NEW YORK Tom Seaver transformed a franchise and captivated a city, setting enduring standards as he whipped his powerful right arm overhead for the Miracle Mets and dirtied his right knee atop major league mounds for two decades. Said ex-Mets closer and captain John Franco: As a kid, you always wanted to be Tom Seaver." Tom Seaver hated to lose, said Jerry Grote, his longtime Mets catcher. We just left New York, and every time you walk in a door there, its like Tom Seaver Hall, with different pictures." Tom Seaver was a star at the University of Southern California and was drafted by Atlanta in 1966.