Except Endy Chávez jumps up, reaches over the top of the wall, and snares it. He then fires back to the infield to double Jim Edmonds off 1st and end the threat. Shea erupts in fan noise.
It seemed like one of "these omens in baseball," that historian Doris Kearns Goodwin likes to talk about. It is the greatest catch made by a Met since Tommie Agee and Ron Swoboda in the 1969 World Series. It is, potentially, the most important defensive play made by a Met since the "Ball Off the Wall Play" against the Pittsburgh Pirates on September 20, 1973, by Cleon Jones, Wayne Garrett and Ron Hodges.
This was a sign. This is it. This will be remembered as The Endy Chávez Game. This will be remembered as a night when the Mets won the Pennant. This is the Mets' year. And the Yankees had already been eliminated. They're taking New York back. They're taking New York back tonight!
In the top of the 9th, the score still 1-1, the Cards had a man on, and catcher Yadier Molina stepped up against Met reliever Aaron Heilman. If Heilman could just get out of this inning, the Mets would have the meat of their order coming up in the bottom of the 9th. And while Molina is one of the best defensive catchers of our time, he was not, then, regarded as much of a hitter.
But he hits a drive to left, and Chávez can't reach this one. No one can. Home run. Cards 3, Mets 1, and the Mets are down to their last 3 outs.
In the bottom of the 9th, José Valentín and Chávez lead off with singles off rookie closer Adam Wainwright. The tying runs are on base, and the Pennant-winning run at the plate, with nobody out. And Shea is buzzing again, as if the Molina homer hadn't happened.
But Wainwright strikes Cliff Floyd out looking, and gets Jose Reyes to fly out. Wainwright walks Paul Lo Duca to bring up Carlos Beltrán with the bases loaded, with the Pennant-winning run on 1st, and 2 men out.
Wainwright throws a curve on the outside corner. Just like Floyd, Beltran never even takes the bat off his shoulder. Strike 3. Ballgame over. Mets lose. Pennant dream over.
For the 2nd time, the Cardinals have a Pennant-winning top of the 9th home run. The 1st time was by Jack Clark, against the Dodgers in Game 6 of the 1985 NLCS.
This was an absolutely crushing defeat. How could the Mets blow it? After all, they were the best team in baseball, right? Certainly, the 97-win Mets were better than the 83-win Cards, right? Beyond any doubt, the Mets were now the best team in New York, better than the Yankees, right? How could this happen?
It could happen because the Mets choked. Again. Game 7 of the '06 NLCS was the last postseason game played at Shea Stadium. Then came the near-misses of the next 2 years, and a dreary down period. Then came a thrilling run to the 2015 Pennant, and blowing all 5 games of the World Series, including the one they ended up winning, followed by a Wild Card berth in 2016, and then the 2022 collapse. The Curse of Kevin Mitchell lives.
Ironically, the temporary hero Chávez and the permanent goat Heilman would end up being traded away together, the Mets sending them to the Seattle Mariners after the 2008 season. And, in October 2013, Carlos Beltrán played in the World Series... for the Cardinals.
This was an absolutely crushing defeat. How could the Mets blow it? After all, they were the best team in baseball, right? Certainly, the 97-win Mets were better than the 83-win Cards, right? Beyond any doubt, the Mets were now the best team in New York, better than the Yankees, right? How could this happen?
It could happen because the Mets choked. Again. Game 7 of the '06 NLCS was the last postseason game played at Shea Stadium. Then came the near-misses of the next 2 years, and a dreary down period. Then came a thrilling run to the 2015 Pennant, and blowing all 5 games of the World Series, including the one they ended up winning, followed by a Wild Card berth in 2016, and then the 2022 collapse. The Curse of Kevin Mitchell lives.
Ironically, the temporary hero Chávez and the permanent goat Heilman would end up being traded away together, the Mets sending them to the Seattle Mariners after the 2008 season. And, in October 2013, Carlos Beltrán played in the World Series... for the Cardinals.
*
October 19, 2006 was a Tuesday. The American League Championship Series ended 5 days earlier, because the Detroit Tigers swept the Oakland Athletics in 4 straight, capped by the walkoff home run by Magglio Ordóñez in Game 4.
Football was in midweek. The NBA season wouldn't start for another 12 days. There were 8 games played in the NHL:
* The New Jersey Devils lost to the Nashville Predators, 4-3 in a shootout at the Continental Airlines Arena at the Meadowlands.
* The New York Islanders lost to the Pittsburgh Penguins, 4-3 at the Nassau Coliseum. Sergei Gonchar scored the winning goal, with 1:27 left in overtime.
* The Boston Bruins beat the Calgary Flames, 3-2 at the TD Banknorth Garden (now just the TD Garden) in Boston.
* The Atlanta Thrashers beat the Washington Capitals, 4-3 in a shootout at the Philips Arena (now the State Farm Arena) in Atlanta.
* The Tampa Bay Lightning beat the Philadelphia Flyers, 4-1 at the St. Pete Times Forum (now the Benchmark International Arena) in Tampa.
* The Colorado Avalanche beat the Ottawa Senators, 2-1 at Scotiabank Place (now the Canadian Tire Centre) in Ottawa.
* The Los Angeles Kings beat the Phoenix Coyotes, 4-0 at the Jobing.com Arena (now the Desert Diamond Arena) in the Phoenix suburb of Glendale, Arizona.
* And the San Jose Sharks beat the Detroit Red Wings, 5-1 at the HP Pavilion (now the SAP Center) in San Jose, California.
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