years ... Jimmie Foxx has 12 consecutive 30 or more home run seasons, the most in major league history ... Piazza is tied for ninth on that list ... Barry Bonds is second with 10 straight years, followed by Lou Gehrig, Eddie Mathews and Mike Schmidt, who all did it eight consecutive seasons ... Babe Ruth, Mickey Mantle and Albert Belle are all tied for sixth with eight consecutive years with 30 or more home runs ... Piazza is tied with Ralph Kiner, Hank Aaron, Fred McGriff, Palmiero and Sosa.
Belted a dramatic two-run home run in the eighth inning against Steve Karsay on September 21st at home to lift the Mets to a 3-2 triumph over the Braves in the first regular season professional sporting event in New York City after the September 11th tragedy.
Belted his 306th home run as a catcher on September 30th at Atlanta (Millwood) to tie Yogi Berra for third on the All-Time List for home runs as a catcher.
Has hit .300 or better in each of his nine full seasons in the major leagues.
Compiled a .375 (30-80) batting average with 17 runs, 10 doubles, six home runs, 19 RBI and seven walks in his last 22 games.
2000
Won his eighth consecutive Louisville Silver Slugger Award.
Finished third in the National League's Most Valuable Player voting, behind the Giants' Jeff Kent and Barry Bonds.
His three-run home run on August 2nd at Houston was his 30th of the year, marking the sixth straight year he has hit 30 or more home runs.
Tied a Mets' club record on July 18th when he hit his third grand slam of the season ... The only other Mets with three grand slams in a year are John Milner in 1976 and Robin Ventura in 1999.
Knocked in three runs on August 18th at Los Angeles to give him 100 for the season, the fifth straight year he has knocked in 100 or more runs ... Had 112 RBI for the Dodgers in 1993.
From June 14th-July 2nd, he had at least one RBI in 15 straight games (28 total), breaking his own club mark ... Had an RBI in 10 straight games from August 11-August 23, 1999 ... It was the second longest consecutive RBI streak in major league history ... Ray Grimes (1922) of the Cubs knocked in at least one run in 17 straight contests.
His 72 RBI prior to the All-Star Break were the most in club history ... Dave Kingman had 69 in 1976.
Received the most votes in the National League (2,780,452 votes) for the All-Star Game, July 11th at Atlanta ... It was his eighth selection, but he did not
participate because he was still recovering from being hit by a pitch by Roger Clemens of the Yankees on July 8th.
Belted his 10th grand slam on May 14th vs. Florida (Brad Penny) ... It was also the 250th home run of his career.
Hit his second grand slam of the season and the 11th of his career in the third inning against Clemens at Yankee Stadium on June 7th.
His third slam of the season (Carpenter), the 12th of his career, came on July 18th at Toronto.
Also had three games with two home runs, giving him 23 multiple-home run games for his career ... Cracked two home runs April 14th at Pittsburgh (Schmidt, Silva), July 14th at Boston (Schourek, Lowe) and September 22nd at Philadelphia (Wolf, Brock).
For the year, he finished tied for 10th in the NL with his .324 batting average, 10th with 38 home runs, ninth with a .614 slugging percentage, first in the majors with a .377 batting average on the road ... Was third with an RBI once every 4.3 times at-bat and tied for sixth with a home run once every 12.7 times at bat.
Set a career-best with five hits (5-6) at Pittsburgh on April 14th ... Had 18 previous games with four hits.
Won Player of the Week honors for the week of April 10th-April 16th ... It was the 11th time that Mike was honored as the NL's Player of the Week in his career.
Hit his third career pinch-hit home run, with one on and two out in the 10th inning at San Diego on May 23rd against Trevor Hofffman, providing the Mets with a 5-3 victory.
POST-SEASON: Belted his fifth career post-season home run with the Mets in Game Four of the World Series, a club record ... Also, he and Derek Jeter are the only players in major league history to hit a World Series home run in both Yankee Stadium and Shea Stadium.
