Bobby Valentine
From The Met Wiki
Bobby Valentine was a player, coach and manager for the Mets. He served as a utility infielder in 1977 and 1978 and on the coaching staff in the 1980s. Valentine was also the Mets' manager from 1996 to 2002.
Valentine came to the Mets with Paul Siebert from the San Diego Padres in a trade for Dave Kingman on June 15, 1977. He got 11 hits in 42 games played with the team over the remainder of the '77 season. On June 29, Bobby had a single, a homer and three runs scored in the Mets' 5-3 win over the Phillies at Shea Stadium. He had a run-scoring single in a 6-1 Mets victory over the Pirates in the second game of a doubleheader at Shea on July 15. In the nightcap of a twinbill at Pittsburgh on August 12, Valentine drove in the go-ahead run with a single before the Pirates came back to pin a 6-5 defeat on the Mets.
In 1978, Valentine batted .269 with 18 runs batted in and 53 total bases. He also scored 17 runs for the season. In two consecutive games against the Reds at Shea on April 29 and April 30, Bobby had a total of six singles and four RBIs. At Atlanta on May 4, he drove in three runs with a bases-loaded walk and a two-run homer in the Mets' 8-2 win over the Braves. Valentine also had four singles in an 8-5 Mets loss at Philadelphia on May 7.
Valentine finished his career as a player with the Seattle Mariners in 1979. He returned to the Mets as the team's third base coach from 1983 to 1985. During the '85 season, Bobby left the Mets to become the manager of the Texas Rangers; a position he held until 1992.
Valentine managed the Mets' AAA affiliate, the Norfolk Tides, in 1994. The following year, he served as manager of the Chiba Lotte Marines of the Japanese Pacific League. Bobby returned to the U.S. and managed Norfolk to an 82-59 record. He was promoted to manager of the New York Mets with 31 games left in the 1996 season The Mets had a 12-19 won-lost record under Valentine in '96.
With Valentine at the helm, the Mets began a resurgence. They finished 14 games over .500 (88-74) in both the 1997 and 1998 seasons. Bobby managed the Mets to a 97-66 record in 1999, which included a victory in a one-game playoff for the National League Wild Card at Cincinnati on October 4.
Valentine's most memorable game as a manager occurred on June 9, 1999. In the 12th inning of a 14-inning marathon with the Toronto Blue Jays, Mike Piazza was called for catcher's interference on the Jays' Craig Grebeck. Valentine was ejected by home plate umpire Randy Marsh for arguing the call. He later returned to the dugout wearing a disguise. Unamused, Major League Baseball fined Valentine $10,000 and suspended him for three games. The Mets went on to win the game, 4-3.
In the '99 post-season, the Mets beat the Arizona Diamondbacks, three games to one, in the National League Division Series. They went on to lose the National League Championship Series, four games to two, to the Atlanta Braves.
In early 2000, Valentine was at the center of what would be called "The Whartongate Affair". To a group of students at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School of Business, Bobby allegedly mentioned somewhat cynical, insider comments regarding a handful of Mets players and the organization as a whole.
The Mets had a record of 94-68 under Valentine for another wild card playoff berth in 2000. The Mets would not be denied a pennant as they defeated the San Francisco Giants, three games to one, in the NLDS and the the St. Louis Cardinals, four games to one, in the NLCS. The team then lost the World Series to the Yankees in five games.
On September 18, 2002, the Mets defeated the Cubs, 2-1, at Shea Stadium. The victory was the 1,000th for Valentine as a manager. At the close of the season, Bobby was relieved of his managerial duties with the Mets. He later began a six-year run as manager of the Chiba Lotte team in Japan. In 2005, Valentine led the Marines to the Japan Series championship. After returning to the United States, Bobby became a baseball analyst for ESPN.
