Wally Backman: 1986 World Champion Mets Second Baseman (1980 - 1988)

Walter Wayne Backman was born September 22, 1959, in Hillsboro, Oregon. Wally Backman's dad played in the Pittsburgh Pirates organization during the sixties.

Wally was drafted in the first round (16th pick overall) of the 1977 draft by the New York Mets. He hit over .280 every season in the minors and his defense improved, making him a fine defensive second baseman.

His scrappy style of play is what made him so desirable. He would do anything to get on a base, a slap hitter who could bunt well, draw walks & get hit by pitches. His uniform usually got dirty from sliding and being a pest on the base paths.

Mets Career: In September 1980 he got his big league call up. On September 2nd, he debuted in a loss at Los Angeles, getting an RBI base hit off Dave Goltz in his first career at bat. He later hit an RBI double in a successful debut.

That month he would have a hit streak hitting safely in 16 of 21 games. On October 1st he had a four-hit game in a loss at Pittsburgh. Overall, in 27 games that month, he batted .323 (30-93) with 9 RBIs in 27 games. 

Backman’s early years as a Met were filled with drama at times. It was tough for him to break thru to get a starting job.  At the start of his career, Gold Glover, Doug Flynn was the Mets second baseman & a favorite of manager Joe Torre.

1981: As the season started, he was playing as a backup to Flynn & getting used as a pinch hitter. He didn't hit over .200 until his first 12 games & then raised his average to .286 by the end of May. 

But in June he got sent to Triple A- Tidewater & he was upset. He got more irritated that the Mets were trying to turn him into a utility infielder. He refused to report for six days, giving him a bad reputation with the organization. He then tore his rotator cuff missing the rest of the season.

In the winter of 1981, the Mets traded Doug Flynn and Backman was the 1982 Opening Day second baseman. 

1982: As the year began, he was still being bothered by his rotator cuff injury. The Mets were now being managed by George Bamberger, who felt Backman wasn't a good defensive player. The media & the fans started feeling the same way.

Backman was hitting, finishing April batting .304 having had four multi-hit games in the month.

On May 26th, he hit his first career HR, a three-run shot coming off the Braves Rick Camp in a 6-4 win at Atlanta's Fulton County Stadium. 

From June 27th to July 4th, he had a hot streak hitting .526 over six games, collecting ten hits while drawing six walks. In July he hit HRs in two games, giving him a career high three on the season. His first HR came off the Dodgers Bob Welch with the other off being an inside the park homer at Shea Stadium, coming against the Pirates Enrique Romo in a 9-4 win.

But in August he fell off a bicycle getting injured & ending his season. That didn't go well with the Mets & it was planned that Brian Giles would be the second baseman in 1983. 

 1983: As Backman struggled, he was only batting 1.29 & had had only seen action in 29 games thru May 29th. He was sent back to AAA Tidewater & was furious at his lack of playing time & demotion. He said he would continue to play hard but wanted to be traded.

At AAA Tidewater he had impressed his manager Davey Johnson with his style of play and his hitting, batting .316. Davey was a former second baseman on Championship teams & worked on Backman's defense with him. Backman praised Johnson saying he was the best thing that happened for him.

1984: Davey Johnson took over as the Mets manager, he made Backman his main second baseman. Backman started the year hitting safely in his first four games. 

Walk Off Hit: On April 18th, the Mets went to the bottom of the 9th down 4-3 to the Expos with Jeff Reardon looking to close out the game. The Mets loaded the bases & George Lucas came into pitch. Backman delivered a two-run double giving the Mets a walk off win, a sign of the good times to come at Shea this season.

On May 26, in a game against the Dodgers, Hubie Brooks homered to tie the game. With Danny Heep on second Backman singled scoring Heep in what was the 2-1 game winning run. 

Backman had four multi-hit games on the month, with a three-hit game on May 31st in a loss to the Cardinals at Shea. From there had a seven-game hit streak with another three-hit game in a win at Montreal at end of the streak.

From June 21st to June 28th, he collected 14 hits bating .412 in the stretch, while driving in five runs & scoring four runs. 

The Mets were a hot exciting young team & were 38-32 just one game out of first place. It was a new era of Mets baseball that would last thru the decade & Backman was big part of it.

On July 2nd, in a game at Shea against the Houston Astros he had three hits & drove in three of the Mets four runs in their 4-2 victory. 

Walk Off Hit: On July 23rd Backman had another walk off game winning hit, this one in the bottom of the 10th inning, off former Met Neil Allen. Backman's single scored Mike Fitzgerald for the 4-3 win.

