Mets Memories: Do You Remember Jerry Cram ?

Once in a while, we will blog about someone that we watched growing up, who did something that makes us never forget them. They might have not been a great player, not even a good player, but, for some reason, they resonate with us.

With the Mets playing the Cardinals, it’s only fitting to bring back a memory of a game that Met fans over 40 will always remember, one that the one and only Jerry Cram played a part in.

Now, you might say who? Yes, he wasn’t a Met for long, actually parts of 2 seasons in 1974 and 1975, lean years for us Met fans. He did play an important part of one game back in the fall of 1974. He seemed like a rookie to us, but he did actually play for the Royals, back in 1969.

Well, this game in September of 1974 was against the St. Louis Cardinals, and it took over 7 hours to play. This is back when games started at Shea past 8:00 p.m. So, you know this game lasted through half the night. The Mets and Cards went on to play 25 innings.

The game was 3-3 going into the 17th inning, when Jerry Cram was called in to pitch. He was a reliever, but pitched like a starter, giving up no runs on 7 hits, in 8 innings, his best pitching performance, by far, as a New York Met.

That game itself was 35% of the innings he pitched for the Mets that year.

The Mets lost the game in the 25th inning, with Harry Parker making a throwing error, that allowed a run to score. This was typical of the Met play that year, since they finished 20 games under .500.

We didn’t see much of Jerry, in 1975, only pitching 5 innings, and finishing his Met career with an 0-2 record. After the '75 season, he was traded by the Mets to the Royals for Randy Hammon. Who?

Jerry then played for the Royals in 1976. Then, he spent a couple of years down in the Royals farm system, before retiring after the 1981 season.

Well, over 30 years later, you can still find Jerry involved in baseball, now as a pitching coach for the San Francisco Giants' short season team. He has spent the last couple of years in the Giants' farm system, as a pitching coach and a mentor, to younger players.

He also now is known, for some rockin' BBQ sauce, that he is selling, and you can check out the link to his site here, jammersbbq.com.

Jerry wasn’t a Met for long, but, he did make an impact in a memorable game, that older Met fans will never forget.