National League Standings, April 11, 1990
METS FANS SHARE THEIR MEMORIES OF THE APRIL 11, 1990 GAME:
Michael
April 13, 2020
The first of Viola's 20 wins in 1990 as the Mets rebounded from a rare horrible opening day loss. Also the first appearance of John Franco as a Met. He recorded his first save of many with the team.
Dave VW
July 11, 2022
After watching this game, I have a hard time naming another Mets left-handed pitcher who’s been as good as Viola since 1990. Maybe Johan in 2008, or Al Leiter in the late 90s. Viola was just so masterful and underappreciated in hindsight. He won his first seven starts this season (holding a 0.87 ERA over that span), and subdued a Pittsburgh lineup that knocked around seven Mets pitchers for 12 runs and 17 hits on opening day. He was also interviewed on Kiner’s Korner after the game and came across as a likeable, every-man type figure.
As Michael alluded to, this was Franco’s first of what is a still a team-record 276 saves. Always seemed like he had to make things exciting though. One of the first pitches he threw with the Mets was a wild pitch, but he managed to work a scoreless inning and a third to nail down the win.
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