On July 27th, he helped Dwight Gooden to a four-hit win, when he singled home what was the game winning run in the 7th inning against Dick Ruthven & the Chicago Cubs. On July 31st he peaked out with a .300 batting average.

On August 17th Dwight Gooden & the Giants Mike Krukow had a classic shut out pitcher's duel going through nine innings in San Francisco. In the top of the tenth Backman hit his only HR of the season, a two-run shot winning it for New York.

On August 22nd, Backman had his seventh multi- three hit game of the season. He hit his 17th double of the year in the 5-2 win at San Diego. Backman had 29 multi-hit games on the season.

On September 7th, in the height of the pennant race with the Cubs, Dwight Gooden itched a 10-0 one hitter over Chiago at Shea Stadium. centerfieldmaz was in attendance on the exciting night. Backman, tripled & drew three walks, scoring three runs in the game. 

The Mets had their first winning season in eight years, winning 90 games finishing second to the Cubs by 6.5 games. Backman finished the year hitting safely in his last seven games.

Backman was the Mets leadoff hitter for most of the year, batting .280. He hit .291 vs right handers but only .162 against the lefties.

The speedy Backman, had a career high 32 stolen bases, only getting thrown out nine times. 

He posted a .339 on base percentage with 122 hits, 56 walks,19 doubles 68 runs scored & 21 RBIs. 

Backman still wasn't sure if he would remain on the team the next season. In his personal life he spent the year living in a mobile home with his wife & daughter at a campsite in West Milford, NJ.

1985: With Backman having problems hitting left-handers, Davey Johnson began a platoon with Kelvin Chapman. But Chapman was only hitting .234 before being sent back to AAA Tidewater in July.

Five Hit Game: On April 26th, Wally had his season high five hit game, collecting four singles & an RBI double. He drove in three of the five runs in Ron Darling's five hit shut out over the Pirates at Shea.

In May his average slipped to .237 He was still batting leadoff during the first few months, but in July was moved to the number two spot, which made out to be a better fit. Rookie Lenny Dykstra brought up that May was better fitted as a leadoff hitter. The two at the top of the order were perfect together.

Backman started to hit really well over the summer, starting out in July he had a ten-game hit streak, collecting 19 hits with six RBIs & 11 runs scored. From July 25 to July 28th, Wally had four straight multi-hit games with nine hits & seven runs scored. From July 30th to August 20th, he continued to tear it up, batting .400 hitting safely in 19 of 20 games. He drove in 12 more runs & scored another 17 runs. The Mets won 13 of 14 games to get into a tie of first place with the now rival Cardinals.

On August 19th, Backman drove in the only run of a combined Ron Darling & Roger McDowell 1-0 shut out over the Expos.

On September 21st, in a game at Shea with centerfieldmaz in attendance, Wally had his had his third four hit game of the year as well as his third multi- three RBI game of the season. On this afternoon Dwight Gooden won his 22nd game of the year & hit his first career HR in a 12-1 crushing of the Pirates.

The Mets were within one game of first place after taking two of three from the Cardinals in St. Louis but lost three of their last four games to finish 98-64 in second three games back.

On the season, Backman played in 145 games hitting .273 with a career high 142 hits. But against left handers he batted just .155.  Wally hit 24 double, five triples scored 77 runs & had 38 RBIs. He struck out 72 times with 36 walks posted a .320 on base percentage & a .664 OPS. For the second straight season he stole thirty bases but still stole 30 bases, to lead the team.

In the off season, 1986 season, Tim Teufel was brought in from Minnesota to platoon at second base. Although Teufel had only hit .200 against lefties himself the previous season.

1986 Championship season: Backman had a great start to the season & never looked back. Backman was platooned with Tim Teufel most of the season, with Tim usually facing the lefties. Backman started 92 games with Teufel starting 72.

Wild Boys: When both Backman & outfielder Len Dykstra were atop the Mets lineup, they were the table setters for the mighty bats that followed.  & base stealers of the line up. The two gritty, players usually had dirty uniforms & cheeks filled of chewing tobacco. The two players were known as the "Wild Boys". 

Multi- Hit Games: On April 20th, Backman collected three hits with a single, double & triple in an 8-0 win over the Phillies. On the season he would have 37 multi-hit games, with 14 games of three or more hits.

Four Hit Games: On April 29th, Backman had his first four hit game, coming in a 10-5 win in Atlanta, as he collected four singles with an RBI. On May 4th, he had his other four hit game, collecting two doubles & an RBI in the 7-2 victory at Cincinnati. 

In May, Backman hit six doubles & had two games where he hit multiple doubles. From June 9th to June 22nd, Wally had a ten-game hit streak, batting .436 with 17 hits & ten runs scored. 

