Movies and Rain Delays

I had just popped Dog Day Afternoon into the DVD player when the rain delay hit the other night. I could have sworn I'd seen that movie before but I had not. There is no way I would have forgotten Al Pacino's motive for robbing the bank. I probably just remember seeing the movie listed in the HBO guide when I was a kid.

Anyway, we watched the movie safe in the knowledge that the Mets went into the rain delay with a 4-0 lead. I admire Trachsel for coming out after the delay, trying for the eighth straight win--who among us could resist with such a lead?--but it wasn't his night. Nor was it Duaner Sanchez's night. So the rain washed away Trachsel's streak of seven straight wins and Sanchez's perfect 5-0 record, along with any sense of patience on the part of the offense. Like kids on the day of school, it was clear they couldn't wait to get out of there, which opened the door to the Reds' comeback.

But I think it was a case of one step backward, two steps forward. Look at the way the bench players came through the next day. Jose "The Moustache" Valentine made a terrific throw to the plate to keep the game tied and Endy Chavez had the big RBI in the 10th inning. (I know, technically Valentine is a regular now, but he's playing with that "bench guy who got his big break" enthusiasm.)

And then tonight, against the Astros, it was 4-0 before I tuned it. But unlike the other night, the Mets kept hitting. That 7-0 cushion was more than John Maine needed and Carlos Delgado hit another homerun. Back to back games. Maybe the other benefit of the rain was washing away that ugly slump he's been in.

For what it's worth, during tonight's rain delay we watched The Osterman Weekend, Sam Peckinpah's final movie. It's from 1983 and it's really strange. The FBI convinces Rutger Hauer that three of his buddies, including Dennis Hopper and Craig T. Nelson as a (surprisingly good) martial arts-wieldin' heavy, are Soviet spies. It's creepy throughout and confusing at times. But it was unpredictable and kept us tuned in until the very end. Kind of like these Mets games lately.