One Game and One Homer Run That Lifted a City: Eight Years Later

It was bottom of the eight with one man out and two outs with the Braves up 2-1 against the Mets.

Ten days earlier the world experienced the darkest day in our countries history.

I had never been a fan of the Atlanta Braves and hated the New York Mets because the Los Angeles Dodgers traded away my favorite player.

The game was on Television as I began to watch on a emotional night in baseball and in the world as the game began.

We saw to teams embrace before the game and we knew it wasn’t like any game it as bigger than that and it would prove that later that night.

It was bigger than the NL East race or the playoffs, it was a playoff atmosphere as you watched the game but people were afraid to cheer as they watched planes fly over nervous another attack could happen.

It was a baseball game carrying an entire city's emotional baggage.

The game was very tight going into the eight with the Braves getting runs on a Ken Caminiti on a two out double that brought in Chipper Jones to give them a 2-1 lead.

I knew Piazza was up second in the bottom of the eight and just hoping that the batter before would get on base.

As the Baseball God’s intended it he got on first and Piazza came up to bat as the fans were on the brink of one of the greatest moments in baseball history.

The attendance of 41,325 watched something magical as Mike Piazza cam up to the plate.

“There is a deep drive to left-center field, Jones back to the wall….gone home run, Mike Piazza”, Mets announcer.

That Homerun made 41,325 smile and bring them cheer as if they won the World Series, Piazza was a hero to a city that was down and looked to be out.

"I'm glad to give people a diversion from the sorrow, to give them a thrill”, "If the season ends tomorrow, we're all winners, because we didn't give up” and "I'm just so happy I gave the people something to cheer," Piazza said. "There was a lot of emotion. It was just a surreal sort of energy out there. I'm just so proud to be a part of it tonight." As Piazza talked about one of the greatest moments in Baseball history.

Frank Sinatra song “New York, New York”, filled the stadium as the crowd was cheering and wanted Mike Piazza to come out for a curtain call.

I like many of us young or old had tears of joy as we knew we where witnessing something special.

This is what baseball is all about, Piazza was King of the Hill as Sinatra said in his song.

The Mets as a team donated 450,000 dollars to those families of victims and firefighters from the tragedy of 9/11.

"You couldn't have scripted it any better," said outfielder Jay Payton as if people didn’t believe, after that homerun we all did.

We believed in New York, our country and most importantly ourselves because we knew we would get back up off out feet and move forward.

“Joy has been a precious commodity since those planes crashed into the World Trade Center towers on Sept. 11. Forget the fear, the pain, the suffering, the death, the destruction. A moment, maybe a fraction of a second, maybe a full minute, of pure, mindless joy.” John Anderson who was covering the game.

There were millions of emotions running through millions of people that night as the Mets would close out a emotional night with a 3-2 victory

It has been right years since that great night in baseball history and is still talked about today and will never been forgotten just like those victims that had lost their lives on that tragic day.

This article is to the 2,976 victims that lost their lives and you will live in my heart everyday and your memory will go on everyday and I promise that you will be in all our memories.

List of World Trade Center Victims (not including plane crews or passengers)

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