On 25 August 1985 Dwight Gooden The New York Mets defeated the San Diego Padres 9-3 at Shea Stadium for his 20th win of the season. “Doctor K” posted a 24-4 record with an impressive 1.53 ERA during the 1985 season. That year, he struck out 268 batters in 276 2/3 innings pitched. His ERA+ was an impressive 229, and those numbers earned Gooden the National League Cy Young Award.
The 1985 season was Gooden’s best. In his rookie season in 1984, he posted a 17-9 record, led the league with 276 strikeouts, and won the National League Rookie of the Year award. Gooden also led the league in strikeouts in 1985 and pitched 16 complete games, the most in the National League.
For fans who saw Gooden in 1985, this was an absolute must-see. Matt HarveySeason 2013 and Jacob deGromThe 2018, 2019 and 2021 seasons were close, but no pitcher thrilled fans like Gooden did in 1984 and 1985. He was dominant, with a 90-plus mph fastball and a roundhouse curve that froze hitters.
Gooden’s career with the Mets spanned 11 seasons in which he posted a record of 157-85. The Doctor never again reached the heights of his 1984 and 1985 seasons and was suspended for substance abuse at the start of the 1987 season. His 1986 season was very good with a record of 17-6, however his strikeouts dropped to 200 in 250 innings pitched and his WHIP rose to 1.108 (an excellent figure, but higher than previous seasons). His ERA+ dropped to 126 in 1986 while his ERA rose to 2.84. Gooden’s 1987-1991 seasons remained solid, if not spectacular. In his final three years with the Mets, 1992-1994, Gooden’s record was below .500 in each season.
Back to the game on August 25, 1985: The Mets took a 3-0 lead in the first inning, thanks to hits from Darryl Strawberry (two RBIs) and Howard Johnson. The Padres answered with two runs in the top of the third inning. Strawberry hit a home run in the fifth inning to give New York a 4-2 lead. In the top of the sixth inning Terry Kennedy Groundout achieved Steve Garveywhich reduced the Mets’ lead to 4-3.
From then on, the Orange-Blues took the lead and scored four runs in the seventh inning. George Foster drove with a single in two, Rusty Dust added an RBI single and Roger McDowellwho replaced Gooden on the mound, scored a run on a double. The Mets led 8-3 until the bottom of the eighth inning, when Strawberry rounded off his day with another RBI, this time a single.
The 1985 Mets won 98 games, finished second to the St. Louis Cardinals, and missed the playoffs. The Mets entered St. Louis trailing by three games in a three-game series with six games left to play. The Mets won the first two but couldn’t complete the sweep and went home for their final three games two games behind the division lead. The Cardinals got the win on the second-to-last day.
The Mets used the 1985 near-defeat as motivation for the following season, in which they dominated the National League and held on through the postseason to win the franchise’s second championship title after Flushing.
