18 Facts About The New York Mets

1. The New York Mets won the division in 2006 and contended in 2007 and 2008, while the Phillies won five consecutive division titles from 2007 to 2011.

2. On December 10, 2012, The New York Mets unveiled an alternate blue fielding cap, featuring an orange brim and a white trim around the orange "NY" insignia.

3. The New York Mets was introduced on the cover of game programs in 1963, when the Mets were still playing at the Polo Grounds in northern Manhattan.

4. In 2012, as The New York Mets tried to bounce back from three consecutive losing seasons, they lost star shortstop Reyes to free agency, when he signed with the Miami Marlins.

5. The New York Mets opened Citi Field in 2009, but were not a factor due to a rash of injuries to numerous key players including Reyes, Carlos Beltran, Carlos Delgado, Oliver Perez and Livan Hernandez.

6. The New York Mets held a more modest 3.5-game lead after 145 games of the 2008 season, their final season at Shea Stadium.

7. In 2007, The New York Mets entered the final 17 games in the season with a seven-game lead in the division.

8. The New York Mets loaded the bases with two outs in the bottom of the inning, but Adam Wainwright struck out Beltran looking with a devastating curveball.

9. The New York Mets advanced to game seven of the 2006 NLCS but lost after Yadier Molina's game-winning two-run home run in the top of the ninth inning.

10. The New York Mets had a near playoff miss in 2001 and struggled from 2002 to 2004.

11. The New York Mets were defeated by the Yankees in five games.

12. In 1998, The New York Mets acquired catcher Mike Piazza in a blockbuster trade and missed the postseason by only one game.

13. The New York Mets continued playing well after 1986 and won the division in 1988, but were eliminated from the playoffs that year and declined into the 1990s.

14. The New York Mets broke their own record five times before the record was regained by the Yankees in 1999.

15. The New York Mets have appeared in five World Series, more than any other expansion team in MLB history.

16. The New York Mets qualified for the postseason as the National League wild card team in 1999, 2000, and 2016.

17. The New York Mets qualified to play in the Major League Baseball postseason in 1988 and 2006, coming within one game of the World Series both years.

18. One of baseball's first expansion teams, The New York Mets were founded in 1962 to replace New York's departed NL teams, the Brooklyn Dodgers and the New York Giants.