The 1991 World Series was the
championship series of
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (A ...
's (MLB) held after the
1991 season
File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, 1991 Russian presidential election, elected as Russia's first President of Russia, president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated ...
. The 88th edition of the World Series, it was a
best-of-seven playoff
There are a number of formats used in various levels of competition in sports and games to determine an overall champion. Some of the most common are the ''single elimination'', the ''best-of-'' series, the ''total points series'' more commonly ...
played between the
American League
The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league b ...
(AL)
champion
A champion (from the late Latin ''campio'') is the victor in a challenge, contest or competition. There can be a territorial pyramid of championships, e.g. local, regional / provincial, state, national, continental and world championships, a ...
Minnesota Twins
The Minnesota Twins are an American professional baseball team based in Minneapolis. The Twins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central Division. The team is named after the Twin Cities area w ...
(95–67) and the
National League
The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team s ...
(NL)
champion
A champion (from the late Latin ''campio'') is the victor in a challenge, contest or competition. There can be a territorial pyramid of championships, e.g. local, regional / provincial, state, national, continental and world championships, a ...
Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The Braves were founded in ...
(94–68). The Twins defeated the Braves four games to three to win the championship, their second in Minnesota and third overall. The series was also unique because of the standings of the two participating teams in the previous season: both finished the
1990 season in last place; before 1991, no league champion had ever finished the previous season in last place.
In 2003,
ESPN
ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...
selected this championship as the "Greatest of All Time" in their "World Series 100th Anniversary" countdown, with five of its games decided by a single run, four decided in the final at-bat and three going into extra innings. In addition to the suspense of the outcome of many of its games, the Series had other highlights. For example, the series-deciding seventh game was a scoreless tie (0–0) through the regular nine innings, and went into extra innings; Minnesota won 1–0 in the 10th inning, with their starting pitcher,
Jack Morris
John Scott Morris (born May 16, 1955) is an American former professional baseball starting pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) between 1977 and 1994, mainly for the Detroit Tigers. Morris won 254 games throughout his career.
Armed ...
, pitching a complete game. Morris was named the
MVP for the series. A number of other outlets regard the 1991 World Series as one of the greatest ever.
With 69 innings in total, the 1991 World Series shares the record for longest seven-game World Series in terms of innings that had been set with the
1924 World Series (the
1912 World Series, a best-of-nine series, logged the most innings ever, at 75).
Background
Minnesota Twins
Three years after their
1987 World Series
The 1987 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1987 season. The 84th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff played between the American League (AL) champion Minnesota Twins and the Natio ...
championship, the Minnesota Twins went 74–88 in 1990 to finish last in the American League West for the first time since
1982
Events January
* January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00).
* January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street Bridge in Washington, D.C ...
. However, in 1991, thanks to breakout seasons from pitchers such as
Scott Erickson and
Kevin Tapani
Kevin Ray Tapani (born February 18, 1964) is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who played for the New York Mets, Minnesota Twins, Los Angeles Dodgers, Chicago White Sox, and Chicago Cubs from 1989 to 2001.
Early life
Tapani was raised in Es ...
and a
Rookie of the Year-winning performance from second baseman
Chuck Knoblauch
Edward Charles Knoblauch (; born July 7, 1968) is an American former professional baseball player. He played 12 seasons in Major League Baseball, from 1991 through 2002, for the Minnesota Twins, New York Yankees, and Kansas City Royals. He p ...
, the Twins won their division by eight games over the
Chicago White Sox
The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and ...
. They defeated the
Toronto Blue Jays
The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...
in five games in the
American League Championship Series
The American League Championship Series (ALCS) is a best-of-seven playoff and one of two League Championship Series comprising the penultimate round of Major League Baseball's (MLB) postseason. It is contested by the two winners of the America ...
to advance to the Fall Classic.
Atlanta Braves
Following a late-season collapse in
1983
The year 1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call.
Events January
* January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to TCP/IP is officially completed (this is considered to be the beginning ...