1999
Won his seventh consecutive Louisville Silver Slugger Award.
Hit safely in 24 straight games from May 25th to June 22nd (36-102, .353) ... The streak was a career-high and tied Hubie Brooks' club mark which was set May 1-June 1, 1984 ... Hit safely in 19 straight games, August 22-September 12, 1996.
Since 1900, Mike is one of six players whose primary position is catcher, who had hitting streaks of 24 or more games ... The all-time major league record for a hitting streak by a catcher is 34 games by the Padres' Benito Santiago in 1987 ... Sandy Alomar, Jr. hit in 30 straight for the Indians in 1997 for the American League mark ... John Flaherty had a 27-game streak for the Padres in 1996, Brian Harper, 25 games for the Twins in 1990 and Gabby Hartnett, 24 games for the Cubs in 1937.
Became the first catcher to hit 40 home runs in a season twice ... The only other catchers to have 40 or more home runs in a season were Roy Campanella of the Dodgers in 1953 and Todd Hundley of the Mets in 1996.
Cracked his 30th home run of the year, August 22nd (Game One) vs. the Cardinals ... It was Mike's fifth consecutive season with 30 or more home runs ... Also has driven in 100 or more runs in each of the last four seasons.
Hit a home run in four straight games, August 13th-August 16th, to tie a then-Mets' club mark ... It was the second time that Mike accomplished the feat (May 17th-May 21st), and it was the sixth and seventh times in the team's history.
Placed on the Disabled List before the April 12th game with Florida (retroactive to April 10th) with a sprained medial collateral ligament in his right knee ... Suffered the injury while sliding into third base in the seventh inning of the April 9th game at Montreal ... Activated from the Disabled List prior to the April 25th game at Chicago.
His solo home run on September 23rd at Atlanta against Greg Maddux was his 118th RBI of the season, a Mets' record ... Bernard Gilkey (1996) and Howard Johnson (1991) each had 117 RBI ... Finished the season with 124.
Had an RBI in 10 consecutive games (18 total) from August 11th to August 23rd to set a club record ... Bobby Bonilla had an RBI in nine straight games from May 20-May 29, 1994.
Was selected the National League Player of the Week, July 5th-July 11th ... It was his 10th Player of the Week Award and the first time he won the honor as a Met.
Was selected to his seventh straight All-Star Game ... Went 1-2 with a single, July 13th at Boston.
Finished eighth in the National League with a .588 slugging percentage, 10th with 40 home runs and third with 124 RBI.
POST-SEASON: Hit a two-run home run in Game Six of the NLCS at Atlanta in the seventh inning, to tie the score at 7.
1998
Finished fourth in the National League in hitting and 10th in slugging percentage (.571).
Was the recipient of the Louisville Silver Slugger Award for the sixth straight year.
Had his fifth season with 30 or more home runs and his fourth season with 100 or more RBI ... In addition, it was his fourth consecutive season with 30 or more home runs and his third straight year with 100 or more RBI.
Selected to his sixth consecutive All-Star Game, July 7th at Colorado ... Was the NL's starting catcher and went 1-3.
Hit his 200th home run on September 16th at Houston ... The home run, a three-run shot with two outs in the ninth inning against Billy Wagner, gave the Mets a 3-2 lead in a game they would win, 4-3, in 11 innings.
Led the majors with four grand slams ... His fourth slam and first as a Met came against the Diamondbacks' Andy Benes in the second inning of the August 22nd game at Shea ... Has nine grand slams for his career.
Hit his second career pinch-hit home run in the ninth inning against Jeff Brantley at St. Louis on August 12th.
Was the NL Player of the Week on two occasions with the Dodgers ... Won the award twice in the Month of April for the weeks of April 6th-April 12th and April 20th-April 26th.
Hit the longest home run in Astrodome history, an estimated 480-foot, two-run blast off Jose Lima in the first inning of the September 14th game.
