Tom Glavine: Hall of Fame / 305 Game Winning Pitcher (The Mets Years: 2003 - 2008)

Thomas Michael Glavine was born on March 25th, 1966 in Concord, Massachusetts. The six foot left handed pitcher was drafted by the Atlanta Braves in the 2nd round of the 1884 draft.

He was the winningest pitcher of the 1990's, winning twenty games or more five times. He won two Cy Young Awards, led the NL in wins five times, led the NL in starts six times & complete games & shut outs one time each.

 Glavine was selected to eight All Star teams, won a World Series & five pennants with the Braves. Glavine was also a Player Union Representative since 1991 replacing the Braves Dale Murphy in that position.

Glavine was an excellent control pitcher, with the ability to fool hitters by changing speeds & location of his pitches often during an at bat. He was also a good hitting pitcher with a career .186 batting average, one HR 25 doubles, two triples, 93 runs scored & 90 RBIs. 

Disagreement With Atlanta: He began to fall off in the second part of the 2002 season & then was the losing pitcher in two post season games.  He began to feud with the Braves & they refused to offer him the extra year he wanted in his contract.

Mets Career: Mets owner, Fred Wilpon pampered Glavine & his wife around New York. The Mets offered him a four year $42.5-million deal to come to the Mets. All of a sudden, the former Mets rival was now a teammate & the fans had to root for him.

Mets debut 2003: The calm soft spoken, Glavine came to New York, making his Mets debut wearing uniform #47. He started Opening Day 2003 at a cold windy Shea Stadium game against the Chicago Cubs. 

There was a lot of excitement in the air, but his debut didn't go that well. Glavine walked the leadoff batter & gave up three straight hits, it was 2-0 before he recorded the first out.

It was 4-0 by the end of the first inning. The Mets lost 15-2 that day with Glavine taking the loss. centerfieldmaz was there freezing & at this debacle.

Glavine's next outing was better, he allowed one run over five innings as New York beat the Montreal Expos 3-1 for his first Mets win. Glavine won his next two starts as well, first beating Josh Fogg & the Pirates 2-1. On April 20th, he pitched seven innings, allowing three runs beating the Florida Marlins. 

On April 27th, Glavine surrendered six runs (four earned) in a loss to Arizona. He started out May 1-1 with a no decision.

On May 18th, he had a strong outing in San Francisco, going into the 9th inning allowing just one run, striking out four as the Mets beat the Giants 5-1.

Return to Atlanta: On May 24th he returned to Atlanta wearing a Mets uniform, receiving mixed reviews from the crowd. Mostly they were appreciative of his years of service & winning efforts with the Braves. 

Glavine pitched his heart out that day but was knocked out in the 4th inning after allowing six runs, including HRs from Andru Jones & Javy Lopez. He took the loss getting to 5-4.

From there Glavine lost five straight decisions. When the Braves came to Shea Stadium, they tagged him for four HRs coming from Chipper Jones, Garry Sheffield, Julio Franco & Mark DeRosa. On June 5th the Brewers tagged him for five runs in the 1st inning, he exited with his 6th loss. On June 16th he took a 1-0 loss to Dontrell Willis & the Marlins. 

On June 22nd, he pitched well in his first subway series matchup, allowing just a run in six innings but got no decision in the Mets loss. On June 28th in another Subway Series matchup, Glavine had a nightmare outing. He gave up a season high eight earned runs, two HRs & ten hits taking his eighth loss, his fifth straight.

On Independance Day he finally collected a victory. In Cincinnati Glavine struck out five batters allowing just one run in seven innings in the Mets 7-2 victory. But then he lost three straight games giving up five more runs to the Braves at Shea & later in the month seven runs at Turner Field.

Vs. Old Brave Teammates: In 2003 his old team batted .393 against him, hitting eight HRs, five more than any other team he faced.  Glavine gave up 23 runs on 33 hits, while issuing 11 walks in just four games against Atlanta. 