, the Atlanta Braves had a string of seven consecutive losing seasons and finished last in the National League West three times in a row from 1988 to 1990. However, in 1991, after having a 39–40 record at the All-Star break, the Braves surged in the second half to win the division title on the penultimate day of the season. Aided by
MVP
In team sports, a most valuable player award, abbreviated 'MVP award', is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a particu ...
third baseman
Terry Pendleton
Terry Lee Pendleton (born July 16, 1960) is a former third baseman in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played primarily for the St. Louis Cardinals and Atlanta Braves, but he also spent time with the Florida Marlins, Cincinnati Reds, and Kansas ...
and
Cy Young Award
The Cy Young Award is given annually to the best pitchers in Major League Baseball (MLB), one each for the American League (AL) and National League (NL). The award was first introduced in 1956 by Baseball Commissioner Ford Frick in honor of Ha ...
winner
Tom Glavine
Thomas Michael Glavine (born March 25, 1966) is an American former professional baseball pitcher who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball, for the Atlanta Braves (1987–2002, 2008) and New York Mets (2003–2007).
With 164 victories durin ...
, 1991 was the franchise's best season since
1957
1957 ( MCMLVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar, the 1957th year of the Common Era (CE) and ''Anno Domini'' (AD) designations, the 957th year of the 2nd millennium, the 57th year of the 20th century, and the 8th year ...
. They defeated the
Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...
in seven games in the
National League Championship Series
The National League Championship Series (NLCS) is a best-of-seven playoff and one of two League Championship Series comprising the penultimate round of Major League Baseball's (MLB) postseason. It is contested by the winners of the two Nation ...
to win their first National League pennant since
1958
Events
January
* January 1 – The European Economic Community (EEC) comes into being.
* January 3 – The West Indies Federation is formed.
* January 4
** Edmund Hillary's Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition completes the third ...
.
Summary
The 1991 World Series was notable for several grueling contests, with five of its games decided by one run (three of which in extra innings; including the third game, a 12-inning marathon that saw Twins
manager
Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business.
Management includes the activitie ...
Tom Kelly run out of hitters).
Matchups
Game 1
The ceremonial first pitch of the series was thrown by retired AL umpire
Steve Palermo, who had been forced into early retirement when he was seriously injured by gunshot while coming to the aid of a robbery victim in
Dallas
Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...
on July 7, 1991. After the pitch, the Twins'
Al Newman
Albert Dwayne Newman (born June 30, 1960) is a former infielder in Major League Baseball who played for the Montreal Expos (1985–1986), Minnesota Twins (1987–1991) and Texas Rangers (1992). Newman was a switch-hitter and threw right-handed. ...
returned the ball to Palermo and the series umpires jogged to the mound to exchange well wishes.
The Twins started their ace, Minnesota native
Jack Morris
John Scott Morris (born May 16, 1955) is an American former professional baseball starting pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) between 1977 and 1994, mainly for the Detroit Tigers. Morris won 254 games throughout his career.
Armed ...
. In his first season with his hometown team, the future Hall of Famer won 18 games, recorded a 3.43 ERA (16th best in the American League), and pitched ten complete games. He was also one of the few starting pitchers in the series on either side with prior experience; seven years earlier, as the ace of the
Detroit Tigers
The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was f ...
, Morris won two games in the
1984 World Series and helped lead Detroit to its most recent world championship. He also had recorded two victories in the
ALCS over the
Toronto Blue Jays
The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...
.
The Braves countered with
Charlie Leibrandt
Charles Louis Leibrandt, Jr. (; born October 4, 1956) is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who played from 1979 to 1993 for the Cincinnati Reds, Kansas City Royals, Atlanta Braves, and Texas Rangers. Leibrandt was a productive pitcher thr ...
