It’s the little things that separate the average teams from the good ones.
The Mets (55-54) learned that firsthand yesterday from the Diamondbacks (67-43), the reigning World Series champs, who are threatening to run away with the NL West crown.
Two of the Diamondback’s smallest players in stature dealt what could be a crushing blow to the Mets playoff chances.
The Mets were three outs away from winning Game 1 of the twinbill when Craig Counsell came off the bench to homer off Armando “The Adventure” Benitez. Counsell, who is listed as six feet, 175 pounds, hit the ball 350 feet to right, just clearing the wall.
“He hit the ball in the one place he can probably get it out of this ball park,” said Arizona manager Bob Brenly. “You can never say you’ve come to expect a home runs from Craig Counsell but when you need them the most, that’s when he seems to come up with something like that.”
The Diamondbacks went on to win the first game 8-5. Jay Bell, a 6-foot, 184-pound heavyweight compared to Counsell, if the Arizona media guide can be believed, broke open the second game with a three-run shot in the fifth that keyed a 9-2 win.
“Counsell’s a guy that’s amazing,” said Brenly. “He only hits a couple of home runs a year but he seems like they’re always when we need them the most.”
It was Counsell’s first pinch hit appearance of the season and his first home run in 73 pinch hit at-bats.
For Bell, who has been sidelined most of the season with a calf injury, it was his first home run of the season. Junior Spivey was hit by a pitch in the first game and Bell had to step in.
“Jay found out at the last minute that he was going to play and had a great ball game for us, defensively, offensively, another example of how these guys work together,” said Brenly. “Gracie [Mark Grace] came up there with a couple of men on base and popped out to center field, on his way back [to the dugout] I heard him yell at Jay, ‘Pick me up.’ And Jay hits a three-run homer.”
Bell finished with five RBI, tying his career high, in the second game. Bell has had five RBI twice before, the last time Sept. 28, 2000 at Colorado, where batting records should come with an asterisk.
