Amazin' Date 4/8/1969: Expansion Montreal Expos Spoil Mets Opening Day

From the desk of:  HEAD-BUTTING MR. MET

THE AMAZIN' METS

50th ANNIVERSARY

Game One: Tuesday, April 8, 1969 - BR
Montreal Expos @ New York Mets
Shea Stadium

International Incident: Fledgling Canadian baseball team spoils Shea Stadium opener; defensive miscues and ineffective bullpen too much for Mets bats to overcome.

The eighth season of New York Metropolitans baseball is under way.

On this, their sixth Opening Day at Shea Stadium, the organization welcomed to Queens, New York, one of the National League's newest member clubs and MLB's first ever team hailing from America's northern neighbor, Canada.

Upon Tuesday afternoon's call to Play Ball, the Montreal Expos commenced stepping into the box for their first ever major league at-bats against young Mets all-star Tom Seaver.  Over 44,000 fans came out to witness the event, but were soon dismayed by Montreal's early lead.  In what proved to be a back and forth offensive affair, early fielding errors would ultimately undermine the Mets best efforts at the plate.

FINAL

Expos   11

Mets     10

Tom Seaver opens the game striking out Montreal lead-off hitter Maury Wills.  Batting second, Gary Sutherland reaches safely on second baseman Ken Boswell's first error of the game.  With two outs, Seaver walks Mack Jones.  Expos first baseman Bob Bailey then lashes a double to right.  But an errant throw by Boswell allows both Sutherland and Jones to score; Bailey advances all the way to third where he is left stranded.  The Mets respond with three runs in the second.  Consecutive hits by Ed Kranepool and Jerry Grote, and a walk to Buddy Harrelson load the bases for Tom Seaver, who is unable to help his own cause.  In support of his pitcher, Tommy Agee's double to left clears the bases.  But the Mets one run lead is short lived.  Maury Wills doubles leading off the third, then scores the tying run on Rusty Staub's base hit.

Rusty Staub would also homer, as Montreal goes deep three times while building an 11-6 lead entering the ninth.  In the bottom of the frame, Jerry Grote's RBI hit brings the Mets within four, and a three-run home run off the bat of Duffy Dyer cuts the deficit to one.  But the Mets would muster no more.  With the tying run on second and two outs, Rod Gaspar strikes out to end the game.

Tom Seaver exits after allowing four runs (two earned) on six hits (one home run) and three walks, with five strikeouts through five innings of work.  The bullpen offered no relief, allowing another seven earned runs on six hits and five walks through the final four innings.  Cal Koonce gets singled out for the loss after allowing three earned runs on two hits and four walks in two innings of work.

Manager Gil Hodges said numerous times during spring training how last year was about getting the pitching in order, and that entering this season his focus would turn towards hitting.  Despite Tuesday's pitching gone wrong, the lineup jumped out of the gate with double-digit runs on 15 hits and nine base on balls.  Five players posted multiple hits.  Joining Agee, Rod Gaspar, and Ken Boswell, Cleon Jones was 3 for 5 with a RBI, and catcher Jerry Grote went 2 for 3, with two walks, three runs scored, and an RBI.