This story was excerpted from Anthony DiComo’s Mets Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.
PHOENIX — Shortly after the 1961 season, Reds pitcher Jay Hook was driving around Illinois in his Austin-Healey when he heard on the radio that he’d been selected in the Expansion Draft by the Mets. Hook’s initial reaction was one of disappointment. Although he had missed much of the prior campaign due to illness, Hook had still been a member of the National League pennant winners. His future seemed bright.
The more Hook began examining the situation, however, the more he felt at peace with it. In addition to Hook, the Mets had drafted several players with strong track records at the highest level, including eight-time All-Star Gil Hodges and Dodgers rotation staple Roger Craig. Soon after, they acquired standout center fielder Richie Ashburn from the Cubs. They hired an active Hall of Famer in hitting coach Rogers Hornsby and a future one in manager Casey Stengel.
“I thought, ‘You know what? This might not be so bad,’” Hook recalled in a recent telephone interview. He chuckled. “But obviously, it was.”
Sixty-two years after the Mets’ inaugural 1962 season, that team not only remains the worst in modern baseball history, but a symbol of futility even beyond the game — at least for now. For the first time in more than two decades, the ’62 Mets face a realistic challenge to their record 120 losses from a White Sox club featuring a 31-104 record and a 124-loss pace. What’s more, the Mets have a chance to bury the White Sox further when they visit the South Side of Chicago for a three-game series beginning Friday.
