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John Stearns

John Stearns
Ultimate Mets Database popularity ranking: 29 of 1218 players
Stearns
John Hardin Stearns
Born: August 21, 1951 at Denver, Colo.
Died: September 15, 2022 at Denver, Colo. Obituary
Throws: Right Bats: Right
Height: 6.00 Weight: 185

John Stearns has been the most popular Ultimate Mets Database daily lookup 40 times, most recently on September 20, 2022.

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Non-playing roles with Mets
  • Coach 2000 - 2001

First Mets game: April 16, 1975
Last Mets game: September 30, 1984

Share your memories of John Stearns

HERE IS WHAT OTHER METS FANS HAVE TO SAY:

rich
I remember the double he hit in his return from the disabled list! He was out for about a half a season with a split finger! He hit the double and drove in a run and he cried at 2nd base as he got a standing O! Thanks John!

Dan
I remember Dude blocking the plate, waiting for the ball from the outfield as big Dave Parker barrelled down the line, getting the rock, bracing for a major-league collision and absolutely levelling Parker to record the out. Parker was MUCH bigger, but Dude was the only one standing afterwards. I think Parker even got his jaw broke on the play. Dude played tough and I'm glad he'll be in the Mets' dugout as a coach next season.

bob haggerty
I was ten years old at a game in September. We had seats on the first base line. The Phillies hitter tried to bunt with a runner on third and he popped the ball up by the Mets' on deck circle. Stearns, fully extended, made a diving inning-ending catch, and slid into the dugout. Later I wrote him and every other Mets player. He was the only player to be kind enough to reply.

As a ballplayer number 12 had guts and passion! I will never forget the Dude breaking Dave Parker's face and still holding on to the ball. If the baseball gods are good to us someday the dude will manage the Mets, and manage them to a championship.

Scott Orner
I was at the game that John Stearns tackled the moron who ran out onto the field. The guy went over and shook Doug Flynn's hand and then he went to shake Stearns' hand and John tackled him. He still had his glove on and his mask in his hand. He was one of my favorite players before that, but that made him number 1 in my book. That and the fact that he had a cannon for an arm and he could run. He stole 25 bases in a season in the days when "runs well for a catcher" meant "as slow as Rusty Staub". Just seeing him in the dugout this season sends chills up my spine.

shoeman
Here's what I like most about John Stearns. It was a May day in the early 1980s, 1982 I think. The Mets were playing well. A television reporter asked Stearns if he thought a Yankees-Mets World Series would be a good idea. The Mets were starting to come out of that bad 1977-1983 era and the Yankees were good then. Stearns said (with a straight face), 'Sure, if the Yankees can get there.'

Mike
Tough customer; wasn't as good offensively as he thought, but was a good all-round player.

Too bad he played in the '70's, an era that had a number of excellent catchers (Bench, Munson, Fisk, Simmons, Porter, etc.)

Richard Kissel
March 30, 2001
The Monster's out of the cage; the Monster's out.

Logan Swanson
April 22, 2001
Dude, we love ya. You were the John Wayne of the post- Gil Hodges Mets, a real quarterback. If only you had come around 5 years earlier, or had stayed healthy 5 years longer, you would have won the World Series ring you so richly deserved.

DB
June 19, 2001
Say hello to the ny Mets future manager!

Mike
July 30, 2001
I'm glad Dude is back with the Mets. Looking at his stats now, its amazing how great I thought he was when I was 10, on those god-awful teams. I remember Kiner and Murphy always making a big deal out of him being a former college quarterback, accounting for his toughness. Speaks to the sorry state of the Mets in those years that it was such a huge deal that he was chasing the record for most steals by a catcher.

JUMPS
October 29, 2001
Somebody please tell me why the Mets dropped John Stearns from their coaching staff as soon as the 2001 season ended? Is Bobby V. so insecure having a future major league manager around? Stearns should be a career Met.

