Instant Lost Classic?

Chalk last night's game up as yet another example of the killer instinct the Mets have had over the past two seasons. While what El Guapo says is true, that it does require some degree of luck to have put up W's in games like this (see, for example, May 5, 2006), there's also something to be said of the intangible qualities that some of the lesser known Mets bring to the table. I'm going to slip into Bob Costas mode for a moment, and get a little schmaltzy (forgive me for this), but this is, indeed, the beauty of baseball. In basketball, when the game is on the line, you want the ball in your best player's hand. In football, you want the play to go to your best receiver. But in baseball, you don't always have that option. Sure, with two out, and nobody on in the last of the 10th, down by a run, you want the guy who can pop the ball out of the ballpark. But that's usually never the case, and sometimes, the last guy you expect to pop the ball out of the ballpark does just that.

That's not a knock on Easley, he's been an All Star, 100 RBI guy. But those days are over for him, and as any ballplayer will attest, it's not easy to just come off the bench, take a couple of strikes and suddenly knock one out of the ballpark. But Easley said after the game that he felt "calm" and "relaxed" at the plate. But that's the kind of player you want coming off the bench. Mostly unflappable under any situation. And Endy is the same way. We've written plenty about Endy in here, so I'm not bringing up anything new, but playing the game the way he has, and helping this team the way he has over the past two seasons really has made him the Mets folk hero. Again, you're looking at a player who can come through under any particular circumstance, and a player who does not panic. He'll get more ink than Easley because he can often do something spectacular, but spectacular or not, he gets the job done, and both he and Easley did exactly that last night.

In the larger scheme of things, this game will most likely be forgotten. You certainly won't see replays on SNY in December. So, let's award last night's game an instant Lost Classic, and another feather in the cap for a couple of unsung heroes. And from a fan's perspective, this is the beauty of this team right now. Here are two players that, when they were signed, we all asked what on earth the Mets were doing bringing in guys like this. But these are the types of players that do the little things to win games that are late and close, and it's what makes a good team with a little luck into a great team with a lot of luck.