Ron Swoboda

Ronald Alan Swoboda (born June 30, 1944) is a former Major League Baseball outfielder best remembered as a member of the "Miracle Mets".

MLB debut

After graduating from Sparrows Point High School, one season at the University of Maryland, and a stellar showing in the AAABA tournament in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, Swoboda was offered a $35,000 contract to sign with the New York Mets and scout Pete Gebrian on September 5, 1963.

He spent only one season in the Mets' farm system AA Williamsport, PA before making the team in spring training, 1965. He made his major league debut as a pinch hitter in the season opener, and lined out in his only at-bat. He pinch hit, again, in the second game of the season, this time hitting an 11th-inning home run (the Mets still lost, as the Houston Astros had scored four runs in the top of the inning). He homered again in his first at-bat on April 18, giving him two home runs in his first four Major League at-bats.

He had 15 home runs by the All-Star break, the most ever by a Mets rookie in the first half, ahead of Benny Agbayani (11 in 1999) and Ike Davis (11 in 2010). After he commented during a TV interview that he loved hitting fastballs, he began seeing a lot more breaking balls, and hit only four more on the season. Still, his 19 home runs stood as a Mets rookie record until Darryl Strawberry's 26 in 1983. His rookie fielding percentage was a below-league-average .947, however, he had nine outfield assists.

New York

New York is a state in the Northeastern United States and is the United States' 27th-most extensive, fourth-most populous, and seventh-most densely populated state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south and Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Vermont to the east. The state has a maritime border in the Atlantic Ocean with Rhode Island, east of Long Island, as well as an international border with the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the north and Ontario to the west and north. The state of New York, with an estimated 19.8 million residents in 2015, is often referred to as New York State to distinguish it from New York City, the state's most populous city and its economic hub.

With an estimated population of nearly 8.5 million in 2014, New York City is the most populous city in the United States and the premier gateway for legal immigration to the United States. The New York City Metropolitan Area is one of the most populous urban agglomerations in the world. New York City is a global city, exerting a significant impact upon commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and entertainment, its fast pace defining the term New York minute. The home of the United Nations Headquarters, New York City is an important center for international diplomacy and has been described as the cultural and financial capital of the world, as well as the world's most economically powerful city. New York City makes up over 40% of the population of New York State. Two-thirds of the state's population lives in the New York City Metropolitan Area, and nearly 40% live on Long Island. Both the state and New York City were named for the 17th century Duke of York, future King James II of England. The next four most populous cities in the state are Buffalo, Rochester, Yonkers, and Syracuse, while the state capital is Albany.

World Series

The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in North America, contested since 1903 between the American League (AL) champion team and the National League (NL) champion. Prior to 1969, the team with the best win-loss record in each league automatically advanced to the World Series; since then each league has conducted a championship series (ALCS and NLCS) preceding the World Series to determine which teams will advance. As of 2015, the World Series has been contested 111 times, with the AL winning 64 and the NL winning 47. The winner of the World Series championship is determined through a best-of-seven playoff and the winning team is awarded the Commissioner's Trophy. As the series is played in October (and occasionally November), during the autumn season in North America, it is often referred to as the Fall Classic.

The 2015 World Series took place between the New York Mets and the victorious Kansas City Royals. Five games were played, with the Royals victorious after game five, played in New York. The final score was 7-2; the game went into extra innings after a tied score of 2-2. This was the second World Series won by the franchise and the first in 30 years.

1969 World Series

The 1969 World Series was played between the New York Mets and the Baltimore Orioles, with the Mets prevailing in five games to accomplish one of the greatest upsets in Series history, as that particular Orioles squad was considered to be one of the finest ever (and still is by some baseball pundits). The World Series win earned the team the sobriquet "Miracle Mets", as they had risen from the depths of mediocrity (the 1969 team had the first winning record in Mets history).

The Mets became the first expansion team to win a division title, a pennant, and the World Series, winning in their eighth year of existence. Two teams would later surpass that, as the Florida Marlins won the 1997 World Series in their fifth year (also becoming the first wild card team to win a World Series) and the Arizona Diamondbacks won the 2001 World Series in their fourth year of play. This was the first World Series since 1954 to have games played in New York that didn't involve the New York Yankees; it was also the first World Series in which neither the New York Giants nor Brooklyn Dodgers (as both teams had moved to California in 1958) represented New York on the National League side.

New York Mets

The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in New York City. The Mets are a member of the National League East Division of Major League Baseball (MLB). The Mets are one of two Major League clubs based in New York, the other being the New York Yankees.

One of baseball's first expansion teams, the Mets were founded in 1962 to replace New York's departed National League teams; the Brooklyn Dodgers and the New York Giants. The Mets' colors are composed of the Dodgers' blue and the Giants' orange, which also comprises the outer two bands of the New York City flag. During the 1962 and 1963 seasons, the Mets played their home games at the Polo Grounds. From 1964 to 2008, the Mets' home ballpark was Shea Stadium. In 2009, they moved into their current ballpark, Citi Field.

In their 1962 inaugural season, the Mets posted a record of 40–120, the worst regular season record since Major League Baseball went to a 162-game schedule (two games were canceled). The team never finished better than second to last until the 1969 "Miracle Mets" beat the Baltimore Orioles in the 1969 World Series in what is considered one of the biggest upsets in World Series history. Since then, they have played in four additional World Series, including a dramatic run in 1973 that ended in a seven-game loss to the Oakland Athletics, a second championship in 1986 over the Boston Red Sox, a Subway Series loss against their cross-town rivals the New York Yankees in 2000, and a five-game loss to the Kansas City Royals in 2015.