Glavine showed some of his old self in August, On August 8th he won a game in Arizona allowing just a run in six innings. On August 15th he threw six shutout innings in a 5-0 Mets win over Colorado. His next outing was in San Diego, allowing just a run in 6.2 innings but earned no decision as Mike Stanton blew the game giving up a two run HR to Phil Nevin. On August 24th Glavine & Kevin Brown went at it in LA with the Mets defeating the Dodgers 2-1. It was his 9th win & turned out to be his last win of the season.

On September 19th he served up the first & only grand slam of his career, to Jose Vidro in a loss to the Expo's. It was clear the Mets were going nowhere this year as they finished 66-95 last in the NL East. Glavine went a disappointing 9-14 with a 4.52 ERA, he struck out 82 batters & walked 66 in 183.1 innings making 32 starts allowing 21 HRs.

2004: Glavine improved a bit in 2004, starting out the season by beating his old Braves teammates in Atlanta on Opening Day. He allowed two runs on two hits in six innings. 

On April 11th, he earned win #2 with a one run seven inning outing in Montreal to beat the Expos 4-1.

On April 16th he shut out the Pirates over seven innings but got no decision after the bullpen (Orber Moreno, Mike Stanton & David Weathers) allowed a combined seven runs in the 8th inning, blowing his shut out.

On April 27th in Los Angles he allowed three runs in six innings, but the Mets offense helped him out in a 9-5 win. He finished April 3-1 with a 1.64 ERA.

On May 12th he went up against Randy Johnson in Arizona & pitched 7.2 shutout innings taking a 1-0 win. The only run of the game came on Kaz Matsui's lead off HR in the 1st inning.

One Hitter: On May 23rd, Glavine took a no hitter into the 8th inning. After recording two outs the Rockies Kit Pellow doubled to right field ruining the no hit bid. Glavine threw a spectacular one hitter at Shea Stadium, to beat the Colorado 4-0. He struck out a season high eight batters while walking only one. 

He bested his record to 6-2 with a 2.13 ERA. At the end of June into early July he lost five straight games, while giving up just two runs in three of those games. In the first half he was 7-7 but had an ERA of 2.66. He was named to the All-Star team for the first time in a Mets uniform. 

2004 All Star Game: Glavine pitched a scoreless 7th inning, allowing a hit to Matt Lawton in the NL's 9-4 loss at the All-Star Game in Houston Texas. Mike Piazza his Mets teammate was the NL's starting catcher, with his foe, Roger Clemmens now with Houston being the starter for the NL. Clemens was rocked for six quick runs, with some thinking Piazza got revenge on old Rog, by tipping off the AL batters with the pitches.

After the break, his second half of the season went downhill. Unfortunately, he would win just five more games all year in 14 starts, while losing seven. 

Taxicab Drama: That August Glavine was involved in a taxicab car accident outside LaGuardia Airport. The driver slammed into an SUV, he was slightly injured bleeding & losing a front tooth. He needed 45 stitches on his chin & is lip was cut as well. He also said his collarbone, ribcage & right shoulder were all sore. 

He missed two weeks of action returning on a west coast road trip. On August 21st in San Francisco, he gave up five runs in five innings, but the Mets came back winning the game 11-9.

On August 27th he closed out August with a six inning one run victory over the Dodgers in L.A. 

In his first three September starts he gave up four runs or more each time, taking a loss in each game. On October 3rd, he closed out the season, with a one run six inning performance, striking out five & walking four in a8-1 win over the Expos at Shea.

The Mets finished the year in fourth place & the Art Howe era came to an end as he was let go after the season. Glavine went 11-14 with a 3.60 ERA, striking out 109 batters while walking 70 in 212 innings pitched (tenth most in the NL) over 33 starts. 

2005 -A New Mets Era: In the off season the Mets hired Willie Randolph as the new manager. GM Omar Minaya landed Pedro Martinez as the new ace of the staff as well as star slugging outfielder Carlos Beltran.

The 2005 Mets showed much improvement, as did Glavine. Some of the credit goes to new Mets pitching coach Rick Peterson who suggested Glavine pitch more inside & use a curve ball more often. 

Pedro Martinez began the year as the Opening Day starter & Glavine pitched the second game of the year, getting knocked out after four innings, taking a 9-5 loss to the Reds in Cincinnati. 

After starting out 0-2, he pitched a strong game on April 22nd against the Washington Nationals. Glavine went seven innings allowing just one run on two hits, striking out seven batters.

