Reflecting on the 2000 Subway Series

 

The New York Mets are on the verge of losing the World Series. It didn’t have to be this way however. Some people would say that it is because of lack of batting.  I for one am sure it is the splintered bat that was thrown at their best player. It is a bully tactic employed by a notorious thrower (headhunter) that worked.  It was an opportunity that the New York METS badly fouled up. The Mets put up a mild uprising that was very tame compared to the hazardous thing that Clemens did.  It’s always nice to say “let’s answer with good hitting at the plate.”  For the mild charge toward mount, Clemens would later say,

 

 If Piazza never walked out toward me, the benches probably never would have emptied”). He even suggests it was Piazza's fault he got beaned in July ("I hit Alfonzo in the shoulder with the same ball that Piazza couldn't get away from because he dives!”). He also says it was Piazza who treated him badly afterward. "I tried to call Piazza to see if he was OK, but nobody wants to write that. Yet I've got two trainers and a team doctor who are livid because we called over there and someone over there told us to go in our hat! So Piazza could care less.” (as reported by NEWSDAY).

 

 But that is exactly what the METS didn’t do, overanxious and swinging the bat so badly and almost screwing their feet to the ground. 

 

Agbayani is an original Filipino name but he lacks the fire that Filipino has.  He doesn’t have that bad blood. If you don’t know what I am talking about just watch the All-Filipino basketball tournament here in the United States.  No one can bully another player because if you do it to a bunch of little guys especially those who are born in the Philippines (“bakbakan or labo-labo”) will kill you for it.  I do believe that had one Met threw a tantrum at Clemens, a fight would break out.  The worst thing that could happen is a couple of METS and Clemens would be thrown out of the game.  A wild Mets win is better than a classy loser. In the words of Leo Dorocher, good guys never win.

 

My wife would say that the team would win because she is praying for Agbayani and the METS.  I say don’t waste prayers; we should take care of the devil first and that is the Filipino way. My wife gave me this answer (the hidden life of Jesus) . When Jesus Christ was a young kid, according to the Gospel of Thomas, he was in a fight with a bully around his neighborhood and accidentally killed the bad boy. His mother Mary reprimanded him and he felt so sorry for such action. He quickly acted by giving the dead boy first aid by resuscitating him. The boy was back to life and walked away. No one will ever know whatever happened to that boy but God is watching us. According to my wife, this is the lesson we all should learn, the love of your neighbor or even your worst enemy. Maybe   Agbayani has a well-deserved place in heaven and so does his whole team- the New York METS. Who knows maybe next year they will make it. We live in hope. Everything will pass and good deeds are not forgotten, chuckled my wife. 

 

The New York Yankees will win the World Series and they deserve it.  Agbayani and the METS will lose gracefully. The bully making millions of dollars would be fined 50,000 dollars.  Fan (fanatic) is always a sore loser. Life is not fair but then again Agbayani had his chance and that’s all we asked for. Had his team had more of that eye of the man-eating tiger, the bully probably might have learned his lesson. It was cool to watch someone with original Pinoy name playing this great                
American pastime. He might be just making $225,000 per season paled if you compare with the multimillionaire players today but his rise to being folk hero in New York is almost the story of the Filipino people.

 

I knew the World Series was over at the start of the second game when Mike Piazza came to the plate facing Roger Clemens for the first time since being knocked down by the bean ball from same pitcher last July.  After couple of legal inside pitches, Roger broke Mike’s bat. Roger then gathered one of other the sharp piece and hurled it.  Piazza who was running to first base tried to evade the missile thrown at him at great velocity. The Mets lost the chance to get even at this point.  They should strike the Roger but instead they got struck out the rest of the game.   New York will be celebrating the Victory on the famous Canyon of Heroes and among them Roger Clemens and his apologist. They include the Mayor of New York who is even asking the school children of New York to skip school just to watch a role model.

 

I could not see straight through this as you could tell but I would be ready next time the bully pitch against the Met, you would see a bang-bang play with my “paltic” on the stand. The bully will be salvaged.

 

Yesterday, the New York finest raided counterfeit factory and arrested vendors of counterfeit Logo shirt of the NY Yankees. They should check also for fake shirt  with Clemens face.  For the rest of the Yankees, this is your great day.

 

This is an excerpt of Agbayani’s earlier interview before the World Series.

 

 — No longer a role player, New York Mets outfielder Benny Agbayani wants to be a role model.

"The kids are going to act the way you act," Agbayani said. "If I go out there and start swearing, throwing (my) helmet all over the place, things like that, there are going to be kids in the Little League doing that

"One day, if a kid asks (another child), Why are you doing that?’ they will say, Oh, I saw Benny Agbayani do it on TV.’

"I always remember I wear No. 50 to represent the state of Hawaii, so the kids can see me on TV. They can say, One day I want to be like Benny Agbayani.’ "

 


Please E-mail me at phix7@yahoo.com