"NEW YORK (AP) --The New York Mets announced today that they are
going to court to get an additional inning added to the end of Game 5
of the World Series.
"The batting, pitching, and bench coaches for the Mets held a press
conference earlier today. They were joined by members of the Major
League Players Union. "'We meant to hit those pitches from the
Yankee pitchers,' said the Mets batting coach. 'We were confused by
the irregularities of the pitches we received and believe we have been
denied our right to hit.'
"One claim specifically noted that a small percentage of the Mets
batters had intended to swing at fast balls, but actually swung at curve
balls. It was clear that these batters never intended to swing at curve
balls,
though a much higher percentage were not confused by the pitches.
"Reporters at the press conference pointed out that the Mets had
extensively reviewed film of the Yankees pitchers prior to the World
Series and had in fact faced the Yankees in inter-league play earlier
in the year. "The fact remains that some of the pitches confused us and
denied us of our right to hit,' said the Mets batting coach. 'The World
Series is not over yet and the Yankees are celebrating prematurely.'
"Major League Baseball has reviewed the telecast of all the World
Series games and recounted the balls and strikes called by the
umpires of each game. "'While some of the strikes called against
the Mets were, in fact, balls, there were not enough of them to change
the outcome of the World Series,' the commissioner said.
"Another portion of the Mets legal claim stated that, based on on-base
percentage, the Mets had actually won the World Series, regardless of
the final scores of the games. 'It's clear that we were slightly
on-base more often than the Yankees,' said a Mets spokesman. 'The
World Series crown is rightly ours.'
"The manager of the Mets has remained in relative seclusion, engaging
in some light jogging for exercise. He has stated that he believes 'we
need to let the process run its course without a rush to judgment.'" |