On April 27th the Braves came to town & beat Glavine once again, knocking him out in the 5th inning after he served up seven runs including HRs to Andru Jones & William Betemit. 

Christine Glavine

After a loss & no decision, he threw seven shut out innings over the Cardinals at Shea Stadium in a 4-0 Mets shut out win. On May 18th he won his third game of the year, beating the Reds giving up just two runs in in six innings.

On May24th, when the Mets went to Atlanta, the Braves beat Glavine again, although he did pitch into the 7th inning before giving up four runs. 

On May 29th Glavine gave up a run in six innings in Florida earning no decision & then on June 4th, Glavine gave up one run to the Giants in 7.2 innings of work, earning a win. He lost his next two games & then earned a win in the subway series in the Bronx. By the All Star break he was 6-7 with a 4.94 ERA. 

On July 20th, Glavine's win over the Padres got him to the .500 mark, but he then lost his next two starts that month. On August 22nd, he allowed a run in eight innings at Arizona to reach ten wins getting to double figures in victories for the second straight year. He also got to .500 at 10-10.

On August 27th he gave up just two runs but took 1 2-1 loss to Jason Schmidt & the Giants. 

Pitcher of the Month Award: On September 1st, he gave up two runs to the Phillies in the 1st inning, then shut out them out for the next six innings. But Jon Lieber held the Mets to a run in seven innings & took the 3-1 victory.

On September 18th, Glavine pitched a complete game victory over the Braves at Shea Stadium. He allowed one run on six hits with three strike outs & two walks for his 11th win.

On September 24th he pitched eight innings in Washington, allowing just two runs to beat the Nats 5-2. 

2 Hit Shut Out: Glavine closed out the year with another complete game, as he shut out the Colorado Rockies at Shea Stadium, with a spectacular two hitter, striking out a season high eleven batters.

In the 3rd inning he gave up a base hit to Rockies pitcher Sun-Woo Kim & then a 7th inning single to Matt Holiday. The Mets offense was led by David Wright who hit two HRs, Mike Piazza & Mike Jacobs also homered.

Glavine finished out the year at 13-13 with a 3.53 ERA (both second to Pedro Martinez) striking out 105 batters & walking 61 in 211 innings of work in 33 starts. 

Charity: That season he was a spokesperson for Volunteers of Americas: Operation Backpack, helping homeless children as well as Katrina victims.

2006 NL Eastern Champion Season: 2006 started with lots of excitement as the team had acquired Carlos Delgado, Paul Loduca, Jose Valentin & Xavier Nady in the off season. It proved to be the best year for the Mets since 2000 as they won the N.L. Eastern crown, staying on top of the pack all year long.

With Pedro Martinez sidelined, Glavine got the Opening Day start. He out dueled the Nationals; Livan Hernandez for 3-2 victory. Glavine went six innings allowing just one run on six scattered hits. 

On April 14th he beat the Milwaukee Brewers & then suffered a tough loss on his next start.

On April 19th, he pitched eight innings against the Atlanta Braves, allowing just one earned run but lost to Tim Hudson who threw a complete game 2-1 win. 

Six Game Win Streak: From that point on the Mets & Glavine caught fire. Glavine won six straight games through May & nine straight decisions into July. 

On April 29th in Atlanta, Glavine threw another gem, as he went out & shut out the Braves for seven innings, beating John Thomson 1-0. Paul Loduca's solo HR was the only run of the game.

Glavine went into stretch of throwing 17 straight scoreless innings over three games.

On May 4th he followed up as he shut out the Pittsburgh Pirates for seven innings, striking out ten in a 6-0 Mets win. 

On May 21st, he beat the A.L. New York team in the subway series, helped out by back-to-back HRs by David Wright & Carlos Delgado. On May 27th he went into the 8th inning in Florida, allowing three runs in the 7-4 victory.

After a win in Los Angeles, he beat the Baltimore Orioles to earn his tenth win of the year to reach double figures in wins for the third straight year.

On June 23rd, he pitched a seven inning one run game in Toronto as the Mets beat the Blue Jays 6-1 in inter-league play, getting Glavine to 11-2.

