New York Mets: Three best players in franchise history to wear number two
3. Marv Throneberry
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Anybody who earned the name “Marvelous” definitely deserves to be on this list. Throneberry had been in the league since 1955 before coming into Queens to join the new franchise. Throneberry became best known for being the first starting first baseman in Mets history. He got the chance to be a regular and hit .244 with 16 home runs. He was not very good at first, committing 17 errors, a feat not matched in the league until 1979.
The “Marvelous” moniker came from the lovable mistakes he would make. Simply put, he was a “lovable loser” and drew the attention of Mets fans. The stories would abound about Throneberry, sometimes true and sometimes exaggerated, and he became a living legend. He was so self-deprecating that he just had to be liked. According to a story in Jimmy Breslin’s book about Casey Stengel, “Can’t Anybody Here Play This Game”, Stengel argued with an ump that called Throneberry out for missing second base, and the umpire told him not to argue because he missed first base also. He was just that goofy player that everyone seemed to like.
He ended up giving up first base to a guy that went on to be a Mets legend. Ed Kranepool stuck around for a long time, almost to the point where he could have gotten mail at first base at Shea Stadium. Kranepool was in Queens playing first at least some of the time through 1979, but prior to that it was the beloved Marv Throneberry. Just because of who he was he joins this list.