Ron Swoboda played right field for the New York Mets from 1965 to 1970, the Montreal Expos in 1971, and the New York Yankees from 1971 to 1973. He hit home runs in four consecutive games for the Mets in April 1968. Ron flirted with a place in history in 1973. In his second game, he struck out four times. He hit two home runs in his first four at-bats and would go on to hit 19 for the year, a Mets record for rookies at the time. When he reflected on that somewhat inauspicious start to his professional baseball career, Ron would say, "That's about how my career went. He was Seaver’s teammate with the Mets from 1967-70. Afterwards he was a TV sportscaster in New York City, Milwaukee and New Orleans, where he provided color commentator for telecasts of the Marlins’ AAA club and now lives. The right fielder for New York that day was Ron Swoboda. Following a wonderful performance in that tournament, Swoboda was offered a $35,000 contract to sign with the New York Mets and scout Pete Gebrian, which he did on September 5, 1963. ("I admire everything she does," says Ron.) It was sad for Swoboda to watch the decline of his former teammate recently. In fact, Swoboda did not get a single at bat in the 1969 National League Championship Series, in which the Mets swept Atlanta in three games, because the Braves started three right-handed pitchers -Phil Niekro, Ron Reed and Pat Jarvis. On July 4, 1966, he hit a ball onto the leftfield roof in Connie Mack Stadium in Philadelphia. And then there was a less fondly remembered lesson Casey taught Ron. The Mets won the game in the 10th inning when pitcher Pete Richert cleanly fielded J.C. Martin's sacrifice bunt but then hit Martin with the throw to first base, allowing the winning run to score. Swoboda hit a career-high 19 home runs that year, which led the Mets, and was the most home runs hit by a Mets rookie until Daryl Strawberry hit 26 in 1983. Swoboda did DH against lefty John Curtis in the third game of that season-opening series. Ron Swoboda was an outfielder for the Mets from 1965 to 1970.He had 69 home runs and 304 runs batted in during his six seasons with the team. Ron Swoboda was one of the "Youth of America," Stengel's expression for the corps of young players who would take the Mets from worst to first in four short years - players like Cleon Jones, Bud Harrelson, Tug McGraw and Swoboda, who all made their debut in 1965, Nolan Ryan, who came aboard in 1966, Tom Seaver, Jerry Koosman and Ken Boswell in 1967, Jim McAndrew and Duffy Dyer in 1968, and Gary … While Casey appeared to be talking to the reporters - he of course loved to talk to the reporters - he would often deliver a message to his ballplayers by directing an instructive or critical remark about that player to the reporter when he knew the player was within earshot. Another significant hit in Ron's career was a single off Mike Kekich of the Dodgers on August 4, 1968. Swoboda hit two grand slams in his career. Traded by the New York Mets to the Montreal Expos with Rich Hacker in exchange for Don Hahn on March 31, 1971. Ron and his wife Cecilia, whom he met at the University of Maryland, were married on October 9, 1965. Five seasons earlier, on April 12, 1965, 20-year old Swoboda made his major league debut. In fact, the Mets were more than 10 games behind the Cubs before going on one of the more miraculous runs in Major League history. Swoboda had an outstanding World Series, batting .400 (6-for-15) with a double and an RBI, including a 3-for-4 performance in Game 4. He played goalkeeper for the freshmen soccer team at the University of Maryland as well. (The next year the Mets traded for Ken Boyer who took number 14, and Swoboda switched his uniform number to Ron's first major league manager was Casey Stengel. When the Mets traded for centerfielder Tommie Agee from the Chicago White Sox in 1968, the Mets were now able to play Cleon in left, and Swoboda and newly-acquired Art Shamsky in right. Ron Swoboda: 1969 Amazing Mets Outfielder & World Series Hero (1965-1971) Ronald Alan Swoboda was born on June 30, 1944 in Baltimore, Maryland. The Mets would upset the Orioles in five games. Now if he can only learn to catch a fly ball." I think I speak on behalf of all Mets fans of my generation in passing along condolences from the Blue and Orange Nation. Backed by an 11-strikeout performance from the franchise ace, the Mets breezed to … Swoboda scored 246 runs as a Met. Ron “Rocky” Swoboda is best known for his ninth-inning diving catch to help preserve the New York Mets’ 1969 World Series Game 4 victory. Casey managed the Mets until he broke his hip in mid-season 1965. This was followed by a five-game losing streak that saw the team fall into fourth place in the newly aligned National League East. Casey rushed over to him, grabbed him by the shirt and hollered, "When you missed that fly ball, I didn't go looking for your watch to break it. Swoboda knows simply - and humbly -- that he was part of something special in that amazing year of 1969: "If you're lucky enough to get into the World Series, that's a privilege. Gil Hodges became the Mets manager beginning with the 1968 season. In addition to baseball, Swoboda played basketball and helped take his team to the State title, and soccer where he was the goalkeeper and captain of his team. He had 53 outfield assists in his career and a lifetime .972 fielding percentage. "I was not prepared to be awed...but I was.". As a rookie in 1965, in only his second major league at bat, the right-handed hitting slugger hit a long, pinch-hit home run over the back wall of the bullpen at Shea Stadium. Ron Swoboda of the 1969 Mets attends a fund raiser at the Cradle of Aviation Museum in