With McGraw, the Phillies had two 101-win seasons and their first World Series championship. The Mets, meanwhile, had two mediocre seasons, then descended to the bottom of the National League for seven years. In his first season as a Met, Stearns spent as the backup catcher behind veteran Jerry Grote. Grote had been the Mets' regular catcher since , including every inning of every postseason game for both the 1969 World Series champions and the 1973 NLCS champions. As Grote's backup, Stearns batted only .189 in 1975.