By Andrew Rosario
Baseball lost two great and totally different players this past week in Tom Seaver of the New York Mets and Lou Brock of the St. Louis Cardinals. In the history of the New York Mets, who at one point was the laughing stock of major leauge baseball, the man called the “Franchise” took the team to the epic of baseball world winning the World Series in 1969 against a heavily favored Baltimore Orioles.
Brock took his offense to another level every time he got on base. At the end of his 19 year career (16 with the Cardinals) Brock stole 938 bases while hitting .293 and finished with 3,023 hits. He was a 6 time All Star, winning the World Series two times (1964, 1967). The organization retired his 20 and he was inducted into the baseball Hall of Fame in 1985.
Seaver accomplished things not many major league pitchers did. 311 wins, 2.86 era, 12 time All Star and won the Cy Young award 3 times. Seaver changed the image of a organization that at one point was called the “Miserable Mets”. Seaver led by example when he pitched. When he didn’t, Seaver set a professional tone that his teammates followed. Not one baseball protaganist thought the Mets could take out the mighty Orioles in 1969. When Baltimore won game one, (Seaver was the losing pitcher) it was a given the Mets Would be swept. The fact that the Metropolitans were even representing the National League, was amazing enough. New York would win the next 4 games as Jerry Koosman won games 2 and 5. Seaver won game 4 shocking the baseball world. The Mets would get back to World Series in 1973 only to come up short against the Oakland Athletics losing in 7 games, Seaver losing the only game he would pitch game 6. In the history of New York sports, the trade of Seaver to Cincinnati, goes down as the biggest trade of all time.
Both Tom Seaver and Lou Brock was the face of their franchise for different reasons. Seaver, for the dirt he left on his right knee as he dilevered his pitch. Brock, for the dirt he left sliding after stealing a base. Both set a standard that players try to accomplish today. Not only on the field but off it.
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