, the only Brave with Series exposure. Before joining the Braves in 1990, Leibrandt was a member of the
Kansas City Royals
The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team was founded as an expans ...
for six seasons and had won 17 games for their
1985 World Series
The 1985 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1985 season. The 82nd edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff played between the American League (AL) champion Kansas City Royals and the Na ...
champion squad. Thus he was also the only Braves starter who had previously faced several members of the Twins lineup, including
Dan Gladden
Clinton Daniel Gladden III (born July 7, 1957) is an American former Major League Baseball player and current radio broadcaster. He was the starting left fielder with the Minnesota Twins' two World Series Championship teams in 1987 and 1991.
Base ...
,
Kirby Puckett
Kirby Puckett (March 14, 1960 – March 6, 2006) was an American professional baseball player. He played his entire 12-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career as a center fielder for the Minnesota Twins (1984–1995). Puckett is the Twins' all- ...
, and
Kent Hrbek
Kent Alan Hrbek (; born May 21, 1960), nicknamed "Herbie", is a former American Major League Baseball first baseman. He played his entire 14-year baseball career with the Minnesota Twins (1981–1994). Hrbek batted left-handed and threw right-hand ...
. In 1991, Leibrandt was 15–13 with a 3.49 ERA. His win total was third on the team behind
Tom Glavine
Thomas Michael Glavine (born March 25, 1966) is an American former professional baseball pitcher who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball, for the Atlanta Braves (1987–2002, 2008) and New York Mets (2003–2007).
With 164 victories durin ...
and
Steve Avery. In the
NLCS against the
Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...
, Leibrandt pitched in Game 5 and recorded a no-decision.
Minnesota scored first in the bottom of the third. With two out, leadoff hitter
Dan Gladden
Clinton Daniel Gladden III (born July 7, 1957) is an American former Major League Baseball player and current radio broadcaster. He was the starting left fielder with the Minnesota Twins' two World Series Championship teams in 1987 and 1991.
Base ...
walked and then stole second. Rookie second baseman
Chuck Knoblauch
Edward Charles Knoblauch (; born July 7, 1968) is an American former professional baseball player. He played 12 seasons in Major League Baseball, from 1991 through 2002, for the Minnesota Twins, New York Yankees, and Kansas City Royals. He p ...
then singled to drive him in, but was caught in a rundown in between first and second and tagged out to end the inning. Manager
Tom Kelly later said that he wanted Knoblauch to take the turn around first to draw the throw away from the plate and allow the run to score. The Twins added three more runs in the fifth, as
Kent Hrbek
Kent Alan Hrbek (; born May 21, 1960), nicknamed "Herbie", is a former American Major League Baseball first baseman. He played his entire 14-year baseball career with the Minnesota Twins (1981–1994). Hrbek batted left-handed and threw right-hand ...
led off with a double,
Scott Leius singled and shortstop
Greg Gagne hit a three-run shot. Leibrandt was pulled from the game after the home run, and reliever Jim Clancy promptly allowed Gladden and Knoblauch to reach base on an error and a walk. Gladden reached third on a fly ball by
Kirby Puckett
Kirby Puckett (March 14, 1960 – March 6, 2006) was an American professional baseball player. He played his entire 12-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career as a center fielder for the Minnesota Twins (1984–1995). Puckett is the Twins' all- ...
for the first out, and after Knoblauch stole second
Chili Davis
Charles Theodore "Chili" Davis (born January 17, 1960) is a Jamaican-American former professional baseball player. He played as an outfielder and designated hitter from to for the San Francisco Giants (1981–1987), California Angels (1988–199 ...
was put on intentionally. Twins catcher
Brian Harper
Brian David Harper (born October 16, 1959) is an American former catcher in Major League Baseball who played for teams in both the American and National Leagues during his 16-year career (-). He most recently served as the hitting coach of the D ...
then lifted a fly ball to left field that was caught for the second out. Gladden tagged again and tried to score, running over Atlanta catcher
Greg Olson in the process, but Olson held onto the ball for the third out even though Gladden flipped him so hard that he momentarily stood on his head.
