Jordany Valdespin is one of those prospects that the Mets seem to be more excited about than outside scouts. (You can tell because they gave him No. 1, Mookie’s old number.) He has a little bit of power and a little bit of speed, but not much plate discipline and a reputation for not always giving 100 percent. (Baseball America ranked him eleventh among Mets prospects coming into the season, and ESPN’s Keith Law didn’t have him in his top ten.) And coming into last night, he had played in seven major-league games but didn’t have a single hit. That changed in the ninth inning last night in Philadelphia, when Valdespin pinch hit against big, bad, hated Jonathan Papelbon with two outs in the top of the ninth inning of a 2-2 game, a game in which the Mets were attempting to beat Roy Halladay (or at least “not lose to Roy Halladay” for the first time ever). On an 0-1 pitch, Papelbon threw a cutter low and in. This happened. So, that was friendly. That is an absolutely classic Gary Cohen home run call, by the way, and we love how Valdespin essentially sprinted around the bases. Anyway, the Mets won 5-2, and now you will never forget the name Jordany Valdespin. Not like you ever would, anyway.
Never Forget the Name Jordany Valdespin
Mike Nickeas #4 and Ike Davis #29 of the New York Mets congratulate teammate Jordany Valdespin #1 after hitting a game winning three run home run in the top of the ninth inning during the game against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park on May 7, 2012 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Carlos Ruiz #51 of the Philadelphia Phillies kneels behind the plate as the mets took the 5-2 lead.