[qam1]

And the worst trade in NY Mets history is trading Nolan Ryan to the Angels for washed up 3rd baseman Jim Fregosi.

Disagree. Nolan couldn't handle playing in New York and was thinking of retiring. When he told Gil Hodges that, Gil immediately requested he be traded.

If Nolan stayed in New York he never would have been the pitcher he became and would be long forgotten by now.

The Mets at the time really needed offense, so the Jim Fregosi trade would have been a good deal except for the unfortunate (and all too common in Mets history) freak injury which essentially ended his career.

[Vigilanteman]

So true. And don't forget that Fregosi had been the all-star shortstop for the 1967 AL Champs just four short years before the trade. Fregosi was only 29 years old at the time and had been an all-start in six of his previous seven seasons. Not bad credentials at all!

Ryan pitched a mere 2 1/3 inning of relief in his first and only World Series with against Baltimore in 1969 and he was 10-14 with a 3.97 ERA in his last year with the Mets, arguably his best year up until that time. Those were statistics for a journeyman pitcher or middle reliever, not a future Hall of Famer.

Gil Hodges deserves a lot of credit for doing what was best for one of his young players at the time.