The Braves broke through against Morris in the top of the sixth, as
Jeff Treadway
Hugh Jeffrey Treadway (born January 22, 1963) is an American former professional baseball second baseman. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cincinnati Reds, Atlanta Braves, Cleveland Indians, Los Angeles Dodgers, and Montreal Expo ...
and
David Justice reached base with two out.
Ron Gant
Ronald Edwin Gant (born March 2, 1965) is an American television news anchor and former professional baseball outfielder, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Atlanta Braves (1987–1993), Cincinnati Reds (1995), St. Louis Cardinals ...
then followed with a single that Gladden misplayed, which scored Treadway and left runners at second and third. Morris got out of the jam by striking out
Sid Bream
Sidney Eugene Bream (born August 3, 1960) is an American former professional baseball first baseman. From 1983 through 1994, he played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Los Angeles Dodgers (1983–85), Pittsburgh Pirates (1985–90), Atlanta ...
to end the inning, and the Twins added an insurance run in the bottom of the inning as Hrbek homered off Clancy.
After walking the first two batters to lead off the eighth, Morris was pulled from the game in favor of
Mark Guthrie
Mark Andrew Guthrie (born September 22, 1965) is a former Major League Baseball relief pitcher who played for several teams between 1989 and 2003 and was a member of the 1991 World Series Champion Minnesota Twins.
Career
After graduating from ...
, who induced a double play off the bat of
Terry Pendleton
Terry Lee Pendleton (born July 16, 1960) is a former third baseman in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played primarily for the St. Louis Cardinals and Atlanta Braves, but he also spent time with the Florida Marlins, Cincinnati Reds, and Kansas ...
. After Guthrie walked Justice, Twins closer
Rick Aguilera
Richard Warren Aguilera (born December 31, 1961) is an American former professional baseball player and coach. He played in Major League Baseball as a right-handed pitcher from 1985 to 2000. Aguilera won a world championship as a member of the N ...
came into the game and gave up a hit to Gant. The hit drove in
Lonnie Smith from third base, and the run was charged to Morris. It was the last run scored, as the Twins won 5–2 with Aguilera picking up the four-out save.
Morris's win was his third World Series win in as many starts, as he won Games 1 and 4 of the
1984 Series. Leibrandt's poor performance resulted in his being removed from the rotation, although he did pitch in Game 6, facing just one batter and giving up the game-winning home run to Puckett.
During the game, a Hrbek pop foul hit Commissioner
Fay Vincent
Francis Thomas Vincent Jr. (born May 29, 1938), known as Fay Vincent, is a former entertainment lawyer, securities regulator, and sports executive who served as the eighth Commissioner of Major League Baseball from September 13, 1989 to Septembe ...
's daughter Anne in the head.
Game 2
The pitching matchup featured 1991 National League
Cy Young Award
The Cy Young Award is given annually to the best pitchers in Major League Baseball (MLB), one each for the American League (AL) and National League (NL). The award was first introduced in 1956 by Baseball Commissioner Ford Frick in honor of Ha ...
winner
Tom Glavine
Thomas Michael Glavine (born March 25, 1966) is an American former professional baseball pitcher who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball, for the Atlanta Braves (1987–2002, 2008) and New York Mets (2003–2007).
With 164 victories durin ...
against the Twins' 16-game winner and number two starter,
Kevin Tapani
Kevin Ray Tapani (born February 18, 1964) is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who played for the New York Mets, Minnesota Twins, Los Angeles Dodgers, Chicago White Sox, and Chicago Cubs from 1989 to 2001.
Early life
Tapani was raised in Es ...
. Tapani had the lowest ERA of the Twins' rotation, 2.99, while Glavine led the Braves in wins with 20. In their respective League Championship Series, Tapani had not pitched particularly well having lost Game 2 and giving up five early runs in Game 5. Glavine lost his NLCS starts in Games 1 and 5, giving up a total of six runs.
