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The Bad Guys Won! : A Season of Brawling, Boozing, Bimbo Chasing, and Championship Baseball with Straw, Doc, Mookie, Nails, the Kid, and the Rest of the 1986 Mets, the Rowdiest Team Ever to Put on a New York Uniform--and Maybe the Best
"Jeff Pearlman has captured the swagger of the '86 Mets. You don't have to be a Mets fan to enjoy this book—it's a great read for all baseball enthusiasts." —Philadelphia Daily News Award-winning Sports Illustrated baseball writer Jeff Pearlman returns to an innocent time when a city worshipped a man named Mookie and the Yankees were the second-best team in New York. It was 1986, and the New York Mets won 108 regular-season games and the World Series, capturing the hearts (and other assorted body parts) of fans everywhere. But their greatness on the field was nearly eclipsed by how bad they were off it. Led by the indomitable Keith Hernandez and the young dynamic duo of Dwight Gooden and Darryl Strawberry, along with the gallant Scum Bunch, the Amazin’s left a wide trail of wreckage in their wake—hotel rooms, charter planes, a bar in Houston, and most famously Bill Buckner and the hated Boston Red Sox. With an unforgettable cast of characters—including Doc, Straw, the Kid, Nails, Mex, and manager Davey Johnson—this “affectionate but critical look at this exciting season” ( Publishers Weekly ) celebrates the last of baseball’s arrogant, insane, rock-and-roll-and-party-all-night teams, exploring what could have been, what should have been, and what never was.
304 pages, Paperback
Published April 26, 2005
281 people are currently reading
3392 people want to read
About the author
Jeff Pearlman
18 books595 followersJeff Pearlman is an American sportswriter. He has written nine books that have appeared on The New York Times Best Seller list: four about football, three on baseball and two about basketball. He authored the 1999 John Rocker interview in Sports Illustrated.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 393 reviews
May 22, 2025
Jeff Pearlman - image from his site
An inside look at the 1986 Mets, the entire season, this is a very compelling read, with information that was new to me. It reads quickly and does not pretend to be more than what it is, a recollection of a magical season. (unlike most of the very unmagical seasons since then). A must-read for lifelong Mets fans like me, and a should-read for serious baseball fans, even if they are not afflicted with need to root for the Metropolitans.
Links to the author’s personal, Twitter, and FB pages
2025 - Who knows? Maybe this will be the year.
May 7, 2018
Growing up I detested the New York Mets for an event that happened before I was born. Many people refer to 1969 as the year of the Miracle Mets, and I refer to it as the year of the black cat that perpetuated the Cubs ever present curse. The year 2015 brought a new era of detesting the Mets in the form of a post season playoff sweep, bringing my level of abhorring the Mets to a new high. When we moderators of the baseball book group agreed to read The Bad Guys Won by Jeff Pearlman this month, featuring the 1986 edition of the Mets baseball team, I begrudgingly agreed to read along. Surprisingly, I found myself ahem enjoying this narrative, not because the Mets won, but because of the hair raising stories that the team got into along the way.
The 1980s were a time of transition for baseball in New York. The Yankees, the preferred New York baseball team in our home, had not won the world series since 1978 and would not do so again until 1996. The Mets had not been to the world series since 1973 and fought the Cubs each year for the right to finish last. The team was even in need of a 5th Avenue advertising agency to promote the woeful product on the field because the team itself was downright awful. The new millionaire owners of the Mets desired to win but had no idea how to run a baseball team. Recommended to them was Frank Cashen, the architect of the Baltimore Orioles teams of the early 1970s that challenged for and won two world series crowns. Slowly but surely, Cashen was entrusted with the job of putting together a winning team in Manhattan, a team that would surpass the Yankees in wins, attendance, and capture the pathos of the city.
The book is aptly titled The Bad Guys Won because to me the Mets are the bad guys, the villains. Here, however, the 1986 Mets who went on to win 108 games, really were a bunch of bad guys. Nicknamed the Scum Bunch, the team pulled some downright awful pranks and left the rest of baseball in its wake. Before major league baseball cleaned up its act, players would be snorting cocaine in the locker room on game day. There were massive amounts of booze, drugs, and women on every road trip. Drugs ruined the career of one Dwight Gooden, also known as Dr K, who looked like he would be the most dominant pitcher of the decade. Instead, cocaine got to him and he was in and out of rehab for the rest of his career. The moniker of best hurler of the decade instead went to Boston's Roger Clemens, who ended up being associated with drugs and drug usage during the latter part of his career. Beside the drugs, players pranked one another left and right whether it was replacing golf balls with hard boiled eggs or setting shoes on fire. The Mets did it all, and the few wholesome characters were either alienated or forced to play along with the stunts. Most chose to do the latter as they wanted to be along for the ride that was the 1986 season.
