This is the first team history of the New York Mets'”or any other team'”to be told through a lighthearted analysis of uniform numbers. Ordinary club histories proceed year by year to give the big picture. Mets by the Numbers uses jersey numbers to tell the little stories'”the ones the fans love'”of the team and its players. This is a catalog of the more than 700 Mets who have played since 1962, but it is far from just a list of No. 18s and 41s. Mets by the Numbers celebrates the team's greatest players, critiques numbers that have failed to attract talent, and singles out particularly productive numbers, and numbers that had really big nights. With coverage of superstitions, prolific jersey-wearers, the ever-changing Mets uniform, and significant Mets numbers not associated with uniforms, this book is a fascinating alternative history of the Amazin's.

Jon Springer runs the acclaimed Mets by the Numbers website (www.mbtn.net). He lives in Brooklyn, New York. Matthew Silverman is the author of Mets Essential, and the editor of The 2005 ESPN Baseball Encyclopedia. He lives in High Falls, New York.