Al Weis

Weis was not supposed to be one of the stars of the Miracle Mets. He was a light-hitting utility infielder who mostly played defense. Then October arrived, and suddenly the unlikely guy kept delivering the biggest hits.

Weis was a utility infielder who came to the Mets for defense, flexibility, and the kind of dependable work that rarely earns headlines. He was not expected to become a central part of the 1969 story. For most of the season, his job was to fill in at second base and shortstop, keep the infield steady, and accept whatever role Gil Hodges needed that day.

October changed his reputation forever. Weis hit .455 in the World Series, drove in an important run in Game 2, and hit the tying home run in Game 5—the only home run he hit at Shea during his Mets career. The swing came after Baltimore had controlled the game, and it gave the Mets the opening they needed to take the lead and finish the championship.

His career numbers were modest, which is exactly why the story remains so good. Weis was not a hidden superstar waiting to be discovered; he was a role player who became enormous when the moment demanded it. Mets fans remember him because October occasionally chooses the least obvious hero, and in 1969 that hero kept showing up in a Mets uniform.