Unofficial fan projectSeaver, the Miracle, and Two Pennants
Jon Matlack
Starting pitcher · Mets 1971–1977
The part fans remember
What the numbers leave out.
Matlack gave the Mets a third ace when most teams would have been thrilled with one. He was smooth, tough, and at his best when the lineup across from him was supposed to be impossible.
Matlack reached the Mets in 1971 and won Rookie of the Year the next season with a 2.32 ERA. He joined Seaver and Koosman in a rotation that could carry an offense even when runs were hard to find. His smooth delivery did not attract the same attention as Seaver’s power, but the results placed him among the best left-handers in the league.
His finest Mets moment came in the 1973 NLCS. Facing Cincinnati’s powerful lineup, Matlack threw a two-hit shutout in Game 2 and helped the Mets win a series few expected them to survive. He later started three games in the World Series and kept battling as the Mets pushed Oakland all the way to Game 7.
Matlack made three All-Star teams and shared the 1975 All-Star Game MVP award. He was traded after the 1977 season as the franchise entered a long decline, so his Mets career ended without the attention it deserved. Look past the win totals and the story is clear: he was a top-level pitcher trapped on several teams that could not score for him.
The honest version
The best stretch
Matlack’s 1972–74 peak was better than his win-loss records suggest. He won Rookie of the Year, made All-Star teams, struck out hitters with a smooth left-handed delivery, and joined Seaver and Koosman in a rotation that could win without much offense. In an era when starters were expected to finish games, Matlack took on heavy innings and often had almost no room for error.
The part that got messy
His 1973 postseason was the clearest look at his best. He threw a two-hit shutout against Cincinnati in the NLCS, then worked effectively in the World Series as the Mets came within one victory of beating Oakland. Two years later he shared All-Star Game MVP honors. Those achievements should have made him a familiar national name, but pitching for low-scoring Mets teams kept much of his excellence hidden.
Why fans still care
Matlack left in the same broad collapse that followed the Seaver trade, and the rebuilding years pushed him out of the center of Mets memory. Fans who look deeper find one of the best left-handed starters the franchise has had. He was not a short burst or an October-only hero. He gave the Mets seven seasons of quality pitching and helped make the early-1970s rotation frightening.
Matlack had the misfortune of pitching beside Seaver and Koosman, so a remarkable Mets career can disappear in their shadow. His stuff was good enough to share an All-Star Game MVP and dominate the Big Red Machine in October. The 1973 pennant does not happen without him. He belongs in any serious conversation about the best starters the franchise has developed.
Signature Mets momentThrew a two-hit shutout against Cincinnati in the 1973 NLCS.
The short list
The stuff worth remembering.
- 011972 NL Rookie of the Year
- 02Three-time All-Star
- 031973 National League champion