Leading off the bottom of the first, Gladden lifted a seemingly routine pop-up toward second base. Atlanta fielders Justice and
Mark Lemke
Mark Alan Lemke (born August 13, 1965) is a former Major League Baseball player and current broadcaster. Nicknamed "the Lemmer", he was a popular second baseman for the Atlanta Braves from to . He won the 1995 World Series with the Braves over ...
miscommunicated and collided, and the ball fell from Lemke's glove. Gladden reached second on a two-base error. After walking Knoblauch, Glavine induced Puckett to ground to third, where Pendleton stepped on the bag to retire Gladden and threw across to
Sid Bream
Sidney Eugene Bream (born August 3, 1960) is an American former professional baseball first baseman. From 1983 through 1994, he played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Los Angeles Dodgers (1983–85), Pittsburgh Pirates (1985–90), Atlanta ...
to retire Puckett for the double play. But the next batter, Davis, homered off Glavine and gave the Twins an early 2–0 lead.
The Braves got a run back in the top of the second when Justice singled, was doubled to third by Bream, and then scored on a
sacrifice fly
In baseball, a sacrifice fly (sometimes abbreviated to sac fly) is defined by Rule 9.08(d):
"Score a sacrifice fly when, before two are out, the batter hits a ball in flight handled by an outfielder or an infielder running in the outfield in fair o ...
by
Brian Hunter. Controversy occurred the next inning when
Lonnie Smith reached first on an error by
Scott Leius. With two outs, Gant ripped a single to left. Smith, playing for a record fourth team in World Series play, tried to beat the throw to third from Gladden, which was wild and missed third baseman Leius. Smith took third, but Gant was caught between bases trying to advance on the throw. Tapani, backing up the play, fielded Gladden's throw and threw back to first. Gant headed back to the base standing up but off balance, and in the process became entangled with Hrbek, who continued to apply the tag. Gant lost touch with first base so first base umpire Drew Coble called Gant out. A furious Gant and first base coach Pat Corrales argued to no avail. Coble said in an interview conducted for the home video recap of the series that, in his view, Gant was not in control of his body when he returned to the base, that his own momentum caused him to get entangled with Hrbek, and that he fell off the base. He explained, "everybody watches the feet on the replays, but if you watch his upper body, he's falling over and in my judgment his momentum after he hit the bag carried him on and off." Hrbek said that Gant fell on him and pushed him.
Tom Kelly said that Gant would not have had a problem if he had slid into the bag. This call was ranked as one of the top ten worst baseball calls by both ESPN and Sports Illustrated. Hrbek became a hated figure in Atlanta, was lustily booed, and even received a death threat. In 2011, the Twins celebrated the 20th anniversary of the controversial play by commissioning a bobblehead doll of Hrbek and Gant entangled, a promotion that proved popular with Twins fans.
The Braves tied the game in the fifth when Olson doubled, advanced to third on a groundout by Lemke, and came home on a sacrifice fly by
Rafael Belliard
Rafael Leonidas Belliard Matias (born October 24, 1961) is a retired professional baseball shortstop who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1982 to 1998 with the Pittsburgh Pirates and Atlanta Braves. He was a member of Atlanta's 1995 W ...
. The game stayed tied into the eighth. In the top half, Belliard got a leadoff hit on a bunt single, and after a sacrifice, Pendleton beat out an infield hit. But Tapani got Gant out on a foul popup and Justice on a fly out to end the threat. Kelly remembered seeing a tape of the game that showed Glavine in disbelief that Atlanta was unable to score, and felt that Glavine's emotions took over. Immediately in the bottom half, the unheralded Leius drilled Glavine's first pitch into the left-field seats for what proved to be the game-winning home run.
Both starting pitchers stayed in the game through eight innings and were quite effective, giving up just five runs combined (three earned).
