Due to his retirement made the new york mets sranded : the head coach …..
To honor Dwight “Doc” Gooden, the New York Mets retired his No. 16 jersey prior to their rain-delayed Sunday afternoon game against the Kansas City Royals.
Gooden, the 1985 NL Cy Young Award winner and 1984 Rookie of the Year, guided the Mets to their final World Series victory in 1986.
In 1984, Gooden, then 19 years old, became the youngest player in league history to win rookie of the year after setting an MLB rookie record with 276 strikeouts.
With a 17-9 record at the end of his rookie campaign, the pitcher came in second to Rick Sutcliffe in the Cy Young Award voting.
With one of the most outstanding pitching seasons in MLB history, he returned to win the award in his 20th season.
Gooden pitched his way to an MLB-best 24-4 record and 1.53 ERA, leading the league in strikeouts for a second consecutive season.
The next season, he assisted in leading the Mets to the 1986 World Series.
Before joining the New York Yankees as a free agent in 1996, Gooden pitched for nine more seasons with the Mets. 2001 saw his retirement.
According to MLB.com, No. 16 is the sixth player whose number has been retired by the Mets, joining the jerseys of Willie Mays, Jerry Koosman, Tom Seaver, and Mike Piazza.
On June 1, the Mets will retire Darryl Strawberry’s No. 18, bringing the total to seven. Strawberry was at Citi Field on Sunday to witness Gooden retire his jersey.
