[pariah]

I heard the sad news while listening to the Mariners/Astros game this afternoon. In the bottom of the 12th inning, Bagwell came up to pinch hit with runners on first and third, score tied. I said to myself, though a loyal Mariners fan, 'I don't think Bagwell is going to be denied'. Sure enough, after swinging hard and missing a couple of off-speed pitches, he laced a single into right-center that won the game! Reportedly, Kile was Bagwell's best friend, and I just knew he was saying to himself, 'This one's for Darryl'. Here's the story, from ESPN:

Bagwell delivers with game-winning single

HOUSTON (AP) -- Even after getting the game-winning hit, Jeff Bagwell was too emotionally spent to talk.

The Astros' Craig Biggio, left, gets emotional during a moment of silence for former teammate and friend Darryl Kile before the game against the Mariners.

Bagwell, out of the starting lineup after the death of good friend Darryl Kile, had a pinch-hit single in the 12th inning to give the Houston Astros a 3-2 victory over the Seattle Mariners on Saturday night.

"It was so hard to play this game,'' Craig Biggio said.

Bagwell, Biggio and Brad Ausmus, among Kile's best friends when he pitched for Houston from 1991-97, did not take batting practice and did not start. Kile's Astros jersey -- No. 57 -- hung in the Houston dugout.

"This was a very difficult day. I went back and forth between disbelief and sorrow,'' said Ausmus, fighting back tears. "When you play this game for a long time, you learn to focus on the game and not on outside things, but the gravity of this was a little heavier.''

All three came into the game as pinch-hitters, with Bagwell winning the game. After his single drove in Julio Lugo, Bagwell's teammates gathered around him while he hung his head.

After the game, Kile's former teammates remembered him fondly.

"The day I broke into the big leagues, he called me up and took me to breakfast,'' Houston closer Billy Wagner said. "He didn't know me from Adam, but he made me feel good and feel like a teammate. It was tough. It's like losing a part of your family.''

With one out in the 12th, Lugo reached on a bunt single against John Halama (2-2) and advanced to second on a balk. Lugo advanced to third on a single by Jose Vizcaino and the Mariners intentionally walked Lance Berkman, loading the bases for Bagwell.

"Bagwell is cold for 12 innings. He's coming off the bench and you've got to think you've got a good chance to get a groundball,'' Mariners manager Lou Piniella said.

Ricky Stone (3-2) pitched a perfect 12th for the win as the Astros snapped Seattle's four-game winning streak.

[BluesDuke]

I was given to understand Larry Walker of the Colorado Rockies had a pretty good day on the field and maybe thought, "This one's for DK," too - Walker was badly shaken during a press conference he gave after he arrived at the ballpark. My sense is that Darryl Kile was very well liked around the league. You can't get any better than that.