Ultimate Mets Database - Memories of Pat Zachry

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Mets
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Pat Zachry
vs. the Mets

Pat Zachry
vs. Other Teams

Memories of
Pat Zachry

Pat Zachry
Ultimate Mets Database popularity ranking: 118 of 1252 players

Patrick Paul Zachry
Born: April 24, 1952 at Richmond, Tex.
Died: April 4, 2024 at Waco, Tex.
Throws: Right Bats: Right
Height: 6.05 Weight: 175

Pat Zachry was the most popular Ultimate Mets Database daily lookup on June 15, 2007, December 15, 2013, December 30, 2013, April 5, 2024, and April 6, 2024.

First Mets game: June 17, 1977
Last Mets game: October 2, 1982

Winner of National League Rookie of the Year award, 1976. (Cincinnati Reds)
Winner of National League Pitcher of the Month award, July 1980. (New York Mets)

Share your memories of Pat Zachry

HERE IS WHAT OTHER METS FANS HAVE TO SAY:

Andy from Rego Park
Temper, temper... in 1978, when Zach was off to his best start ever for the Mets, he yielded a hit to Pete Rose, extending Rose's hitting streak to a then-record tying 38 straight games. Saintly patient Joe Torre took Zach out of the game. In frustration, as he entered the dugout, Zach tried to kick a helmet on the concrete steps, missed and broke his foot, ending his season. Then there's the hilarious mismatch '80 fight after the Lincolnesq Zachry beaned Ron "the Penguin" Cey, who charged the mound, hitting Zach at about knee- height.

Bruce M.
Unfortunately for Zachry, he was acquired in the hugely unpopular Seaver trade. But one thing I hope people will remember about him: he was an intense competitor who pitched his heart out for some lousy Mets teams.

robert lanzarotta
What a waste. This guy was a nasty, selfish, arrogant useless pitcher who never found a groove and even though the Met teams he played on were horrible he was always whining about something. The only good thing to come out of the Seaver trade was Flynn. This guy should have quit a long time before he did.

Mike
In addition to his great start in '78 (which he stupidly dropped-kicked the concrete stairwell,) he was domiated for a two month period in '80.
Should have had a better career. I also remember his dog running away from him and he/she never returned.

plaidjacket
March 12, 2001
Loved the way Murph used to refer to Zachary as the lanky righthander from Waco, Texas. Made it sound exotic. It's not - it's a hole.

David Grover
May 25, 2001
He started one year 4-0 I believe. He was their ace behing Swan.

B u i c k
June 24, 2001
My mom told me once that I came really close to being named Zachery. As a little kid, my only connection to that name at the time was Pat Zachry and this baseball card I had of him wearing this furry beard. To me, Pat seemed like the biggest dork. I remember thinking after my mother told me that, "thank god she named me Buick!"

Adam P. Niss
August 21, 2001
Few realize how talented Pat Zachry truly was. I quote Bob Murphy "Pat Zachry has the unique ability to make the opposition hit the ball to the deepest part of the ballpark without it going out".

Mike
November 16, 2001
Ron Cey charging the mound to get at Zachary. Who could forget that?

Charlie
December 12, 2001
Nobody remembers this because he came in the Tom Seaver trade, but he shared the 1976 Rookie of the Year Award with another future Met, Butch Metzger.

STEVE B.
May 30, 2002
Had the misfortune of being traded for "Tom Terrific." Had some real decent years. Had one of the best change-ups in the league. Was a tough competitor, always gave it his all. Never really came back from the broken foot he got kicking the dugout steps at Shea. Friend of mine ran into him in Calif., where he was a high school teacher. If he was pitching today he'd be making millions. Lifetime era. Around 3.50.

Jonathan Stern
November 21, 2002
Poor guy! Asking Pat Zachary to replace Tom Seaver was asking too much. You can't ask that of anyone! Zachary was a good pitcher when he wasn't injured. Unfortunately, he was always injured. Nice person when I met him.

Joe Figliola
November 25, 2002
Just when you thought that Pat Zachry was about to turn the corner and hit his stride as a Met, something weird would happen. I agree with some of the other messages; he deserved better.
Everyone remembers the hot start he had in 1978, but I think he was on his way to an even bigger year in '79 when he hurt his elbow. Had he been injury-free that season, I think the Mets would've been a 75-win club.
My Zachry memory is from that '79 season, when he bulldogged his way to a complete game win over the Phillies. After the game, Torre said the only reason why he kept Pat in the game was that he did not trust his relief corps. In Pat we trust, I guess.