The Mets, as most championship teams do, featured household names as Darryl Strawberry, Keith Hernandez, and Gary Carter, along with role players as Tim Teufel and Mookie Wilson. Before baseball split into three division, the Mets played in the same national league east as the Cubs so I remember these players well, mainly because they always trounced the Cubs on the field. The 1986 team trounced the entire national league en route to their championship. Besides the pranks and stunts, the team was loaded at every position and featured a pitching staff that enjoyed collectively the best year of their careers. Position players enjoyed career years as well, and the team went on to win 108 games. While Pearlman's writing will not win any literary awards, his language captured the essence of this team well- bad if not downright vulgar. As a result, I actually found myself grinning while reading about the team I love to hate the most.
I doubt that I will ever change my allegiance and find myself rooting for the Mets to win a game much less a playoff series unless they are playing against the equally detestable Cardinals. Besides bleeding Cubbie blue, I am married to a Yankee fanatic, so wanting the Mets to win is a double whammy. Yet, The Bad Guys Won showed the Mets at their best which was also their worst so it became an enjoyable weekend read. I just hope that the bad guys never win again.
3.5 stars
The 1980s were a time of transition for baseball in New York. The Yankees, the preferred New York baseball team in our home, had not won the world series since 1978 and would not do so again until 1996. The Mets had not been to the world series since 1973 and fought the Cubs each year for the right to finish last. The team was even in need of a 5th Avenue advertising agency to promote the woeful product on the field because the team itself was downright awful. The new millionaire owners of the Mets desired to win but had no idea how to run a baseball team. Recommended to them was Frank Cashen, the architect of the Baltimore Orioles teams of the early 1970s that challenged for and won two world series crowns. Slowly but surely, Cashen was entrusted with the job of putting together a winning team in Manhattan, a team that would surpass the Yankees in wins, attendance, and capture the pathos of the city.
The book is aptly titled The Bad Guys Won because to me the Mets are the bad guys, the villains. Here, however, the 1986 Mets who went on to win 108 games, really were a bunch of bad guys. Nicknamed the Scum Bunch, the team pulled some downright awful pranks and left the rest of baseball in its wake. Before major league baseball cleaned up its act, players would be snorting cocaine in the locker room on game day. There were massive amounts of booze, drugs, and women on every road trip. Drugs ruined the career of one Dwight Gooden, also known as Dr K, who looked like he would be the most dominant pitcher of the decade. Instead, cocaine got to him and he was in and out of rehab for the rest of his career. The moniker of best hurler of the decade instead went to Boston's Roger Clemens, who ended up being associated with drugs and drug usage during the latter part of his career. Beside the drugs, players pranked one another left and right whether it was replacing golf balls with hard boiled eggs or setting shoes on fire. The Mets did it all, and the few wholesome characters were either alienated or forced to play along with the stunts. Most chose to do the latter as they wanted to be along for the ride that was the 1986 season.
The Mets, as most championship teams do, featured household names as Darryl Strawberry, Keith Hernandez, and Gary Carter, along with role players as Tim Teufel and Mookie Wilson. Before baseball split into three division, the Mets played in the same national league east as the Cubs so I remember these players well, mainly because they always trounced the Cubs on the field. The 1986 team trounced the entire national league en route to their championship. Besides the pranks and stunts, the team was loaded at every position and featured a pitching staff that enjoyed collectively the best year of their careers. Position players enjoyed career years as well, and the team went on to win 108 games. While Pearlman's writing will not win any literary awards, his language captured the essence of this team well- bad if not downright vulgar. As a result, I actually found myself grinning while reading about the team I love to hate the most.
I doubt that I will ever change my allegiance and find myself rooting for the Mets to win a game much less a playoff series unless they are playing against the equally detestable Cardinals. Besides bleeding Cubbie blue, I am married to a Yankee fanatic, so wanting the Mets to win is a double whammy. Yet, The Bad Guys Won showed the Mets at their best which was also their worst so it became an enjoyable weekend read. I just hope that the bad guys never win again.
3.5 stars
February 1, 2021
When I go down the inevitable YouTube “rabbit hole” to devour vintage ‘86 Mets baseball footage, it’s surreal. Especially in the context of a global pandemic. Not just the cheesy “Get Metsmerized” song or “Let’s Go Mets” video. Not just the endless angles and slow-motion shots of Buckner’s D-R-A-MA-T-IC (and still unbelievable) Game 6 error. Not even the dude parachuting onto the field out of nowhere in the middle of the game. But mostly the scenes of a ravenous NYC crowd hurling reams of toilet paper and smoke bombs from the upper decks cheering their team to a miracle win. I miss the chaos of the crowd. I can’t wait to be back in a jam-packed stadium cheering my favorite teams again. And hopefully in a huge game like a Super Bowl, World Cup, or World Series.
