Wow, maybe it’s time I close out Season 2, huh? It seems as if I’ve got Jose Reyes syndrome going on for the past month or so. Whatever happened to this team has definitely expanded beyond the bounds of the organization and I am a perfect example.
Sure, I have excuses; I was extremely busy at work the last few months; I really didn’t want to have anything to do with Mets baseball the last 3 weeks; I was tired; I was lazy. The bottom line is, I just didn’t get the job done. And for that, I apologize.
Anyway, given the state of the team at the time of our final 7-Pack game, I really felt the need to break out the Roy Hobbs jersey one more time, hoping to squeeze out a little more magic. Little did I know, I brought the karma of the book instead of the movie with me. (SPOILER ALERT: If you haven’t read the book, don’t read the next line.
1) Despite the fact we were forced to park on the train station side of the old parking lot, J-Nic and I made it in plenty of time for the last tailgate of 2007. (Of course at the time, it was only thought to have been the last tailgate of the regular season, not the year.)
2) I really missed that KFC. (Still finger-lickin’ good!)
3) We decided as a group to bring nothing but our A-game tonight. (Lord knows this team needed it.)
4) So, as we’re walking into the stadium, Kozy Snacks people were handing out free puddings outside, so J-Nic grabbed one and began scooping away at his chocolate pudding immediately. I, on the other hand, waited until we reached the seats, only to find that mine was not chocolate, but RICE PUDDING!!! My immediate reaction was, “It’s gonna be a good night.” (Really, how could anything have gone wrong???)
5) Weather report…it’s friggin hot in here. (It was a good 80 degrees, but 150% humidity. (Awful)
6) Amazingly, Dan is not sweating. (I swear this kid is unflappable.)
"They don't call him the best dressed fan in the game for nothin', folks!"
7) Tonight’s homerun game: J-Nic: Wright, Me: Beltran, Mike: Alou, Alex: Gomez, Dan: Wright, Tara: Reyes, Kerri: Castillo, Jen: Alou, Rich: Delgado, Laura: Delgado, Caron: Lo Duca, Bruce: Lo Duca. (Note: Kerri was late, so when she asked me who was available, as I looked through the list, I didn’t even realize I was the only one who took Beltran. Foreshadowing…)
8) By the way, this was Phil Humber’s first career start. (And he looks damn good after one inning.)
9) Jose is killing us, absolutely killing us. (He really needed one of those Jimmy Dugan eruptions to kick him in the ass. Unfortunately, Willie’s the manager.)
10) That’s why David Wright is David Wright, two out single bringing up….
11) BELTRAN BOMB!!!!!!!! ALL MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE I’M 11 DOLLARS RICHER!!!!! (Remember that foreshadowing? Yeah, I felt bad when Kerri said, “You didn’t tell me Beltran was available. I tried to share my winnings, but Kerri didn’t want any, so I bought her a hot dog.)
12) ALOUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!!!!!! Back to Back, 3-0 Mets!!! (All with two outs, it’s gonna be a good night).
13) Nice work by the kid to get out of a first and second, one out jam. (Come on kid, just give us 5 or 6 innings. Hold steady.)
14) Not gonna lie, not only did the 7-Packers bring it, all of Section 15 brought it. (The 2-strike claps were resounding.)
15) Carlos Gomez is fast. (Really fast)
16) Okay, so the Twins have a 4-3 lead on the Tigers, but nobody is pitching for either team. (I don’t think the scoreboard operators care anymore)
17)
18) “Come on Carlos, make me richer!” BOOM!!!! (YEAAAAAAAAAAAAH 5-0 Mets.)
19) I don’t know why, but for some reason, I can’t get a bad feeling out of me. (How can they blow this?)
20) 2 runs for the Nats in the 4th on a Ryan Church, (Met killer) two-run homer.)
21) Wright, Beltran and Alou again get it done with 2 outs. 6-2 Mets (Still, I feel uneasy.)
22) AND…..there it is. Walk, single, double, double, single, pitching change, strikeout, double, strikeout and it’s 7-6. (A couple things here,
23) Great response by the Mets as they go 1-2-3 in the bottom half of the inning. (I’m getting bitter.)
24) At least Feliciano is getting it done, 1-2-3 in the sixth.
25) Wright’s inning ending double play in the bottom half was a stinger.
26) “It’s because your tongue is numb from making out with the bat!” (Laura to Gomez after grounding out to short.)
27) Mike’s going out on a limb and predicting that he will be singing “Enter Sandman” waving his lucky peanuts, “I’m gonna call them Lars.” (Yes, we’re desparate.)
28) X-factor found the lucky peanut, a shell with 3 nuts in it. Things are looking up. (Yes, it’s gotten that bad.)
29) I soon followed with another lucky 3 nut shell. Upon telling X, he exclaimed, “I ate the whole thing, shell and all. If you want this team to win, you will eat the whole thing. (Of course I ate it. I’m a Mets fan!)
30) Ever since the 5th inning, it’s as if the wind was totally sucked out of the stadium. This crowd is dead. Completely dead.
31) Well, Laura and Rich have had enough. (This is not good.)
32) Mike was right, it’s Sandman time, even though we’re down 2 runs. (He was still right.)
33) Wags, of course, can’t get it done in a non-save situation and two more runs score. (My tummy hurts. Damn, lucky peanuts!)
34) “Hey! I never said you had to eat the shell.”~Mike (Always the voice of reason)
35) Right after Church’s two-run double, the masses headed for the exits and my temper headed for the skies. Let’s just say, without cursing, I told everyone where they could stick their pride and to never let me see them in Shea Stadium again. (Really, I don’t care how bad it got, there’s no excuse to walk out on your team in their time of need. Sure they got swept by the Nats, but that was even more disgraceful.)
And so the 2007 7-Pack ended on what was such a high hope-filled season. It wasn’t our best I will say, from the standpoint of the crowd around us. These people just weren’t into it. We sorely missed Jumpsuit Jim, and our neighbors, although nice people, did not have that passion. I really hope 2008 brings a little more life to our section. One thing is for certain, the 7-Packers were never quiet, especially in that last game. We brought our A-game and I’m proud of the crew for that.
I still have the Maine Event’s final start of the season, the Season 2 Finale and even a Giants blog. Hopefully, I’ll be able to get to all of them today.