Mr. Sparkle
November 1, 2001
Just dumped as a coach for some guy from the Astros. I don't get it. I thought he did a good job at 3rd base. Plus, he was one of the great catchers in their history. Granted he's not as good as Piazza or Carter but he was great when he played. He was always a bulldog and I loved his style of play. I was sorry to see the injury ruin his career. As far as I'm concerned he had one of the best attitudes as a player of all time. The fact that he was on a lousy team makes people forget just how good he was.

L.J. Phipps
January 10, 2002
It was probably around 79/80 I was 14/15yrs old. As I recall the Mets or the Media were talking about trading John Stearns who was my hero, (I switched from secondbase to play catcher for a team in the PAL league because of him) so I wrote a letter to the NY Posts "Sound Off" telling them how much the Mets needed to keep him, low and behold they actually printed the thing. He was tough as nails and I was glad to see him back with the Mets as a coach. If only he could have stayed healthy, might have put up some good numbers. Thanks John!

Julia
March 14, 2002
I believe him to be one of the greatest Mets that ever was! Since the mid 70's he has been an inspiration in my life. I played baseball and softball for nine years growing up and all I ever wanted to do was catch. I became a darn good one if I say so myself! Two years ago I had the wonderful pleasure of meeting this man (after waiting for 25 years.) He spotted me wearing a Mets Jersey with Stearns 12 on it during batting practice at Shea. He called me over, gave me his autograph, took a picture with me (which didn't come out - bummer) and talked to me. Not only did I know him to be the wonderful player that he was, I found out that day that he is a truly wonderful man all around! I want him back as a coach. I am devastated that I will not be able to go to Shea and see him at the games. I've enjoyed watching him coach, it made me proud to see #12 back on the field!!

Jon
March 19, 2002
Do any of you remember the circumstances of Mazzilli and Stearns swapping numbers 12 and 16? I believe this happened near the end of the 1976 season but I can't find any proof of that. If anyone knows when or why please email me!

Kong26
May 23, 2002
This is not intended to make anybody look bad. Anyone who has such vivid memories of Stearns is all right in my book... But here's an FYI for everyone. Stearns could not have had his catcher's mask in his hand when he tackled the fan (nor was this done between the pitcher's mound and homeplate). Stearns was playing third base that game. I was at the game.

snw
April 1, 2003
Loved this guy.

One thing I remember about him was when Alex Trevino joined the team and was getting a lot of hype. Stearns was quoted in Newsday as follows, "Trevino is a good catcher, but he's no John Stearns."

Tackling Chief Knock-a-homa was about the best Mets memory from 1974-84.

Chris
October 3, 2003
As a 10-12 year old, I attended a clinic at the Huntington batting Range on Jericho Turnpike in Commack some time in the early 80's. I remember his showing us the scar from his elbow surgery, and I have a personalized autograph from that day too. First in a long line of "favorite Mets".

Joseph Kohler
January 15, 2004
I recall when Stearns and Gary Carter had a fight at home plate.... Man, did I hate Carter for that... Until the Mets traded for him. Stearns was a good player, but he lost his hand strength after splitting his finger and was barely the same player.

Kiwiwriter
July 1, 2004
I was at the game on June 12, 1980, too, when Stearns tackled the moron on the field. I don't remember the date, but that was the incident, replete with the ancient security guards tiptoeing around the drunk. The only thing they were good for was helping "Mr. Hat" re-arrange the seating in the mezzanine every two innings. But Stearns tackled that guy superbly.

He was a good and underrated defensive catcher, too, with a solid, hard-nosed attitude. He was good enough to be named as the token Met to three All-Star teams. He played in two of them, catching the ninth inning. In the 1979 All-Star Game, the broadcasters didn't even notice he had come in!

KMT
March 4, 2005
It's all been said above. John Stearns left it all on the field everyday! When I think about him now I realize he was a throwback even in his own time! No one played his heart out the way Bad Dude did! I hope some day he gets a chance as manager of the Mets. It would be the reward he deserves for being the leader during some dark days in Mets history!

Tom L
October 29, 2005
It's great to read of everyones memories of John 'Dude' Stearns. He was my favorite player during those dog days from the late 70's and early 80's.

