April 15, 1965: Klaus Homers in 10th
From The Met Wiki
| Date: April 15, 1965 |
| Mets starter: Jack Fisher |
| Mets: 5 |
| Astros: 4 |
| Winning pitcher: Jim Bethke |
| Key player(s): Bobby Klaus, Ed Kranepool |
| Key play: Mets' triple play, Klaus's home run |
After two losses to open the season, the Mets looked for their first win against the Houston Astros on a Thursday afternoon at Shea Stadium. The game wound up in extra innings after the newly-renamed Astros came from behind in the top of the ninth inning. The Mets came up with a 5-4 victory on Bobby Klaus's home run in the tenth.
Ed Kranepool's single with two out in the first scored Klaus to put the Mets ahead, 1-0. Houston then got singles from Walt Bond and Bob Aspromonte off Jack Fisher to start the second. Jim Wynn followed with a fly out to right field. Bond tagged up at third base, but was thrown out at home on Johnny Lewis's throw to catcher Chris Cannizzaro. Aspromonte was then nailed at second after Cannizzaro threw to shortstop Roy McMillan to complete a triple play.
In the third, Fisher walked Bob Lillis leading off. John Bateman then doubled to score Lillis to tie the game. Bateman later came home on Rusty Staub's two-out single to give the Astros a 2-1 lead.
Joe Christopher drew a leadoff walk for the Mets in the bottom of the fourth. Kranepool then came up and hit a double off Houston's Ken Johnson that brought home Christopher from first. Charley Smith's sacrifice fly scored Kranepool to put the Mets back in front, 3-2.
Fisher retired all six Astros' batters in the fifth and sixth innings. The Mets added another run against Johnson in the bottom of the sixth when Lewis led off with a double and scored on Kranepool's single. The Mets then loaded the bases before Johnson got Cannizzaro to hit into an inning-ending double play.
In the top of the ninth, Fisher retired Staub and Bond before issuing a walk to Aspromonte. Wynn then clouted a two-run homer to tie the game, 4-4. Frank Lary replaced Fisher and retired Lillis to end the inning.
Smith and Jesse Gonder got one-out singles for the Mets in the bottom of the ninth against Houston reliever Claude Raymond. Jim Hickman then came up to pinch-hit for Lary. Raymond got Hickman to hit into a double play to send the game to extra innings.
Met relievers Carl Willey and Jim Bethke combined for a scoreless top of the tenth. The inning ended with an unusual double play. With Astro runners on first and second, Bethke got Al Spangler to ground into a force play on Joe Morgan at second. Raymond was running to third, but rounded the base too far. Klaus threw to McMillan for the tag on Raymond.
Klaus led off the bottom of the tenth for the Mets. Bobby hit a pitch from Raymond off the foul pole screen down the left field line for a home run. The Mets had their first win of the season in dramatic fashion.