December 10, 2017
What can you say about the 1986 World Series Champs, the NY Mets? They were without a doubt the nastiest bunch of immature drunks, druggies, skirt chasers and practical jokers in both leagues. The author, Jeff Pearlman, was in the position to know as a long time writer for Sports Illustrated and had the inside track to interviews and confessions from those who played with this amazing team. Whether sports fans like it or not, the Yankees were the team from New York and then along came the bad-boy Mets and took away their crown The orange and blue was plastered all over the Big Apple and the antics of the players were always good for a lead story in the sport section of the Times. With the exception of Mookie Wilson and Howard Johnson, who came to play ball and not raise hell, the rest of the team ran wild, destroying hotel rooms, bars, and their charter planes and screaming obscenities at the opposing teams. But all was forgiven as they moved toward the World Series and glory.
The 1986 series against the Red Sox was a dandy and went to the 7th game, even as the two Mets stars, Gooden and Strawberry were snorting coke before they took the field. As we know, it destroyed their careers and lives but they were "the boys of summer" during that run for the championship.
This book will make you angry and laugh at the same time. Fame often does terrible things to those who obtain it and the brawling rowdies of the Mets were a perfect example. But if you love baseball with all its ups and downs, this book is worth reading......even if some of the players' antics are almost beyond belief. Let's Go Mets
The 1986 series against the Red Sox was a dandy and went to the 7th game, even as the two Mets stars, Gooden and Strawberry were snorting coke before they took the field. As we know, it destroyed their careers and lives but they were "the boys of summer" during that run for the championship.
This book will make you angry and laugh at the same time. Fame often does terrible things to those who obtain it and the brawling rowdies of the Mets were a perfect example. But if you love baseball with all its ups and downs, this book is worth reading......even if some of the players' antics are almost beyond belief. Let's Go Mets
May 28, 2008
I've been a Mets fan since 1964, when I was 6. The 1986 season was, of course, Amazin'. While this book provides accurate descriptions of key moments in that championship season, and a literally gut-churning, pee-in-your-pants funny recounting of the various puerile shenanigans surrounding the '86 ballclub, the writing is geared towards your average 14-year-old male too young to identify with Jim Bouton's "Ball Four." There are more cheesy metaphors and similes on each page than maggots stuck to a rotting trout. The number of adolescent metaphors in the book is equal to the number of Rice Krispies it would take to fill up Shea Stadium to the brim. If you removed all of the similes that cause a severe case of groaning and eye-rolling, the book would sag like a post-coital condom. I think you see what I mean.
February 28, 2025
Rated 4 stars. Read on Kindle. Tried to listen to Hoopla Audio but didn't "connect" with the author's audio narration but that is just my opinion and other readers might enjoy listening to him.
Very interesting narrative of the 1986 WS Champs, the infamous NYC Mets. At times disturbing but also told with a lot of humor. I especially enjoyed the backstories of some of the lesser known players. To be honest there were very few "good guys" on that team. I've always been a fan of Gary Carter but got the impression that the author thought his good guy personality was to get attention and fame. I don't agree as I always thought he brought a lot of energy and enthusiasm to the game.
I had forgotten about the incident in Texas where some of the Mets were in a drunken brawl at a bar and ended up in jail! Including Ron Darling :( I remember when he was a guest on Sesame Street in 1985. Oh well I still enjoy his color commentary when I have access to MLB free games.
Recommend this to baseball fans whether they are Mets fan or not. I sometimes root for them depending on who they're playing but have to be honest, I was hoping for the Red Sox to win the WS in 1986 to break the "curse of the Bambino"! Apologies to GR friend Lance who is a Mets fan.
My 2 favorite quotes:
"My wife wanted a big diamond. —MOOKIE WILSON on why he was married on a baseball field"
"One of the saddest things in the world is wasted talent"
Very interesting narrative of the 1986 WS Champs, the infamous NYC Mets. At times disturbing but also told with a lot of humor. I especially enjoyed the backstories of some of the lesser known players. To be honest there were very few "good guys" on that team. I've always been a fan of Gary Carter but got the impression that the author thought his good guy personality was to get attention and fame. I don't agree as I always thought he brought a lot of energy and enthusiasm to the game.
I had forgotten about the incident in Texas where some of the Mets were in a drunken brawl at a bar and ended up in jail! Including Ron Darling :( I remember when he was a guest on Sesame Street in 1985. Oh well I still enjoy his color commentary when I have access to MLB free games.
Recommend this to baseball fans whether they are Mets fan or not. I sometimes root for them depending on who they're playing but have to be honest, I was hoping for the Red Sox to win the WS in 1986 to break the "curse of the Bambino"! Apologies to GR friend Lance who is a Mets fan.
