No More Pizza

On Tuesday, a career became a legacy. After 16 seasons, Mike Piazza has officially retired from Major League Baseball.

Piazza, a 12-time All-Star, began his career in 1992 with the Los Angeles Dodgers. In 1993, Piazza was named the National League Rookie of the Year. That season, he hit .318 with 35 home runs and drove in 112 runs. Other than his debut season in '92, Piazza was an All-Star every year he was with the Dodgers, and finished within the top 15 in MVP voting as well.


But in 1998, he would shed his Dodger blues and would head south to Miami. In one of the biggest trades in recent history, Piazza, along with Todd Zeile, was sent to the Marlins in exchange for Gary Sheffield, Barry Bonilla, Charles Johnson, Jim Eisenreich and Manuel Barrios on May 14. In his tenure with the Dodgers, Piazza amassed 177 home runs, on his way to a remarkable career.

Piazza's time as a Marlin would be short-lived - five games to be exact. In those five games, Piazza went 5-18 (including his fourth career triple). On May 22, he was sent to the New York Mets for Preston Wilson, Ed Yarnall and a minor leaguer. This trade was the beginning of a dynasty for Piazza.

When he came to New York, the Mets were chasing the Braves for first place, sitting nine games behind in second place. That season, the Mets finished in second, 18 games in back of the Braves. But after years and years of terrible seasons, the team finally made a splash landing in Piazza. They signed Piazza to a 7-year contract, and for those seven years, Piazza would become the face of the franchise.

Piazza was part of a thrilling victory against the Atlanta Braves - one which I was lucky enough to attend. It was June 30, 2000. It was a dismal game. The Braves looked like they were going to win their second in a row against the Mets at Shea, up 8-1 in the 8th inning. But a 10-run inning gave the Mets an 11-8 victory. This inning was capped by a Piazza 3-run homer off Terry Mulholland, breaking what was an 8-8 tie - and giving the Mets the exciting win.

Piazza will forever be remembered for his part in the game on September 21, 2003 - 10 days after 9/11. It was the first game played in New York since the tragedies that took place on Sept. 11, and the Mets were facing their arch rivals, the Atlanta Braves. In the 8th inning, with the Mets trailing 2-1, Piazza drilled a Steve Karsay offering over the center field wall for a two-run bomb. Not only did that shot give the Mets a thrilling victory over the Braves, but it gave New York something positive to cheer about, after suffering through the horrors it endured just over a week prior.

In a May 13 game against the Colorado Rockies in 2003, Piazza solidified his name in Cooperstown. In the top of the second inning, Piazza took the first pitch he saw from Rockies' starter Shawn Chacon over the fence for his 352nd career home run - passing Carlton Fisk for the most ever by a catcher.

But, like most good things, Piazza's time with the Mets came to an end. After the 2005 season, Piazza had become a free agent, and the Mets decided to go in other directions. Piazza would sign a one-year contract with the Padres, where he would hit 22 dingers, and hit at a .283 clip in 126 games played. Piazza then spent 2007 with the Oakland A's, though injuries kept him out of the lineup for most of the season. With Oakland, Piazza only played in 83 games, and only hit 8 homers. He was a free agent at the end of last season, and no one was willing to take a chance on a 39-year old catcher who had lost his power swing. So after 16 seasons, Piazza has called it a career.

And what a career it was. Piazza was never known for his ability behind the plate, as he allowed 1400 stolen bases, and only caught 423 runners.

So now the debate begins - what uniform will Piazza don as he enters the Hall of Fame? The case for the Dodgers can easily be matched with the case for the Mets. Piazza spent more seasons with the Mets, and therefore had a higher quantity of statistics. However, Piazza was viewed as a more fearful hitter when he played in L.A., and he never came as close to winning the MVP award as he did in 1997 and 1998, when he played most of his games as a Dodger (he finished second in the voting both seasons). He was also named the MVP of the 1996 All-Star game, when he was still a Dodger.

But as a Met, Piazza hit 220 home runs; became the all-time leader in homers by a catcher; reached the playoffs three times, including one World Series appearance; and became the face of a franchise. It will be a debate that will garner lots of attention for sure. But in five years, we should have an idea, as Piazza will almost certainly be a first-ballot Hall-of-Famer.

From a die-hard Mets fan, thank you Mike Piazza, for all you did for the Mets, the game of baseball, and the city of New York.





On a side note, you may have noticed I attribute much of my information to a website, baseballreference.com. If you like to research the history of the game, like to find out interesting information, or just like baseball, you NEED to check this site out. It has EVERYTHING a fan could want or need. I highly recommend this website to anyone.





Statistical and historical information courteous of baseballreference.com.