Frank Grimes
December 9, 2002
He was a joke. The main player back for Seaver, he never started more than 26 games for the Mets. He was always on the DL. Mediorcre when he was in, but seemed to spend more time on the sideline.

Bob R.
January 8, 2003
Poor Pat. A good pitcher who always will be connected with the infamous Seaver trade.

Kiwiwriter
June 19, 2004
Totally lost in New York. No worse fate than being traded for Tom Seaver to the Mets. He never really recovered from kicking that dugout.
He didn't do too well with the Dodgers or Phillies after that. He got an interesting write-up in Peter Golenbock's "The Forever Boys," about the 1990 Senior League.

Hank M
January 20, 2005
In 1980, I attended two games at Shea Stadium, both on weekday afternoons. One was on July 10th (vs. Pirates) and the other on July 30 (vs. Braves). In each of these games, Pat Zachry pitched a complete game shutout over a team with some tough hitters.
These games are a good example of how good a pitcher Pat Zachry was. Unfortunately, he pitched for a Mets' team that was NOT very good. Pat pitched well during his time with the team. He deserved a better fate.

Lifelong Fan
July 11, 2005
The funniest thing about the fight with Cey was, Zach barely came down from the mound and did not duck down to Cey's height so that made it even more ridiculous.

John L.
October 4, 2005
I remember being at Banner Day in 1982, one banner left me and a friend in stitches. It read "Pat Zachry now in the sixth year of his sophomore jinx."

Metfanforlife
October 28, 2005
I remember he was on those awful Met teams, the ones where they just had terrible games. My sister and I were in the Banner Day parade during his tenure, and he was giving her the eye (she was pretty cute in those days).
His beard was scary, I agree. Today he'd probably pull in about $5 million a season.

The Ol' Perfesser
July 12, 2006
Pat Zachry led the 1981 Mets in wins with 7. Yes, 7. You could look it up.

Tom L
August 20, 2006
Only 7 wins, but in fairness, it was a strike shortened season.
Not that the 11 wins it would have projected to be over a regular season would've been a great feat either for the staff Ace, but it sure beats 7!

metfanforlife
September 1, 2006
I remember walking on the field during a Banner Day with my sister, and Pat Zachry was giving her the once over.
Part of that awful Seaver trade. How could he have succeeded?

Ramblin' Pete
October 4, 2006
He was towering, scowling, shaggy looking, bearded, and could never live up to expectations...
When he entered a game vs. the Dodgers one time, announcer Vin Scully questioned whether Zachary had "arrived by raft..."

Jim Snedeker
October 4, 2006
I read in a book where Pat Zachry said that he enjoyed his years in New York. What a nice thing to hear, in light of his injuries and lousy run support. So winning isn't the only thing that matters.

Joe Figliola
June 12, 2007
Zachry was recently featured in a great Shea Stadium segment called "Where are They Now." He looked kind of grizzy with his gray beard and drawn cheekbones, but was very pleasant in discussing his life after baseball (he taught social studies). And, as one poster noted, Zachry said he enjoyed his stay as a Met despite the tough on-field times.
As I stated in a prior post, he deserved better. And to those of you who bashed him: The guy started out 22-13, and I think he won his first three starts in '80, giving him 25 wins in under four years for poor club. Pretty darn good.

JFK
March 5, 2008
Met Pat at Mets Fantasy Camp. Dry sense of humor. Told great stories about his baseball career. I was waiting for a bus to the airport and had an hour to waste. He came over to me and sat down just to talk. A memory I will never forget.
He told me that he was not originally included in the Seaver trade. Rawly Eastwick was to be in the deal, but Eastwick refused to go and Zachry was thrown in at the last moment. Timing could not have been worst for Zachry as he was due to get married June 18, 1977 or 3 days after the trade.

marc a. maturo
June 25, 2008
I covered the Mets when Zach was there and remember him as a good man, tough competitor. One quickie: In Frisco, Zach got racked up pretty good. Being still young (eh, younger), I met him in the locker room. Didn't know what to say, except: Tough game, eh Zach? He went off, but never held a grudge. I wish him well, would love to speak with him again.

scott r
January 8, 2009
Always known as part of the Seaver trade, he pitched pretty good when he was healthy. An All-Star in 1978; had to have somebody from Mets there. Was 5-1 in 1979 before getting hurt. Had a 3.01 ERA in 1980 but went 6-10. If the Mets had offense he would've done much better.

