Tombstone
Born: December 12, 1962 – California League expansion franchise
Affiliation Change: 1965 (Salinas Indians)
First Game: April 23, 1963 (W 17-1 vs. San Jose Bees)
Last Game: September 7, 1964 (W 2-1 vs. Stockton Ports)
California League Championships: None
Stadium
Ownership & Affiliation
Attendance
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Source: The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball (3rd ed.), Lloyd Johnson & Miles Wolff, 2007. Pages 522 – 526.
Background
The Salinas Mets were the second minor league baseball team to set up shop in the fast growing Northern California city of Salinas. The Monterey County seat boasts over 150,000 residents today, but back in 1960 Salinas’ population was just under 30,000. Salinas’ only previous team, the Packers, played in the California League from 1954 to 1957.
Salinas was re-admitted into the California League in December 1962. The local ownership group linked up with the New York Mets, fresh off their historically inept debut season (40 wins, 120 losses), to be their Major League parent club.
The Salinas Mets experienced a similar degree of competitive impotence in their California League debut. The 1963 squad finished in distant last place at 47-91, 38.5 games behind the pennant-winning Stockton Ports.
The 1964 squad fared dramatically better, placing 2nd in the league. That didn’t help matters at the gate though. Salinas drew meager crowds both seasons, typified by the 285 fans who showed up at Municipal Stadium to witness what turned out to be the Mets’ final game in town on September 7th, 1964.
Future Major Leaguers
Five members of the 1963 and 1964 Salinas Mets ultimately made it to the Major Leagues. The most accomplished was Bud Harrelson who played both 1963 and 1964 in Salinas as a 19 and 20-year old. Harrelson became a two-time National League All-Star and was the starting shortstop for the 1969 Miracle Mets World Series championship team. He also managed the New York Mets in 1990 and 1991 and is a member of the team’s Hall of Fame.
The other Salinas Mets who made it to the show were all pitchers Rob Gardner, Jerry Johnson, Dick Rusteck and Dick Selma.
Demise & Later Teams in Salinas
New York pulled its support of the team in November 1964. The Cleveland Indians replaced the Mets as the Salinas’ parent club in 1965 and then left town themselves at the end of that season.
The California League returned once more in 1973 and Salinas became a mainstay of the league for the next two decades. The Cal League left town for the final time in 1992. An indepedent club, the Salinas Peppers, had a brief residence in the mid-1990’s. Municipal Stadium was demolished in 2000 and Salinas is now approaching a quarter century since the city’s last pro baseball game was played in 1997.
Salinas Mets Shop
Links
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3 Responses
Ken ‘Hawk’ Harrelson would be surprised that his name is mentioned in regards to a former NY Mets farm squad. You DID get Buddy’s name right within the actual text. But the sub-head … no.
Ha! Good catch, Gary. Fixed it.
I watched the Mets while in high school in 1963. Tug McGraw was a relief pitcher back then. He is the father of country superstar Tim McGraw.