Unofficial fan projectThe Mets Powerhouse
Bob Ojeda
Starting pitcher · Mets 1986–1990
The part fans remember
What the numbers leave out.
Ojeda completed the championship rotation after arriving in a smart trade. His control and calm gave the 1986 Mets another dependable big-game starter.
Ojeda arrived from Boston before the 1986 season in a trade that sent Calvin Schiraldi and other young players away. He was expected to strengthen an already good rotation, but the result was even better. Ojeda went 18–5 with a 2.57 ERA and gave the Mets a calm left-hander who attacked the strike zone.
After the Mets lost the first two games of the World Series at Shea, Ojeda started Game 3 in Boston with the season beginning to feel dangerous. He allowed one run in seven innings and brought the Mets back into the series. Schiraldi, the pitcher Boston received in the trade, later allowed key hits in Games 6 and 7—one of those baseball twists that feels written after the fact.
A freak accident with electric hedge clippers badly injured a finger late in 1988 and kept Ojeda out of that postseason. He returned, but never again reached his 1986 level and left after 1990. One brilliant season was enough to change both his career and the Mets’ championship chances.
The honest version
The best stretch
Ojeda’s Mets peak began instantly in 1986. Acquired from Boston for a package led by Calvin Schiraldi, he went 18–5 with a 2.57 ERA and gave the rotation a calm left-handed counter to its harder throwers. He attacked the strike zone, changed speeds, and rarely appeared overwhelmed by the expectations surrounding the team.
The part that got messy
The World Series brought the trade full circle. Facing his old club, Ojeda won Game 3 at Fenway after the Mets had lost the first two games at home. He allowed one run over seven innings and quieted the fear that the great regular season might end quickly. That start was the first firm step in the comeback.
Why fans still care
A serious finger injury from a hedge-trimmer accident cost him most of 1987 and changed the shape of his Mets stay. He returned and remained useful, but the perfect first season could not be repeated. Ojeda’s place in team history is secure anyway: the overlooked addition who completed the championship rotation and beat Boston when the Mets most needed the series to turn.
Ojeda’s arrival for Calvin Schiraldi is one of the quieter trades that completed a champion. He immediately produced the best season of his career and gave the rotation a calm left-hander behind Gooden, Darling, and Fernandez. Winning World Series Game 3 after the Mets lost the first two was enormous. Without that start, there may never have been a Game 6 to remember.
Signature Mets momentWent 18–5 with a 2.57 ERA in the 1986 championship season.
The short list
The stuff worth remembering.
- 011986 World Series champion
- 02Won Game 3 of the World Series
- 03Career-best season in 1986