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Coste ends marathon as Phillies edge Mets

Aug 27, 2008 - 7:11 AM By Vince DiGregorio PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer

PHILADELPHIA (Ticker) -- It took over five hours, but the Philadelphia Phillies finally moved back into first place in the National League East.

Chris Coste delivered an RBI single with one out in the bottom of the 13th inning, giving the Philadelphia Phillies an 8-7 come-from-behind victory over the New York Mets on Tuesday.

Jimmy Rollins collected five hits, three RBI and three stolen bases for Philadelphia (73-59), which moved one-half game ahead of New York (73-60) and into first place in the National League East.

"Obviously, there's a lot of the season left to go and this game doesn't get us to the playoffs," said Coste, who went 4-for-4 after coming in as a pinch hitter in the eighth inning. "If we'd had lost, it wouldn't have knocked us out of the playoffs. But at the same time, it's one we'll definitely take. As great as we feel right now, the Mets probably feel equally as bad."

The victory was also the Phillies' eighth walk-off win and 34th come-from-behind win this season.

"It was definitely exciting," Coste said. "It almost felt like the Little League World Series players. You forget that you're getting paid to play a game. We felt like little kids in the excitement.

"It's gonna be an interesting finish to the season, regardless of what would have happened today."

Trailing, 7-0, in the fourth inning, the Phillies cut the deficit to one before knotting the game in the ninth, when pinch hitter Eric Bruntlett plated Jayson Werth from first base with a two-out double. Shane Victorino ignited the winning rally, leading off the 13th with a triple down the right field line.

"(Our pitchers) are just going to have to get outs," Mets manager Jerry Manuel said. "We'll keep doing it until we find the right way."

Scott Schoeneweis (2-3), the Mets' eighth pitcher, intentionally walked Werth and Bruntlett before striking out Brett Myers, who batted for Rudy Seanez (5-3) after pitching the Phillies to a victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Monday.

Coste drilled a 1-0 offering well over the head of drawn-in center fielder Carlos Beltran, plating Victorino with the winning run after 5 hours, 17 minutes.

"Bases loaded, against a lefthander, everything in that situation was in my advantage," Coste said."I was gonna be aggressive with the fastball, because I knew I was gonna get a fastball to hit. (Schoeneweis) couldn't nibble, couldn't walk me. It's almost hard to fail in that situation."

The four hits tied a career-high for Coste, who said afterward that his game-winning base hit was his first career walk-off hit of any kind.

"I was telling (first base coach) Davey Lopes that I've never had a walk-off hit in my career, not even in the minor leagues," Coste said. "It's kind of weird how things work out."

Damion Easley and Fernando Tatis combined for six hits - including two home runs - and six RBI for the Mets, who fell to 9-5 against the Phillies this season.

The contest was similar to New York's last visit to Citizens Bank Park on July 7, when it nearly squandered a nine-run lead before holding on for a 10-9 win. However, this time, the Phillies completed their comeback.

"We stayed after it and we did it," Phillies manager Charlie Manuel said. "That just goes to show that you play the game out."

In this one, the Mets built a seemingly insurmountable 7-0 lead, thanks to Easley and Tatis. Easley opened the scoring in the first with an RBI single and came around on a base hit by Tatis.

New York has scored in the first inning in 15 of its last 19 games and leads the major leagues in that category with 113 runs this season.

Easley belted a solo homer in the second for a 3-0 bulge, while Tatis launched a three-run shot in the third, doubling the advantage.

Tatis' blast came after a controversial call went in the Mets' favor. Tatis battled Phillies starter Jamie Moyer during an 11-pitch at-bat, fouling off five straight pitches at one point.

On one of the fouls, however, Tatis shattered his bat and the ball appeared to strike Beltran - who was on third base - in fair territory. But third base umpire Tim McClelland called it a foul ball.

Tatis finally drove a 2-2 offering into the left field seats for his 11th homer of the season.

David Wright's groundout in the fourth scored Easley, giving New York a seven-run cushion and the All-Star third baseman his 100th RBI of the season.

The Phillies battled their way back as Feliz lifted a sacrifice fly in the bottom half before Rollins and Ryan Howard hit two-run homers in the fifth. Rollins drew Philadelphia within 7-6 with an RBI single in the eighth.

"We just kept chipping away," Howard said. "We knew that they got out to a big lead early and we knew there was still a lot of game (left). So, if we got a couple runs here, a couple runs there, we'd be right back in the game."

New York starter Pedro Martinez lasted five innings, allowing five runs and seven hits. The righthander walked two and struck out eight while tossing 110 pitches.

"(The Phillies) never give up, especially in this bandbox," Martinez said. "It's frustrating, but with this team in this stadium, you never know."

Moyer, who entered with a streak of 14 consecutive starts in which he allowed three runs or less, was battered for six runs and nine hits over three frames. The 45-year-old lefthander struck out three without a walk.