On This Date in Sports July 25, 1990: The Mets Win the Damn Thing
The New York Mets hang on to beat the Philadelphia Phillies 10-9 at Veterans Stadium. Trailing 10-3 entering the ninth, the Phillies score six runs and have the tying run at third when Tommy Herr hits a screaming line drive that Mario Diaz snares at short. So exasperated by the final inning, Mets announcer Bob Murphy proclaimed, “The Mets win the damn thing.”
The New York Mets were in the thick of the race for first place, holding a record of 54-38 as they finished a three-game set at Veterans Stadium against the Philadelphia Phillies, who were looking to reach .500 at 46-47. The Mets had gotten off to a slow start in 1990, holding a record of 20-22 in late May when manager Davey Johnson was fired. Bud Harrelson took over, and the Mets took off, posting a 21-7 in June to get back in the race.
Leading 4-0, the Mets broke the game open in the sixth inning against reliever Don Carmen. Darryl Boston had a one-out double and stood at second with two outs when Howard Johnson was intentionally walked. Boston would score on a single by Dave Magadan. Next up would be Gregg Jeffries, who tripled home to runs to make it 7-0. Darryl Strawberry followed with a two-run shot, and the Mets led 9-0.
Down 9-0, the Phillies began to scratch their way back in the seventh inning, scoring two runs off Sid Fernandez on run-scoring hits by Tommy Herr and Von Hayes, who were longtime Mets killers. In the eighth inning, Philadelphia got a third run off reliever Wally Whitehurst as Tom Nieto singled home Charlie Hayes. The Mets added an insurance run in the ninth against Joe Boever as Mackey Sasser singled in Kevin McReynolds to give the Mets a 10-3 lead.
Leading 10-3, the Mets had Wally Whitehurst on the mound, looking for a quick and easy ninth inning. However, it would be difficult, as the Phillies started the inning with five straight singles from Tommy Herr, Von Hayes, Rod Booker, Charlie Hayes, and Ricky Jordan. This cut the Mets' lead to 10-5 as Whitehurst was pulled with the bases loaded and nobody out. Julio Machado took over as the Phillies singles parade continued with hits by Dickie Thon and Tom Nieto. Suddenly the score was 10-8, and there was nervousness surrounding the Mets as the tying runs were on base.
Tommy Herr would end up playing alongside Diaz and the rest of the Mets a month later, as he was picked up in a waiver trade at the end of August. However, the Mets fell short in 1990, posting a record of 91-71, four games behind the Pittsburgh Pirates.