LOS ANGELES – In a game featuring the marquee pitching matchup of Mike Hampton vs. Kevin Brown and a scary incident in which All-Star catcher Mike Piazza suffered a gash on his forehead, an unlikely man ended up making headlines.
With the game tied at 3 and one out in the bottom of the ninth, former Met Kevin Elster took the first pitch he saw from reliever Turk Wendell over the left field wall to give the Dodgers a 4-3 victory over the Mets.
“I was very fortunate because I was looking for that one pitch he threw me, a slider,” Elster said.
Wendell said, “It was a horse [bleep] slider, I was lucky because I was able to get [Eric] Karros out. Karros should’ve ended the game, not [freakin’] Elster. On nights like that, this is what is supposed to happen.”
Elster’s eighth homer sent a Dodger Stadium crowd of 31,323 home happy. It was the third game-winning homer that Wendell (4-3) has allowed this season.
Another ex-Met, Jeff Kent, got him in San Francisco and former Yankee minor leaguer, Bubba Carpenter of the Rockies, did it to him at Shea.
The Mets ended their nine-game road trip that took them from San Diego to St. Louis and back to California at 5-4. Elster lessened some of the good feelings the Mets gained during the trip.
“A frustrating end to what would’ve been a good road trip,” Todd Zeile said.
It could’ve been worse as the injury to Piazza could’ve been more serious.
In the bottom of the sixth, Piazza had to leave after he was hit by the backswing of Gary Sheffield. Piazza suffered a slight concussion and needed a stitch to stop the bleeding.
“He was just squirting blood,” said Bobby Valentine, who checked out Piazza on the field.
Piazza is not expected to go on the disabled list and could play tomorrow against the Devil Rays.
“I’m a little foggy,” said Piazza, who was checked on by Sheffield after the game and said he will see how he feels tomorrow and then decide if he will play.
After Piazza left, the Dodgers put up an important unearned run on a Karros RBI single to center off Hampton to extend their lead to 3-1.
In the top of the eighth, Kurt Abbott showed why some feel the Mets might improve with him playing short for the injured Rey Ordonez. Abbott hit a homer off reliever Alan Mills to right center. It was his first long ball of the season and his first run batted in.
Later in the eighth, Edgardo Alfonzo – with a homer already in his pocket – came up with two on and one out against righty Matt Herges, who had replaced Mills.
Alfonzo drove a ball to the low fence in the right field corner, missing a second homer by less than a foot. The double, however, did tie the game at 3.
Melvin Mora couldn’t score from first, because he had to be careful the ball wasn’t caught. He was on third when Todd Pratt, who had replaced Piazza, lined a hard shot to Elster.
Third base ump Phil Cuzzi ruled Elster caught the ball. Mora had left for home already, which made the double play easy.
The only Met who could hit Brown last night was Alfonzo, who ripped a first-inning homer off Brown and then in the sixth, knocked Brown out of the game by lining a shot off the pitcher’s right calf. Brown recovered to make an acrobatic play to retire Alfonzo.
Brown went six innings and didn’t allow any fly balls besides Alfonzo’s homer. He only gave up two other hits.
Like Brown, Hampton pitched well, but took a no-decision. Hampton went seven innings and gave up three runs, two earned, on five hits. He struck out seven.
“I knew it was going to be a tight ballgame with Kevin out there,” said Hampton, who kicked himself afterward for giving up a homer to Chad Kreuter in the third.
The 27-year-old Hampton entered last night hotter than a microwave. In his previous four starts, all victories, Hampton had allowed just three earned runs over 31 1/3 innings.
Brown stayed in the game after retiring Alfonzo, getting Piazza on a groundout to third, but was taken out after the inning with a contusion on his right calf.