Finding out that the New York Mets lost an elite player breaks my heart.
Jim McAndrew passed away. He was a spot starter for the New York Mets in 1968 when Nolan Ryan was called up to the military, and he lost to Bob Gibson in his major league debut. A month later, he defeated Steve Carlton to record his first victory. He was eighty.
Following a brief illness, McAndrew passed away on Thursday at HonorHealth Scottsdale Shea Medical Center in Arizona, according to a statement from the Mets released on Friday.
Right-hander McAndrew, who pitched for the Mets from 1968 to 1973 as the back end of the rotation, started one of the most important games in the history of the team: a victory over Montreal in September 1969 that propelled the long-relegated team into first place for the first time in its eight-year history.
In a doubleheader opener at Busch Stadium in St. Louis on July 21, 1968, while Ryan (who would go on to become Hall of Fame) was serving in the Army reserve, McAndrew made his major league debut.
Future Hall of Famer Lou Brock singled as McAndrew’s first batter, and in the fourth, McAndrew pitched around Roger Maris’ leadoff double.
Tolan sprinted around the bases and scored a home run inside the park. Gibson pitched a seven-hitter to win his 10th consecutive start and record his seventh shutout in nine starts, but that was the only run off McAndrews in a 2-0 loss.