1997
Finished second in the National League Most Valuable Player voting behind Colorado's Larry Walker ... Has ranked in the top 10 in the NL MVP voting in all of his five full major league seasons ... Finished second with 263 votes in 1997, was second with 237 votes in 1996, fourth with 214 votes in 1995, sixth with 121 votes in 1994 and ninth with 49 votes in 1993.
For the second consecutive year he led the NL in fan balloting results for the 68th All-Star Game played on July 8th at Cleveland's Jacobs Field ... Went 0-1 with a walk in the game ... Has been selected to five consecutive All-Star Games and started behind the plate in four straight ... Totaled 2,626,213 votes in 1997, exceeding the 1996 total of 2,272,115 by 354,098 votes ... Was the 1996 All-Star Game's Most Valuable Player in his hometown of Philadelphia.
His 201 hits were the most in major league history by a player used as a catcher in 130 or more games ... Had 186 hits as a catcher and 15 hits as a designated hitter in seven interleague games ... Yogi Berra had 192 hits in 148 games as a catcher in 1950.
His 40 home runs tied Roy Campanella for the second-highest home run total in major league history by a catcher behind Todd Hundley, who slugged 41 home runs in 1996.
His .362 batting average is the highest average ever by a catcher (110 or more games) in the major leagues, tying Bill Dickey who also hit .362 for the New York Yankees in 1936.
Won his fifth consecutive (1993-97) Louisville Silver Slugger award.
Won the Ted Williams Award presented by CNN/SI and Total Baseball.
Established new LA single-season records with a .362 batting average, 40 home runs, .638 slugging average and 22 home runs at Dodger Stadium.
Was the only NL player to win Player of the Month honors twice ... Won his first award in July after hitting .431 (47-109) with nine home runs and 25 RBI ... Finished the month with a .752 slugging percentage and .475 on-base percentage while his 47 hits led the majors ... Went on another torrid hitting streak in August, capturing Player of the Month honors for a second time ... Hit .320 with 10 home runs and 27 RBI during the month with a .660 slugging
percentage and .431 on-base percentage ... His 10 home runs set a new career-high for home runs in a month and his 27 RBI fell just one shy of his career-best in June, 1994 ... The awards mark the third and fourth time in his career he was named the League's Player of the Month after winning in May, 1994 and August, 1995.
Won the National League Player of the Week award after hitting .440 (11-25) with three home runs and 11 RBI from August 25th to August 31st.
Joined Seattle's Alex Rodriguez, Florida's Gary Sheffield and Boston's Mo Vaughn as the first four recipients of the Ted Williams Greatest Hitters award,
sponsored by Sport Magazine and the Ted Williams Hall of Fame Museum prior to the season.
1996
Finished second in the NL Most Valuable Player voting behind San Diego's Ken Caminiti after batting .336 with 36 home runs, 105 RBI, 87 runs and 16
doubles in 148 games.
Won his fourth Louisville Silver Slugger Award.
Selected to the Associated Press All-Star team for the fourth consecutive year and was named Most Valuable Player by the local Southern California Chapter of the Baseball Writers Association of America.
Led the NL in voting for the first time in his career when he was selected to his fourth consecutive All-Star Game and third straight start behind the plate ... Was named the game's MVP after he went 2-3 with a double, home run and two RBI at Veterans Stadium in his hometown of Philadelphia.
Had a then career-high 19-game hitting streak from August 22nd to September 12th ... Batted .418 (28-67) with three home runs, 12 RBI, 14 runs and six doubles during the streak.
1995
Finished second behind San Diego's Tony Gwynn with a .346 batting average, also tying Tommy Davis for the highest single-season average in Los Angeles history ... Also had 32 home runs, 93 RBI, 17 doubles and a .606 slugging percentage in 112 games.
Named to his third consecutive All-Star Game and second consecutive start ... Went 1-4 with a game-tying home run off Kenny Rogers and threw out a runner stealing second.
