The original Tom Terrific is gone. Tom Seaver, the face of the "Miracle Mets" of 1969 and one of the greatest pitchers of all time died yesterday at his home in California. He was suffering from dementia, but the cause of death was listed a Covid 19. He was 75 years old.
Being a Yankee fan to the bone, I didn't follow Seaver's career, but couldn't help but admire his mastery of the pitcher's craft. The local L.I. tabloid, Newsday, probably featured Seaver and the Mets far more often than the woeful Yankee squads of the late 60s and early 70s. You could count on Tom Terrific to notch 20 victories and 200 strikeouts virtually every season or so it seemed. In a stunning series of stupid decisions, the Mets allowed "The Franchise" to get away, trading him to the Cincinnati Reds for a package of no names in 1977 and then after getting him back in the early 80s failed to protect him in draft for compensatory damage and the White Sox claimed him. He finished his career in Boston, ironically part of the team which lost to the Mets in 1986.
Seaver was known as a standup guy who mentored younger pitchers and was a savvy broadcaster who was brought in to call numerous World Series games. RIP Mr. Seaver. You will be missed.
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