Stone was a journeyman starter for the Braves who was acquired by the Mets in November 1972, after his worst season (6-11, 5.51), along with Felix Millan in exchange for Gary Gentry and Dan Frisella. The trade was vital to the Mets’ surprise 1973 NL pennant. Stone was 12-3 with a 2.80 ERA in that season, his best, and won eight straight decisions at the end of the year as the Mets vaulted from last to first. He made up for an incident the previous season, when his pitch broke Rusty Staub‘s hand, depriving the contending Mets of their best hitter for the balance of the season. In Game Three of the 1973 LCS, Stone pitched six innings of shutout ball, but then surrendered a solo homer to Tony Perez, tying the game, which was won by the Reds in the 12th inning. He was never effective again, posting ERAs above 5.00 the next two seasons before he was released.
