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Skip Lockwood
Ultimate Mets Database popularity ranking: 230 of 1252 players
Claude Edward Lockwood
Born: August 17, 1946 at Boston, Mass.
Throws: Right Bats: Right
Height: 6.01 Weight: 175

Skip Lockwood was the most popular Ultimate Mets Database daily lookup on February 16, 2004, August 17, 2005, August 17, 2010, June 13, 2017, and July 28, 2020.

First Mets game: August 5, 1975
Last Mets game: June 6, 1979

Share your memories of Skip Lockwood HERE IS WHAT OTHER METS FANS HAVE TO SAY: murphy He looked more like a math teacher than a major league pitcher, but Skip Lockwood was a pretty good reliever on some awful Met teams. Cubbage August 25, 2001 I remember Bob Murphy saying, "OH WHAT A RELIEF PITCHER THIS MAN HAS TURNED OUT TO BEEEEEEEE" After a save, as only Murphy could. Yorkwriter January 9, 2002 I can't believe there are only two entries for Skip. I remember as a kid thinking he was untouchable. Mr. Sparkle January 14, 2002 Thank you Yorkwriter for making me write. I loved Skip back in the 70's. As a teen I thought he was awesome. Then, after his playing days, he did post grad at my college, Fairfield. I thought that was great. I only wish I had tapes to send him. He never looked like a ball player but was a pretty decent closer on a pretty bad Mets team. NL January 19, 2002 I want to get in on Skip's behalf as well. I remember he didn't look like much but always got people out. Isn't that what pitchers are supposed to do? RICHIE January 31, 2002 We Met fans actually used to seriuosly try to debate Lockwood vs. Lyle with our Yankee friends. The Cy Young award for Lyle became hard to get around. I think the art of the playground Met-Yank debate is lost.... Bob D. November 22, 2002 He really did seem to always come in and strike out a bunch of hitters. Before he was a Met, I remember that he was a mediocre starter on the Brewers. I guess that not needing to save his pitches for a full game allowed him to let loose and throw smoke. It was always fun to watch him pitch. He was definitely a bright spot on some awful teams. (And 10 wins in relief in 1976 - he was definiely as good a reliever as anybody else in the game at the time). john reilly November 27, 2002 23 years ago today [11-27-79] Skip was signed by his boyhood team the Boston Red Sox. Although he did not pitch well for the Sox it is only fair to say that he had hurt his arm the previous season and he did not have his overpowering fast ball any more. A very nice guy who used to live near me, he would have had a great and longer career had he not injured his arm. Skip is mentioned in "Ball Four" by Jim Bouton and seems to come off as a nice guy. Rich December 30, 2002 Bases loaded nobody out, in comes Skip, he gets the side out in order and not one run scores. This guy could have been one of the best reliever if was not for the fact that he played in some horrible Met teams. Vito May 16, 2003 Skip Lockwood was awesome! He looked as dorky as anyone that has ever played baseball but he was my favorite. He was a good pitcher on a lousy team. One of the few guys in Mets history that actually got better when he played for the Mets. On top of that, his strat-o-matic card was nearly unhittable and I always had him on my team. You can keep John Franco, Roger McDowell, Jesse Orosco, and of course Armondo Benitez. In my opinion, he was the 2nd best relief pitcher in Mets history after Tug McGraw. Andrew May 10, 2004 The thing about Skip that made him my favorite Met as a kid was the fact that like me, he wore glasses. That was a big thing for a geeky kid, to see a major league ballplayer wearing glasses. The fact that he was one of the better pitchers on what even I could recognize as lousy teams was an added plus. (Hmmm...I wonder if Nino Espinosa would've been my favorite if I had a big afro back then) Kiwiwriter July 1, 2004 He was like Rodney Dangerfield...he got no respect. He was a pretty decent pitcher, until he got hurt, and he didn't get too many opportunities to save games in 1977 and 1978, especially after Tom Seaver and Jon Matlack left town. And his card for Statis-Pro Baseball called him "Claude Lockwood." Jeez. John October 10, 2004 I believe that Skip was a converted infielder. He was a definite bright spot on some terrible Mets teams. The Dork was ok! Garry October 27, 2004 Just an update. Skip is a mortgage broker, an excellent golfer and one hell of a nice guy. Sean Butcher November 19, 2004 I started watching baseball in earnest in the 1975 season. And have been an ardent Mets since. As fellow Mets fans can attest, there were some awful clubs from the mid to late 70's. Though, there some notable ball players from that time that truly represented the club. Skip Lockwood, Dave Kingman, Randy Tate, come to mind. After reviewing Skip's stats with the Mets I'm very surprised he did not have more saves. I believe he was one of the most dominant closers from '75-78. Like a another fellow notes, I can remember like it