John Franco
From The Met Wiki
John Franco was a relief pitcher for the Mets from 1990 to 2004. He had a 3.10 earned run average in 695 game appearances with the team. Franco recorded 48 wins and 276 saves as a Met.
Franco came to the Mets in a trade with the Reds on December 6, 1989. In the ’90 season, he set a team record with 33 saves and became the first Met ever to win the Rolaids Relief Man of the Year Award. At Shea Stadium on April 11, John pitched one and one-third scoreless innings for a save in the Mets’ 3-0 win over the Pirates. He struck out four batters in two scoreless innings for the save in a 4-1 Mets win over the Cubs on April 19 at Shea. In the first game of a doubleheader at Shea on May 6, John got his first Mets win in the team’s 7-4 victory over the Astros in 11 innings. He pitched a scoreless 11th inning to get the win in a 6-5 Mets triumph over the Expos on June 5 at Shea. Franco struck out three batters in two perfect innings for the save in the Mets’ 7-4 win at Philadelphia on July 24. On September 13, he had one and one-third scoreless innings for his 32nd save (breaking Jesse Orosco’s team record set in 1984) in a 6-3 Mets victory over the Pirates at Shea. John also pitched a scoreless ninth inning to get a save in the Mets’ 4-2 win over the Phillies at Shea on September 15.
In 1991, Franco had a 2.93 earned run average. He chalked up 30 saves during the year. John pitched a perfect ninth inning for the save in the Mets’ 2-1 win over the Phillies in the season opener at Shea on April 8. He recorded saves in four consecutive appearances between April 20 and May 3. Franco recorded two strikeouts in a perfect ninth inning for the save in a 4-2 Mets victory over the Reds on June 4 at Shea. From June 26 to July 16, he had eight saves and a win in nine game appearances. John had two scoreless innings and was the winning pitcher in the Mets’ 6-4 triumph in 10 innings at Houston on August 26. He also had saves in six consecutive games pitched between September 11 and September 29.
An elbow injury limited John to 31 game appearances in 1992. He compiled six wins and 15 saves for the season. At St. Louis on April 6, Franco pitched a perfect 10th inning for the save in the Mets’ season-opening 4-2 win over the Cardinals. He had two scoreless innings pitched for the win in a 1-0 Mets victory over the Cards in 13 innings on April 23 at Shea. John pitched a pair of scoreless innings to get the win in the Mets’ 4-3 triumph over the Cardinals at Shea on June 19. Four days later, he pitched a perfect top of the ninth for a save in a 4-1 Mets victory over the Cubs at Shea. Franco retired the side in order in the ninth inning to preserve Eric Hillman’s first major league win in the Mets’ 2-0 triumph over the Pirates at Shea on August 11. He also pitched a scoreless bottom of the ninth for a save in a 4-1 Mets victory at San Francisco on August 24.
Franco continued to battle injuries in 1993. He missed six weeks of the season with a sore elbow and a rib muscle strain. John appeared in 35 games during the season. On April 16, he recorded his first save of the year in the Mets’ 3-1 win at Cincinnati. Franco pitched a scoreless eighth inning and got the win in a 5-4 Mets victory at Philadelphia on May 26. He hurled a scoreless ninth for a save in a 6-3 Mets win over the Giants on July 3 at Shea. John pitched two innings and chalked up the win in the Mets’ 2-1 victory at San Diego in 10 innings on July 19. He also pitched one and two-thirds scoreless innings for the save in a 5-4 Mets triumph over the Phillies on September 14 at Shea.
In the strike-shortened 1994 season, Franco led the National League with 30 saves. He had a 2.70 ERA for the year. John recorded saves in four consecutive appearances between April 14 and April 22. He got his only win of the season in a 4-3 Mets victory over the Marlins on May 17 at Shea. From May 24 to June 3, Franco had saves in five straight games pitched. He chalked up his 108th save as a Met (breaking Jesse Orosco’s team record) in the team’s 5-4 win over the Padres at Shea on July 16. This game marked the beginning of a string of 11 saves in 12 appearances for John, ending with the Mets’ final victory (a 6-2 triumph at Philadelphia on August 10) before the season-ending players strike.
In 1995, Franco was again the Mets’ save leader with 29. He compiled a 5-3 won-lost record and a 2.44 ERA during the season. In the home opener on April 28, John struck out the side in the ninth inning for the save in a 10-8 Mets win over the Cardinals. He pitched a perfect top of the ninth for a save in a 5-2 Mets victory over the Braves on May 10 at Shea. Franco was the winning pitcher in the Mets’ 7-5 triumph over the Padres in 10 innings at Shea on May 31. He recorded two wins and five saves in seven appearances between June 27 and July 19. John had saves in six consecutive games in which he pitched from August 11 to August 29. He also chalked up saves in his final nine appearances of the year between September 5 and September 30.
Franco made 51 appearances in 1996. He posted a 1.83 ERA and recorded 28 saves for the year. In the season opener on April 1, John pitched a perfect ninth inning for a save in the Mets’ 7-6 win over the Cardinals at Shea. He became the first major league lefthander ever to reach the 300-save mark in a 3-2 Mets victory over the Expos at Shea on April 29. Franco had twelve saves in fourteen games pitched between May 16 and June 25. He struck out the side in the 12th inning for a win in the Mets’ 4-3 victory over the Pirates that completed a doubleheader sweep on July 30 at Shea. John recorded three outs on two batters for a save in an 8-5 Mets win over the Cubs at Shea on August 14. He pitched two innings and got the win in a 6-5 Mets triumph over the Giants in 10 innings at Shea on September 1. Franco also hurled a scoreless ninth inning for a save in a 5-2 Mets win at Philadelphia on September 20.