My 2 favorite quotes:
"My wife wanted a big diamond. —MOOKIE WILSON on why he was married on a baseball field"
"One of the saddest things in the world is wasted talent"
May 30, 2022
I loved this book. That is high praise considering I’m a Cardinals fan, and this team is called “the pond scum Mets” for a reason. But the story itself is great. I loved the insight and down and dirty behind the scenes dirt of this team. I wanted more background and depth on Hernandez, like what drove him to cocaine and his relationship with some of the guys like Sisk. But perhaps there’s no source material there. Still, a great book about a crazy team
April 23, 2024
The 1986 Mets made me a fan of the team for life. They were incredibly talented on the field, and off the field they were notorious partiers and pranksters. Since the team has not met those heights since, many books have covered them.
This being Pearlman his style is to focus on the latter over the former. Also since the off field action is soap opera level, that is not necessarily a bad way to write a book.
The Mets really were the bad guys but in a time of Mad Men style social mores meets 80s excess and pre-internet, that swagger was applauded in some quarters. Whether that makes the reader nostalgic or appalled, it still builds up drama.
Of course, the talent on the field peaked and fell in 1986 and there is a quick epilogue. But even given those post 86 bad decisions - the seeds were sown and show out- drug use, bad behavior, ego.
In many ways, I appreciate Pearlman, a fan first then a writer, able to wreak havoc at his childhood hero turned heel Dave Kingman in the books intro.
This book is an easy read and is slanted towards a more tabloid approach and not a dry balls and strikes book. That will annoy some but it also makes it juicy. I find myself liking the book more than not, and the story of the 86 Mets has now been oft told, but the wild atmosphere surrounding them is captured
May 7, 2018
Plenty has been written about the 1986 New York Mets, one of the most colorful teams to win a World Series in the past few decades. Just HOW colorful they were is captured in this terrific book by award winning author Jeff Pearlman.
Because that particular team had so much talent, the belief was that they were going to win many championships. Why they failed to do so as been discussed in many of the aforementioned books, but instead, Pearlman writes about the character (and characters) of the team instead of analyzing them. This is what sets this book apart from other books about this team.
It didn’t matter whether a player was a tough guy from a rough place (Kevin Mitchell) or a nice guy (Mookie Wilson), a superstar (Darryl Strawberry and Dwight Gooden) or a bench player (Ed Hearn, Tim Teufel), no Mets player goes unnoticed by Pearlman. While the title may seem to imply that there will be a lot of critical stories about the players and the team, the material is presented in a fair manner to all mentioned. This material is also very entertaining and that makes the book a joy to read.
Whether the topic is the “Scum Bunch” of Jessie Orosco, Doug Sisk and Danny Heep having drinking contests, manager Davey Johnson running the team as he sees fit no matter what General Manager Frank Cashen and the press think, or George Foster becoming an outcast (something that wasn’t easy to do on that team, according to the author), the reader will either learn something new about this team or be thoroughly entertained by the story.
The baseball sections are written just as well. The National League Championship Series against the Houston Astros is covered in great depth, with a lot of space devoted to the Mets’ fear of facing Astros ace Mike Scott. Many times, teams will psych themselves out of a win when doing that, but the Mets were able to avoid facing Scott for a game 7 in that series. Then the writing about the World Series against the Boston Red Sox is just as good. Everything from Jim Rice NOT scoring on a double in the first inning of the fateful game 6 to the elation when Orosco threw his glove in the air after the final out of game 7, the Series is covered in great detail. The culmination of all those drunken parties and incidents is reached with a championship for the Mets and the reader feels like he or she is there in person.
Mets fans will especially enjoy this account of that magical season, but readers who are interested in learning about that team and its place in history will also want to add this book to their reading collection.
http://sportsbookguy.blogspot.com/201...
Because that particular team had so much talent, the belief was that they were going to win many championships. Why they failed to do so as been discussed in many of the aforementioned books, but instead, Pearlman writes about the character (and characters) of the team instead of analyzing them. This is what sets this book apart from other books about this team.
It didn’t matter whether a player was a tough guy from a rough place (Kevin Mitchell) or a nice guy (Mookie Wilson), a superstar (Darryl Strawberry and Dwight Gooden) or a bench player (Ed Hearn, Tim Teufel), no Mets player goes unnoticed by Pearlman. While the title may seem to imply that there will be a lot of critical stories about the players and the team, the material is presented in a fair manner to all mentioned. This material is also very entertaining and that makes the book a joy to read.
Whether the topic is the “Scum Bunch” of Jessie Orosco, Doug Sisk and Danny Heep having drinking contests, manager Davey Johnson running the team as he sees fit no matter what General Manager Frank Cashen and the press think, or George Foster becoming an outcast (something that wasn’t easy to do on that team, according to the author), the reader will either learn something new about this team or be thoroughly entertained by the story.
