Olerud Part II

Hats off to Eric Simon at MetsGeek for his analysis of John Olerud’s New York legacy.

Simon points out that “Olerud was with the Mets for just three seasons (1997-1999), and all three of those seasons are among the top ten best in Mets history with regard to reaching base, including the top two overall.” He goes on to note that Olerud “owns the top two slugging percentage marks among Met firstbasemen, and once again all three of his seasons land in the top ten.”

And just as Jays fans have fond memories of Olerud’s playoff performance, Simon reminisces about Olerud batting in the go-ahead run in the Mets come from behind Game 4 win in the 1999 NLCS.

Of course I’m mentioning this to plug my own tribute to Olerud, now buried far below Anna Benson’s bizarro anti-PETA rant, and various football updates.

My original item should have noted the additional significance of Olerud posting the all-time second-best career-fielding percentage by a first baseman. That also makes him the holder of the second-best career fielding record for a player at any position.