Monday, June 14, 1999
Agbayani continues
Associated Press
to make big impactNEW YORK -- Last season, Shane Spencer suddenly emerged as Mr. Sudden Impact in New York. This year, Benny Agbayani is taking over.
Agbayani homered again, and also hung on to catch the last out yesterday in highlighting the New York Mets' 5-4 win over the Boston Red Sox.
"This is my chance and my opportunity, and I don't want it to go to waste," Agbayani said. "I think I am surprising myself, and I think I am surprising a lot of people."
Agbayani thrilled a crowd of 46,473 at Shea Stadium and led the Mets to their sixth win in seven games.
Agbayani began the season in the minors for the seventh straight year. Since his promotion May 12, the rookie has been sensational, batting .400 and hitting 10 home runs in his first 73 at-bats.
"They all labeled me as a 4-A player," Agbayani said. As in, better than Triple-A but not quite major league caliber.
"You just have to prove people wrong, to prove you can play," he said.
Agbayani is a 27-year-old outfielder, just like Spencer. Last year, Spencer got his opportunity after nine years in the minors and hit 10 home runs in 67 at-bats, batting .373 and helping the Yankees to the World Series title.
"I've played against Shane since 'A' ball," Agbayani said. "I saw what he did last year. He's a good player, and I'm glad he got his chance."
But while Spencer is struggling this year, Agbayani is creating a stir throughout baseball. His homer was the ninth in his last 14 starts.
Agbayani, still showing a bruise under his right eye from a batting-practice mishap that kept him out of Friday night's game, homered for the second straight game.
The Mets took a one-run lead into the ninth, and Nomar Garciaparra led off with a pinch-hit double. Two outs later, John Valentin lofted a fly ball into the wind toward Agbayani in left.
Agbayani, who had slipped and fallen fielding a ball in right earlier in the game, started in for it. Listed at 225 pounds and 5-foot-11, the son of a ballroom dance teacher did not look too graceful once a gust took hold of the ball.
"I threw some grass up right before the pitch, and it was blowing in," he said. "But then it shifted and was blowing out. I just looked up and was wondering when that ball was going to come down."
Agbayani kept going back as the ball continued to carry, and eventually made the catch.
"When I saw Benny take like 10 steps back and sway back and forth, I just held my breath for a second," Mets reliever Turk Wendell said.
Mets 5, Red Sox 4
Boston AB R H BI BB SO Avg. Offerman 2b 4 0 1 1 1 0 .318 Varitek c 4 0 0 1 0 1 .236 JnValentin 3b 5 1 2 0 0 1 .260 Daubach 1b 4 0 0 0 0 2 .315 O’Leary lf 4 1 3 2 0 1 .298 Buford cf 4 0 0 0 0 1 .262 Frye ss 3 1 0 0 1 0 .221 Wakefield p 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 TNixon rf 4 1 1 0 0 3 .227 Portugal p 2 0 0 0 0 0 .000 Corsi p 0 0 0 0 0 0 -- a-Jefferson ph 0 0 0 0 0 0 .286 b-Stanley ph 0 0 0 0 1 0 .270 1-DLewis pr 0 0 0 0 0 0 .257 Bullinger p 0 0 0 0 0 0 -- Cormier p 0 0 0 0 0 0 -- Garciaparra ss 1 0 1 0 0 0 .319 Totals 35 4 8 4 3 9 New York AB R H BI BB SO Avg. Henderson lf 4 0 1 1 0 1 .235 McMichael p 0 0 0 0 0 0 -- Wendell p 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 Alfonzo 2b 4 0 2 1 0 0 .298 Olerud 1b 4 0 1 0 0 0 .315 Piazza c 4 1 1 0 0 2 .324 Ventura 3b 4 0 0 0 0 0 .276 McRae cf 3 1 1 2 1 1 .260 Agbayani rf-lf 4 1 2 1 0 0 .400 ROrdonez ss 3 1 2 0 0 0 .269 Hershiser p 2 1 1 0 0 0 .174 Cook p 0 0 0 0 0 0 -- c-Cedeno ph-rf 1 0 0 0 0 0 .309 Totals 33 5 11 5 1 4 Boston 000 101 200--4 8 0 New York 000 032 00x--5 11 1a-announced for Corsi in the 7th. b-walked for Jefferson in the 7th. c-grounded out for Cook in the 7th.1-ran for Stanley in the 7th.
E--ROrdonez (4). LOB--Boston 8, New York 5. 2B--JnValentin (16), O'Leary (14), Garciaparra (15), Piazza (11). 3B--Offerman (6). HR--McRae (7) off Corsi; O'Leary (12) off Hershiser; Agbayani (10) off Portugal. RBIs--Offerman (23), Varitek (23), O'Leary 2 (37), Henderson (8), Alfonzo (32), McRae 2 (22), Agbayani (17). SF--Varitek. GIDP--Hershiser.
DP--Boston 2 (Offerman, Frye and Daubach), (O'Leary and Offerman).
Boston IP H R ER BB SO NP ERA Portugal L, 3-5 5 8 4 4 0 3 78 5.89 Corsi 1 2 1 1 0 0 13 5.25 Bullinger 2/3 1 0 0 0 0 11 0.00 Cormier 1/3 0 0 0 0 0 3 4.34 Wakefield 1 0 0 0 1 1 16 5.40 New York IP H R ER BB SO NP ERA Hershiser W, 6-5 6 6 4 4 2 5 77 5.54 Cook 1 0 0 0 1 1 19 2.86 McMichael 1 1 0 0 0 2 18 0.00 Wendell S, 2 1 1 0 0 0 1 14 2.84Portugal pitched to 1 batter in the 6th, Hershiser pitched to 2 batters in the 7th.Inherited runners-scored--Corsi 1-1, Cormier 1-0, Cook 2-2.
T--2:42. A--46,473 (55,777).