was yesterday, Skip coming in with the bases loaded and striking out the side! Back then a portion of the games were not televised locally, so the games had to followed on radio. The late Bob Murphy has just transitioned over to radio and provided in his cheerful manner the call. "Stiiiike 3! Lockwood has struck out the side!" Again, I would have to agree with a fellow writer, aside from Tug "You gotta beleive" McGraw, Skip was the very best closer on the Mets! Lifelogn Fan July 25, 2005 Had his foot stepped on at 1st base when he was covering. Messed up his tendon and maybe even the ankle. Came back too soon, hurt his arm and was never the same. I think he went to the Red Sox and was notorious for hanging curveballs that used to end up on Landsdowne Street. One heck of a reliever in his day and a nice man. bonbolito January 4, 2006 If you remember him and he's not in the bullpen on your all-time Mets team then you haven't been paying attention. Mike January 26, 2006 This guy was a breath of fresh air when he came in because you knew the Mets were about to win one. Which was about once a week. The fireman before they existed. Looked like a math teacher. If he played now he would likely be a one-out guy for the Royals or Pirates. agee_of_aquarius March 19, 2006 Threw very hard, competed very hard, and the only thing separating him from the memories of most baseball fans.... is his misfortune not to relieve for a contending club. Kaz911 April 19, 2006 Although I know it's probably not true, I still think that Skip threw harder than any Met pitcher I had ever seen. Jamey Bumbalo December 6, 2006 Skip Lockwood is an unheralded Mets star, perhaps because of his name and his appearance (the Mad Hungarian he was not). Nevertheless, he had a 2.80 ERA as a Met. He probably shudders to think what kind of money he'd make today in the majors. Aase2Zim December 8, 2006 My most vivid memory of "Jaws" comes from one of the first games of the 1979 season, his last with the Mets. After saving a game at Shea on a particularly cold, miserable night in front of maybe 12 people, out pops Lorinda de Roulet, who had just taken over ownership of the team, onto the field from her "luxury" box, in skirt and high heels, no less, to congratulate Lockwood as he walked off the field. I remember thinking a) how ludicrous that was, and b) wondering how many more indignities like that team ownership was going to dump on its fans. I recall Lockwood kinda brushing by her like he felt the same way. What a joke that was. I don't recall "the boss" doing that very many more times after that. Maybe Dick Young told her how unprofessional it was. Eric April 7, 2007 So often during the post-game playoff interviews of Joe Torre during the Yankees dynasty run I've wanted to ask him how it felt managing outstanding closers over the years--Mariano Rivera, Lee Smith, Gene Garber, Skip Lockwood (9 saves in 1979)... Steve April 19, 2007 I remember Jane Jarvis, the organist would always play, "Skip to My Lou" when he was brought in. Not the most masculine, but hey, times were different! Ed K May 14, 2007 Skippy was one of the few bright spots on those awful Mets teams of the late 1970's and a favorite of mine. A little known fact: Skippy was one of the last "bonus babies" and played 3B for the Kansas City A's at age 18 before the "bonus baby" rule was abolished when the entry draft was created in 1965. After he was sent down to the minors, he was converted from an infielder to a pitcher and finally returned to the majors on the expansion Seattle Pilots in 1969 to pitch a few games. I never read "Ball Four" by Jim Bouton so I do not know if he mentions Skippy as his teammate in the book. David F October 20, 2007 I was at Shea on Aug. 5, 1975 for a doubleheader against Montreal-- double 7-0 losses which finally cost Yogi Berra his job. I remember vividly when in Game 1, No. 38 was called in from the bullpen to relieve an ineffective Jerry Koosman and I thought to myself, "Oh, God. Jerry Cram is back. How much worse can it get?" I was, however, totally surprised to hear Skip Lockwood's name announced over the PA system (it was his first appearance as a Met). He did pretty well that night, appearing in both games, and objectively, was a pretty reliable reliever during his tenure with the Mets. And not an automatic out at the plate, either--I think he came up as an infielder originally. In my opinion, Skip was one of the bright spots during an otherwise disappointing stretch for the Mets during the mid to late '70s. john reilly November 21, 2007 The pride of Catholic Memorial High School in West Roxbury Massachusetts [a very small high school of about 200 students this school usually places first in baseball, basketball and of course hockey in division 1.] NHL star Chris Nilan now is an assistant hockey coach there. Skip was recently honored by the Boston Red Sox as he appeared on a float in the Red Sox 07 World Series Parade in Boston. Skip is a very nice modest man who was coaching baseball