While most of Beantown is still recovering from a drunken stupor after celebrating the Red Sox’s third World Series victory in ten years, baseball fans must be sad to see the series end. The Cardinals and Red Sox World series provided one of the most entertaining and bizarre World Series’ we have ever seen. Bizarre — that’s the most appropriate word. How else can one describe a Game 3 ending on an ‘obstruction’ call or a Game 5 ending on a baserunner getting picked off at first base? Bizarre.
Although Game 6 wasn’t very climactic, it did wrap up one of the best World Series we have seen; but where does it place in history?
Joshua Caudill is a writer for CraveOnline Sports, a surfing enthusiast, a college basketball fanatic, and an expert on all things Patrick Swayze. You can follow him on @JoshuaCaudill85.
Photo Credit: Getty
Top 5 World Series'
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5. 1986 World Series: New York Mets vs Boston Red Sox
Many fans forget that the '86 Mets won 108 games during the regular season and were the clear favorites to bring home the championship. The Mets surprisingly dropped the first two games at home to the Red Sox but stormed back to win games three and four. After Dwight Gooden struggled and lost Game 5 for the Mets, the Sox were just one game away from their first World Series since 1918. Then the infamous Game 6 happened.
With two outs in the bottom of the tenth inning, and a two run lead, the Red Sox allowed ‘The Curse of the Bambino’ to creep in yet again. After giving up three straight singles and a wild-pitch that allowed the Mets to tie it, Mookie Wilson stepped up the plate. You know what came next.
Wilson hit a slow ground ball along the first baseline that rolled under Bill Buckner’s glove, allowing series MVP, Ray Knight to score the winning run.
No one even remembers Game 7 of the series but the Red Sox blew a three run lead in the sixth and fell apart again, losing the pivotal game 8-5.
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4. 2011 World Series: St. Louis Cardinals vs Texas Rangers
Twice in Game 6, the Cardinals were down to their last strike, putting the Rangers just moments away from their first World Series championship in franchise history. Down 5 -7 in the bottom of the ninth, and down in the count 1-2, Cardinals third baseman David Freese hit a game tying triple to send it into extra innings. But the Rangers produced yet again with Josh Hamilton’s two-run home run at the top of the tenth. The Cards, down 8-9, with two runners on, Lance Berkman then hit a single to center tying the game yet again…and then David Freese stepped to the plate in the 11th. With a full count, Freese hit a game-winning home run to deep center field off Rangers pitcher Mark Lowe, sending it to a deciding game.
The Rangers could not recover in Game 7 and that was all she wrote.
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3. 1991 World Series: Minnesota Twins vs Atlanta Braves
This series is legendary. Five games were decided by a single run and four games were decided by the final at-bat. Game 6 was tied 3-3 in the bottom of the 11th inning. Hall of Famer, Kirby Puckett, hit a game-winning home run to left center field in dramatic fashion.
Game 7 was even better; perhaps the best of all time. Minnesota starter Jack Morris shut out the Braves for 10 innings and with the bases loaded, Gene Larkin hit a single over a drawn-in outfield, giving them the title.
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2. 2001 World Series: Arizona Diamondbacks vs New York Yankees
With the terrorist attacks of 9/11 on the World Trade Center having occurred less than two months before, this World Series garnered a lot of the nation’s attention with a sense of recovery and escape. It is perhaps the only World Series in recent history where it seemed the majority was rooting for the Yankees to win it for their ailing city.
The D-Backs went up two games to none at home to put the Yankees in a hole. But the momentum shifted once it went back to New York. Game 3 started off with President George W. Bush throwing out the first pitch and that seemed to get the players and the fans fired up as the three-time consecutive defending champions would win three straight games before heading back to Arizona. The Diamondbacks mauled the Yankees 15-2 in Game 6 to set up a pivotal Game 7.
Game 7 featured two pitchers that had won 22 games that season. Curt Schilling vs Roger Clemens, for all the marbles. They matched each other until the eighth inning when Schilling gave up a home-run to Alfonso Soriano, setting up a 2-1 Yankees lead going into the bottom of the ninth. With the most feared closer in the history of baseball, Mariano Rivera, to close out the game, a fourth straight World Series title was all but certainty.
After Tony Womack’s double brought in a run to tie the game, Rivera hit Arizona’s Craig Counsell to load the bases. Luis Gonzales stepped to the plate and on the second pitch, lofted a single over Derek Jeter’s head to bring in the winning run and breaking the hearts of New York City.
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1. 1975 World Series: Cincinnati Reds vs Boston Red Sox
The '75 World Series has got to be the best fall classic of all time. It has so many defining moments that are etched in the memories of baseball fans for life. The Big Red Machine was lead by Pete Rose, Joe Morgan, Johnny Bench, and Tony Perez who were facing off against a Sox team lead by the famous, Carl Yastrzemski. Five of the seven games were decided by one run so there was never a lack of suspense in this October thriller.
With the Reds leading the series three games to two, Game 6 turned out to be the greatest World Series game of all time and provided us the greatest moment of all time. In the bottom of the eighth inning, down 6-3, the Red Sox’s Bernie Carbo came to the plate to face Reds reliever, Rawly Eastwick who hit a three run blast to tie it up. The game continued well into the 12th inning when Carlton Fisk stepped in the box to face the eight pitcher used by the Reds, Pat Darcy. Fisk hit a high fly ball down the left-field line, waving his arms frantically trying to coarse the ball into staying ‘fair’ , which has become one of the most iconic images of baseball’s past. The ball stayed fair when it hit the foul pole by the green monster. Fans stormed the field and Fisk was just barreling through fans as he ran the bases. Pure magic!
Game 7 would not be as kind though. With Boston up 3-0 in the top of the sixth, the Reds’ Tony Perez hit a two-run home run to give the Reds new life. In the 7th, Pete Rose’s hit drew in Ken Griffey to tie the ball game. Going into the top of the 9th, Joe Morgan’s single scored Griffey again for the series winning run.
Boston’s heartbreak continued and the Reds had laid the groundwork for what would turn out to be another World Series title run in 1976.