Jackie
May 6, 2009
Loved Pat. 78-79-80. I was in 7th, 8th, 9th grade. Loving baseball, loving the Mets. Pat was a big part of it. They may not have had a great record but a Met fan is a Met fan through good and bad. That whole team had a lot of talent and most of all tons of heart. Oh, if we could only turn back time.

pete hamner
December 10, 2009
Zachry was in extended spring training with us rookies in 77. He was kind of a quiet guy but soon loosened up. We actually got him to go fishing out in the Bay off of Treasure Island. Turned out to be an ok guy. Drank a lot of beer with us rookies.

Larry Laughing at the Late 70's
May 6, 2013
Synonymous with Seaver -that's Amazin! To watch this erratic, scraggly, ungainly Wacko from Waco as the replacement for the classic Terrific One was all the more unsightly in the most hideous era in Mets history. The Kicking of the Helmet/ Dugout Step is probably his most "sums it all up" legacy he leaves to Met fans. Picturing it makes me both laugh, and incredulous: Did it really happen that way? It's too good/bad to be true! How awkward, angry, stupid, unlucky -even lucky- must a young athlete be to risk so much while imitating life to an art form in such a perfect narrative? The Miracle of '78!

John
August 13, 2014
One of my biggest pet peeves is that the Seaver trade is considered among the worst trades in franchise history (if not considered the worst). I fail to see how it is considered a bad trade at all. In this trade, the Mets got Pat Zachry from the Cincinnati Reds. Zachry went 41-46 with a 3.63 ERA in 135 games as a Met. Seaver went 75-46 with a 3.18 ERA in 158 games for the Reds.
Whereas Seaver's numbers are clearly better than Zachry's, it needs to be taken into consideration that Seaver had the BIG RED MACHINE behind him. He was pitching to Johnny Bench; Joe Morgan was playing second base; Pete Rose was playing third. George Foster, Ken Griffey and Cesar Geronimo were his outfielders. That's clearly better than what Zachry had behind him at "Grant's Tomb."
The Mets narrowly avoided 100 losses each season Zachry was on the team, with the exception of the strike shortened 1981 season. He was 6-10 in 1980 despite a modest 3.01 ERA.
It should also to be pointed out that the Mets received Steve Henderson and Doug Flynn in this trade, also. Henderson was a close runner up to Andre Dawson for the 1977 Rookie of the Year. He went on to bat .287 with 35 home runs in his 4 seasons as a Met. Not great numbers, but not complete failure numbers, either.
Flynn was a .234 hitter for the Mets, but he also won a Gold Glove in 1980, the first such hardware the Mets had received since 1971.
Finally, the biggest reason the Seaver trade needs to be considered a GREAT trade is because Mets fans should be thankful that we didn't have to watch Seaver pitch for those teams. By leaving New York, he preserved his legacy, and is now in the Hall of Fame wearing a Mets hat. Jerry Koosman was 6-29 in his Mets career following the Seaver trade. He was 134-108 prior to it, and returned to being a 20 game winner his first season out of New York in 1979. It's not difficult to imagine that Seaver's numbers would have also taken a similar tumble had he remained a member of that team. When Seaver returned to the Mets in 1983, he too pitched for a Mets team that was on the cusp of being a 100 game loser (68-94). His record was just 9-14. Just think how different history could have been for both of them had the Reds been interested in a lefthander.

Raymond
October 1, 2016
Pat Zachry was under the gun when he came to the Mets, but he did the best he could.

Raymond Malcuit Jr.
November 13, 2019
Both Pat Zachry and Butch Metzger were Rookie Of The Year together in 1976 and they became teammates on the Mets in 1978.

Hot Foot
March 23, 2023
Known for being a 1976 World Series winner and Rookie of the Year, but I just realized a few days ago that he was also the doppelgänger of John Holmes.

Gets by Buckner
April 6, 2024
Known for being in the infamous Tom Seaver trade in 1977 and breaking his foot kicking the dugout step. RIP Pat!!

Linda
October 30, 2024
What I remember most about Pat Zachary is that after every pitch his hat would fall off and he’d have to put his hat back on at the time. I remember Ralph Kiner saying that the Mets had asked I don’t remember if it was major league baseball, or the Mets organization but one of them they asked if he would be allowed to pitch without his hat so that he wouldn’t have to keep putting his hat back on and it was denied. I always thought it was so funny. What a great memory.