Boy, Am I Glad...

...that I was neither at, nor did I see any part of Saturday's game. Several prior engagements kept me out of the house and away from a TV or a radio for the majority of the afternoon, leaving me only the ability to check things out on my phone. Unlike a similar game the Mets played 3 years ago, this appeared to be matchup of the completely moribund, the lifeless Mets and the miserable Marlins, both of whom hadn't played a game in multiple days, and the rust was evident.

I'd like to tell you more about this 20-inning debacle, but I fortunately wasn't subjected to any of this. I can only tell you that I was periodically checking my phone throughout the afternoon. Early on, it was 1-0 Mets in the 3rd inning, which was good, particularly with Matt Harvey on the mound. Later, when I looked, it was 1-1 in the 6th. Then 1-1 in the 8th. Then, 1-1 in the 10th. Then, 1-1 in the 13th. Then, I was in transit, and stopped checking. Usually, I get a buzz on my phone when the game ends, but that didn't happen, and I guess at some point I forgot the game was still going on. I was on the subway for a while, so that precluded me from getting any updates for a spell. When I got off, my phone was buzzing off the hook. Apparently, the game had gone so unspeakably long that ESPN actually sent me an alert telling me that "Marlins and Mets tied, 1-1, in the 20th inning; Marlins P Kevin Slowey, Mets P Shaun Marcum 7 scoreless relief innings."

Unfortunately, above that was another alert that read "Marlins defeat Mets, 2-1, in 20 innings; 1st 20-inning MLB game since April 17, 2010 when Mets beat Cardinals 2-1."

After my initial thought of "Oh, dammit," my thoughts then turned to mild cheerfulness that I had missed the whole game. When the Mets and Cardinals played 20 in 2010, that was at a point in time when I didn't have a TV, let alone cable, and I was relegated to listening to a majority of the game on the radio. At some point, I recall falling asleep with the game on, waking up and being shocked to find that it was still going. If I'd sat through this game, I can only imagine the vitriol with which I'd be attacking the Mets offense, who once again made the Marlins pitching staff look like the 1970 Orioles. But, no. I missed it and I suppose that's a fortunate thing, because I don't have to remember any of it, and I believe we should never speak of it again.