Jesse Gonder

From The Met Wiki

Jesse Gonder was a catcher for the Mets from 1963 to 1965. He batted .271 with 14 home runs and 59 runs batted in as a member of the team. Gonder played in 226 games during his time with the Mets.

Gonder was acquired by the Mets from the Cincinnati Reds in a deal for Charlie Neal and Sammy Taylor on July 1, 1963. Ten days after the trade, he hit two home runs off Don Drysdale in the Mets' 4-3 loss to the Dodgers at the Polo Grounds. Gonder had four singles in a 14-5 Met win over the Colt .45s on July 15. Two days later, he hit a three-run homer off Gaylord Perry in a 9-7 Mets win over the Giants. Jesse ended the '63 season with a .302 batting average as a Met.

In 1964, Gonder hit. 270 in 131 games played. He homered seven times and drove in 35 runs on the season. Jesse hit his only triple of the year in the Mets' 5-4 win over the Cardinals at Shea Stadium on May 8. At Shea on June 9, he got a run-scoring single in the 12th inning to give the Mets a 6-5 win over the Cubs in the first game of a doubleheader. Gonder hit a two-run homer in the ninth inning for a 4-3 Mets victory at San Francisco on June 29. He also had a two-run homer in the Mets' 4-2 win at Cincinnati on July 21.

Jesse had 4 home runs among his 25 hits with the Mets in 1965. He homered in the Mets' four-run ninth that led to a 9-8 victory in 11 innings at San Francisco on April 23. At Shea on May 16, Gonder had a single, double and two RBIs in the Mets' 8-5 win that completed a doubleheader sweep over the Reds.

Gonder was traded to the Milwaukee Braves for Gary Kolb on July 21, 1965. He completed the '65 season with the Braves, catching in their final game as a Milwaukee team. Jesse then played two seasons with the Pittsburgh Pirates to end his career.