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The drama has been endless between ex-NY (NL) and forever more NY (NL) at Shea.
Actually it ends this afternoon at Shea. Some highlights -- there are so many I assume I'll miss something good.
TOP OF THE ORDER
TAKE...
--Game 3 NLDS, Benny in 13! (10/7/00)
...THAT!
--Game 4 NLDS, Bobby in 9 with 1! (10/8/00)
HISTORICALLY OVERWHELMING
ALL DAY AND ALL OF THE NIGHT
--The 32-inning doubleheader (5/31/64)
HOMEWARD BOUND (5/14/72)
--Willie abandons SF, powerfully embraces NY
AND A WHOLE LOT OF THAT WHICH IS AMAZIN'
ROCKY WINS (8/4/66)
--Swoboda three-run walkoff shocks Bill Henry
KOOZ DEBUTS (4/17/68)
--Jerry shuts out Jints in Home Opener, throws down rookie gauntlet; JK's first Shea win
SWEEP! SWEEP! SWEEP? (6/1/69)
--First Mets sweep of PG forebears at Shea; fourth game of eventual eleven-game winning streak; winning rally in ninth was a walk, a bunt, an FC groundout, an intentional walk, a steal, a walk, a walk.
CAGEY AGEE (8/19/69)
--14th inning, 0-0, Marichal STILL pitching, Tommie swings and ends it 1-0; Gentry went 10, McGraw the next four
THE SKY IS FALLING (8/25/71)
--Dave Kingman's first Shea Stadium home run and, if I'm not mistaken, the legendary shot in which he breaks a bus window
WHAT'S A BULLPEN? (8/24/73)
--Koosman, Marichal duel into the tenth. Felix Millan singles home Ken Boswell who had been bunted into scoring position by...Willie Mays
THE GREAT COMBINATION (8/17/75)
--A 3-0 Mets win, Seaver goes 7-1/3, he's picked up by...Jerry Koosman? Indeed, Kooz gets the save, second of his career, part of Roy McMillan's brief experiment that gets Jerry on track for '76 (as I remember it)
WELCOME BACK CHICO (7/14/79)
--'69 Old Timers reunion, featuring Garrett Morris
HENDU DID IT (6/14/80)
--The Magic Was Back as Steve Henderson capped 0-6 comeback with three-run ninth inning blast off Allen Ripley to win 7-6; the curtain call may or may not have been invented that Saturday night
NEXT TIME START SOONER (5/5/81)
--Mets spot Giants nine runs, score seven in ninth, bring Mike Cubbage up as potential winning run; ends 9-7
RUSTY'S ANYTHING BUT (5/9/82)
--Walkoff HR for Staub off Greg Minton
OPERATION SUCCESSFUL (8/20/85)
--Doc strikes out 16 Giants, rises to 19-3
I CAN SEE! (8/22/85)
--Terry Leach makes spot start, three-hits Giants for 7-0 win...which is swell, but what I really remember is this was the first SportsChannel game I watched after getting hooked up for cable
TAKE NOTHING FOR GRANTED (5/30/86)
--Pop fly spectacularly mishandled by Giants infield in tenth
MITT A LITTLE HELP (9/3/86)
--Keith bounces to Terry Mulholland, ball sticks in Mulholland's glove, Mulholland throws ball and glove to first, Hernandez out; Mets win anyway
NO NO-NO, BUT OTHERWISE YES (5/11/87)
--Sid Fernandez takes no-hitter off mound in sixth with a knee injury; Sisk surrenders hit(s); in upper deck boxes, I have first date with someone seeing her first ballgame; we're married a long time now
ROARING SUCCESS (8/20/87)
--Down 4-3, day game catcher Barry Lyons launches a grand slam, sealing (with 4 IP in relief from David Cone) 7-4 win, capping spectacular run in which Mets have gone from 10 back less than a month earlier to 2-1/2 back (how did we not overtake the Cardinals?)