In July he had three outings where he allowed five runs or more as he lost two games with four no decisions & no wins. 

2006 All Star Game: That summer he made his tenth & final All-Star Game, his second as a Met.
He did not pitch in the NL's 3-2 loss at PNC Park.

In August he made just three starts beating the Phillies then taking a loss to the Nationals although he gave up just two runs in six innings. On August 16th, he was on the losing end of a Jon Lieber shut out, as the Philles beat the Mets 3-1. Glavine was just 1-4 through the summer months of July & August.

Injury Scare: He had a big scare that August when he felt coldness in his left ring finger & was tested for a possible dangerous blood clot. The results were negative, he missed two weeks of action & was back to work for September.

Mets Clinch the East: On September 18th, the Mets clinched their first NL East title in 18 years. The next night Glavine beat the Marlins with an eight inning, two run performance. 

On September 30th he closed out the year with a win in Washington, giving him his 15th win of the year.

It was Glavine's best year as a Met, as he tied with Steve Trachsel for most wins on the club, went 15-7 (2nd most wins in the NL, tied with five other pitchers) with 131 strike outs (all his Mets bests) posting a 3.82 ERA in 198 innings over 32 starts. 

Trivia: He became the first Mets left hander in thirty years to make thirty or more starts in four consecutive seasons.

2006 Post Season-NLDS: Glavine got the start in Game #2 of the NLDS against the Los Angeles Dodgers, at Shea Stadium, with centerfieldmaz in attendance.

Glavine was in his usual post season form, throwing six innings of shutout ball, allowing just four hits, two walks & striking out two. He left with a 2-0 lead after Endy Chavez scored the first run, with a single, advancing on a wild pitch & Glavine force play, leading to a Jose Reyes ground out run.

Paul Loduca added a sac fly in the 5th as well. In the bottom of the 6th inning the Mets tacked on two more runs, with a Julio Franco ground out & a Jose Reyes single. Glavine got the win as the Mets went up two games to nothing, on their way to the sweep.

2006 NLCS: In the NLCS against the St. Louis Cardinals he got the start in the Game One Opener at Shea Stadium. 

Once again he stepped up & was spectacular; pitching seven shutout innings, allowing just four hits & two walks, striking out two. Carlos Beltran hit a two run HR providing the Mets with all they needed in the 2-0 win over Jeff Weaver.

With a depleted Mets pitching staff, missing Pedro Martinez & Orlando Hernandez, Glavine got the call for Game #5 in St. Louis, as well. Although the Mets scored first, the Cards struck. 

In the home 4th, Albert Pujols hit a HR off Glavine & Rafael Belliard singled home another run. Glavine allowed one more run before his exit in the 5th & was the losing pitcher. 

The Mets lost the game & the series in seven games, ending a heartbreaking series after a fine season. 

After the Division Title: Glavine felt good about the Mets chances in the next few years & signed a two year deal with them in hopes of winning another championship as well as winning his 300th game. He entered the 2007 season with 290 wins & the Mets were proud that he would accomplish this feat in a New York uniform.

2007: The Mets returned to carry out a mission to get to the World Series & avenge their NLCS lost from the previous year. 

It was a strong year, but the team collapsed in the final month & lost a playoff berth on the last day of the season. Glavine got the Opening Day win in St. Louis, after the Mets saw the Cards raise their World Championship flag.

In his next start, his friend John Smoltz beat him in Atlanta. But Glavine was strong from their winning four straight decisions until the end of May. 

He then lost four straight decisions, including two inter league game walloping's by the Tigers in Detroit (nine runs in 4.1 innings) & the A.L. New York club (seven runs in four innings).

On June 22nd he pitched a strong one run 8th inning performance against the Oakland A's at Shea Stadium. 

On June 27th, he shut out the Cardinals for six innings in a rain shortened game, beating Anthony Reyes earning his seventh win of the year (7-5).  On July 7th he had another bad outing, giving up six runs in Colorado. It was the third time he gave up six runs or more in a game.

On July 14th, Glavine beat the Cincinnati Reds 2-1 as he out dueled Matt Beslisle. The Mets won the game as Lastings Milledge singled off Mike Stanton in the bottom of the 8th inning. The countdown to 300 career wins got closer as he was now two wins away.

