Jerry Koosman

Jerry Koosman was signed by the New York Mets as an amateur free agent in 1964 out of the University of Minnesota. Over the next three seasons he proved himself to be one of the top major league prospects in the game. After leading the International League in strikeouts in 1967 he earned a call to the big leagues and broke into the Mets starting rotation in 1968. Over the next two seasons he dominated National League hitters, winning 36 games and posting a combined 2.28 ERA in 1968 and 1969. He earned All-Star selections in both seasons and led the Mets to a World Series title in 1969. Koosman played the first 12 seasons of his career with the Mets and won 140 games with a 3.09 ERA from 1967 to 1978. He went on to pitch for the Minnesota Twins, Chicago White Sox and Philadelphia Phillies over the next eight seasons before retiring in 1985 with 222 career wins, a career 3.36 ERA and 2,556 strikeouts. Koosman was inducted into the New York Mets Hall of Fame in 1989.