THE NATURAL (8/28/88)
--Gregg Jefferies called up, starts at third, singles and doubles in first two ABs, proceeds directly to Cooperstown
GOOSE COOKED (5/19/89)
--Still hanging on long after his peak effectiveness, Rich Gossage walks Howard Johnson to load the bases and Darryl Strawberry to lose the game in 10. Earlier baserunners Dykstra and Teufel were walked by Craig Lefferts -- with two out
THE ERA OF BRIEFLY GOOD FEELING (9/1/90)
--Julio Valera starts, Charlie O'Brien catches, Tommy Herr homers, Mets old and new win their fifth in a row to maintain first place as September dawns
I CALL THESE TWO PINCHY (5/4/91)
--Trailing 4-2 in ninth, Buddy Harrelson sends up pinch-hitter Mackey Sasser to lead off and he homers; then pinch-hitter Mark Carreon and he homers; HoJo, who started, homers in twelfth to win it (I listened to the end through earphones while at the movies -- "Defending Your Life")
WHAT A BARGAIN (6/1/92)
--Bobby Bonilla drives in six; of course he does; Mets win 14-1; of course they do
GRUCCI REDUX (7/3/93)
--Dave Telgheder wins third straight decision to start career on fireworks night and 44,000+ do the wave and pretend it's not 1993
FOREVER AND EVERETT (8/21/95)
--Rookie Carl Everett blasts two homers, rookie Bill Pulsipher throws seven solid innings, rookie Paul Byrd gets win in extra innings (while Shea sells soda in cups with picture of veteran Brett Butler, traded over the weekend)
HEARTS ON FIRE (8/31/96)
--Bobby V gets first Met managerial win
ONE FOR MOOKIE, ONE FOR TOMBY (9/1/96)
--Wilson inducted in Mets Hall; Lance Johnson, wearing 51 for the day, goes 3-for-5; Mets win in 10, Andy Tomberlin doubling and scoring
SNEAKING INTO TOWN (4/13/97)
--Having postpone Home Opener so as not to conflict with MFY flag-raising Friday and having been rained out Saturday, Mets open Shea season with dreadful twinbill loss on Sunday in front of nobody with little pomp (saving it all for JR Night two nights hence)
BONDS MARKET FIZZLES (8/5/98)
--Barry hits into 3-6-3 triple play
THAT MASKED MAN (5/1/99)
--John Franco honored for 400th save with a motorcycle; dude driving it takes off hemet and reveals himself to be Tug McGraw; Lee Smith flies all night to join surprisingly festive festivities Brian McRae hits grand slam; Mets win 8-4 as Franco is deprived save opportunity
CONTINUE TO TAKE NOTHING FOR GRANTED (5/2/99)
--Mets honor '69 Old Timers by channeling a play from '86: tied at 0-0 in ninth, Matt Franco scores on windblown pop fly over the shortstop's head...from first!
YOU COMPLETELY LOVED HIM THEN (9/6/99)
--Kenny Rogers throws first CG of Mets season, wins 3-0 on Labor Day
WHAT A NICE YOUNG MAN (8/12/00)
--Benny makes putout in fair territory, tosses ball to kid in stands, starts trotting off field...forgetting it was the second out and that there are runners on; takes ball back from kid who looks shocked and disappointed; I still wonder what's wrong with a kid who doesn't say "HEY, THERE'S TWO OUT!" Mets win anyway
HE COULD DO IT ALL ONCE IN A WHILE (8/25/01)
--Rey Ordonez walkoff single in eleventh keys Mets' third straight win early in their run toward 2001 almost-glory
BARRY WAKES UP (8/27/01)
--En route to 73 HRs, Bonds homers on Monday afternoon off Kevin Appier, first Shea dinger since 1995; Mets screwed on terrible call late in game
SCENE STEALER (8/12/03)
--Edgardo Alfonzo's return to Shea overshadowed by two Barry Bonds homers, Aaron Heilman's crafty start
SCENE STEALER BACK (8/13/03)
--Mike Piazza emerges from lengthy stay on DL with third-inning homer, just because he can
KING OF THE KATCHERS (5/5/04)
--Piazza sets backstop HR record, can now go on to long and fruitful career at 1B
STILL SWINGING, STILL CATCHING (5/6/04)
--Catcher Mike blasts 11th-inning shot to win it
HE'S NOT GONNA MAKE IT HERE, IS HE? (5/5/05)
--Kaz Matsui's best chance at redemption -- bases loaded, two out, Mets down by five...he strikes out and is booed relentlessly until being traded more than a year later; in nightcap, however, Cliff Floyd takes out frustrations for everybody with two homers in 12-1 romp
GENIUS MANAGING (6/3/06)
--In second game of twinbill where anybody who stayed is shivering, Willie Randolph inserts Lastings Milledge to pinch run at third, and Milledge scores on Chris Woodward's short sac fly
REACH OUT AND OFFEND SOMEBODY (6/4/06)
--Milledge hits two-run homer with two out in tenth to tie game off Armando Benitez; accepts congrats from fans in right field in top of eleventh; tsk?
ARMANDO, WE TOTALLY KNEW YE (5/29/07)
--Called on to preserve 4-3 lead in 12th, Benitez walks Reyes, balks Reyes...twice and surrenders moonshot to Carlos Delgado; Mets 5 Giants 4; Mets start rolling downhill from there, but what a peak
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