New York Sports

These two vintage Major League Baseball films capture 40 minutes each of the New York Mets' World Series victories. First, the 1969 Mets, only a few years after record-setting losses, pulled off the improbable victory against the Baltimore Orioles' roster of sluggers and starting pitchers. The mets won thanks to clutch hitting , spectacular catches by Tommie Agee and Ron Swoboda, and their own pitching staff, including ace Tom Seaver, lefty Jerry Koosman, and "young fireballer Nolan Ryan." The film is a real product of its era--dig that funky '60s music!--but an invaluable keepsake of an underdog victory. The other film is of the 1986 Mets, the squad led by Keith Hernandez, Gary Carter, Darryl Strawberry, and Dwight Gooden that pulled victory from the jaws of defeat at the expense of the Boston Red Sox and goat-horn candidates Bob Stanley and Bill Buckner, who played key parts in the crucial game 6. The film is also a product of its era--dig that funky '80s music, as well as narrator Vin Scully's forced use of the phrase "True Colors" just so the soundtrack can cue up Cyndi Lauper. Of course, real fans of the Amazin's will have already picked up the complete set of 1986 World Series games. --David Horiuchi