Rick Aguilera
Richard Warren Aguilera (born December 31, 1961) is an American former professional baseball player and coach. He played in Major League Baseball as a right-handed pitcher from 1985 to 2000. Aguilera won a world championship as a member of the N ...
earned the save for the Twins, and the Series headed to Atlanta with the Twins leading two games to none.
Game 3
In what is considered one of the greatest World Series games ever played, the Braves outlasted the Twins in a thrilling 12-inning battle in the first World Series game played in the
Deep South
The Deep South or the Lower South is a cultural and geographic subregion in the Southern United States. The term was first used to describe the states most dependent on plantations and slavery prior to the American Civil War. Following the war ...
. This game matched Minnesota's 20-game winner
Scott Erickson against Atlanta's late-season hero
Steve Avery. In the NLCS, Avery had not allowed a run to the
Pirates
Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and other valuable goods. Those who conduct acts of piracy are called pirates, v ...
in innings of work, winning Game 2 and Game 6 and garnering series MVP honors. Erickson made one start in the ALCS, taking a no decision in Game 3.
Going into the three games in Atlanta, Twins manager
Tom Kelly said that managing without the designated-hitter rule was "right up there with rocket science".
In a play reminiscent of Game 2,
Dan Gladden
Clinton Daniel Gladden III (born July 7, 1957) is an American former Major League Baseball player and current radio broadcaster. He was the starting left fielder with the Minnesota Twins' two World Series Championship teams in 1987 and 1991.
Base ...
led off the game by reaching on a fielding mistake. He lifted a fly ball toward right-center field where
David Justice and
Ron Gant
Ronald Edwin Gant (born March 2, 1965) is an American television news anchor and former professional baseball outfielder, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Atlanta Braves (1987–1993), Cincinnati Reds (1995), St. Louis Cardinals ...
both went to catch it, but neither called for the ball and it dropped between them. Gladden reached third on the hit standing up, and
Chuck Knoblauch
Edward Charles Knoblauch (; born July 7, 1968) is an American former professional baseball player. He played 12 seasons in Major League Baseball, from 1991 through 2002, for the Minnesota Twins, New York Yankees, and Kansas City Royals. He p ...
subsequently flied out to allow him to score the first run of the game and end Avery's scoreless innings streak.
The Braves got the run back in the second when Greg Olson scored on
Rafael Belliard
Rafael Leonidas Belliard Matias (born October 24, 1961) is a retired professional baseball shortstop who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1982 to 1998 with the Pittsburgh Pirates and Atlanta Braves. He was a member of Atlanta's 1995 W ...
's single. Justice led off the fourth with his first World Series home run, and the Braves led for the first time in the Series, 2–1. In the fifth, the Braves scored again when
Lonnie Smith homered. Erickson was pulled from the game after allowing
Terry Pendleton
Terry Lee Pendleton (born July 16, 1960) is a former third baseman in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played primarily for the St. Louis Cardinals and Atlanta Braves, but he also spent time with the Florida Marlins, Cincinnati Reds, and Kansas ...
and Justice to reach base, on a walk and an error by Knoblauch on a ground ball that should have ended the inning.
David West entered the game and walked two consecutive batters, forcing home an unearned run (charged to Erickson) and leaving the bases loaded for
Terry Leach, who struck out
Mark Lemke
Mark Alan Lemke (born August 13, 1965) is a former Major League Baseball player and current broadcaster. Nicknamed "the Lemmer", he was a popular second baseman for the Atlanta Braves from to . He won the 1995 World Series with the Braves over ...
to end the inning. With the score 4–1, the Braves looked to close it out. As it turned out, the game was just beginning.
After the run that resulted from the first-inning misplay between Gant and Justice, Avery had been perfect for five innings, recording 15 consecutive outs. But then he seemed to tire a bit.
