MET NOTES
Mike Piazza walked out of the clubhouse Friday night predicting he would not be catching both ends of yesterday’s doubleheader, although he sounded less than certain when he added, “Never say never.”
Met manager Bobby Valentine had a difficult decision to make prior to the double-dip with Arizona. By playing Piazza in the first game, Valentine would give him some rest while keeping the 10-time All-Star available as a pinch-hitter in the nightcap. Or he could have paired Piazza with newcomer John Thomson, who was making his Met debut in the second game.
The Met skipper chose to play Piazza in the first game, an 8-5 loss, citing rest over the eventual first interaction with Thomson. “There was a thought, but the other stuff outweighs it,” Valentine said.
Adding to the complexity of the situation was that Mo Vaughn was going to rest one of the games. Vaughn was not in the lineup in the opener against Arizona lefty Brian Anderson, as Valentine elected to give John Valentin a start at first. Vaughn played first in the nightcap.
Besides, Valentine surmised that backup catcher Vance Wilson would be more than adequate in helping Thomson prepare for his start.
Piazza was physically capable of catching both games of the doubleheader, Valentine said, but “it’s tomorrow and the next day” that he might feel sluggish.
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Al Leiter, who is scheduled to start this afternoon, probably will be working with Piazza. Wilson had caught five of Leiter’s previous 11 starts (and two of the last three) since a seven- stolen-base game by the Marlins. Yesterday was Leiter Bobblehead Day.
On Wednesday, Leiter taped a nuts-and-bolts pitching sequence for MSG network, which is planning to put together a show on that subject featuring Leiter.
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Before the game, Valentine shared a remarkable story concerning the late Thurman Munson, who passed away on Aug. 2, 1979.
When Valentine played in the Cape Cod League as a high-schooler, he played against Munson. Following an inning-ending catch against the fence in left-center, Valentine stepped to the plate and was complimented by Munson, whom he was meeting for the first time.
Munson then said, “Next inning, stand in the spot where you caught the ball – and watch me hit one over your head.” Sure enough, Munson crushed a homer there and tipped his cap to Valentine, who wrote to his friends about the scene.
