Do You Remember When Four NY Mets’ Players Got Arrested in Texas?

The date: July 20, 1986. The location: Cooter's Executive Games and Burgers in Houston, Texas. The time: roughly two in the morning.

Sounds like a recipe for success, doesn't it?

Well, all three of those details match the whereabouts of four New York Mets' players on that evening. The players in question? Ron Darling, Tim Teufel, Bob Ojeda and Rick Aguilera. Three pitchers and a position player, all of whom had snuck out after team curfew to have a night on the town.

It was at that bar, deep in the heart of Texas, where the quartet of Mets found themselves in trouble with the law.

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Do You Remember Four Mets Being Arrested Outside a Bar in Houston, Texas?

The four Mets mentioned above were arrested on this night in 1986 after an altercation with two local policemen, that left Teufel "severely beaten" according to the article written on the incident by The New York Times.

The four players were placed in a holding cell for 11 total hours, from roughly 2 A.M. until one in the afternoon, before posting bail and being released to the team. Darling and Teufel got the worst of the charges, being charged with aggravated assault on a police officer, costing them each $8,000 in bail money. Ojeda and Aguilera received lesser charges, both receiving charges for hindering an arrest. Both were hit with $800 bail totals.

All four team members were fined by team manager Davey Johnson, who said to the media that his first team rule was "not to embarrass the team" in any sort of way. The location where the players were arrested was immediately banned by Johnson, as well.

Attorney Dick DeGuerin made the following statement on behalf of the players:

"...the four players involved in the incident would it like made public that they feel they were unduly assaulted by police personnel on the scene and that one of the players, Tim Teufel, was in fact severely beaten by the police.'' Dick DeGuerin as reported by The New York Times

While it doesn't get discussed all that much in 2022, this incident makes for an interesting footnote in what is probably the most famous year in the history of the New York Mets.

What Happened to the Four New York Mets' Players After the Incident?

Well, first and foremost, all four would receive World Series rings as part of the 1986 World Series Champion New York Mets. So, it could've gone worse for them, it appears.

Darling was 25 at the time, and was in year four of what would turn out to be nine-year tenure with the Mets. He would win 136 games in his career, retiring after the 1995 season. He can be heard nightly as a color analyst for the team.

Teufel, meanwhile, was in his first season with the Mets, and fourth in the league. He would go on to have his best statistical season with the team in 1987, hitting over .300 for his second and final time. Teufel was a coach with the team from 2011 through 2016, and is currently a minor league instructor and club ambassador.

Ojeda was in his first year with the franchise, and in the middle of what was probably the best year of his career. He would tie his high in games pitched with one team with the Mets over five years, throwing in 140, the same amount he pitched in over six years with the Boston Red Sox. He worked as a studio analyst for the team from 2009 through 2014.

Lastly, Aguilera was in his second year in the league, and was pre-dominantly a starting pitcher at the time, though he'd transition to the bullpen later in his career. He pitched in 732 career games, 114 with the Mets, retiring after the 2000 season.