Five RBI Game: On July 17th in Houston, Backman had a career high five RBI game. He gathered up three hits with a two-run single off Nolan Ryan & an RBI single off Charlie Kerfeld in the Mets 13-2 rout over the Astros. 

On this road trip at Houston, Ron Darling, Bob Ojeda, Rick Aguilera & Tim Teufel got into a night club altercation with off duty Police officers posing as bouncers, resulting in the players getting arrested.

On August 10th in Montreal, Backman broke a 2-2 tie in Montreal with a 7th inning two run double off Dennis Martinez. He later drove in a 9th inning run as well in the Mets 7-2 win over the Expos. It was his second game where he drove in at least three runs on the season.

On September 17th, the Mets cliched the NL Eastern title with a win over the Chicago Cubs in a wild Shea Stadium. In the bottom of the 3rd, Backman singled & came around to score the second run in the 4-2 win, on Darryl Strawberry's RBI single. centerfieldmaz was on hand that evening to celebrate.

On September 22nd, which was Wally's 27th birthday, he hit his only HR of the season. It came off the Cardinals Bob Forsch in a 5-2 Mets win at Shea.

Backman led the 1986 Mets team in batting average with hitting .320. He & Keith Hernandez were the only two Mets hitters to bat over .300. Wally was a very dangerous bunter, he dragged many of his 102 singles for base hits & had 14 sac hits (third most in the NL). 

Backman hit one HR with 18 doubles, two triples, 67 runs scored & 27 RBI. He struck out 32 times with 36 walks, posting a .376 on base percentage& .761 OPS. He stole 13 bases in twenty attempts. Overall Backman played in 124 games.  

At second base he posted a .966 fielding % & helped turn over 56 double plays.

1986 Post Season-NLCS: In the NLCS win over Houston, Backman started four games at second & appeared in all six.

In the Game #1 loss at Houston, he was 0-4. In Game #2 at the Houston Astrodome, he singled off Nolan Ryan in the 4th inning & then scored on Gary Carter's RBI double. It was the Mets first run of the Series. In the top of the 5th, he singled home Bobby Ojeda putting New York up 3-0 in the eventual 5-1 win.

With the series tied at one game apiece, the NLCS switched to an excited Shea Stadium. 

In Game #3 the Mets were trailing 5-4 in the bottom of the ninth inning. Backman led off the 9th inning as a pinch hitter dragging a bunt down the first-base line As Astros first baseman Glenn Davis fielded it, Backman lunged past him into foul territory and slid safely into first base. 

Astros manager Hal Lanier argued that Backman had run out of the base path, but to no avail, as he was ruled safe. 

Two batters later, Lenny Dykstra hit his Walk off game-winning HR to give the Mets the big, exciting victory.

In Game #5 at Shea, cenerfieldmaz was on hand to see Dwight Gooden & Nolan Ryan face off each other in a classic. They left the game tied as we went into extras. Backman led off the bottom of the 12th with an infield hit, and then advanced to second on a wild pick-off throw from Astro pitcher Charlie Kerfeld.

Gary Carter, who had been in a series slump, without a hit since his game #2 double, drove a single off Charlie Kerfeld into centerfield. Backman came around to score the games winning run.

In the classic NLCS Game #6, Backman did not start the game. But he entered the game after the Mets had tied it up with three runs in the 9th inning, pinch hitting for Tim Teufel.  He drew an intentional walk but was left on first base.

In the top of the 14th inning, with two men on, Wally singled off Aurelio Lopez bringing home Daryl Strawberry with the go ahead run for a 4-3 lead. 

In the bottom of the 14th, Jesse Orosco gave up a HR to Billy Hatcher to tie it back up.

In the top of the 16th the Mets regained the lead on Daryl Strawberry's double & Ray Knight RBI single. Backman reached on a walk, advanced on Jesse Orosco's RBI single & later scored on Len Dykstra's RBI single. Backman's run proved to be the game winner as the Astros would score two runs in the bottom of the 16th. The Mets won & advanced to the World Series.

Overall, in the NLCS Wally was 5-21 with a pair of walks, five runs scored & two RBIs. 

1986 World Series: In the World Series win over the Boston Red Sox, he started four games getting into six of the seven. 

In Game #1, the Mets took a heart breaking 1-0 loss with Tim Teufel making a costly error at second leading to the run. 

In Game #2 Wally collected two hits, with an RBI single off Roger Clemens bringing in the Mets first run of the series. He later singled off Bob Stanley in the 9-3 loss.

In Game #3 at Fenway Park, Backman singled in the top of the 1st inning & scored on Gary Carter's double putting the Mets up 2-0. The Mets went on to win their first series game.

