27 Facts About Tom Seaver

1. Tom Seaver signed a contract with the Atlanta Braves while attending the University of Southern California, in 1996 but was voided by Baseball Commissioner William Eckert.

2. Tom Seaver goes down in history as one of the game's best pitchers of all-time.

3. In 1978, Tom Seaver threw a no-hitter against the St Louis Cardinals.

4. In 1969, Tom Seaver was the ace of the Mets pitching staff that included Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan that won 100 games en route to the World Series title over the Baltimore Orioles.

5. Tom Seaver was a 12-time All-Star selection, three-time Cy Young Award winner and twice was a member of the NL pennant winners.

6. In 1992, Tom Seaver was voted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame, netting 425 votes out of 430 ballots cast.

7. Tom Seaver ended up with the New York Mets in 1966 when the Atlanta Braves, who made Seaver an offer.

8. Tom Seaver was born November 17, 1944, in Fresno, California.

9. Tom Seaver presented his two cabernets, "Nancy's Fancy" and "GTS", in an April 2010 wine-tasting event in SoHo to positive reviews.

10. Tom Seaver has worked as a part-time scout, and as a spring training pitching coach.

11. Tom Seaver made a return to Shea Stadium during the "Shea Goodbye" closing ceremony on September 28, 2008, where he threw out the final pitch in the history of the stadium to Mike Piazza.

12. Tom Seaver felt the need to introduce himself to Aaron, as he was certain "Hammerin' Hank" would not know who he was.

13. In 1999, Tom Seaver ranked 32nd on The Sporting News list of the 100 Greatest Baseball Players, the only player to have spent a majority of his career with the Mets to make the list.

14. Tom Seaver was inducted into the New York Mets Hall of Fame in 1988, the Marine Corps Sports Hall of Fame in 2003, and the Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame in 2006.

15. Tom Seaver is one of two players enshrined in the Hall of Fame with a Mets cap on his plaque, along with Mike Piazza.

16. Three of the five ballots that had omitted Tom Seaver were blank, cast by writers protesting the Hall's decision to make Pete Rose ineligible for consideration.

17. Tom Seaver was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame on January 7, 1992.

18. Tom Seaver is one of only two pitchers to have 300 wins, 3,000 strikeouts, and an under 3.00 ERA.

19. At the time of his retirement, Tom Seaver was third on the all-time strikeout list, trailing only Nolan Ryan and Steve Carlton.

20. Tom Seaver pitched two and a half seasons in Chicago and recorded his last shutout on July 19, 1985 against the visiting Indians.

21. Tom Seaver led the Cincinnati pitching staff in 1979, when the Reds won the Western Division, and again in the strike-shortened 1981 season, when the Reds had the best record in the major leagues.

22. Tom Seaver struck out 11 in the return, and hit a double.

23. Tom Seaver won a league-high 25 games and his first National League Cy Young Award.

24. Tom Seaver was named to the 1967 All-Star Game, and got the save by pitching a scoreless 15th inning.

25. Tom Seaver won 16 games for the last-place Mets, with 18 complete games, 170 strikeouts, and a 2.76 ERA, all Mets records to that point, and was named the National League Rookie of the Year.

26. Tom Seaver spent one season with the Jacksonville Suns of the International League, then joined the New York Mets in 1967.

27. Tom Seaver won the National League Rookie of the Year Award in 1967, and he received three NL Cy Young Awards as the league's best pitcher.