The baseball sections are written just as well. The National League Championship Series against the Houston Astros is covered in great depth, with a lot of space devoted to the Mets’ fear of facing Astros ace Mike Scott. Many times, teams will psych themselves out of a win when doing that, but the Mets were able to avoid facing Scott for a game 7 in that series. Then the writing about the World Series against the Boston Red Sox is just as good. Everything from Jim Rice NOT scoring on a double in the first inning of the fateful game 6 to the elation when Orosco threw his glove in the air after the final out of game 7, the Series is covered in great detail. The culmination of all those drunken parties and incidents is reached with a championship for the Mets and the reader feels like he or she is there in person.
Mets fans will especially enjoy this account of that magical season, but readers who are interested in learning about that team and its place in history will also want to add this book to their reading collection.
http://sportsbookguy.blogspot.com/201...
July 23, 2012
The 1986 Mets: 108 wins, two incredible play-off series that included the infamous Bill Buckner error that prolonged the "curse of the bambino", the beginning of the fall of Daryl Strawberry and Dwight Gooden, both of whom had such potential and such a meteoric rise to fame that their falls take on the dimensions of Shakespearean tragic heroes.
This story deserved so much better. The ingredients are there for a serious work that transcends sports journalism, such as "The Summer of '49". If writing strictly as a fan the entry-style account utilized by Bill Simmons' "Now I can die in peace" about the Red Sox finally winning the world series would have been effective. If a character study was desired, Gay Talese's "the Silent Season of a Hero" could have been the model.
Instead, Jeff Pearlman wrote a book-length tabloid.
For some reason there is a trend toward taglines, blame the internet. Discerning readers are deemed incapable of deciding on a book based on subject matter and browsing a few passages. We now have taglines, as if we are online and being tempted to "click" for the full story.
The tagline for this book is alliterative, ridiculous and accurate:
"A season of brawling, boozing, bimbo chasing, and championship baseball with straw, doc, mookie, nails, the Kid, and the Rest of the 1986 mets, the rowdiest team ever to put on a uniform---and maybe the best."
As the tagline promises, Pearlman teases the reader with lascivious morsels and insinuations---no character study, no scholarship. He merely collects the good bits from various autobiographies and interviews and arranges them in chronological order. The book has the depth expected from a pseudo sports journalist working in the 24 media world where everything needs to be loud, outrageous, and unique. How else can he expect to get our attention?
Fortunately for Pearlman, he chose a great topic. My hope is that this book inspires a good writer to give this team the book it deserves.
This story deserved so much better. The ingredients are there for a serious work that transcends sports journalism, such as "The Summer of '49". If writing strictly as a fan the entry-style account utilized by Bill Simmons' "Now I can die in peace" about the Red Sox finally winning the world series would have been effective. If a character study was desired, Gay Talese's "the Silent Season of a Hero" could have been the model.
Instead, Jeff Pearlman wrote a book-length tabloid.
For some reason there is a trend toward taglines, blame the internet. Discerning readers are deemed incapable of deciding on a book based on subject matter and browsing a few passages. We now have taglines, as if we are online and being tempted to "click" for the full story.
The tagline for this book is alliterative, ridiculous and accurate:
"A season of brawling, boozing, bimbo chasing, and championship baseball with straw, doc, mookie, nails, the Kid, and the Rest of the 1986 mets, the rowdiest team ever to put on a uniform---and maybe the best."
As the tagline promises, Pearlman teases the reader with lascivious morsels and insinuations---no character study, no scholarship. He merely collects the good bits from various autobiographies and interviews and arranges them in chronological order. The book has the depth expected from a pseudo sports journalist working in the 24 media world where everything needs to be loud, outrageous, and unique. How else can he expect to get our attention?
Fortunately for Pearlman, he chose a great topic. My hope is that this book inspires a good writer to give this team the book it deserves.
December 13, 2023
This was a fun, fast paced read detailing the events that built up to the New York Mets winning the 1986 World Series including the magical season and incredible playoff run. This team was stocked full of tons of interesting characters with backstories that could fill multiple books. Jeff Pearlman did a fantastic job pulling some interviews from many of the players and coaches that surrounded this team.
October 26, 2025
This is where it all began for me, sometime in the summer of 2007 or 2008: my literary obsession with the New York Mets. And who can blame me? Almost Shakespearean in their epic rise-and-fall, comedy-and-tragedy, sixty-plus years of existence, the Metropolitans are maybe baseball's most entertaining franchise. They're certainly not the *best*; that title would go to their cross-town rivals, more corporate and willing to embrace Trumpism than the Mets (probably, anyway). No, the Yankees might have the most pennants, but the Mets have the most *stories.* Ineptitude and magnificence take turns as the Mets go from the cellar to the top and back again, from 1962 to 1969, 1976 to 1986, and beyond. And my fascination with them, my *obsession* with them, starts here, with a book that I discovered when I was working at Clemson University, in their library, and supposedly shelving books during the summer (in my defense, if I shelved all the books that needed it, I'd have had much shorter shifts).
