12 INNINGS

GIANTS 7

METS 6

It is strange that when the future arrives, it can inspire you to say things that don’t seem to fit the outcome. So even after a difficult 7-6 Mets’ loss to the Giants in 12 innings yesterday, an upbeat Willie Randolph used words like “ecstatic,” “great” and “awesome” to describe his team.

The Giants won, but the 48,791 inside Shea rocked for most of the afternoon. On this weekend, Barry Bonds proved to be an afterthought as the Mets and Giants played exhilarating ball.

When David Wright finally struck out to end it all at 5:20 p.m., the Mets had lost two of three in a little more than 25 hours and 32 innings of baseball.

“It was fun to be a part of it,” Wright said.

Wright, all of 23 years of age, hit two solo homers yesterday – one to give the Mets the lead in the second and another of the more dramatic variety, an eighth inning shot, to tie the game.

In the 10th, the Mets were down to their final strike against an old face who was up to old tricks – Armando Benitez, who was in to protect a two-run lead. He already had allowed a Jose Valentin solo shot to cut his margin of error in half and now with two outs, he faced 21-year-old Lastings Milledge.

When Mill edge made contact, the ball soared majestically through the air and over the left field wall. The first home run of Milledge’s career was a no-doubt-about it game-tying shot on a 1-2 96 mph fastball. While Benitez put his hands on his hips in disgust, Milledge raised his right arm and his right index finger as he rounded first base.

The next inning, when Milledge jogged out to his position, he enthusiastically stopped to high-five fans – a move Randolph reprimanded later.

But instead of announcing the official birth of the Milledge era with a victory, the Mets’ bullpen let the game slip out of its hands.

In the 12th, Pedro Feliciano allowed a leadoff Lance Niekro single. Next, Jason Ellison laid down a sacrifice bunt that Feliciano fielded, but threw wildly to second, pulling Jose Reyes off the bag.

“I let it go a little too quick,” Feliciano said.

Following another sacrifice bunt, Heath Bell replaced Feliciano and gave up Pedro Feliz’s line drive go-ahead single to left that proved the difference.

In the eighth, Reyes and Duaner Sanchez combined to give up Steve Trachsel’s lead. Trachsel pitched very well, throwing seven innings of one-run ball. He left up 3-1 thanks to a Milledge’s sixth inning two-run double.

After a Randy Winn infield hit, Sanchez walked Omar Vizquel. Next, Sanchez looked as if he had continued to do what he had done all year – find the right pitch at the right time.

He forced the slow-moving Lance Niekro into what appeared to be a routine 6-4-3 double play. Instead, Reyes was unable to supply any air under his flip to Jose Valentin.

“It should be an easy play for me,” Reyes said.

The error loaded the bases for Bonds, which wasn’t exactly Sanchez’s plan entering the inning.

Sanchez didn’t wilt against Bonds; he made Bonds ground out to first with Carlos Delgado choosing to take the forceout at second. A run scored, but real damage was close to being averted.

Next, though, Steve Finley ripped a game-tying double. After an intentional walk to load the bases, Sanchez had no one to blame but himself as he walked in the go-ahead run by throwing four straight balls to Durham. Chad Bradford ended the inning by forcing Alfonzo to bounce into a double play.