Mets Franchise Timeline: 2000s

2000

July 8 - Unique interleague doubleheader in which Mets face Yankees at Shea in the afternoon, then in the Bronx that same evening (necessitated by rainout on June 11). . .Mets drop both games by 4-2 scores.

October 7 - Benny Agbayani's solo home run in the 13th inning gave the Mets a 3-2 win over San Francisco in Game Three of the NLDS.

October 8 - Bobby Jones tossed a one-hitter against the Giants as the Mets advanced to the NLCS with a 4-0 win in Game Four of the NLDS.

October 16 - Mets advanced to the World Series with a 7-0 win over St. Louis in Game Five of the NLCS.

October 24 - Shea hosts NY's first Subway Series in 44 years as Mets win Game 3 of the World Series

2001

April - All four Mets championship pennants - the 1969 and 1986 World Championship flags and the 1973 and 2000 NL Pennants - now fly atop the batters eye in CF.

July 14 - Bobby Valentine became the 48th manager to notch his 1,000th victory in Major League history with a 2-0 win over Boston. In that game, Glendon Rusch (8.0 innings) and Armando Benitez (1.0 innings) combined to hurl the 22nd one-hitter in club history. Rusch surrendered the only hit of the game - a bunt single by Trot Nixon in the first inning.

August 21 - Mike Piazza slugged his 300th home run as a catcher vs. Colorado's Mike Hampton. This was also his 30th home run of the season, making him one of four active players to reach the 30 home run plateau for seven straight years.

September 21 - Mike Piazza's home run against the Braves helped heal the city in the first sporting event in New York after 9/11 and brought the Mets within four-and-a-half games of first place.

October 6 - Lenny Harris breaks Manny Mota's ML record with his 151st career pinch-hit.

2002

April 30 - Al Leiter beats the Arizona Diamondbacks and becomes the first Major League pitcher to defeat all 30 teams.

August - Home radio (Bob Murphy) and television (Ralph Kiner) booths re-dedicated in honor of Mets broadcasting legends.

August 17 - The Mets celebrate their 40th anniversary by having the fans select the "All Amazin' Team". The team, which was announced prior to the game against the Dodgers, was comprised of manager Gil Hodges, first baseman Keith Hernandez, second baseman Edgardo Alfonzo, shortstop Buddy Harrelson, third baseman Howard Johnson, catcher Mike Piazza, outfielders Mookie Wilson, Lenny Dykstra and Darryl Strawberry, pinch-hitters Rusty Staub and Ed Kranepool, righthanded starter Tom Seaver, lefthanded starter Jerry Koosman, righthanded reliever Roger McDowell and lefthanded reliever John Franco. Also on that night, Mike Piazza hits a two-run home run in the seventh inning that is the 328th of his career, moving him past Johnny Bench for second place on the all-time list for homers by a catcher. Piazza's blast also makes him the National League leader for home runs as a catcher.

August - The Mets go 0-13 at Shea for the month. They became the third team in Major League history to go winless at home during a calendar month with a minimum of 10 decisions. The 1969 Seattle Pilots went 0-13 in August and the 1996 Detroit Tigers were 0-16 in September.

September 3 - The Mets drop the first game of a doubleheader to the Marlins, establishing a new National League record with their 15th consecutive home defeat. The Boston Braves held the previous mark with 14 straight losses at home in 1911.

September 5 - Armando Benitez earns his 30th save against Florida, becoming the first Met in franchise history to record three consecutive seasons with 30 or more saves.

September 7 - Mets manager Bobby Valentine is named the recipient of the prestigious Branch Rickey Award, which honors individuals in baseball who contribute unselfishly to their community and are strong role models for others. He is the first non-player to be honored with the award.

October 1 - After six-plus years with the Mets, Bobby Valentine is relieved of duties as manager.

October 28 - Art Howe is hired as the 17th manager in franchise history.

2003

April 11-14 - The Mets played their first ever series in Puerto Rico against the Montreal Expos.

April 20 - John Franco returns from Tommy John surgery and appears in his 1000th Major League game in the second game of a double-header with the Brewers.

April 22 - Mike Piazza cracks his 350th home run against the Houston Astros.

June 15 - Jose Reyes becomes the second player in Mets history to have his first Major League home run be a grand slam and becomes the youngest player (20 years, 4 days) in the league to hit a grand slam since Tony Conigliaro in 1964.

August 15 - Tom Glavine gets his 250th win against the Colorado Rockies.

August 28 - Jose Reyes becomes the youngest player in Major League history to hit a home run from both sides of the plate against the Atlanta Braves.

September 25 - Bob Murphy's final game after 42 years as Voice of the Mets. . .Murph at the end of the 3-1 loss to Pittsburgh: "I'll say goodbye now to everybody. Stay well out there, wherever you may be. I've enjoyed the relationship with you."

2004

May 5 - Mike Piazza set the major league mark for home runs by a catcher with his 352nd career home run in the first inning of an 8-2 win over the Giants.

2006

April 6 - Mets unveil architectural and design plans for their new ballpark, a 45,000-seat venue to be built in the outfield parking lot between Shea Stadium and 126th Street.

September 18 - Mets clinched the NL East with a 4-0 win over Florida.

October 4 - Two Dodgers were tagged out at home as the Mets beat Los Angeles 6-5 in Game One of the NLDS.

October 19 - Endy Chavez made one of the best catches in postseason history in Game Seven of the NLCS but Cards prevail, 3-1 on Yadier Molina's two-run ninth-inning HR.

November 13 - At the ceremonial groundbreaking for their new ballpark, Mets announce exclusive 20-year, multifaceted strategic marketing and business partnership with Citigroup, including the naming rights for Citi Field.

2007

August 5 - Tom Glavine recorded his 300th win against the Cubs in Wrigley.

September 3 - Pedro Martinez records his 3,000th strikeout against Cincinnati.

2008

April 8 - Mets open their 45th and final season at Shea Stadium vs. Phillies. The Mets retire the name "Shea".

September 26 - Announced that Game Six of the 1986 World Series has been voted by fans as the top Shea Stadium moment of all-time (The Top 10 Moments were selected by the fans throughout the summer on mets.com, losmets.com, and sny.tv).

September 28 - Mets play their final game at Shea Stadium and fall to the Florida Marlins 4-2. Following the game, a post-game Shea Goodbye ceremony celebrated the greatest players in Mets history. The ceremonial final pitch was thrown by Tom Seaver to Mike Piazza.

2009

March 29 - Citi Field opens its doors for the first time to host a college baseball game.

April 13 - Opening Day! Mets open their Inaugural season at Citi Field, their new world class home. David Wright records the first Mets hit at Citi Field with a double in the bottom of the 1st inning.

April 15 - Mets win first game at Citi Field 7-2 over the Padres. Oliver Perez is the winning pitcher.

April 17 - Gary Sheffield hits his 500th career homerun against the Milwaukee Brewers.