"The Bad Guys Won" is Jeff Pearlman's masterpiece about the 1986 Mets, a team so engaging and frustrating that you'd think they were fictional characters. But no, Darryl Strawberry and Dwight Gooden were real, along with Lenny Dykstra, Kevin Mitchell, Gary Carter, Keith Hernandez, Ron Darling, Tim Teufel, and so many more. And at the helm was Davey Johnson, a manager who treated his ball club like a collection of men who could be trusted to do their job no matter how hungover or coked-up they might be (because this was the Eighties, and they played in the media capital of the world). No, the Mets didn't say no to drugs, or women, or reckless behavior.
They bellied up to the bar for all of that.
Good sports books follow a team; great sports books make you feel like you're in the middle of the story. Pearlman's work here is exemplary, putting us all in the world of these men who played well on the field but sometimes rubbed each other the wrong way off of it, and whose arrogance and swagger pissed off the rest of MLB in 1986. But here's the thing: the Mets backed it up. They played for the championship that year with a lot of hype, but they had the talent to back it up. Indeed, they should have won more than one World Series. But then that wouldn't be the New York Mets, would it?
Pearlman gets all the best from interviews with the main players, and he shows us Hernandez's understated leadership, Ray Knight's gritty work ethic, Ron Darling's cool under pressure, Mookie Wilson's quest to make a comeback after a horrific injury, Lenny Dykstra's odd sense of self, and Johnson's managerial temperament. But most of all, he captures the dual tragedy of Strawberry and Gooden, two players who should have done more but who were derailed by their addictions and demons. It's not a cautionary tale, but one of how talent can be usurped by appetites that hinder greatness.
"The Bad Guys Won" didn't make me a fan of the Mets, but a fan of books *about* the Mets. From Jimmy Breslin and Tom Seaver to Devin Gordon, I've spent a lot of time dissecting the team throughout its history. Why? Because it's a hell of a lot of fun to read. And I have Jeff Pearlman to thank/blame for that. It was so much fun to revisit this book almost twenty years after I saw it on the shelf and, looking for some time to kill, started to turn the pages. It's no less entertaining this time around (in fact, it may even be *more so*). And it's absolutely a great sports book, even if you hate the Mets.
"The Bad Guys Won" is Jeff Pearlman's masterpiece about the 1986 Mets, a team so engaging and frustrating that you'd think they were fictional characters. But no, Darryl Strawberry and Dwight Gooden were real, along with Lenny Dykstra, Kevin Mitchell, Gary Carter, Keith Hernandez, Ron Darling, Tim Teufel, and so many more. And at the helm was Davey Johnson, a manager who treated his ball club like a collection of men who could be trusted to do their job no matter how hungover or coked-up they might be (because this was the Eighties, and they played in the media capital of the world). No, the Mets didn't say no to drugs, or women, or reckless behavior.
They bellied up to the bar for all of that.
Good sports books follow a team; great sports books make you feel like you're in the middle of the story. Pearlman's work here is exemplary, putting us all in the world of these men who played well on the field but sometimes rubbed each other the wrong way off of it, and whose arrogance and swagger pissed off the rest of MLB in 1986. But here's the thing: the Mets backed it up. They played for the championship that year with a lot of hype, but they had the talent to back it up. Indeed, they should have won more than one World Series. But then that wouldn't be the New York Mets, would it?
Pearlman gets all the best from interviews with the main players, and he shows us Hernandez's understated leadership, Ray Knight's gritty work ethic, Ron Darling's cool under pressure, Mookie Wilson's quest to make a comeback after a horrific injury, Lenny Dykstra's odd sense of self, and Johnson's managerial temperament. But most of all, he captures the dual tragedy of Strawberry and Gooden, two players who should have done more but who were derailed by their addictions and demons. It's not a cautionary tale, but one of how talent can be usurped by appetites that hinder greatness.
"The Bad Guys Won" didn't make me a fan of the Mets, but a fan of books *about* the Mets. From Jimmy Breslin and Tom Seaver to Devin Gordon, I've spent a lot of time dissecting the team throughout its history. Why? Because it's a hell of a lot of fun to read. And I have Jeff Pearlman to thank/blame for that. It was so much fun to revisit this book almost twenty years after I saw it on the shelf and, looking for some time to kill, started to turn the pages. It's no less entertaining this time around (in fact, it may even be *more so*). And it's absolutely a great sports book, even if you hate the Mets.
