Post by musicradio77 on May 22, 2005 12:11:50 GMT -5
From the Daily News:
He's someone to Koo about
Lefty's hit & run steal Mets show
BY ANTHONY McCARRON
DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER
Last week, Dae-Sung Koo looked like a timid Little Leaguer striking out in his first major league at-bat. Yesterday, Koo drilled a long double to center off Randy Johnson in the seventh inning - cracking up his Met teammates - and then scored all the way from second on a sacrifice bunt in an improbable dash that shook up Shea.
With such an oddity so prominently stuck in the middle of the game, how else could the middle game of this Subway Series end but with a victory by the home team? The Mets won, 7-1, spanking Johnson and enjoying a strong outing by Kris Benson, four RBI by Jose Reyes, a homer by ex-Yankee Miguel Cairo, two RBI doubles by David Wright and Koo's star turn.
The crisp contest on a sunny afternoon was quite a switch from the bleak ballgame and weather Friday night, when the Yankees won a choppy opener. But Benson (2-1) showed the Yankees some delicate changes of speed in throwing six-plus shutout innings and the Met bullpen did the rest.
"It was nice to win and we have the chance to get two of three (today)," Mets manager Willie Randolph said. "We scored some runs and Kris pitched well. I'm pleased."
The only pockmarks on the afternoon for the Mets were two injuries - Carlos Beltran left the game with a right quad strain after grounding out in the fifth and Kaz Matsui suffered a stiff neck. The Yankees lost a star, too, perhaps only for one day, however. Derek Jeter left the game after getting drilled on the left elbow by a Benson pitch in the sixth. All three players are considered day-to-day. Jeter had X-rays, which were negative, the Yankees said, and the shortstop said he expects to play today.
There were 55,800 fans at Shea, the largest crowd to watch a Subway Series game, the Mets announced, and many of them were standing when Koo came off the mound with one out in the eighth. He pitched 1-1/3 scoreless innings, striking out three and enjoyed the day's most memorable moments. "He might not get another hit the rest of his career," Benson said, grinning, "so I don't care if he stole the spotlight on me."
Koo relieved Benson to face lefthanded-hitting Tino Martinez and retired the side, helped when Alex Rodriguez was caught breaking for second when Mike Piazza mishandled a pitch. After A-Rod was nailed on the Yanks' second poor baserunning play of the day - Tony Womack was doubled off second to end the sixth - Koo struck out Martinez and Jorge Posada to end the inning.
Koo, who said earlier in the week he hadn't hit since he was 10 and looked horrible in an at-bat Monday, then led off the bottom of the seventh with a double to deep center off Johnson. Reyes bunted in front of the plate to try to move Koo over and Posada fielded the ball and threw to first, but he and Johnson left the plate unguarded.
Koo didn't stop running. Posada sprinted back and got the relay from Robinson Cano several feet from the plate and dove to try to tag the Met reliever, but plate umpire Chuck Meriwether ruled Koo was safe, though replays showed that Posada may have tagged him a blink before the pitcher touched the plate.
The Mets' bench was giddy after Koo's hit - several players collapsed in laughter when the pitcher's drive neared the wall, recalling how clownish he had looked while striking out against the Reds Monday without swinging.
"He set us up," Piazza said. "I think he was kind've playing possum on us. We were all just kind of dumbfounded. Who is that guy? Not only that, but to get a hit off Randy Johnson in his second major-league at-bat? You got me. I guess you see something new every day."
"He pulled the okey-doke," Randolph added. "He made everybody think he can't swing the bat, but he could. Can run the bases, too. It lightened things up a little bit, man."
Then Randolph joked, "I'm going to bring him in as a pinch-hitter tomorrow, okay? Then we'll really have something to talk about."
Koo's run gave the Mets a 3-0 lead, and one batter later, Cairo hit his first homer to make it 4-0. The Mets scored three more times in the eighth, including a two-run triple by Reyes, to ice the game.
Benson, who allowed no runs and three hits in six-plus innings, got a standing ovation from many Mets fans when he left. He grabbed the bill of his cap in recognition of the cheers and disappeared into the dugout.
