Thursday, June 18, 1998
Benny and the Mets
Former St. Louis and
By Dave Reardon
HPU star Agbayani makes
his debut in 'The Show'
Special to the Star-BulletinBenny Agbayani of the New York Mets struck out yesterday in his first Major-League at-bat. And with the score tied in the ninth inning, no less.
But his manager, Bobby Valentine, told him not to worry about it.
"He congratulated me and said, 'You're in my group now. I struck out in my first big-league at-bat, too,' " Agbayani said from his Montreal hotel room last night. The Expos beat the Mets, 5-4, at Olympic Stadium a few hours earlier.
"Mike Piazza told me that's better than a home run, you can only go downhill from there," Agbayani said. "The clubhouse was pretty loose, there's a good atmosphere. These guys are winners and they're going for a pennant, but they do a good job of making a new guy feel welcome, too."
Yesterday's events were a whirlwind for the former St. Louis School and Hawaii Pacific University star.
At 12:35 a.m. (Eastern Time), he left in the ninth inning of a rain-delayed Triple-A game between his Norfolk Tides and visiting Buffalo. That's when he got the call to report to the Mets in Montreal.
Agbayani, 26, has progressed steadily since being drafted in the 30th round by the Mets in 1993, and has played well in Triple-A since last season. Still, he was surprised to get called up.
"I just couldn't believe it. I was really, really shocked," the Waipahu native said. He was batting .281 at the time of the call-up.
Agbayani said the first thing he did was call his fiancee, Niela Guigui, a former University of Hawaii softball player, at their home in Virginia.
"She was really happy and couldn't believe it either," Agbayani said.
Then he called his parents in Hawaii.
"I couldn't reach my dad right away," he said. "I think he was out ballroom dancing, he's really into that. I got him later and he congratulated me and told me 'I guess hard work pays off sometimes.' I hope to get him out to Baltimore when we play there next week."
After a few hours of restless sleep yesterday morning, it was off to Montreal.
"The first guy I ran into at the hotel was Bernard Gilkey, in the elevator heading to the game," Agbayani said. "We knew each other from spring training, and he welcomed me to the team."
Once he got to Olympic Stadium, everything became a series of firsts for Agbayani.
"It was really exciting because it was the first big-league stadium and first big-league game I'd ever been to, even to watch," Agbayani said.
He did watch most of it, until he was called on to play right field in the eighth inning.
"I had three routine fly balls, and one (base hit) that bounced in front of me," Agbayani said. "I was OK in the field, but when they introduced me and I went up to bat, I got kind of nervous."
Agbayani came to bat with no outs and Luis Lopez on first representing the go-ahead run in the ninth inning. The right-handed hitter got his baptism from one of the hottest right-handed relievers in the game, Ugueth Urbina.
"I was just trying to get my first hit," he said. "He got ahead of me, then I got it to 2-2 and fouled a couple off. Then he got me with a nasty slider."
Agbayani doesn't know how long he will remain with the Mets. Although they are short of outfielders, catchers Todd Hundley and Todd Pratt are expected to return soon. Hundley might be asked to become an outfielder, or could be traded for one.
Agbayani put on an incredible show for scouts from Japan in a Norfolk game Sunday. He hit two homers, a double and blasted a 425-foot shot that was just foul.
"Lenn Sakata is a friend of mine. He said I could do well in Japan," Agbayani said.
Sakata, the former Baltimore Oriole and Milwaukee Brewer out of Kalani High, is the minor-league director for the Chiba Lotte Marines.
For now, though, Agbayani is happy to be living the dream with the Mets and playing for Bobby Valentine, his former manager at Norfolk.
"We haven't sat down and talked yet about my role," Agbayani said. "But I already know what he expects since I played for him before."