In 1997, Franco chalked up 36 saves to break his own Mets record. He had a 5-3 won-lost record and struck out 53 batters on the season. At Montreal on April 27, John pitched a perfect 10th inning to begin a string of nine consecutive save opportunities in the Mets’ 5-3 triumph over the Expos. He had two strikeouts in a scoreless ninth inning for a save in a 2-1 Mets victory over the Expos on June 3 at Shea. Franco retired the side in order in the ninth inning for a save in the Mets’ 5-2 win over the Red Sox at Shea on June 14. He pitched a perfect 10th inning for the win in a 4-3 Mets triumph over the Cubs on July 17 at Shea. John recorded his 200th save as a Met in the team’s 5-3 win over the Reds at Shea on July 21. He had two strikeouts in a perfect 11th inning to get the win in the Mets’ 9-8 victory over the Padres at Shea on August 22. Franco also pitched a pair of scoreless innings for the win in a 9-6 Mets triumph over the Expos in 11 innings on September 13 at Shea.
Franco set another Mets save record with 38 in 1998. He fanned 59 batters in 64 and two-thirds innings pitched during the year. On April 15, John set down the side in order in the ninth inning for a save in the Mets’ 2-1 win over the Cubs at Shea. He had a pair of strikeouts in a perfect top of the ninth for a save in a 4-1 Mets victory over the Cardinals at Shea on May 7. Franco struck out three batters in two scoreless innings and recorded the save in a 3-2 Mets triumph over the Marlins on June 21 at Shea. He pitched a perfect ninth for a save in the Mets’ 6-5 win at Milwaukee on July 23. John chalked up saves in six straight games pitched between August 15 and August 29. At Houston on September 14, he had his seventh save in as many consecutive appearances and passed his own club mark with his 37th of the season in the Mets’ 7-4 triumph over the Astros in 13 innings.
In 1999, Franco had a 2.88 ERA in 46 game appearances. He saved 19 games in the Mets’ Wild Card season. From April 10 to May 3, John recorded ten saves (including the 400th of his career) in as many games pitched. He struck out the side in order in the ninth inning for a save in the Mets’ 7-5 win over the Phillies at Shea on May 21. Franco fanned two batters in a perfect ninth inning for a save in a 3-2 Mets victory over the Marlins on June 24 at Shea. He also pitched a perfect 10th inning for the win in the Mets’ 4-3 triumph over the Diamondbacks in Game 4 of the National League Division Series at Shea on October 9.
Franco pitched in 62 games in 2000. He had five wins and four saves in the Mets’ pennant-winning season. John pitched two scoreless innings for the win in an 8-5 Mets triumph in 12 innings at Pittsburgh on April 14. He pitched a perfect ninth inning for a save in a 4-2 Mets win over the Rockies on May 17 at Shea. Franco pitched one and one-third perfect innings for the win in the Mets’ 10-8 victory over the Pirates at Shea on June 24. He was the winning pitcher in a 9-8 Mets triumph over the Expos in a doubleheader opener st Shea on July 27. John pitched a scoreless ninth inning for a save in a 2-0 Mets win over the Giants on August 13 at Shea. In Game 2 of the National League Division Series at San Francisco on October 5, he pitched a scoreless bottom of the 10th for his first (and only) post-season save in the Mets’ 5-4 win over the Giants. Franco also picked up the win in the Mets’ 4-2 victory over the Yankees in Game 3 of the World Series on October 24 at Shea.
In 2001, Franco had a 6-2 won-lost record. He recorded 50 strikeouts in 53 and one-third innings pitched during the year. At Shea on May 4, John pitched a scoreless ninth inning for the save in the Mets’ 4-2 win over the Diamondbacks. He hurled a scoreless top of the 10th to get the win in a 4-3 Mets victory over the Marlins on May 25 at Shea. Franco struck out three batters in a scoreless eighth inning for the win in a 6-5 Mets triumph at Philadelphia on June 7. At Baltimore on June 13, he pitched a scoreless ninth and came away with a win in the Mets’ 7-6 victory over the Orioles in 10 innings. John retired the side in order in the ninth inning for a save in a 4-1 Mets win over the Expos on June 19 at Shea. He hurled a scoreless ninth and got the win in a 3-0 Mets triumph over the Yankees in 10 innings on July 7. Franco was the winning pitcher in a 9-7 Mets victory over the Marlins at Florida on September 8. In the Mets’ first game following the September 11 attacks, he pitched a perfect eighth inning and got the win in the team’s 4-1 triumph at Pittsburgh on September 17.
After missing the 2002 season with an injury, Franco appeared in 38 games in 2003. He had a 2.62 ERA for the year. John recorded a save in the Mets’ 8-6 win at Philadelphia on July 21. At Los Angeles on August 24, he recorded his final career save in the Mets' 2-1 victory over the Dodgers.
In 2004, Franco pitched in 52 games in his last year with the Mets. He recorded two wins and 36 strikeouts during the season. At Shea on June 22, John had two scoreless innings pitched and got the win in the Mets’ 7-4 victory over the Reds. He got the last win of his career in a 10-9 Mets triumph over the Yankees on July 3 at Shea. Franco made his final appearance in a Mets uniform in the team’s 8-1 win over the Expos at Shea on October 3.
Franco concluded his career with the Astros in 2005. He was inducted into the Mets Hall of Fame in 2012.
