Seaver is Still Unsigned; Veteran Set to Retire

NEW YORK--Tom Seaver, whose pitching was the catalyst that transformed the New York Mets from a baseball joke to a world champion, is essentially retired after 311 wins and a raft of major league records, his agent said yesterday.

Matt Merola, who represents Seaver in a variety of ventures, said the 42-year-old pitcher had not received any offers from major league teams since his contract with the Boston Red Sox expired at the end of last season.

Seaver was not available for comment, and Merola said the pitcher is declining all requests for interviews.

Like other Class A free agents who didn't sign with another team, Seaver would have been eligible to rejoin the Red Sox May 1. But Merola said that question appeared moot.

Is it Over?

"He's made it clear he wants to play in New York or Boston and I don't think that's going to happen," Merola said of Seaver, who lives in Greenwich, Conn.

"I don't even discuss it with him. I assume he has retired," the agent said. "I think he's very content to let it go. He's essentially retired."

Seaver spent the first 10-plus seasons of his 20-year career with the Mets, joining them in 1967 when they were still an expansion doormat. He posted a 16-13 record with a very low earned run average and was named NL rookie of the year.

He was 16-12 the next year with a 2.20 ERA as the Mets finished ninth in the 10-team National League. He leaped to stardom along with the team the next season when he went 25-7 with a 2.21 ERA as the Miracle Mets won the National League East title in the first year of divisional play, the NL pennant and finally the World Series over the Baltimore Orioles.

For his career, which included five and a half years with the Cincinnati Reds, another year with the Mets, then two and a half with the Chicago White Sox and a half-season with the Red Sox, he had a record of 311-205 with a 2.86 ERA and 3,640 strikeouts. He is third on the current all-time strikeout list behind Nolan Ryan, a teammate on the 1969 Mets, and Steve Carlton.

Seaver won his 300th game against the New York Yankees two years ago when he posted a 16-11 mark and a 3.17 ERA for the White Sox. But last year, troubled by a knee injury, he was 2-6 for Chicago, then had his wish fulfilled and was traded to Boston, for whom he had a 7-7 record.

Seaver also struck out 19 San Diego Padres on April 22, 1970, the same game in which he struck out 10 in a row. That tied Carlton and Ryan for the major league single-game record until Roger Clemens of the Red Sox broke it last year.