March 8, 2025
The most impressive part of Pearlman’s writing is how involved you can get in a story where you know the outcome from reading the book title. At several points during the last quarter of the book I found myself wondering if the Mets would actually lose the World Series.
That said, this is a weaker entry from him compared to his other works I’ve read, those being Showtime and Three Ring Circus. This is also about ten years older than either of those, which means he definitely hadn’t honed his style by this point. Being published in 2004 also means you get a few weird “of the times” commentary such as a complaint about the rampant political correctness of the *checks notes* Bush Administration
All that being said love the Mets baby let’s go Mets hit a home run baby there we go love the Mets
That said, this is a weaker entry from him compared to his other works I’ve read, those being Showtime and Three Ring Circus. This is also about ten years older than either of those, which means he definitely hadn’t honed his style by this point. Being published in 2004 also means you get a few weird “of the times” commentary such as a complaint about the rampant political correctness of the *checks notes* Bush Administration
All that being said love the Mets baby let’s go Mets hit a home run baby there we go love the Mets
January 21, 2024
I read this so I could learn more about the 1986 Mets, my favorite team when I was in elementary school. The story moves and the book is entertaining. The players’ behavior is at times troubling and yet I was still mostly rooting for them. So now I have a better understanding of the players - warts and all. The type of things a little kid wouldn’t have heard about.
But I really didn’t like the author. I often found his editorializing distasteful or I disagreed with it. He often takes on the offensiveness - sexism, stereotypes and racism - of the 1980s in this writing. It goes beyond quoting the bad actors and taking on their voices when he is describing situations or events. Maybe he thought he was explaining the times, but it feels like he shares those views. And many of his similes and metaphors were either awkward or offensive.
But I really didn’t like the author. I often found his editorializing distasteful or I disagreed with it. He often takes on the offensiveness - sexism, stereotypes and racism - of the 1980s in this writing. It goes beyond quoting the bad actors and taking on their voices when he is describing situations or events. Maybe he thought he was explaining the times, but it feels like he shares those views. And many of his similes and metaphors were either awkward or offensive.
June 20, 2022
if i could give this two and a half, i would. even for a fan, it can be a little inside baseball at times. and twenty years gives some perspective about changing cultural norms; the writing - not the bad behavior, that's a given - the writing seems sexist af in 2022. i was thinking about how The Dirt didn't make me feel that way, and i think it's because that's an oral history - those are the band member's own words. here, the author is calling players' wives bimbos, and that kind of takes some of the fun out of watching the players act out.
if this were an oral history, i think it would be a much better book.
if this were an oral history, i think it would be a much better book.
September 21, 2024
Not quite as cleanly told as some of Pearlman's later books like "Showtime" and "Three-Ring Circus" yet "The Bad Guys Won!" is still an enjoyable read about one of the most interesting teams in baseball history. Having read some of his more recent books, it is kind of cool to see where he started and how he developed and refined his style of storytelling. I think one of the things "The Bad Guys Won!" actually does really well is balance the mythos and reality of the '86 Mets, a team whose legendary status on and off the field can cloud some of their factual, statistical greatness. Not the first Pearlman book I'd recommend someone, but certainly enjoyable for baseball fans or anyone who remembers Doc, Darryl, Nails, The Kid, and the rest of the '86 Amazin's.
February 6, 2024
Thoroughly enjoyed this book and Pearlman has cemented himself as my favorite sports writer, but this one did not hit as hard as Showtime. Still a fantastic read and a lot of it gave huge “dudes rock” vibes (except for the drug addiction parts), but only having one year worth of stories meant there just wasn’t as much to explore as Showtime. Also the book was published in 04 or 05, so the epilogue is laughably outdated, but I’m assuming that matters to a very small subset of readers (it’s me, I’m readers).
July 28, 2025
Phenomenal book!
This is one of the best baseball books I’ve read. I well remember the 1986 playoffs during my college days and with no horse in the race (I’m a Dodgers’ fan), I was cheering for the Mets. This book has so many great insider stories from a team full of talented and wild characters.
This is one of the best baseball books I’ve read. I well remember the 1986 playoffs during my college days and with no horse in the race (I’m a Dodgers’ fan), I was cheering for the Mets. This book has so many great insider stories from a team full of talented and wild characters.
January 3, 2023
A great peak behind the curtain of one of the greatest teams in sports history. However, some of the language used (especially around women in the story) has aged somewhat poorly.
January 3, 2023
Let’s go Mets baby love da Mets
May 22, 2023
I own like four baseball books, this is the first one I’ve read.
I hope I enjoy the rest more than I enjoyed this one haha.
I hope I enjoy the rest more than I enjoyed this one haha.
August 29, 2023
This should be mandatory school reading in every NYC Junior High School.
LGM!
LGM!
