There are two valid ways to view the end of the Mets’ home opener Thursday against the Marlins.
One is that it was a bad call that unfairly changed the outcome of the game. In a tie game in the bottom of the ninth, with one out and the bases loaded, New York outfielder Michael Conforto came to the plate. On a 2-2 count, Miami’s Anthony Bass threw a slider in the zone; Conforto didn’t swing; the catcher caught it cleanly. It looked, for a moment, like strike three. But Conforto leaned into it. As the pitch crossed the plate, he seemed to angle his elbow toward it, allowing it to graze him.