On July 25th he notched his 299th career win, allowing just one run to the Pirates in seven innings. On July 31st the media attention was all on Glavine in Milwaukee as he went for #300. Although he had a fine outing giving up just a run in six innings, the Mets offense had a rare off night, as they took a 4-2 loss.

300th Victory: On August 5th he went for #300 again, in the start at Wrigley Field in Chicago. On a nationally broadcast game, he retired the side in order in the 1st. 

He gave up two hits in the 3rd inning but Alfonso Soriano got thrown out at third base to end the inning. In the 4th inning he gave up another single but retired the rest of the batters. In the 6th with the Mets now ahead 5-0, he allowed back-to-back doubles to Derrek Lee & Aramis Ramirez for the Cubs first run. 

In the 7th inning, after recording the first out, Angel Pagan doubled. Willie Randolph came out & removed him from the game. He went 6.2 innings allowing just two runs on six hits, exiting with a 5-1 lead. The Mets put up eight runs on the night, led by Carlos Delgado's four RBI's.

Glavine went on to get the win & earn his 300th career victory in a Mets uniform. He become just the fifth left hander in history to win 300 games over the course of a Hall of Fame career. 

Honored at Shea Stadium: On August 11th in a pregame ceremony at Shea Stadium, Glavine & his family were honored by the Mets organization. 

The team gave him a set of jet ski's & a 2007 Lincoln MKX . Tom Seaver made a speech saying" Let me be the first to say, welcome to the club my boy, well deserved". The Mets lost to the Marlins that day 7-5.

After giving up six runs on August 23rd, he threw seven shutout innings at Philadelphia getting no decision in a 4-2 Mets loss. He then won two games where he gave up just a run each time, against the Braves & Astros. In twenty innings had given up just two earned runs in those starts. Glavine would win three straight games as the Mets held on to first place. 

By the end of September, the Mets had blown their lead & were fighting for a wild card spot. On September 30th he pitched his final game with the Mets. It was the Mets final game of the year & they needed the win to get to the playoffs after a disastrous week. 

The day before John Maine pitched the game of his life, flirting with a no hitter into the 8th inning giving the Mets life & a much needed win.

But in the last game, Glavine was.
shelled for seven runs in the first inning, as the Mets playoff hopes ended as did Glavine's career in New York. 

Sad Ending to His Mets Career: Many felt Glavine had gone out in the final start without much effort. He looked lax & showed no emotion as well as having no heart in the game. 

After a bad start to his Mets career to a promising playoff run, it now ended just as bad as it began.

Mets Career: In his five-year Mets career; Glavine was 61-56 (12 most wins in Met history) with a 3.41 ERA. He struck out 516 batters, walked 114 while pitching 1005 innings in 164 games.

Post Mets Career: He closed out his career in 2008 back in Atlanta going 2-4 in 13 games.

Career Stats: In his 22-year career Glavine won two Cy Young Awards, a TSN Pitcher of the Year Award & made ten All Star Games. 

He was 305-203 (21st all time in wins & 45th most losses) with a 3.54 ERA. He has 2607 strike outs (29th all time) 1500 walks (12th most all time) in 4413 innings (30th all time) in 682 starts (12th all time). He has thrown 22 shut outs (173rd all time) & has 52 complete games. 

As a hitter he batted .186 with 246 career hits, one HR 25 doubles & 90 RBIs.

He appeared in twelve post seasons going 14-16 with a 3.30 ERA in 35 games. He had won five pennants & one World Championship.

Retirement: Since his playing days he has become a color analyst for Atlanta Braves games.

Honors: In 2010 the Braves retired his uniform #47 at Turner Field. In 2014 he was elected to Cooperstown into the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Family: He & his second wife Christine have five children, they reside in Johns Creek, Georgia. 

Tom coached his son's baseball & hockey teams. He is also an avid golfer.

Practicing Catholic: Glavine is a Catholic & has done work for Catholic Athletes for Christ. 

Charities: He & his wife have always been very active in charity work, from the Rally Foundation, to CURE to the Georgia Transplant Foundation.