January 19, 2025
Great book, fun read!
July 18, 2025
Love the Mets. Hate being a Mets fan. A must read for anyone who is hoping we break the nearly 40 year drought.
November 29, 2025
Great book!
October 11, 2024
Love those Mets
July 5, 2025
Whaatta team! Whatta World Series!!
October 16, 2024
There's a gritty team, then there's the hard-nose, badass, party animals of the '86 Mets. You certainly won't find a team like this again.
June 10, 2012
This is an account of the 1986 Mets, they beat the Red Sox in the World Series. The Red Sox almost won it in game six, an error that created the word "Bucknered" allowed the Mets to win and go to game seven.
Jeff Pearlman is a Mets fan, you find this out in the beginning of the book, and grows up to be a sports writer. Then he goes on to Cashen, GM of the Mets when he started with the organization and his efforts to build a championship team.
The '86 Mets were not nice guys, they drank, did drugs and chased women (even some of the married players). Most of their games they came into the clubhouse to find coolers of ice cold Budweiser. The drugs of choice were cocaine and amphetamines (speed, pep pills, uppers and greenies), and getting drunk in the back of the plane was common.
While Pearlman is definitely biased towards the Mets, this is a very candid look at the team, through interviews with former players, batboys, managers and many associated with the Mets organization, it is a very well rounded look at a championship team filled with 'bad guys'. His writing is easy to follow, he makes generous use of similes, Darryl Strawberry is described as "wholesome as a Nevada brothel", "as charming as a starved pit bull" and "as lovable as a cobra". He talks about a pitcher who's pitches made him "as threatening as a doe at a rifle club".
This is a very interesting book that I would recommend to baseball fans in general and Mets fans in particular.
Jeff Pearlman is a Mets fan, you find this out in the beginning of the book, and grows up to be a sports writer. Then he goes on to Cashen, GM of the Mets when he started with the organization and his efforts to build a championship team.
The '86 Mets were not nice guys, they drank, did drugs and chased women (even some of the married players). Most of their games they came into the clubhouse to find coolers of ice cold Budweiser. The drugs of choice were cocaine and amphetamines (speed, pep pills, uppers and greenies), and getting drunk in the back of the plane was common.
While Pearlman is definitely biased towards the Mets, this is a very candid look at the team, through interviews with former players, batboys, managers and many associated with the Mets organization, it is a very well rounded look at a championship team filled with 'bad guys'. His writing is easy to follow, he makes generous use of similes, Darryl Strawberry is described as "wholesome as a Nevada brothel", "as charming as a starved pit bull" and "as lovable as a cobra". He talks about a pitcher who's pitches made him "as threatening as a doe at a rifle club".
This is a very interesting book that I would recommend to baseball fans in general and Mets fans in particular.
October 25, 2008
Pearlman does an excellent job giving you a behind the scences glimpse at the 1986 Mets. Who could ever forget the comeback by the Mets with Boston on the verge of winning the World Series. Mookie Wilson hitting a ball through the legs of Bill Buckner to cap the comeback in game 6 and send the Series to game 7 which the Mets win is something I will never forget.
You get to really know the Mets circa 1986 and quite frankly they weren't a likeable group. Gooden and Strawberry were the young stars who were unable to deal with their fame. Drugs, booze, women etc were rampant. I was always a Gary Carter fan but he is painted as being an ego manical jerk. The only really good people on the Mets appears to have be Mookie Wilson and Tim Tueffel.
The story about a man thinking Tim Tueffel was hitting on his wife by autographing a baseball with the notation Rom. 116 is hilarious. The man thought Tueffel was giving her his room number when he was referring to Romans 1:16.
I was also a big Kevin Mitchell fan. Before his star years with the Giants he was a young thug from San Diego learning to play baseball in New York. To think the Mets got rid of him because they thought HE was the bad influence on Doc Gooden and Daryl Stawberry is amazing.
Very good book that shows that it isn't always the good guys that win.
You get to really know the Mets circa 1986 and quite frankly they weren't a likeable group. Gooden and Strawberry were the young stars who were unable to deal with their fame. Drugs, booze, women etc were rampant. I was always a Gary Carter fan but he is painted as being an ego manical jerk. The only really good people on the Mets appears to have be Mookie Wilson and Tim Tueffel.
The story about a man thinking Tim Tueffel was hitting on his wife by autographing a baseball with the notation Rom. 116 is hilarious. The man thought Tueffel was giving her his room number when he was referring to Romans 1:16.
I was also a big Kevin Mitchell fan. Before his star years with the Giants he was a young thug from San Diego learning to play baseball in New York. To think the Mets got rid of him because they thought HE was the bad influence on Doc Gooden and Daryl Stawberry is amazing.
Very good book that shows that it isn't always the good guys that win.
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