Paul O'Neill Is Certain the 1998 Yanks Would Beat Darryl Strawberry's 1986 Mets

Paul O'Neill has no doubt that the 1998 New York Yankees were a better team than the 1986 New York Mets. He is just as certain that if it were possible for the teams to play a best-of-seven series, the Yankees would win.

"The '98 Yankees, to me, were as close to perfection as I've ever been part of, as far as sports. Everybody had good years, and everything went right," O'Neill told ESPN New York's Andrew Marchand. "I don't see that happening."

The 1998 Yankees right fielder hit the nail on the head when he pointed out that great teams repeat.

"They were very good," said O'Neill with respect to the 1986 Mets. "I couldn't sit back and go player-by-player. I think the '98 team had much more depth. We had a couple of World Series under our belts, too. We were seasoned to that point. The '86 Mets were just a great team. They won just one World Series, right?"

Darryl Strawberry was the Mets right fielder in 1986. He sometimes put himself before his team.

During spring training in 1989, on team photo day, Bud Harrelson called out the first row of players. Strawberry's name followed that of Keith Hernandez. Mr. Strawberry wasn't pleased about standing next to fellow druggie Hernandez.

"Straw" approached Harrelson, "I only want to sit next to my real friends."

Darryl had taken umbrage about some of Hernandez' comments about him and his contract.

He asked Hernandez, "Why you got to be saying those things about me?" "Mex" told "Straw" to grow up.

Strawberry then punched Hernandez as Mets players broke up the altercation. Strawberry revealed that he had been tired of Hernandez for years, as if no one knew.

When he saw Gary Carter, one of the class individuals in baseball history, Strawberry told him ""You're next!"

It is Darryl Strawberry's expert opinion that no one, not the 1998 Yankees and, by implication, not even the 1927 Yankees, could beat the 1986 Mets.

"There's no question. You cannot beat the '86 Mets," Strawberry said to a radio talk show host.

"The Yankees teams I played on were great teams with great personalities, but they were good guys. The '86 Mets would've been drilling those guys; I just know how our pitching staff was: hit this guy, hit that guy. And those were the kind of guys we were.

"We were mad, we wanted them to get outside themselves. That's the kind of group we had that year, so the '86 Mets were a very difficult team to play against."

How consistent and how idiotic.

The '98 Yankees could not be intimidated. The fact that the Mets created enmity would not have been a positive factor against the Yankees. Imagine David Wells, David Cone, El Duque, Andy Pettitte or Mariano ever being threatened by the opposition.

After winning 114 games in the regular season, the Yankees were 11-2 in October. The swept the San Diego Padres to become World Champions. They never faced an elimination game.

The Mets won 108 regular season games. They were 8-5 in October, which means that the Yankees won nine more games in 1998 than the Mets won in 1986.

The Boston Red Sox had the Mets down to their final strike the World Series. Leading 5-3 in the 10th inning, the first two Mets batters were retired.

The Shea Stadium scoreboard flashed "Congratulations, Boston Red Sox, 1986 World Champions."

Does anyone remember the scoreboard at the former Jack Murphy Stadium congratulating the Padres on becoming the World Champions?

Paul O'Neill summed up the difference between the teams, which reveals why the Yankees were better. Referring to Strawberry, O'Neill said,

"His younger days, being as a Met, I'm sure he felt his importance to the team was probably greater," O'Neill said. "That was one of the strengths of the '98 Yankees was no one person was looked to win a game every single night."

The 1998 Yankees, a team with no true star, had 25 players with a common goal: Win.