Ultimate Mets Database: Game of October 5, 1988

Hank M
March 30, 2009
All I recall about this game is that it was on late at night. The first pitch wasn't thrown until after 10:00 PM Eastern because ABC (and the other networks) televised the Vice Presidential debate between Lloyd Bentsen and Dan Quayle. It was still a reasonable time for the West Coast, but not for New York.

The game wasn't any more interesting than the debate. The Mets fell behind early and never caught up. Since it was late and David Cone did not have his best stuff, I just shut it off and went to bed. Seeing that no one else has commented on this game yet, I'm guessing that I wasn't alone in doing this. It certainly wasn't worth staying awake to watch.

sportsfan8690
August 27, 2009
I was away on a high school camping trip in the wilderness in New Jersey and never got to watch this game live. My school teacher had a radio and kept me informed of everything that happened. Saw it on video two days later. I remember David Cone had called Jay Howell a "high school pitcher" after we won the night before and this seemed to juice the Dodgers up as they hit Cone good and tied the series. Also Tim Belcher pitched real well too. Mets could not hit well against him. Everyone always remembers Orel Hershiser or "Bulldog" as some of us call him (eventually would pitch for the Mets) in 1988 but no one talks about Tim Belcher. If Belcher was not there, Mets win this series in 5 games. He won 2 games in the series and he very well could have been the NLCS MVP. The Reds Chris Sabo had a big year and won NL Rookie of the Year, if not for him Belcher would have run away with that honor.

Hot Foot
October 6, 2022
The main reason I check this website every day is to see the covers of the tabloids from years past where the Mets made the back page. Well, on October 5, 1988, the day of this game, the crappy, low-rent NY Daily News printed the headline: STRAWBERRY SHOCKER: I'D PLAY FOR L.A.

I guess the game was past their bedtime which is why instead of a picture of McReynolds bowling over Mike Scioscia, they had to print this garbage as their lead story. What a bunch of jerks to do their best to stir up dissension in the Mets' clubhouse.

As if giving Dick Young a job for something like 50 years wasn't bad enough... I can't even blame Dick Young for this because was called to a higher service by God (finally) in 1987. But this hatchet job on the Straw Man was certainly in the spirit of Dick Young. Mind you, I didn't read the article, just saw the picture of the back page today.

As if to double down on their stupidity, the NY Daily News had a picture of DWIGHT GOODEN next to the headline, as if they were like, "They're both black, no one will even notice." I mean... seriously, WTF Daily News? I'm sure they could have found a picture of Darryl somewhere. I mean, if you're going to rip him, at least use his picture. This is what Straw was up against during his years in New York.

Oh, by the way, David Cone was the starting pitcher of this game, and he also did his best Dick Young impression, writing a guest column in (GUESS WHAT), drumroll please... THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS!!! Yeah.

Cone (with the help of Bob Klapish) apparently wrote that Jay Howell's curveball looked like a little-leaguer's, and the story was big news when this game got underway.

Needless to say, Cone got shelled. A few days later the New York Times printed a story with the headline: Cone Winds Up Eating His Words: Met Pitcher Apologizes; Career as a Columnist Is Over

What a mess.

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