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OTD 1975: Mets Acquire Slugger Dave Kingman

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OTD 1975: Mets Acquire Slugger Dave Kingman

On February 28, 1975, the Mets purchased the contract of outfielder/first baseman Dave Kingman from the San Francisco Giants. Kingman would have two tenures with the Mets, as one of the more colorful players of his era.

Kingman was the quintessential “all-or-nothing” player. He was known for hitting tape-measure home runs, and striking out at an alarming rate. In Kingman’s first year as a Met, 1975, he hit 36 home runs (a club record at the time), with a .231 batting average and a .248 OBP. He struck out 153 times in 502 at-bats, or 30.5% of the time.

In 1976, Kingman belted 37 home runs (a new club record) in 123 games (he missed time with a thumb injury sustained while diving for a ball in the outfield). In similar fashion to 1975, he posted a batting average of .238 with an OBP of .286, striking out 135 times in 474 at-bats (28.4% of the time).

Kingman was traded the same night Tom Seaver was dealt, June 15, 1977. The Mets sent him to the San Diego Padres for pitcher Paul Siebert and infielder/outfielder Bobby Valentine (who would make his mark in Mets’ lore for other reasons in years to come).

After bouncing around to a couple of teams in 1977 after the Padres (including the Yankees), Kingman signed as a free agent with the Chicago Cubs for the 1978 season. The Oregon native had his best years at Wrigley Field, leading MLB in home runs with 48 in 1979, including a legendary 550-foot home run on May 17. After a modest statistical season in 1980 during which he missed time with an injury, the Mets, with their new owners entering into their second season, re-acquired the slugger for the 1981 season for outfielder Steve Henderson and cash.

Kingman’s second go-round in Queens was similar to his first. In the strike-shortened 1981 season, he swatted 22 home runs, then led all of baseball in home runs with 37 in 1982. In those seasons, he struck out in 30% and 29% of his at-bats respectively. When 1983 came and the Mets traded for Keith Hernandez, Kingman’s days in Flushing were numbered. He was unhappy as a Met, and as Hernandez tells the story, he thanked the former Cardinal for coming to the Mets and being “my ticket out of here”. After leaving the Mets, he played for the Oakland Athletics (1984-1986) and attempted a comeback with Giants in 1987.

In addition to being a home run/strikeout king, Kingman (nicknamed “Sky King”) was known for having a surly way about him. Mets’ catcher John Stearns once said that Kingman had a “tree trunk personality”. Kingman dumped a bucket of ice on a Chicago reporter after insisting he had been misquoted. Upon returning to New York in 1981, Dave gave expensive pens to many of the local writers, with a message that he hoped they would be used to write only truthful stories about him.

Over his 16-year career, Kingman hit 442 home runs (154 as a Met), and slashed .236/.302/.478. He struck out a total of 1,816 times in 6,677 at-bats, 27% of the time. Using defensive statistics available for his era, he had a career Total Zone rating of -21 as a first baseman, and -26 as a left fielder, the two positions where he spent most of his time. His best fWAR was 3.7 in 1979. He had a career fWAR of 20.4.

Kingman did one thing well, he hit home runs. He was not close to a complete player, and alienated media and teammates alike during his career. It was interesting to watch his at-bats, because you never knew when a prodigious home run may occur. During some lean offensive years for the Mets (1975, 1976, 1982), he provided a measure of excitement.

With all the debate about whether or not there will be a DH in the NL this year, Dave Kingman is a good player to remember, as that clearly is the position to which he was best suited.

 

The post OTD 1975: Mets Acquire Slugger Dave Kingman first appeared on Metsmerized Online.

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