Unofficial fan projectSeaver, the Miracle, and Two Pennants
Tommie Agee
Center fielder · Mets 1968–1972
The part fans remember
What the numbers leave out.
Agee gave the young Mets power, speed, and elite center-field defense. His great 1969 season helped turn a former last-place team into a champion.
Agee came to the Mets from the White Sox before 1968 after an earlier Rookie of the Year season, but his first year in New York was a disaster. He hit .217 and heard doubts about whether his talent would ever return. In 1969, the answer arrived quickly: Agee became the power-speed center fielder the lineup and defense both needed.
He hit 26 home runs, won a Gold Glove, and even launched a ball into Shea’s upper deck. Game 3 of the World Series made him a legend. Agee homered to lead off the game, then made two extraordinary catches in center—one running into the gap and another diving toward the warning track—that saved several runs behind Gary Gentry and Nolan Ryan.
Agee remained productive through 1970 before injuries slowed him, and the Mets traded him after 1972. His peak in Queens did not last long, but it landed at the perfect time. The Miracle Mets needed a center fielder who could turn certain hits into impossible outs, and for one championship season Agee seemed able to reach everything.
The honest version
The best stretch
Agee’s 1968–70 peak began with a terrible first Mets season and then turned completely. In 1969 he hit 26 home runs, stole 12 bases, won a Gold Glove, and gave the club both power and range in center field. His leadoff home run struck the upper deck at Shea, a rare display of force in a ballpark that did not reward hitters easily.
The part that got messy
Game 3 of the World Series made him a legend. Agee homered to open the scoring, then made two remarkable catches that saved several runs behind Gary Gentry and Nolan Ryan. The first was a backhanded grab in the gap; the second required a headfirst dive. On a team defined by impossible defense, Agee supplied the greatest one-game example.
Why fans still care
Injuries shortened the peak and the Mets traded him after 1972, so his full career does not look as large as the 1969 memory. That is fine. Some players become permanent because their best season and the team’s greatest need arrive at the same time. The Miracle Mets required a center fielder who could cover Shea and change a game with one swing. Agee became exactly that.
Agee’s first Mets season was miserable, which made his 1969 transformation even sweeter. He became a complete center fielder with power, speed, and range, then saved Game 3 of the World Series with two catches that still seem physically unreasonable. One of them probably prevented two runs; together they made him part of every Miracle Mets highlight reel forever.
Signature Mets momentMade two unforgettable catches in Game 3 of the 1969 World Series.
The short list
The stuff worth remembering.
- 011969 World Series champion
- 021969 Gold Glove
- 0326 home runs in 1969