Agbayani brings life to Mets and Series

The Subway series had threatened to become another Yankee sweep, but at Shea Stadium on Tuesday the New York Mets overcame a previously unbeatable pitcher to win 4-2 and peg back the Yankees to a 2-1 lead in the best-of-seven World Series.

The Subway series had threatened to become another Yankee sweep, but at Shea Stadium on Tuesday the New York Mets overcame a previously unbeatable pitcher to win 4-2 and peg back the Yankees to a 2-1 lead in the best-of-seven World Series.

The Yankees' starting pitcher Orlando Hernandez had been to post-season baseball what Joe Montana was to the Super Bowl: when he pitched, the Yankees won. He had made nine play-off and World Series starts and pitched in relief once; the Yankees won all those games. Hernandez's own record was 8-0 - the most victories without a loss in post-season history.

On Tuesday Hernandez struck out 12 batters, but in the eighth innings, with the score 2-2, the Mets' Benny Agbayani broke the deadlock with a run-scoring double, and the Mets held on. As well as tarnishing Hernandez's perfect record, the defeat broke the Yankees' record 14-game World Series winning streak.

Still overshadowing the Series has been the incident during Sunday's Game Two when the Yankees pitcher Roger Clemens threw a broken bat towards the Mets' Mike Piazza, who he had hit on the head with a pitch earlier in the season.

Clemens has been fined for the incident and insiders at Major League Baseball contends that the amount is $50,000 (£36,000), equalling the record fine levied on Albert Belle during the 1995 World Series for his foul-mouthed tirade toward a television reporter.

Though the Clemens affair has kept the Series on the front pages, on TV the nation is underwhelmed. The first two games have averaged 40.7million total viewers, down 12.5 per cent from last year's first two games between the Yankees and the Atlanta Braves.

WORLD SERIES: NY Mets 4 NY Yankees 2 (Yankees lead best-of-seven series 2-1).