1969 Mets timeline: From Opening Day to the World Series

Feb. 12, 1969: Pitchers and catchers report to Spring Training at Al Lang Stadium in St. Petersburg, Florida

April 8: Opening Day at Shea Stadium. The Mets score 4 in the ninth inning, but lose, 11-10, to the Expos. It’s Montreal’s first game in franchise history

April 9: The first win of the season, 9-5 over the Expos at Shea. Tug McGraw picks up the win in relief, while Ken Boswell goes 2-for-2 with a solo home run in the fourth.

April 10: Tommie Agee connects on the longest measured home run in Shea Stadium history, at over 480 feet, hitting the ball into the upper left field deck during the second inning against the Expos.

April 11-27: In a 14-game stretch, the Mets go 4-10.

April 19: Tom Seaver beats Bob Gibson in a complete-game effort for his first win of the season, 2-1, at Busch Stadium. Seaver allows one run on nine hits with three strikeouts. Five games earlier, Gibson had defeated Seaver at Shea.  

May 28-June 10: An 11-game winning streak, including a 1-0 victory on June 4 against the Dodgers in 15 innings.

June 3: Seaver beats the Dodgers, 5-2, at Shea and the Mets' record improves to 24-23. They will not be at .500 or lower again this season.

June 13: Al Jackson, who played for the Mets in their inaugural 1962 season, is traded from the team for the second time in his career, this time to the Reds.

June 15: The Mets trade Jay Carden, David Colon, Kevin Collins, Steve Renko and a player to be named to the Expos, receiving Donn Clendenon in return. Clendenon was named the World Series MVP after finishing with five hits in 14 at-bats for a .357 average and three home runs.

July 9: Cubs outfielder Jimmy Qualls singles to left-center in the top of the ninth at Shea to break up Tom Seaver’s perfect game bid. The Mets win 4-0.

July 30: The Astros explode for 11 runs in the top of the ninth at Shea, handing the Mets a 16-3 loss in the first game of a doubleheader. The Mets allow 11 runs in the second game.

Aug 16-27: The Mets win 12 of 13, including walkoff victories against the Giants and Dodgers. The only defeat is a 7-6 loss to the Giants in 11 innings at Shea.

Aug. 27: Jerry Koosman gives up two hits in a complete game as the Mets defeat the Padres, 4-1, at San Diego Stadium for their 74th win of the season, a new franchise high.

Sept. 9: A black cat walks into the on-deck circle where Chicago Cubs third baseman Ron Santo is standing before walking in front of the Cubs dugout and disappearing under the stands. Fans credit the cat’s appearance for the Cubs’ late-season swoon.

Sept. 10:  Nolan Ryan tosses a three-hitter in the second game of a doubleheader at Shea, leading the Mets to a 7-1 victory over the Expos and moving them into first place in the NL East for the first time in franchise history.

Sept. 12-13: Jerry Koosman pitches a nine-inning, three-hit, 1-0 shutout to beat the Pirates in the first game of a doubleheader. Don Cardwell follows up with his own 1-0 victory, allowing four hits in eight innings. Koosman and Cardwell each drive in the day’s only runs.

Sept. 15: The Mets strike out 19 times against Steve Carlton -- a then-record for a nine-inning game -- but still top the Cardinals 4-3 at Busch Stadium.

Sept. 20: Pirates pitcher Bob Moose no-hits the Mets in front of a crowd of 38,784 at Shea. The Mets don’t lose again the rest of the month.

Sept. 21: A season-high crowd of 55,901 at Shea watches the Mets sweep a doubleheader from the Pirates, 5-3 and 6-1.

Sept. 24: Gary Gentry tosses a four-hit shutout as the Mets top the Cardinals, 6-0, to clinch the NL East at Shea with 54,928 in the stands. It’s the fourth time the team has drawn a crowd of over 50,000 that month. 

Oct. 1: Tommie Agee goes 2-for-6 with a double and Duffy Dyer connects on a pinch-hit triple as the Mets top the Cubs, 6-5, at Wrigley Field to go 39 games over .500.

Oct. 4-6: In Game 3 of the NLCS, the Mets connect on 14 hits, including Tommie Agee’s two-run homer in the third, to defeat the Braves, 7-4, and wrap up a series sweep in front of a crowd of 54,195 at Shea.

Oct. 11: In Game 1 of the World Series, Tom Seaver gives up three runs on four hits in the top of the fourth and the Orioles win, 4-1, at Baltimore's Memorial Stadium.

Oct. 12: Ron Taylor gets the final out of the game, forcing Brooks Robinson into a groundout and the Mets hold on for a 2-1 victory in Game 2. Donn Clendenon and Al Weis each knocked in a run for the Mets.

Oct. 14: Tommie Agee makes two of the most talked-about catches in World Series history, and adds a home run for good measure, as the Mets defeat the Orioles, 5-0, at Shea and take a 2-1 Series lead. Gary Gentry gets the win, while Nolan Ryan picks up the save with  2 1/3 innings of work.

Oct. 15: In Game 4, pinch-runner Rod Gaspar scores the winning run in the bottom of the 10th inning, after a misplayed ball in left field and an error by Orioles pitcher Pete Richert, lifting the Mets to a 2-1 victory at Shea. 

Oct. 16: Champions! Donn Clendenon's two-run homer in the bottom of the sixth sparks a late-game rally for the Mets. Al Weis follows with his own solo shot in the bottom of the seventh to knot the game at 3-3 and, in the eighth, a pair of Mets doubles and Orioles throwing errors add two more runs for a 5-3 victory. Jubilant fans storm the field as the Mets celebrate their World Series championship.

Oct. 20: The Mets are honored with a parade through the "Canyon of Heroes" in New York City.