and golf at Emerson college [Boston]. Also he was a high ranking banking executive. He always had time for the fans and sadly was a very good pitcher on some dreadful Met teams. John MacDonald March 13, 2008 I played against Skip Lockwood when I was with Archbishop Williams in Braintree, Massachusetts. The Summer of 1963 or 64 Skip and I were on the field together at a Kansas City Athletics tryout. I was at shortstop and he was at 3rd. I was amazed at how Skip could effortlessly throw strikes to 1st from the outfield grass at 3rd. And hit...wow he could hit the ball. It didn't surprise me at all when I saw him pitching for the Milwaukee Brewers a few years later. He was a great athlete. Hank M March 18, 2008 There are a pair of games against the Reds that stand out in my mind. In one game, Skip came in with the bases loaded to face Johnny Bench. It was the first time he had ever pitched to him. He struck Bench out at that crucial moment and went on to record the save. Later in that series, he came in to face Johnny again in the same type of situation. Once again, Bench went down on strikes and Skip got another save. Two big strikeouts of one of the game's top sluggers to preserve two victories - just what a reliever is supposed to do! At that time, Bench had his name on a product called "Batter Up" for which he advertised. In one of his commercials, Johnny said "I love to hit." After these two games, my family suggested that Skip make a commercial of his own and say "I love to pitch to Johnny Bench." He certainly had his way with the Cincinnati catcher that week! Bob P March 27, 2008 Hank M, great memories...and YOU have a great memory! The games you are referring to took place on May 4 and May 6, 1976. In the May 4 game, Tom Seaver had a 4-2 lead in the top of the seventh when he wound up loading the bases with one out. Lockwood came in and struck out Bench and Reds LF Mike Lum to get out of the jam. He wound up finishing the game for his fourth save of the season, allowing one run and two hits in 2.2 innings. He walked 3 and struck out 4. Two days later, on a Thursday afternoon, the Mets had a 3-2 lead in the top of the eighth. This time Craig Swan got in trouble, allowing a single and a walk with one out. Skip came in to strike out Bench again, then got George Foster to fly out to center to end the threat. He set the Reds down 1-2-3 in the ninth. Skip finished the year with 10 wins and 19 saves, allowing just 62 hits and 26 unintentional walks while striking out 108 batters in 94.1 innings. After that series against the Reds, the Mets were 16- 9 and the Reds were 12-10. Cincinnati went on to win 102 games and beat the Yankees in the World Series that year, while the Mets, managed by rookie Joe Frazier, finished 86-76, 15 games behind the Phillies. Jeff in Minneapolis June 13, 2008 I don't see it mentioned anywhere here, but my only real memory of Lockwood (and I thought he was a pretty decent closer on lousy teams) is that he hit a HR in 1978. Can anyone recall any Met reliever ever hitting a HR? This just floored me listening to the game on WMCA I think it was then. Heck, until Walt Terrell came along, it seemed to me like he was the only Met pitcher that ever homered (I was 10 at the time). Stu Baron June 25, 2008 You're right, Jim in Minneapolis...the Skipmeister parked one in Atlanta on 7/17/78, a solo shot off the Braves' Dave Campbell in the ninth inning of a 7-4 Mets' win. He actually hit 3 in his career, the other 2 coming with Milwaukee in 1970 and '71. As for other slugging Mets pitchers besides Terrell, Tom Seaver hit 12 in his career, including 3 in 1972, although 6 came while he was with the Reds. Jerry Koosman hit 2, one in '68 and one in '77, and Rick Aguilera hit 3, two in '86 - including one off the Pirates' Jose Deleon in a game I attended in Pittsburgh, 6/6/86 - and one in '87. tom dipasqua May 29, 2011 In 1979 I took an elderly aunt and uncle to a Mets game and we sat in the front row behind home plate. Before the game the players were practicing and Lockwood came up to the seats to talk to someone about after-game plans, dinner at some fancy restaurant. My uncle got up and grabbed his camera to take a picture and Lockwood made it a point to turn his back to avoid being photographed. The lack of class this overpaid stiff showed has stuck with me. Ed K August 19, 2018 I got Skip’s autobiography and it is a very good read. Ed K May 12, 2020 By the way, Skippy was a decent hitter for a Met reliever. He hit .231 (12 for 31) with two doubles and a home run. Ed K September 1, 2022 Two other facts about Skippy: 1. He was the first Mets reliever to get 100+ strikeouts in a season in 1976 when he had 108 Ks. 2. He set a Mets record by pitching in 63 games in 1977. Later broken by several Mets pitchers. But keep in mind that he pitched in the era when relievers were expected often to pitch more than an inning. It was great seeing Skippy at the Old Timers Day last weekend!

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