On July 13, 1977, the Mets’ season hit one more brutal snag when the lights went out at Shea Stadium in the middle of a game against the Cubs. The blackout that shut down New York City also froze a summer night baseball game that already had the feel of a team sliding toward the edge.
More than 14,000 fans were on hand when the game was interrupted in the bottom of the sixth inning, with Lenny Randle at the plate. A lightning strike was reported as the reason the lights failed, and the timing fit the Mets’ miserable stretch perfectly.
Before everything went dark, Jerry Koosman was dealing. Through six innings, he had already piled up 11 strikeouts, and by the time the game was eventually finished, he would add nine more in a performance that had the record book in view. The game was suspended until September, with Koosman and Cubs starter Ray Burris returning to the mound to finish what they started.
At the moment of the blackout, Chicago led 2-1. When play resumed, Koosman struck out one more batter in the top of the seventh, and Ed Kranepool answered in the bottom half with a single that tied it 2-2.
The game turned again in the eighth. With two outs and runners on, Steve Swisher delivered a single that brought in two Cubs runs. Koosman got the next hitter and finished with 13 strikeouts, falling short of becoming the first pitcher in MLB history to strike out 20 in a nine-inning game.
Chicago went on to win 5-2, though by then the crowd for the finish was surely a fraction of the original turnout. The teams met in a doubleheader the next day, with just under 6,000 fans in attendance, and each club took one game.
Then came another odd twist. They played yet another doubleheader the following day because rain washed out the originally scheduled nine-inning game on September 16, when the July 13 contest was finally completed. Back-to-back doubleheaders after a Friday night that turned into a three-plus-inning interruption is the kind of baseball scheduling chaos that feels impossible to duplicate.
In Other News...
Former Mets GM Just Dropped A Stunning Deadline Verdict
With the trade deadline drawing closer, former Mets general manager Steve Phillips is pushing a far more aggressive path than the one fans have heard publicly from the front office. The clubs disappointing record and hefty payroll have already put the roster under a microscope, and Phillips believes that should lead to hard conversations about what comes next rather than waiting for the offseason to sort everything out.
David Stearns has not publicly committed to a sell-off, even if the subject has come up with players, but Phillips sees a way for the Mets to be active in both directions. In his view, they could move valuable pieces and still make strategic additions that help the major league club right away, a reminder that deadline decisions for a team in this spot are rarely as simple as buying or selling. [Read more 🡒]
Juan Soto Gets Brutally Honest About Choosing Mets Over Yankees
Juan Sotos first season in Queens has already become one of the louder storylines of the Mets year, and his comments at the All-Star break only added to it. The slugger made it clear he has no regrets about signing with the Mets, even as the club has spent much of the first half trying to dig out of a losing record while the Yankees have stayed in the AL East playoff picture.
For Mets fans, that matters because Soto was the centerpiece of a winter bidding war that reshaped both sides of New York. He chose the Mets over the Yankees in free agency, and now every result around him gets measured against that decision, especially with the season paused and the two clubs headed in very different directions. [Read more 🡒]
One Mets Prospect Is Finally Giving Fans A Reason To Watch
The days before the break gave Mets fans a little more reason to keep one eye on the farm system, and Daiverson Gutierrez was at the center of it. The catcher, ranked 24th among the organizations top prospects for 2026, put together a strong week with ten hits, a home run and a double in five games, a welcome burst from a player who had spent much of the season searching for traction.
Jonathan Santucci added to the encouraging run on the mound, continuing the progress he has shown since May. The left-hander, ranked 12th among Mets prospects, struck out eight batters and allowed two runs in a recent start against Hartford, another sign that the clubs lower levels are starting to produce a few performances worth following more closely. [Read more 🡒]