Jerry Koosman
From The Met Wiki
Jerry Koosman was a pitcher for the Mets from 1967 to 1978. He had 140 wins and 1799 strikeouts in 376 games with the team. Koosman had a 3.09 earned run average as a Met.
After nine game appearances with the Mets in ’67, Koosman pitched in 35 games for the team in 1968. He led the Mets with 17 complete games, 19 wins and a 2.08 ERA. Jerry also set a Mets record with 7 shutouts during the season. At Los Angeles on April 11, he pitched a four-hitter in blanking the Dodgers, 4-0. He struck out 10 batters while shutting out the Giants, 3-0, in the Mets’ home opener at Shea Stadium on April 17. Koosman pitched a 4-0 shutout over the Cubs on July 12 at Shea. On September 18, he hit his first major league home run off Chicago’s Bill Hands at Shea.
Koosman recorded 17 wins and 180 strikeouts in the Mets’ 1969 World Championship season. He pitched 6 shutouts to lead the team and completed 16 of his 32 starts. At Shea on April 23, Jerry pitched a five-hit shutout for a 2-0 win over the Pirates. He went all the way for the win in a crucial 4-3 Mets victory over the Cubs at Shea on July 8. In another critical game against Chicago on September 8, Koosman struck out 13 batters for a complete game in a 3-2 Mets win at Shea. In the first game of a doubleheader at Pittsburgh on September 12, he singled home the only run and pitched all nine innings for a 1-0 win over the Pirates.
In the ’69 World Series, Koosman recorded two wins against the Orioles. He allowed two hits in eight and two-thirds innings for a 2-1 win in Game 2 at Baltimore on October 12. At Shea on October 16, he pitched a complete game five-hitter for a series-clinching 5-3 Mets victory in Game 5. Jerry had a 2.04 ERA with nine strikeouts in the Series.
In 1970, Koosman had a 12-7 won-lost record and 118 strikeouts. He pitched 212 innings in 30 games during the season. On May 16, Jerry had 10 strikeouts and pitched a four-hitter in shutting out the Phillies, 6-0, at Philadelphia. He had a complete game to record the win in an 8-3 Mets victory at Chicago on June 25. Koosman pitched all nine innings and got a win as the Mets defeated the Reds, 4-1, on August 21 at Shea. He also had a complete game two-hitter for a 4-1 Mets win over the Pirates at Shea on September 20.
Plagued by an injury, Koosman’s production was limited in 1971. He won only six games and struck out 96 batters for the year. Jerry pitched eight innings to get a win as the Mets defeated the Cardinals, 2-1, at St. Louis on April 27. He had a three-hit complete game for a 2-1 Mets win on June 26 at Montreal. Jerry went all the way on a three-hitter for a 5-1 Mets triumph over the Giants at Shea on August 25. He also had 11 strikeouts in chalking up a win as the Mets defeated the Phillies, 4-3, on September 10 at Shea.
Koosman made 24 starts and pitched 163 innings in 1972. He had six consecutive winning decisions during the year, the last of which was a 2-0 complete game shutout at Montreal on July 1. Jerry pitched a complete game for a 12-2 Mets victory over the Cubs on August 6 at Shea. He also had 10 strikeouts in a 3-1 Mets’ triumph at St. Louis on September 26.
In 1973, Koosman had a 2.84 ERA and 156 strikeouts. He pitched three shutouts during the pennant-winning season, equalling the totals of teammates Tom Seaver and Jon Matlack for the year. Jerry won his first five decisions of ’73, including a four-hit shutout for a 1-0 Mets win at Atlanta on April 29. At Shea on August 24, he pitched all 10 innings to earn the win in a 1-0 Mets victory over the Giants. In the first game of a Labor Day doubleheader on September 3, Koosman shut out the Phillies for a 5-0 Mets win. He also had a complete game win as the Mets defeated the Cubs, 9-2, on September 30 to clinch a tie for the National League East Division title.
Jerry recorded two wins in the post-season in ’73. In Game 3 of the National League Championship Series, he pitched a complete game and singled twice in a 9-2 Mets victory over the Reds on October 8 at Shea. He was also the winning pitcher in the Mets’ 2-0 triumph over the Athletics at Shea in Game 5 of the World Series on October 18.
Koosman led the Mets with 15 wins and 35 starts in 1974. He struck out 188 batters during the season. In the home opener on April 10, Jerry recorded the win as the Mets defeated the Cardinals, 3-2, at Shea. He recorded 11 strikeouts and pitched a complete game for a 5-2 Mets win at San Diego on April 25. Koosman earned the win with a complete game in a 4-1 Mets victory over the Dodgers on June 15 at Shea. He had a complete game for a 3-2 Mets win over the Giants at Shea on July 5. At San Diego on July 20, Jerry pitched a complete game and recorded his 1,000th career strikeout in the Mets' 10-2 victory over the Padres. He also had a complete game win in a 5-4 Mets triumph over the Astros on August 26 at Shea.
In 1975, Koosman pitched 239 and two-thirds innings in 36 games. He completed 11 games and recorded 14 wins for the year. Jerry pitched a four-hit shutout and had a game-winning RBI single for a 3-0 Mets win over the Expos at Shea on May 2. He had a stolen base and a run scored in a 3-1 complete game win over the Reds on July 22 at Shea. Koosman pitched in relief and recorded a save in the Mets' 3-0 victory over the Giants at Shea on August 17. At Los Angeles on August 28, he had a complete game with 10 strikeouts for a 4-1 Mets victory over the Dodgers. Jerry also had 10 strikeouts in 11 innings pitched in a 3-2 Mets win in 12 innings at Philadelphia on September 26.
Koosman had his finest year as a Met in 1976. He had his first ever 20-win season (totalling 21) and reached the 200-strikeout mark for the first time. At Montreal on May 22, Jerry pitched seven innings and got the win as the Mets defeated the Expos, 4-1, for the 1,000th regular season victory in team history. He carried a one-hitter into the ninth inning before finishing off the Cubs on three hits to earn the win in a 2-1 Mets triumph on July 2 at Shea. Koosman struck out 11 batters in a five-hitter for a 1-0 Mets win over the Reds at Shea on August 15. In gaining his 20th win of the year, Jerry struck out 13 and pitched a complete game for a 4-1 Mets triumph over the Cardinals on September 16 at Shea.
With the departure of Seaver during the year, Koosman became the Mets’ top pitcher in 1977. He led the team with 226 and two-thirds innings pitched, 32 starts and 192 strikeouts for the season. At San Francisco on May 7, Jerry hit a two-run single and pitched a complete game for a 6-0 Mets win. This was his last shutout in his career as a Met. He hit a home run and pitched a complete game four-hitter for an 8-1 Mets victory over the Giants at Shea on May 17. Against the Cubs at Shea on July 13, Koosman had 11 strikeouts in the first six innings before a blackout forced a suspension of the game. When it was resumed on September 16, he got two more strikeouts, but was tagged with the loss in a 5-2 Mets defeat.
In 1978, Koosman set a personal high with 38 games pitched. He struck out 160 batters and had three wins during the season. On April 7, Jerry pitched a complete game for a 3-1 win over the Expos in the season opener at Shea. He went all the way for the win in an 8-2 Mets victory at Atlanta on May 4. At Cincinnati on July 13, Koosman got his last win as a Met in the team’s 4-2 triumph over the Reds.
On December 8, 1978, Koosman was traded to the Minnesota Twins for Jesse Orosco and Greg Field. He pitched for the Twins and White Sox from 1979 to 1983. Jerry concluded his career with the Phillies in 1985.
In 1989, Koosman was inducted into the Mets Hall of Fame.
