David Justice enjoyed many highlights in his 14-season career: Two World Series (one with the New York Yankees), a Rookie of the Year, three All-Star nods and 305 home runs, to name a few.
But one of the lowlights occurred in the final years of his career when he (briefly) landed with the New York Mets in December 2001 via a trade with the Yankees for Robin Ventura.
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“When I got traded to the Mets, man, I was like there’s no way I could play with the Mets,” Justice said on the “Flippin’ Bats” podcast with Ben Verlander on Wednesday. “Because when I play for a team, it means something to me. And I played with the Braves — couldn’t stand the Mets. I played with the Yankees — I really don’t like the Mets. And you’re asking me to leave this allegiance that I have internally — because it’s more than just a unform to me — to go play for the Mets? I hate the Mets. I was so happy when they traded me. I was so happy when they traded me to Oakland.”
Luckily for Justice, he was only a Met from Dec. 7 to Dec. 14 when the Mets sent him packing for Mark Guthrie and Tyler Yates. Perhaps they knew Justice’s internal struggle, one he said he never told anyone about because a reporter he didn’t name tipped him off to another trade in the works.
“When I got the call that I was traded to the Mets — in that conversation, or maybe my next conversation — I did an interview with some reporter and the reporter mentioned to me, ‘Hey, David, hold tight because I heard you are going to be traded back to the American League,’” Justice told Verlander. “So that gave me hope. And then all of a sudden a couple days later, boom, traded to Oakland. Happy as can be.
Justice, an outfielder, originally landed with the Yankees via a trade with Cleveland for Zach Day, Ricky Ledée and Jake Westbrook in June 2000. That season, the Yankees won a World Series with Justice a major part. With the Yankees, as a 34-year-old, Justice hit .305/.391/.585 with 20 home runs and 60 RBIs (145 OPS+, the third-highest of his career) in 78 regular-season games. While he didn’t produce to the level in the playoffs — he batted .206 with a .728 OPS with three home runs and 12 RBIs — he still captured ALCS MVP and got two RBIs in a Game 1 World Series win against the Mets, his hated team.
In 2001, Justice had a .241/.333/.430 line with 18 home runs and 51 RBIs in 111 games (439 plate appearances). He again was a part of a team that reached the World Series, though the Yankees fell short against the Arizona Diamondbacks. Justice had a .233 average and .712 OPS with one home and five RBIs.
He reached the playoffs the next season, his last, with Oakland, making it 10 postseason trips. And he never had to suffer by wearing a Mets jersey.