In Game #4 Backman hit in his third straight series, game with two singles in the 6-2 win. He also stole a base. He did not play in Game #5.

In Game #6 Backman had a 6th inning base hit, to hit safely in four straight World Series games.

In the 10th inning, he made the first out before the famous Mets comeback rally, as they scored three run highlighted by Mookie Wilson little roller that got by Bill Buckner, scoring Ray Knight with the winning run.

In Game #7, he did not get the start but came in as a pinch runner for Tim Teufel in the 6th inning. He scored the go ahead run at the time on Gary Carters ground ball out. The Mets went on to win the game & their first World Series title since 1969. 

Overall, in the 1986 World Series Backman batted .333 (6-18) with an RBI & a stolen base, scoring four runs.

After the Championship: In the off season he was given a three-year $2 million contract.

Drama with Darryl Strawberry: During the season Backman had a run-in with Mets All Star, Darryl Strawberry. Strawberry claimed he had a virus & pulled himself out of a crucial game against the St. Louis Cardinals. Meanwhile he had spent the earlier part of the day recording a rap song.

Quotes- Wally Backman: "Nobody I know gets sick 25 times a year."

Strawberry's response to Backman's remark was "I'll bust that little redneck in the face." So was the drama of the mid to late eighties Mets.

In 1987, Backman kept battling on going hamstring injuries, limiting him to just 94 games. At the plate he slumped hitting just .250 with six doubles & 23 RBIs. Meanwhile, Tim Teufel played very well seeing more at second base, hitting .308 with 14 HRs 29 doubles & 61 RBIs.

From July 7th to July 24th, he collected ten hits in a ten-game span, driving in seven runs. He would have twenty multi-hit games & five multi-RBI games on the year. On September 15th he drove in two runs in a 12-4 win at Shea but suffered another injury & his season was over.

The Mets finished second to the St. Louis Cardinals that year.

1988 Mets NL Eastern Champs Season: At this point, manager Davey Johnson was questioning Backman's spirit & commitment to the team. Johnson made Tim Teufel the regular second baseman during Spring Training. Backman accepted his role and set out to prove something to his manger & his team. 

In April he played in just nine games & batted just .059. It took until May 22nd before he got over the .200 mark. But things got better for him in June. Backman hit .306 in the month & would hit safely in 18 of 23 games raising his batting average thirty points in the month. 

By the middle of the summer, he won back his position as the Mets were heading for another NL East title. In July he had six multi-hit games. He started August with a six-game hit streak, collecting ten hits in 17 at bats getting his average up to .300. 

In September he missed the first ten days but was back in the line up on September 11th, drawing three walks & scoring two runs in Bobby Ojeda's 3-0 shut out in Montreal.

On September 22nd, the Mets clinched the NL East, but Backman did not play in the game. He drew walks in his next four games & ended the regular season by driving in runs in three straight games in the final week.

He finished the season batting .303 with his best on base percentage since his first year (.388%) playing in 99 games. He collected 89 hits with 12 doubles, 9 stolen bases 44 runs scored & 17 RBIs with a .731 OPS.

1988 Post Season-NLCS: In the 1988 NLCS loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers, Backman started six of the seven games.

In the first two games in Los Angeles, he went hitless. 

Two Hit Two RBI Game: In Game #3 at Shea Stadium, Backman tied the game with a 6th inning RBI single off Orel Hershiser. In the 8th inning, he added an RBI double off Alejandro Pena in the Mets 8-4 win.

Backman collected hits in the next two NLCS games, with two hits in the Mets Game #6 win in Los Angeles. 

In Game #7 he had one of the five Mets hits off Orel Hershiser in the Mets 6-0 upset loss. 

Overall, in the 1988 NLCS, Backman hit .273 (6-22) with a double, two RBIs & two runs scored.

In December 1988, the Mets had a young Greg Jeffries & Keith Miller waiting in the wings, to take over the second base position. The Mets parted ways; trading Backman to the Minnesota Twins for three minor league prospects.

Mets Career Stats- Most Mets Games Played at 2nd Base: Wally Backman is the Mets all-time leader in games played at second base with 680. In his nine-year Mets career, he played in 765 Mets games (25th all time). Wally stole 106 bases (9th all time). He batted .283 with 670 hits, 95 doubles 14 triples 359 runs scored 921st all time) & 165 RBIs. He struck out 335 times with 260 walks (27th all time) posting a .344 on base % & .696 OPS.

Post Mets Career: 1989 Backman injured his shoulder having two stints on the disabled list. He played in just 87 games batting .231 for the fifth place Twins. 

