Mets 5, Giants 4: A Wacky Win

It looked like the Mets had a win wrapped up in the ninth inning. With a two-run lead and runners on first and second, Jon Rauch - the third Mets' relief pitcher of the inning - induced a pop fly to shallow center field. Unfortunately, Kirk Nieuwenhuis was never able to find it, and both runners scored to tie the game as the ball landed on the outfield grass.

Prior to that, Mike Pelfrey pitched eight excellent innings, allowing just one run, striking out three, and walking only one. It looked like the one-run lead might be insurmountable for the Mets, but they eked out one run in the fifth on a Ruben Tejada ground out and two more runs on a Tejada double in the seventh.

The Mets tacked on a run in the eighth inning on an infield single, an error by Aubrey Huff, and another infield single. With two runners on and nobody out, they then ran themselves out of the inning faster than you can spell "Nieuwenhuis." Ike Davis was picked off at first base by Buster Posey, and David Wright was caught stealing at third on the next pitch. In hindsight, the extra insurance would have come in handy in the ninth.

Frank Francisco had a miserable outing to begin the ninth. He allowed two hits, a walk, and a run while recording just one out. Tim Byrdak replaced him and struck out the only batter he faced, and Rauch induced the aforementioned pop fly to center field.

If the game wasn't weird enough already, Bruce Bochy somehow had Huff playing second base - second base! - in the bottom of the ninth inning. Lucas Duda singled, Josh Thole bunted him over, and Tejada walked. Justin Turner hit what should have been an inning-ending double play to short, but Huff forgot to cover second base. Everyone was safe, and the bases were loaded for Captain Kirk.

Nieuwenhuis hit a routine grounder to first, which Brandon Belt threw home for the force out. Scott Hairston, however, got a piece of Posey's leg, which may have been the difference in the game as Posey threw wide of first base. Tejada came around to score, and the Mets won.

I don't even know.