Hempstead on Sept. 22, 2009. Ron Swoboda wasn’t the greatest player the Mets ever had, but he made the greatest catch in Met history, saving a game in the 1969 World Series, and his RBI clinched the final game. "I remember putting on the Yankee uniform and walking out onto the field in the old Yankee Stadium," Ron says. I've cried plenty of times in baseball" He gave me a few examples of times he was brought to tears. Swoboda played 152 games for the Yankees, during which he collected 69 hits with 4 home runs. He once ran a restaurant with Ed Kranepool, his former Met teammate and roommate. Ron Swoboda was one of the "Youth of America," Stengel's expression for the corps of young players who would take the Mets from worst to first in four short years - players like Cleon Jones, Bud Harrelson, Tug McGraw and Swoboda, who all made their debut in 1965, Nolan Ryan, who came aboard in 1966, Tom Seaver, Jerry Koosman and Ken Boswell in 1967, Jim McAndrew and Duffy Dyer in 1968, and Gary Gentry and Wayne Garrett in 1969. He was signed as a free agent by the Atlanta Braves on January 3, 1974, but was released before the 1974 season began. The Mets squared off against the San Francisco Giants in the first game of a doubleheader during a late-season West Coast trip. At 19 he played on Leone's Boys' Club, where his coach was Walter Youse, a scout for the Baltimore Orioles. Swoboda hit a home run for every 36 times at bat while playing for the Mets. He was interesting, and creative, but in a way a player could understand." Mets' coach Yogi Berra was ejected from the game for arguing the call. Ron Swoboda … Frank Robinson tagged and scored but Swoboda's grab prevented the go-ahead run from being plated. Ron remembers Casey's teaching style. He sat there, alone, and cried. Swoboda enjoyed perhaps his best season under Hodges in 1968, batting .242 with 450 at bats (a career high) in 132 games, and he led the team in RBIs with 59, triples with 6, and walks with 52, all personal bests. Statistics, fan memories, biographical information, and more. In the top of the ninth, with the Mets holding onto a 1-0 lead courtesy of Donn Clendenon's second inning home run off Mike Cuellar, Frank Robinson and Boog Powell each singled to put runners on first and third with one out for the Orioles. Here was a boy of 20 with so much to learn being managed by a man of 75 with so much to teach. He wore uniform number 14 that year. In the locker room, Ron thought he just blew his major league chance. By Met standards that makes him legend. The tying run scored on the play, but Swoboda's catch kept the Orioles from having a big inning and allowed the Mets to rally late and win the pivotal game. "There was no one better than Hodges. On April 12, 1965, he made his debut with the New York Mets. The pitcher was Turk Farrell of the Houston Astros. I know how much he was loved after reading "Here's the Catch". Career: 73 HR, .242 BA, 344 RBI, OF, Mets/Yankees/... 1965-1973, b:R/t:R, born in MD 1944, Rocky ", On March 31, 1971, Ron Swoboda and infielder Rich Hacker were traded to the Montreal Expos for outfielder Don Hahn. Instead, his foot stuck in the helmet, and he continued to kick at it to shake it off while taking the field. Even more memorable was his performance on September 15, 1969, against Steve Carlton at Busch Stadium. Crosley Field had a concrete outfield wall with a bright yellow line at the top. 1969 Miracle METS Ron Swoboda's Diving Catch! The true fan of the man will also know Ron Swoboda for his wit, heart and humility, and for his drive to become the best outfielder he could be. Condolences to Cecelia, Ron and Brian Swoboda and the rest of the Swoboda family on the untimely loss of your son and brother. You're done for today." All Rights Reserved. Swoboda was the captain of his high school soccer team as well as a top player on the basketball & baseball teams. On September 13, 1969, with the Miracle Mets on their way to their first championship season, Swoboda hit a grand slam home run, his first, in the eighth inning to beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 5-2. Captured in blurry black and white screenshots, Ron Swoboda's famous 1969 catch for the "Miracle Mets" changed his life, the New Orleans broadcaster says. So quit busting up the team's equipment. Ron recalls Yogi's famous quote: "Anybody who couldn't hear that ball hit the wood is blind." Ron's hobbies and interests include studying impressionist art and New Orleans history. His mother was a secretary, case manager and supervisor in social services. The tying run scored on the play, but Swoboda's catch kept the Orioles from having a big inning and allowed the Mets to rally late and win the pivotal game. Ron is invited to a number of events every year as a 1969 Miracle METS. Baseball Weekly later ranked the catch as one of the "10 Most Amazing Plays of All-Time. Indeed he was. Of course, you can always hang around the Jazz Clubs in New Orleans where he’s a regular customer. They have two sons, Ron, Jr. and Brian Christopher. When Ron batted in the 10th, he did not get on base. (Swoboda remembers, "Every time he threw it, I hit it hard somewhere.") After baseball, Swoboda turned to writing and TV and radio broadcasting, holding jobs in New York, Milwaukee, Phoenix and New Orleans. But had the Red Sox started a left-handed pitcher that day instead of right-hander Luis Tiant, Swoboda would have been the first. By Met standards that makes him legend. However, above that home run line and set back about four inches from the concrete wall in center field was a plywood wall installed to prevent the batters from looking into the headlights of the cars on the nearby elevated highway.