No Steak, Just Cheese For Philly

It's about time someone else got booed.

It's always hard to imagine how another team feels after losing this type of game...maybe it's the defeatist in me that feels that these kind of games always happen to the Mets.

But the Philadelphia Phillies are going to look at this game, a game where they had a 3 run lead on the Mets in the eighth inning, as a game where not only they should have won, but a game they had in the bag. A game where the Mets were at the poker table across from death, and went all in by walking Bobby Abreu to get to Pat Burrell.

Yeah, that Pat Burrell.

The same Pat Burrell that hit a ball ten miles of of Shingo "Mr. 60 miles and hour" Takatsu for his 30th career home run against the Mets in his career.

Now that's what you call tempting fate. Either batter would have been poison, and it was the ultimate "damned if you do, damned if you don't" situation. But there would have been something sadly symbolic about getting eliminated at the hands of Pat Burrell.

Instead, of all things, a check swing tapper to the pitcher to end the game.

The Phillies just experienced their Terry Pendleton game.

I have to tell you, spoiling other teams doesn't exactly give me goose bumps. But spoiling other teams the way the Mets did it tonight? That's another matter entirely.

Don't get me wrong. I'll wake up tomorrow back to my old grumpy self as the Mets still face 6 match points at the hands of baseball's version of Roger Federer...elimination an inevitability, and with a long off-season ahead...especially if the Yankees spend another October on FOX. But tonight, as long as you're awake, feel free to feel good about this one. Because at the very least, the Mets haven't thrown in the towel and completely given up as in years past. Cliff Floyd is turning out to be correct...this team is different from the 2002 and 2003 and 2004 versions. This team, even as a spoiler, and even after they are finally eliminated, has a heartbeat.