While the Mets hold a 2-0 advantage after 4 innings in their home opener against Philly —- Carlos Delgado (above) having hit his first HR of the season, a solo shot to right field off 3000 year old Jamie Moyer — Newsday’s Neil Best has revealed that SNY is adding Darryl Strawberry to their pre and postgame shows as a studio analyst.
Though I’m certain Darryl can’t do any worse than the formaldehyde-oozing Lee Mazzilli, there’s at least one prominent member of the NYPD that might’ve prefered Wally Backman.
Hey look, the Mets bullpen blew the lead! Shocker!
They were doing fine until SNY’s Kevin Burkhardt interviewed Craig Carton (who chastised Burkhardt for doing the interview during the game — where do people like this come from? Do they ever stop being like that?) and the mumbling shell of Boomer Esiason. So I’ll just blame them for that. Although Aaron Heilman’s running a close second.
Its obvious that the Mets vs Phils rivalry has seriously taken hold as there was a palpable level of excitement in Philadelphia today. I work in the Independence Mall area and all the pubs were having gameday specials to entice the many people who juked their lunch hour to catch the first few innings. Those of us who had to go back to work after 2-3 innings were relieved that the game was not at CBP where the Mets would likely of had 2 more HRs in addition to Delgados jack by the end of the 2nd. From watching the replay broadcast this evening, no doubt the pivotal play of the game was when Chase Utley absorbed his 4th ball in play of the game that hit (or nicked) his body when he took a wide right route and turned what should have been a DP into the play that got the Phillies back into the game. Shane Victorino also took one for the team when he did his own version of Aaron Rowands famous catch by managing to hold on to a hauled down gapper while having the rather large Jason Werth slam into him at full force.
This was just great fun for us Philllies phans, but I do feel a twinge of sympathy for Mets fans (or recognition, at least) as the woes they are having against the Phillies is very reminiscent of what the Phillies went through in 2003-2004 against the Marlins when they couldnt even steal a win against the Marlins and where so many of those games were lost in a most unseemly manner. But hey, this could end tomorrow.