The New York Mets were aiming for their fourth division title in their 38-year history on August 12, 2000.AdvertisementBarry Bonds and San Francisco Giants were in town, nearly as good as their record. They entered the game at 64-49, with the Mets trailing 67-47. The Mets led 1-0 in the fourth inning when Giants catcher Bobby Estalella threw the Mike Hampton pitch into left field. Jeff Kent (third baseman) and Ellis Burks (2nd baseman) were tagged, ready to go if an opening presented themselves. Mets outfielder Benny Agbayani quickly ran over to secure the routine fly ball. He thought the inning was over and jogged towards the bleachers, handing the ball to a young fan who had been eating hot dogs. Then he realized there were only two outs. He tried to retrieve the ball, but it was too late. Kent and Burks scored giving the Giants the lead. The fan did not want to give up the ball.Imagine what it would look like if Twitter was available for this. It's possible to imagine it. This will help. A quote was included in the Associated Press recap from Jake Burns (who could be in his 20s or later).He said it was strange.Jim, his father, was right next to him and said, "He was eating a hotdog, then suddenly he had a ball in one hand. I thought I was wrong." I was stunned to see his expression.Larry Walker, who was six years older than Larry Walker, did the same thing at a Montreal Expo (R.I.P. It was, however, arguably more fun.Agbayani was fortunate to win 3-2. A Todd Z eil e double gave them the lead in the seventh. This box score contains a lot of incredible names. This is still our fondest memory of him. It's unfortunate, because even though his Mets career lasted only five seasons, he was an excellent.284 hitter in three of those. Agbayani got the last laugh though. In the 13th game of the 2000 National League Divisional Series, Agbayani hit a walk-off homer against the Giants. He even batted.320 in the 2000 playoffs.
