den Dekker encounters runaway horse on off-day

NEW YORK -- While most Mets players spent their off-days relaxing with loved ones, Matt den Dekker was nearly run over by a horse.

den Dekker was hanging out in Central Park with teammate Vic Black on Monday when he noticed a horse galloping toward them with a carriage in tow. It was only once the horse approached them that den Dekker realized there was no driver in the carriage.

The horse had broken loose from its reins, according to local news reports, and did not stop until it crashed its carriage into a standing taxicab. No one was injured -- including den Dekker, who had plenty of time to move out of the way.

"There were people everywhere," den Dekker said. "It was the excitement of the off-day for me."