THE FINAL SCORE trumps all, of course. And the fact that Brett Myers pitched like Brett Myers again will be more meaningful as the Phillies continue their march through October. It is a point that no one would even think of arguing.
Still, meaning and memory are different things. What you remember is not necessarily what really matters. Sometimes you remember things that are frivolous, or silly, or outlandish, or fun. Sometimes the big picture is trumped by the single, unforgettable snapshot.
And so, last night will always be remembered as the night when Myers worked CC Sabathia for a walk.
"I know I'm a terrible hitter,'' Myers would say, after it was over. "I really can't explain it. It was like one of those freakish things.''
As long as baseball is discussed in this city, Myers' second-inning at-bat will be played and replayed. The score was tied at 1-1 when Myers walked to the plate. There were two outs and a runner on third base. There were no expectations. The man had six hits in the last three seasons, after all.
Nine pitches later, Myers was standing on first base amid bedlam at Citizens Bank Park.
The ballpark's biggest crowd ever, 46,208, was roaring. Rally towels were waving, creating this hyperactive white sea. Singsong chants of "C . . . C . . . C . . . C . . . '' were begun and then swallowed up in the collective cacophony. It was just insanity.
And two batters later, Shane Victorino provided the raucous punctuation with a grand slam. It turned out to be all the runs the Phillies needed in a 5-2 win over the Milwaukee Brewers.
"I was able to lay off some good pitches that he made and able to extend his pitch count,'' said Myers, who also had a 10-pitch at-bat against Sabathia in the fourth inning. He also got a single off reliever Seth McClung in the fifth, at which point the entire place would have fainted if it hadn't been so busy screaming.
Sabathia threw 98 pitches.
Myers saw nearly 20 percent of them. It was grandly absurd. As he himself said, "Baseball's weird like that where you can have a guy that pretty much can't hit a lick go up there and battle a guy that's as good as CC. It's just part of the game.''
Victorino's grand slam was a rocket to leftfield. The result was a 2-0 lead over the Brewers in the best-of-five series. The building confidence in the Phillies' clubhouse cannot be ignored, and will be recalled if this becomes a long October run.
But the walk is what will endure.
