How 1991 actually went.
The first year after Strawberry exposed how much the roster had changed. Howard Johnson was brilliant again, leading the league in home runs and RBI while completing his third 30–30 season. Cone and Viola gave the rotation quality work. Around them, the lineup lacked depth and the old winning confidence was disappearing.
Bud Harrelson was fired in August, and Mike Cubbage finished the season. The club fell under .500 for the first time since 1983, an important break after seven straight winning years. Gooden was still effective but no longer the impossible young ace, and several expensive decisions had reduced the athleticism that once defined the team.
A 77–84 record did more than end a streak. It convinced management to chase a quick return through expensive veteran names rather than accept a careful rebuild. HoJo’s peak kept 1991 from feeling empty, but the front office read the season as a reason to spend loudly. That reaction created one of the most disappointing teams in franchise history the following year.
HoJo still looked like a star; the team around him looked like it had forgotten what made the 1980s work.