10 Innings
Marlins 3
Mets 2
MIAMI – The pitch was supposed to be simple enough – a fastball away to Mike Lowell. That was what Braden Looper wanted to throw.
It was the bottom of the 10th inning, the game was tied and nobody was on base. Lowell, the Marlins’ slugging third baseman, was ahead in the count, 1-0, against Looper, his former teammate who was working his second inning of relief and facing his former mates for the first time.
Looper fired his fastball toward his former teammate, but the heater never found its targeted location. Instead, the ball veered over the middle of the plate.
“As bad a spot,” Looper would later say, “as you can put it.”
Lowell swung and launched a monster drive to left, a no-doubt homer that traveled 375 feet and splashed down deep into the stands. All Looper could do was stare at the blast and walk slowly off the mound, his head down in dejection as his former team celebrated wildly at home.
“There’s not much worse of a feeling when you give up a walk-off home run,” Looper said after the 3-2 loss, insisting this did not sting any more because it came against the Marlins. “Not to me. Any team, it’s the same feeling.”
But it had to have felt at least a little worse, considering the circumstances. On Friday, the Mets’ former closer, Armando Benitez, worked a perfect ninth for the save against his old team. Looper, meanwhile, spent five years with the Marlins, made countless friends and captured a World Series ring, but could not lasso the same performance. This couldn’t have been the homecoming he envisioned.
This wasn’t the road trip start the Mets envisioned, either. They’ve lost both games to Florida – and three straight overall – and are now 23-25. If they want to avoid a sweep today, they’ll have to beat Josh Beckett. Have fun.
“We were right in both games,” Art Howe said. “It’s not like they’re manhandling us or beating us easily.”
True, the Mets have lost both games by one run. But losses are losses, and the Mets may have to play today without Cliff Floyd. The leftfielder was involved in a first-inning collision with Mike Cameron and left the game. He averted disaster with only a left quad contusion, but is questionable for today.
Met starter Jae Seo was wild but effective in his six innings, walking five – including the first three batters of the game – and hitting a batter, yet somehow allowing only two runs. But the Mets got only a solo homer from Ty Wigginton and an RBI infield single from Karim Garcia. They also stranded the bases loaded in the sixth when Vance Wilson banged into a double play and are now an incredible 5-for-47 (.106) with the bases loaded this year.
When Looper entered in the ninth, he stepped off the mound to compose himself. Then he worked a scoreless frame and began the 10th by retiring Juan Pierre on a groundout. He insisted he was not unnerved by his return to Florida.
“I’ve kind of gotten over the Marlins thing,” Looper said. “I had already gotten four outs. It’s not like I was getting jitters because I was in Florida. I made a bad pitch. . . . I made a huge mistake to the wrong guy.”
Looper has pitched superbly this year, posting a 1.38 ERA. But now the question is whether this will haunt him. He insisted, “I’ll be ready to go [today.] [Today’s] a new day.” And Lowell expressed confidence that his friend would bounce back.
“He’s had a great year,” Lowell said. “One swing doesn’t take away from what he has done. I don’t think this is going to be something that’s going to affect Braden’s year.”