NEW YORK (AP) — Robin Ventura’s grand slam that wasn’t in the playoffs is more famous than the 18 he hit during the regular season that counted.
Twenty-five years to the day after his grand slam-single in the 15th inning lifted the Mets over Atlanta in Game 5 of the NL Championship Series at Shea Stadium, Ventura was at Citi Field on Thursday to throw out the ceremonial first pitch before NLCS Game 4 against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
“It gets more mileage not being one, really,” Ventura said.
Now 57, the two-time All-Star threw the pitch to former Mets teammate Edgardo Alfonzo as fans cheered.
Ventura is tied with Willie McCovey for fifth in grand slams, trailing Alex Rodriguez (25), Lou Gehrig (23), Manny Ramírez (21) and Eddie Murray (19).
The steady third baseman was a key player on the 1999 Mets, who lost the first three games of the NLCS but won 3-2 in Game 4.
New York forced the series back to Atlanta when Ventura hit Kevin McGlinchy’s 2-1 fastball through a driving rain and beyond the right-center fence to end a 5-hour, 46-minute game — at the time, the longest in postseason history.
Ventura, hobbled by a hamstring injury, never got to finish rounding the bases. An excited Todd Pratt, who was at first following a bases-loaded walk that tied the score, lifted Ventura off his feet near second base.
The rest of the Mets swarmed Ventura on the basepath and the celebration spilled into the outfield as The Doors’ “L.A. Woman” — a rally song picked by Ventura — blared while the crowd of 55,723 shook Shea Stadium. After much confusion, official scorer Red Foley explained in the press box that only one run scored and Ventura was credited with a single because he never touched second base.
It went down in the record book as a 4-3 victory for the Mets rather than 7-3. Two days later, Atlanta finally clinched the pennant in Game 6 by outlasting New York 10-9 in 11 innings.
Ventura, known for his easy-going nature throughout his playing days, said he’s fine with the quirky grand slam that wasn’t.
“Maybe if that would have been the only one I ever hit,” Ventura said. “But I think just the way that it ended up was a better ending than if I would have ran around the bases.”
Ventura, however, flashed his famously dry sense of humor when asked what he thought as Francisco Lindor and Pete Alonso hit their dramatic postseason homers for the Mets this month.
“Run around the bases,” Ventura said.
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