My favorite memory of him was also the tackling of the drunk in the outfield. One detail that I haven't seen mentioned, was the fact that they initially did not show what was going on during the broadcast, Bob Murphy explaining that they did not show it, so as not to encourage future incidents. All you initially saw was Stearns (hands on hips, looking quite annoyed) and Neil Allen looking towards the outfield. Finally you see Stearns go toward the outfield, and then you suddenly hear the small crowd go wild, with Stearns going back towards a smiling Allen on the mound.

It was during Kiners Korner that they actually showed the footage. When asked what make him take action, he matter of factly tells Ralph, "We had a lead, and he was becoming a distraction to my pitcher, so I ended it." Gotta love that guy!

John O'Hare
January 17, 2006
I went to the Mets Fantasy Camp in January 2000, and Stearnsie (as we called him) was one of the coaches for another team. Off the field, you would be hard pressed to find a nicer guy, but on the field, boy, what a competitor! I remember him getting into an argument on the field with one of the Fantasy Camp umps over a play. Arguing during a Fantasy Camp game! How hardass is that?

And, boy, did we give it to him from the bench! "Run 'im, ump! You don't have to take that, Blue!" What fun that was!

Bryson
March 10, 2006
John split his finger against the Reds. It was during a Game of the Week game that Joe G was calling. It was really eerie because he had been talking about Johnny Bench and how he kept his right hand out in front for a quicker release instead of the traditional behind the back. 2 or 3 innings later a foul ball hit John and Joe said oh those type of injuries hurt and can be career ending. John really never was the same after that.

Owen Thorsen
May 3, 2006
The first time I saw Bad Dude he got KO'd by Jeff Kinney at the goal line in a 1971 game in Lincoln.

Joe Figliola
February 22, 2007
I was actually embarrassed that Stearns went the entire 1980 season without hitting a home run. I'm still trying to figure that one out. Here's a guy capable of hitting 15-20 home runs a season, going oh-for-the- year? Had he hit his usual 12-18 roundtrippers, there wouldn't have been that stupid "Mets vs. Maris" line in the Daily News.

Can anyone explain how he suddenly lost his power?

Joe Reheusser
May 7, 2009
He is the catcher that we got from the Phillies in exchange for Tug McGraw.

robert pelizza
September 2, 2016
I loved this guy. I got a bat from him in '83. He used to take me in the tunnel of Shea to meet Mets players and get autographs. thanks for the good old times, Johnny Boy. You are a true Met.

Brandon Smith
July 15, 2022
I don't know how many people Stearns knocked out, but I saw him do it once. He was catching, the fan was running around the field delaying the game. The fan ran around third and headed home, and when he got there Stearns hit him with a forearm. He clotheslined him. He knocked him out cold. It was an amazing thing to see. I'm pretty sure it was a Dodgers game. It was in Shea. Stearns was a fantastic player.

Gary reid
August 9, 2022
I can remember a John Stearns play at the plate, where the runner bounced off John back towards third. Can anyone remember more specifics?

Tom Lewis
September 19, 2022
Wow, this loss was as tough for me as Seaver's. Stearns was my guy during the toughest years I had as a Met fan. The Yankees might have had Munson, but the swagger that Stearns brought to Shea kept me going during my early teen years. Whether he was blocking the plate on Parker or taking on Carter, tackling drunk fans for interrupting the game or Chief Knockahoma after running to the bullpen after his "Home Run Dance" around home plate, Stearns' pride in his team was never something one could overlook. When I saw him at the Old Timers game, I figured he didn't have much time. But in true Stearns fashion, he had to step out of the dugout one more time, so happy for him that he got that moment.

Eternal rest, Dude. You were indeed special.

Tom L
September 29, 2022
UltaMet,

That is awesome you got to witness that moment. I heard Stearns was the last to leave the field. Sounds about right for this proud warrior, who guarded home plate, his pitchers and the integrity of our/his beloved Mets, despite whatever his physical condition.








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