Catch the Rising Stars: A New York Mets Retro Podcast

The Kansas City Royals battle the Toronto Blue Jays in the 1985 ALCS.  No one gets their foot eaten by a tarp in this one.

The St. Louis Cardinals battle the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 1985 NLCS.  And Vince Coleman gets his foot eaten by a tarp.  

It’s the season finale of “Catch the Rising Stars” as our journey chronicling the 1985 New York Mets culminates in a thrilling and emotional ending. 

It’s the penultimate week of the 1985 season and the Mets attempt to gain ground on St. Louis prior to a final week head-to-head showdown. Also in this episode, we unveil the future of the ‘Catch the Rising Stars’ podcast and preview those episodes in the works once the Mets 1985 season wraps up.

After there was Babe Ruth and before there was Shohei Ohtani, there was Dwight Gooden.  Dr. K was not only a phenomenal pitcher in 1985, he could hit too!  Hear about a week where Doc has two starts, pitches great in both of them, but at the plate goes 5 for 8, with 6 RBIs, including a 3-run home run.  All this while the Mets continue to battle the Cardinals for first place with just a few weeks l...

We’re in the thick of the 1985 pennant race as the Mets and Cardinals go head to head in three games in front of sold-out crowds at Shea.  Only a few weeks left in the season and it’s crunch time.  Check it out!

This week’s episode pays tribute to former Mets manager, Davey Johnson, who sadly recently passed away at the age of 82.  And in our 1985 look-back, we discuss a week when Keith Hernandez testified in front of a federal grand jury about his former use of cocaine.  We also look at how Gary Carter hit five home runs in a span of two games.  And the Mets and Dodgers get into an on-field brawl in L.A....

It’s Labor Day Weekend and the calendar turns to September where the Mets remain in a neck and neck race against the St. Louis Cardinals.  Hear about the Mets playing two against the Dodgers at Shea before flying to San Francisco for a weekend set against the Giants.  Only a month left in the season and the pennant races are kicking into gear!  

This week, Dr. K Dwight Gooden becomes the youngest pitcher in baseball history to win 20 games in a season at the young age of 20.  Listen in as Doc wins both his 19th game (a 16-strikeout performance) and his 20th in the same week!

The Mets and Cardinals battle for first place in the NL East as this week, Sid Fernandez pitches great with two 8 inning-plus wins.  Meanwhile Frank Cashen learns that the White Sox would make Tom Seaver available to the Mets in a trade.  Would the team pull the trigger?  The 1985 pennant race is heating up so listen to our latest episode! 

The 1985 baseball season takes a pause as the Players Union goes on strike!  For a full 48 hours.  When the season resumes play, the Mets find themselves red-hot, on a seven game winning streak, and moving into sole possession of first place in the NL East.  Hear about some amazing performances such as a three-home run game by Darryl Strawberry, a two-home run game by Gary Carter, a 5 for 6 perfor...

While the Franchise Tom Seaver may not be a Met in 1985, hear all about him achieving his 300th career win in front of a New York City crowd when his White Sox battle the Yankees at Yankee Stadium.  As for the Mets, hear about them wrapping up an amazing month of July that saw them go 21-7!  This episode also pays homage to the recently departed Ryne Sandberg.

This week, the Mets play the Reds as Pete Rose inches closer and closer to breaking Ty Cobb’s all-time hits record.  The team says goodbye to Kelvin Chapman.  And the Mets win a game by a score of 16-4… with all 16 runs scored as unearned.  Listen on in!

Relive the 1985 All Star Game as Darryl Strawberry does a fine job representing the Mets in the Mid-Summer Classic.  But a black cloud looms over baseball as failing labor negotiations cause the Players Association to set a strike date for early August.  Meanwhile, the second half of the season gets underway and the Mets score 31 runs over the course of two games!  Check it out!

The first half of the 1985 season comes to a close as the Mets wrap up a 9-game winning streak and move back up to second place in the NL East.  Find out who from the Mets is selected to the ‘85 All Star Game next week in Minneapolis.  Plus, in this week’s episode, Nolan Ryan gets his 4,000th career strikeout against his former team.  Check it out!

It’s our biggest and best episode yet!  First, we cover the first ballgame that this podcaster ever attended in person.  Then, a few days later, we cover the wackiest game the Mets ever played.  The 4th of July 19-inning game… the “Rick Camp” game… the “Let’s Shoot Off a Bunch of Fireworks at 4 a.m” game.  This is one you don’t want to miss!  

After missing seven weeks due to injury, Darryl Strawberry returns to the Mets’ lineup!  But the bats have run cold and the team is not hitting… at all.  Davey Johnson holds a team meeting, desperate to turn things around.  Hear all about it!

An exciting week for the Mets as they sweep the Cubs thanks to back-to-back-to-back complete games from Ron Darling, Ed Lynch and Dwight Gooden.  Plus Rusty Staub gets 50,000+ fans at Shea rocking as he hits what will be the final home run of his MLB career.  Listen on in!

The Mets get whupped by a score of 26-7 against the Phillies.  Gary Carter makes a homecoming when the Mets visit Montreal.  A new rookie, Rick Aguilera, makes his Mets debut.  Happy Father’s Day! 

The great Mets/Cardinals rivalry of 1985 is officially underway as the young, speedy Cards show the Mets how dangerous they are.  A gruesome outfield collision between Terry Blocker and Danny Heep caps off a pretty terrible week for the Mets as their June slide begins.  But listen on in anyway!

The Mets are California-bound where a 5-1 record in games at San Francisco and San Diego puts them back in first place in the National League East.  Check it out!

Happy Memorial Day Weekend as in 1985 the Mets host the Dodgers (just as they currently are in 2025). Gooden vs Valenzuela is on tap in a game televised on NBC’s Game of the Week. And though Dr. K went 24-4 in ‘85, two of his four losses come on this week. Check it out!

The Mets make a coaching change involving two of their future managers!  Bobby Valentine is out and Buddy Harrelson is in.  Oh and Calvin Schiraldi breaks his toe.  Dive on in!

This episode covers the week when your podcaster FIRST became a Mets fan.  The week includes dominant starting pitching and a debut performance by Sid Fernandez.  But it’s also the week when Darryl Strawberry went down with a devastating thumb injury.  Oh, and Happy Mothers Day!  This is one you don’t want to miss.

The Mets enter the month of May, 1985.  Injuries pile up.  The bullpen implodes.  Doug Sisk gets demoted to the minors.  But a rookie named Lenny Dykstra debuts giving the team a new spark!  Take a listen!