Won his third straight Silver Slugger Award.
Won NL Player of the Week honors twice during the season ... Batted .520 (13-25) with three home runs and 11 RBI from May 2nd to May 7th ... Won again after batting .467 (14-30) with eight home runs, 14 RBI and 13 runs from August 21st-August 27th.
Named the NL Player of the Month in August with a .400 average (46-115), nine home runs and 25 RBI in 28 games.
Went on the Disabled List from May 11th-June 4th after suffering a torn ligament in his left thumb after landing on it while rounding first base on May 10th at San Diego ... The Dodgers went 8-14 when he was on the DL.
Hit his first career pinch-hit home run off Richie Lewis at Florida on July 23rd ... The eighth-inning solo shot was the game-winner in the 4-2 victory.
1994
Made his first All-Star start after being selected to the team for the second straight season ... Went 1-4 in the game at Pittsburgh ... Was the first Dodger to start an All-Star Game since Mike Scioscia in 1990.
Was the NL's Player of the Week, May 16th-May 22nd.
Won his second Louisville Silver Slugger Award.
Named NL Co-Player of the Month in May with the Phillies' Lenny Dykstra after batting .386 with six home runs and 24 RBI.
1993
Became the second straight and 13th Dodger overall to win the NL Rookie of the Year Award ... Was the ninth unanimous selection in the 44-year history of the NL Rookie of the Year Award (starting in 1950) after receiving all 28 first place votes (140 points total).
Joined Cincinnati's Johnny Bench (1968), New York Yankees' Thurman Munson (1970), Atlanta's Earl Williams (1971), Boston's Carlton Fisk (1972), San Diego's Benito Santiago (1987) and Cleveland's Sandy Alomar, Jr. (1990) as the only catchers to be named Rookie of the Year.
Was named NL Rookie of the Year by Baseball America and The Sporting News, and was named to the AP and UPI All-Star teams ... Won the Louisville Silver Slugger Award and Philadelphia Sports Writers Association's Native Son award ... Named the Dodgers' MVP and Rookie of the Year by the Southern California BBWAA chapter and Southern California Male Athlete of the Year by the Amateur Athletic Foundation.
His 35 home runs were the third-best mark by a NL rookie behind Boston's Wally Berger with 38 in 1930 and Cincinnati's Frank Robinson with 38 in 1956 ... Also set the major league record for home runs by a rookie catcher, passing Detroit's Matt Nokes with 28 in 1987.
Named NL Player of the Week on three occasions ... Named for the first time from April 26th to May 2nd ... Earned the award a second time after batting .435 (10-23) with four home runs and eight RBI from June 14th to June 20th ... Won a third time after batting .458 with three home runs and 10 RBI from September 27th to October 3rd.
Played first base on July 26th at San Francisco.
Was the lone Dodgers representative when he was selected to his first All-Star Game at Baltimore ... Struck out in his only at-bat ... Joined Cincinnati's Johnny Bench (1968), Montreal's Gary Carter (1975) and Atlanta's Greg Olson (1990) as the only NL rookie catchers selected to the All-Star Game.
1992
Batted .232 with one home run and seven RBI in 21 games (16 starts) for Los Angeles after being recalled from Albuquerque (AAA) of the Pacific Coast League when the rosters expanded on September 1st.
Made his major league debut on September 1st at Chicago and went 3-3 as the starting catcher with a double and a walk ... Doubled off Mike Harkey in the fourth inning for his first major league hit ... Also threw out Dwight Smith attempting to steal.
Slugged his first major league home run, a three-run home run to rightfield at Dodger Stadium, off San Francisco's Steve Reed on September 12th.
Named the Dodgers' Minor League Player of the Year.
In the minors
Had a 25-game hitting streak at Albuquerque, the second-longest streak in Dukes history and second-longest in minor league baseball during the season.
