Last night was my "Happy Very Belated Father's Day, Let's Go Watch the Mets Play Your Rivals" date with my pops. I had to fill him in on the surprise earlier in the day during a very frustrating moment at work (more on that in a later post). I wasn't sure if we'd get to the game on time - or at all - and wanted to give him a head's up. He was able to calm me down a tiny bit, but I was still getting panicky and mad.Either way, we made it to the game at the bottom of the third and I was zoning out for a chunk of the game. Yeah, I'd clap, yell "charge" (although I still don't really associate charging with baseball, but anyway) and sang "Take Me Out to the Ballgame," but man was I tired.
And torn! I didn't know who I was rooting for half the time. Dad even asked who I was clapping for and I said I had no clue because I liked them both. Throughout most of the game the Mets had a pretty strong lead and I kept taunting him that there was still time for them to blow it. I'd yell "Whooo" whenever Utley, Rollins and Ry How batted for the Phillies more so than when David Wright came out. I even got defensive when Mets fans started chanting "Phillies suck" and heckling the Phillies fans in our section (there was a surprising amount at the game actually and many who took the train into the city).
"Oh like the Mets are that much better," I muttered.
In the seventh inning, the Phillies had only managed two whole runs while the Mets were on a roll with five. And then in the top of the ninth, the tables were turned and there were less "Phillies suck" chants and more "Let's go Phillies." Then by some miracle of God, the Phillies somehow managed to squeeze out six runs! The Mets went through four relief pitchers in that one inning, but it didn't help at all. Damage was done and they could only score once more at the bottom of the ninth. That's when I realized I had been pulling for that sucky team all along. Why else would I have come out of my coma and jump and yell when I saw those players heading for home?
All in all, great game, dad had fun (was disappointed, but had a good time; he even bonded with the guy sitting next to him lamenting the absence and injury of the Met's star pitcher, Billy Wagner). And for now (hey, they still have plenty of time to blow it), the Phillies have sole possession of first place in the NL East. We'll see how the rest of this 3-game series plays out tonight and tomorrow.
Game 1: Phillies 8, Mets 6