Spencer Delivers Subway Victory

The New York Mets rushed out of the dugout and mobbed Shane Spencer at first base, jumping in jubilation. It could have been a scene after the final out of the World Series.

This one Saturday merely put the Mets in position to win the regular-season Subway Series for the first time.

Spencer’s bases-loaded dribbler between the mound and first base drove in the winning run against his former team, giving the Mets a 10-9 victory over the New York Yankees at Shea Stadium.

“For us it was a test,” Spencer said. “It shows we can play with the best.”

Coming a day after the Mets’ 11-2 rout, the ninth-inning rally had the season-best crowd of 55,120 looking ahead to today with shouts of “Sweep!” The crowd also took note of the Yankees’ three victories over the Boston Red Sox entering the series, yelling: “We’re not Boston!”

Tony Clark homered twice and tied his career high with four hits, but the Yankees wasted leads of 3-1, 6-4 and 8-6. They loaded the bases with two out in the ninth and were one pitch from taking the lead when John Franco (2-4) went to a 3-and-0 count on pinch-hitter Jorge Posada.

But Posada took a strike, then took another fastball at the knees for strike two, a pitch he thought should have been ball four. Franco came back with another fastball, this one a tad lower.

After a tiny delay, plate umpire Chuck Meriwether called it strike three.

“It seemed like a lifetime,” Franco said.

Posada threw his bat, argued and had to be pushed away by Manager Joe Torre. Posada didn’t want to talk about the call.

“That was the game basically right there because you-know-who is coming in if they score there,” Met Manager Art Howe said, referring to Yankee closer Mariano Rivera.

Cliff Floyd, Ty Wigginton and Richard Hidalgo homered against Jose Contreras, but the Mets made two errors that led to four unearned runs and failed to hold leads of 4-3 and 9-8.

With the score tied, 9-9, in the bottom of the ninth, Tanyon Sturtze (3-1) walked Kaz Matsui, who had three hits. Mike Piazza popped out, Floyd walked and Hidalgo was hit by a pitch. That brought up Spencer, whose two-run double in the seventh had put the Mets ahead, 9-8.

The Yankees moved the infield in and Spencer hit his soft roller. Sturtze fumbled with the ball for a moment and his desperation flip to the plate was high and too late to get Matsui.

“As soon as I hit it, I thought the game was over,” said Spencer, who was in the Yankee organization from 1990 to 2002.

“It just kind of rolled up my glove a little bit,” Sturtze said. “I tried to hurry it because I knew Kaz was running.”

Contreras, in his second start since reuniting with his family after it left Cuba, gave up seven runs and eight hits in five-plus innings.

“I couldn’t really locate the ball at key moments of the game,” he said.

Alex Rodriguez was hitless in five at-bats. He has one hit in his last 17 at-bats and his average has dropped from .307 on June 13 to .276.

The Mets, who have done no better than split with the Yankees since interleague play began in 1997, have won three of five after going 0-6 last year.