Tom, the Mets' star pitcher, bumped into Brooks, the replacement third baseman, in the dugout. Tom didn't apologize. Brooks said, "Excuse you." The pitcher said, "No, excuse you. I heard your TV interview yesterday. Who do you think you are? You talked like you're here to stay. You're here only until Wade recovers. Then you'll be back in theminors again. You'll be gone, just like that." He snapped his fingers. A week later, Tom was pitching a masterpiece. Not one batter had made it to first base. Were the fans about to witness a rare perfect game? The 27th batter hit a weak grounder toward third. Brooks had plenty of time. He looked at Tom. He threw the ball over the first baseman's head. Later, Brooks told Tom, "How about that? You were pitching a perfect game, and then it was gone, just like that." He snapped his fingers.