He's someone to Koo about
Lefty's hit & run steal Mets show
BY ANTHONY McCARRON
DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER
Last week, Dae-Sung Koo looked like a timid Little Leaguer striking out in his first major league at-bat. Yesterday, Koo drilled a long double to center off Randy Johnson in the seventh inning - cracking up his Met teammates - and then scored all the way from second on a sacrifice bunt in an improbable dash that shook up Shea.
With such an oddity so prominently stuck in the middle of the game, how else could the middle game of this Subway Series end but with a victory by the home team? The Mets won, 7-1, spanking Johnson and enjoying a strong outing by Kris Benson, four RBI by Jose Reyes, a homer by ex-Yankee Miguel Cairo, two RBI doubles by David Wright and Koo's star turn.
The crisp contest on a sunny afternoon was quite a switch from the bleak ballgame and weather Friday night, when the Yankees won a choppy opener. But Benson (2-1) showed the Yankees some delicate changes of speed in throwing six-plus shutout innings and the Met bullpen did the rest.
"It was nice to win and we have the chance to get two of three (today)," Mets manager Willie Randolph said. "We scored some runs and Kris pitched well. I'm pleased."
The only pockmarks on the afternoon for the Mets were two injuries - Carlos Beltran left the game with a right quad strain after grounding out in the fifth and Kaz Matsui suffered a stiff neck. The Yankees lost a star, too, perhaps only for one day, however. Derek Jeter left the game after getting drilled on the left elbow by a Benson pitch in the sixth. All three players are considered day-to-day. Jeter had X-rays, which were negative, the Yankees said, and the shortstop said he expects to play today.
There were 55,800 fans at Shea, the largest crowd to watch a Subway Series game, the Mets announced, and many of them were standing when Koo came off the mound with one out in the eighth. He pitched 1-1/3 scoreless innings, striking out three and enjoyed the day's most memorable moments. "He might not get another hit the rest of his career," Benson said, grinning, "so I don't care if he stole the spotlight on me."
Koo relieved Benson to face lefthanded-hitting Tino Martinez and retired the side, helped when Alex Rodriguez was caught breaking for second when Mike Piazza mishandled a pitch. After A-Rod was nailed on the Yanks' second poor baserunning play of the day - Tony Womack was doubled off second to end the sixth - Koo struck out Martinez and Jorge Posada to end the inning.
Koo, who said earlier in the week he hadn't hit since he was 10 and looked horrible in an at-bat Monday, then led off the bottom of the seventh with a double to deep center off Johnson. Reyes bunted in front of the plate to try to move Koo over and Posada fielded the ball and threw to first, but he and Johnson left the plate unguarded.
Koo didn't stop running. Posada sprinted back and got the relay from Robinson Cano several feet from the plate and dove to try to tag the Met reliever, but plate umpire Chuck Meriwether ruled Koo was safe, though replays showed that Posada may have tagged him a blink before the pitcher touched the plate.
The Mets' bench was giddy after Koo's hit - several players collapsed in laughter when the pitcher's drive neared the wall, recalling how clownish he had looked while striking out against the Reds Monday without swinging.
"He set us up," Piazza said. "I think he was kind've playing possum on us. We were all just kind of dumbfounded. Who is that guy? Not only that, but to get a hit off Randy Johnson in his second major-league at-bat? You got me. I guess you see something new every day."
"He pulled the okey-doke," Randolph added. "He made everybody think he can't swing the bat, but he could. Can run the bases, too. It lightened things up a little bit, man."
Then Randolph joked, "I'm going to bring him in as a pinch-hitter tomorrow, okay? Then we'll really have something to talk about."
Koo's run gave the Mets a 3-0 lead, and one batter later, Cairo hit his first homer to make it 4-0. The Mets scored three more times in the eighth, including a two-run triple by Reyes, to ice the game.
Benson, who allowed no runs and three hits in six-plus innings, got a standing ovation from many Mets fans when he left. He grabbed the bill of his cap in recognition of the cheers and disappeared into the dugout.