Frank Viola

Viola arrived with a Cy Young Award and gave the Mets a veteran left-hander during the final years of the powerhouse. He worked quickly, trusted his changeup, and handled the pressure of replacing part of a championship rotation.

Viola came to the Mets in the middle of the 1989 season as the organization tried to keep its championship window open. He brought a Cy Young Award, a polished changeup, and the calm of a veteran who had already pitched through serious pressure. The Mets needed him to replace some of the innings and authority lost as the 1986 rotation began to break apart.

His best Mets season came in 1990, when he went 20–12 and made the All-Star team. The win total mattered because it showed the Mets still had an ace capable of carrying a rotation, even though the club finished second to Pittsburgh. Viola worked quickly, repeated his delivery, and gave the team a dependable start whenever the schedule threatened to spin out.

The Mets released him after the 1991 season as the roster moved toward a difficult reset. He never became a lifelong Met, but he helped bridge the gap between the powerhouse and the collapse. Fans remember the fast pace, the changeup, and the feeling that every game he started had a chance to become orderly, even when the rest of the franchise was anything but.