But, oh wait. A trio of taters changed all that.
First, at about 4:15, Scott Schoeneweis gave up the go-ahead home run to Wes Helms. Then, in a matter of minutes afterward, Ryan Braun smacked a 2-out, 2-run shot to break the stalemate in Milwaukee. And in the middle of all this Luis Ayala allowed a second consecutive solo blast to Dan Uggla. And just like that the ties were broken. All at once the Brewers were up two and the Mets down just as many. You can't make this stuff up.
Of course, the Brewers went on to win (thanks to a complete game, 122-pitch display of dominance by the big C.C.), and the Mets were eliminated in the final game for the second straight year despite an almost-comeback off the bat of Ryan Church (it was hit far and deep, but no cigar). What a fitting end for such a situation.
On the Mets: They got what they deserved. Willie may have had his faults, but blaming and then firing him in that manner for what the guys on the field couldn't do was a stupid and reactionary move. Now what, Omar Minaya? You can't blame Randolph for the second epic failure in a row. Looks like you'll have to face the fact that the team you assembled just can't come through when it counts, even with Johan Santana. Karma will always come back to get you.
On the Brewers: As much as I also disliked the actions of this FO, I felt stronger towards the Mets. But this isn't to say that I want Milwaukee to keep winning. In fact, a first-round elimination would work out quite nicely. Aside from firing Yost, I'm still offended by the overuse of Sabathia. For one, by starting him all the time you're slapping the rest of the rotation in the face. But secondly, the man's got to tire eventually! He's run on three days rest for the past three (or is it two?) starts, throwing in excess of 100 pitches in each. Yes, I think the 100-pitch count warning is arbitrary, but it certainly gains some significance when it's crossed that many times in so few days. It's just bad managing. His arm's going to fall off soon, and it's totally going to screw over whoever picks him up in the offseason.
...but I'm sure the Brewers FO realizes the latter and just doesn't care. So the sooner the elimination the better (for the Yankees).
Anyway, that means the postseason eight are set. Oh wait, no they aren't. Naturally, Minnesota and Chicago both won today, which means the Chisox must play the makeup against Detroit tomorrow. It will either be a clinch or a 163rd game*. This could get interesting.
* This would also put Joe Mauer's second batting title into question, as he could fall behind 'Lil Dusty. Come on, Tigers!
I'd like to close this one out with some thought on the Yankees. New York finished the season with a record of 89-73. That's one shy of 90, 16 over .500, and 6 away from 95 wins (which, as I correctly predicted, won the AL Wild Card). The Yanks accomplished all this while:
- The Hughes and Kennedy experiment completely imploded,
- Wang, the staff ace, went down in June and never came back,
- Pettitte was finally on his last legs
- Melky reverted to a AAA player,
- Jeter didn't find himself until August,
- Cano didn't find himself until August,
- Both Arod and Jorge took stints on the DL (Jorge for much longer),
- Joba had a DL stint,
- Sidney Ponson was staff co-ace at one point, and
- They scored about 160 runs fewer than last year.
Oh, and: Congrats to Moose for picking up his 20th win for the first time in his career. 39 is better than never, eh? What a season he had.
