Herb G - Mariano Rivera and The Greatest Game I Ever Attended

The incomparable Mariano Rivera, without doubt the greatest closer ever, just announced his retirement at the end of this season. Although I am no Yankee fan, far from it since I root for ABTY in the AL, I have to acknowledge the excellence of a player like Mariano. (Just as I continue to believe that the Babe was, far and away, the greatest baseball player of all time.) That said, I have to say that Mariano’s announcement leads me to reminisce about the most exciting ball game I ever attended and Mariano’s part in it.

The date was July 10, 1999. My daughter had just completed her residency in Dallas three weeks earlier, the family was all together for the first time in years and we celebrated with tickets to this Subway Series game. We had field box seats behind the Mets dugout, and in a box just across the aisle from us was a group of very raucous Yankee fans. Needless to say there was a lot of trash talking even before the game began.

The game started ominously. With one out in the top of the first, after a Bernie Williams single, Paul O’Neill homered to deep right center. Yanks up 2-0 and the guys across the aisle razzed us mercilessly. The Mets came back to tie the score with an RBI double by Mike Piazza in the bottom of the first and then, in the bottom of the second, a walk to Roger Cedeno, a steal of second, a steal of third, and a sac fly by Rey Ordonez. The guys across the aisle were quiet.

The Mets took the lead with 2 runs in the bottom of the fourth on a Robin Ventura double and Rey O’s 2^nd sac fly. You have to believe that we gave those guys across the aisle every bit of what they had given us and more. Our joy was short lived, however, when the Yanks led off the top of the fifth with back-to-back homers by Ricky Ledee and Jorge Posada. Tie score again and advantage to the guys across the aisle. Then O’Neill leads off the sixth with his second homer and those guys are all over us once again. In the seventh the Yanks extend their lead to 2 runs on a Chuck Knoblauch home run. This time the ecstasy across the aisle didn’t last long. A Rickey Henderson double, a walk to John Olerud and a 3 run blast by, who else, Mike Piazza puts the Mets in front 7-6. We’re going crazy. Oh-oh, only minutes later Posada puts the Yanks back on top 8-7 with his 2^nd home run, the Yankees 6^th of the day. The guys across the aisle are screaming at us at the top of their lungs and giving us the thumbs down sign.

It’s beginning to look bleak, and it looks even bleaker when the Mets go down 1-2-3 in the bottom of the eighth against Mike Stanton and we have to face Mr. Automatic, Mariano Rivera in the ninth. With one out in the bottom of the ninth, Rivera walks Rickey Henderson, and Edgardo Alfonzo follows with a double. Men on 2^nd and 3^rd, so after a ground out by Olerud, Rivera does the smart thing and intentionally walks Piazza. Two out and Bobby Valentine sends Matt Franco up to pinch hit for Melvin Mora. The count goes to 1-2, the Mets are down to their last strike, and Franco strokes a single to right field. Two runs score, Mets win, the crowd goes absolutely crazy, and of course we aren’t letting those guys across the aisle off easy. Thank you Mariano.

We left Shea totally exhausted, hoarse beyond belief, but walking on air. Five lead changes, and with each one either jubilation or despair. Best game ever. Seriously, best game ever. And I’ve been at some pretty good games, like Robin Ventura’s grand slam single, Todd Pratt’s 10^th inning homer against Arizona over Steve Finley’s stunted leap, and Bobby Jones 1 hitter against the Giants.