In 1990 he signed as a free agent with Pirates & platooned at third base with Jeff King for the NL East Champions. Backman enjoyed beating out his former teammates during that year's pennant race. 

Six Hit Game: On April 27, Backman became the first player since Rennie Stennett in 1975, to collet six hits in a game. Wally had five singles & a double driving in two runs in the 9-4 win at San Diego. 

Backman played in 104 games, batting .292 for the Pirates, collecting 21 doubles, three triples & stealing six bases. He collected 42 walks 7 posted a .374 on base %.

1990 Post Season- NLCS: In the NLCS loss to the Cincinnati Reds, he started two of the six games & got into three of them. He went 1-7 with a double off Jose Rijo.

He was granted free agency & signed with the Philadelphia Phillies. He spent two seasons with the Phillies in a backup role. He then signed with the Braves & was released then signed with the Mariners. In 1993 he played in just ten games with Seattle batting .138.

Career Stats: In a 14-year career Backman hit .275 with 893 hits, 138 doubles, 19 triples, 10 HRs, 482 runs scored & 240 RBIs. He struck out 480 times walked 371 times posted a .349 on base % & .687 OPS. Backman stole 117 bases & had 68 sac hits.

He played 826 games at second base with a .980 fielding %, making 69 errors in 3427 chances turning 383 double plays. He also played 111 games at third & 18 at short.

 Retirement: From 1997-1999 Backman managed in independent baseball. In 2000 he began managing in the White Sox minor leagues. He was the top candidate to take over Jerry Manuel's job with the Chicago White Sox, but when the team discovered he openly rooted against them so Manuel would be fired, they cut ties with him.

His managing style was similar to his playing style- fiery and combustible, with a history of ejections, on-field tantrums, and suspensions.

In 2004 he was hired by the Arizona Diamondbacks organization, to manage the A-ball Lancaster JetHawks getting named The Sporting News' Minor League Manager of the Year. The Arizona organization liked what he had done & hired him as the Diamondbacks new manager for 2005.

Backman's Past Drama's: The next day reports became public that he had been convicted of DUI in 2000. He had pleaded guilty to physically abusing his wife & harassing a female friend. He had also filed for bankruptcy. The Diamondbacks backed out on the deal & cut ties with him as well.

Return to Mets Organization: In 2010 he got a chance in Mets organization, as manager of their A ball team, Brooklyn Cyclones team. Backman would even coach third base to be involved in the action. His excited attitude had his players on the edge of the dugout cheering on the team.

Backman went on to lead the Cyclones to a league-best 51-24 record, winning the McNamara Division of the New York-Penn League by 12 games. He led them to the NY/ Penn. League championship series but got swept in the final series. 

In 2011 he was a candidate for the Mets manager job replacing Jerry Manuel, but Terry Collins got the position instead.

Backman went on to manage the AA Binghamton Mets. In 2012 then got promoted to the AAA Buffalo Bisons That year his club went 67-76, the next year they became the AAA affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays.

In 2013 Backman moved over to the Mets new AAA affiliate, the Las Vegas 51's. He would remain there thru 2016.

Backman along with pitching coach Frank Viola took the 51's to a first-place finish. 

Backman was once again highly regarded within the Mets organization & in baseball. Many of the players he managed & helped develop, joined the ranks of the Mets big league club with high praises of their former manager.

In late September of 2014 Backman joined the Mets big league staff as a guest coach in the dugout. There was talk he'd join Terry Collins coaching staff in 2015, but it didn't happen.

Backman claims that Sandy Alderson is blackballing from the Mets as well as other big league managerial positions. 

In 2017 he managed in Mexico. In 2018 he was managing in the Atlantic League. 

In 2019 he was named manager of the Long Island Ducks remaining there thru the 2023 season.

Drama: In late August of 2019, Backman who was living in Riverhead Long Island, was arrested for an alleged domestic dispute with his girlfriend Amanda Byrnes. She claimed Backman was drunk after a Ducks loss & accused her of having an affair with the team's catcher, which she denied. He then got violent with her & said he is a very sick man. 

Backman was released on his own recognizance.

Family: Backman has been married twice. He & his first wife Sandi had four children. Wally divorced & later married Maggie Backman.

Honors: Backman was inducted into the Oregon Sports Hall of Fame in 2002. 

In 2006 Backman was at the 20th Anniversary of the 1986 World Champion Mets. 

In 2008 Backman was at the closing ceremonies of Shea Stadium in 2008. In 2016 he attended the 30th Anniversary of the '86 team at Citi Field.

In 2022 Backman attended the Mets Old Timers Day festivities. at the Mets