Sponsored by Shea Stadium Remembered
Back when there were no Nationals, just the scruffy, cuddly Expos, whose parents were cruelly cheap but they did speak French, the Mets took the Wild Card and then took the pennant in a dominant display over the Cardinals. Mike Hampton was brilliant, pitching AN ACTUAL COMPLETE GAME SHUTOUT IN A POSTSEASON GAME (the second in as many series by a Met that fall). Shea Stadium shook like I’d never experienced before, as Todd Zeile cleared the bases with a double and you knew that Game Five was going to be the clincher and you were going to see it happen. It was wonderful, beautiful for about 24 hours. And then some pushy guys from the Bronx clinched the other pennant and you came to realize that the next two weeks would either be the best of your baseball life, or it was going to feel like putting a beloved pet to sleep. Goodbye, Hampton.