Kirby Puckett
Kirby Puckett (March 14, 1960 – March 6, 2006) was an American professional baseball player. He played his entire 12-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career as a center fielder for the Minnesota Twins (1984–1995). Puckett is the Twins' all- ...
homered in the seventh to make it 4–2, one inning after two Twins hits and two other fly outs to the warning track. Atlanta manager
Bobby Cox
Robert Joe Cox (born May 21, 1941) is an American former professional baseball third baseman and manager in Major League Baseball (MLB). Cox played for the New York Yankees and managed the Atlanta Braves and Toronto Blue Jays. He is a member of ...
reluctantly sent Avery out for the eighth inning. The first batter he faced was
Brian Harper
Brian David Harper (born October 16, 1959) is an American former catcher in Major League Baseball who played for teams in both the American and National Leagues during his 16-year career (-). He most recently served as the hitting coach of the D ...
, pinch hitting for his replacement catcher
Junior Ortiz (Harper never started games that season when Erickson pitched, as he preferred to pitch to Ortiz). After he reached on an error Avery went to the showers in favor of the Braves' regular-season closer,
Alejandro Peña
Alejandro Peña Vásquez (born June 25, 1959) is a former relief pitcher in Major League Baseball. Listed at 6' 1" , 200 lb. , he batted and threw right-handed.
Peña made his Major League debut on August 13, 1981 (in time to be included on t ...
. Peña had been 13 for 13 in save opportunities since joining the Braves in a late-season trade with the
Mets
The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...
, but he had not pitched since the previous Wednesday.
Chili Davis
Charles Theodore "Chili" Davis (born January 17, 1960) is a Jamaican-American former professional baseball player. He played as an outfielder and designated hitter from to for the San Francisco Giants (1981–1987), California Angels (1988–199 ...
, pinch hitting for pitcher
Steve Bedrosian
Stephen Wayne Bedrosian (born December 6, 1957) is an American former Major League Baseball player. Nicknamed "Bedrock", he played from 1981 to 1995 with the Atlanta Braves, Philadelphia Phillies, San Francisco Giants, and Minnesota Twins. Bedrosi ...
, took advantage of this and hit a home run to tie the game.
The game remained tied into extra innings, and a series of substitutions and double switches turned the game on its ear. Kelly exhausted the remaining players on his bench by the eleventh inning, and entering the twelfth he was down to only three remaining players, all pitchers. Of those three,
Rick Aguilera
Richard Warren Aguilera (born December 31, 1961) is an American former professional baseball player and coach. He played in Major League Baseball as a right-handed pitcher from 1985 to 2000. Aguilera won a world championship as a member of the N ...
was the only one who was available to play; the other two were his other two starters,
Jack Morris
John Scott Morris (born May 16, 1955) is an American former professional baseball starting pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) between 1977 and 1994, mainly for the Detroit Tigers. Morris won 254 games throughout his career.
Armed ...
and
Kevin Tapani
Kevin Ray Tapani (born February 18, 1964) is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who played for the New York Mets, Minnesota Twins, Los Angeles Dodgers, Chicago White Sox, and Chicago Cubs from 1989 to 2001.
Early life
Tapani was raised in Es ...
.
The top of the twelfth began with
Mark Wohlers
Mark Edward Wohlers (born January 23, 1970) is a former professional baseball pitcher. A right-hander, he played all or parts of 12 seasons in Major League Baseball, exclusively as a relief pitcher. He is best known for his years with the Atlanta ...
on the mound for the Braves. After he retired
Randy Bush
Randy is a given name, popular in the United States and Canada. It is primarily a masculine name. It was originally derived from the names Randall, Randolf, Randolph, as well as Bertrand and Andrew, and may be a short form (hypocorism) of them ...
on a fly out, Gladden reached on a single. Knoblauch followed with a ground ball to second that would likely have resulted in a double play, but Lemke misplayed it and it rolled between his legs. Gladden was able to advance to third on the error, and with the go-ahead run in scoring position, Braves manager
Bobby Cox
Robert Joe Cox (born May 21, 1941) is an American former professional baseball third baseman and manager in Major League Baseball (MLB). Cox played for the New York Yankees and managed the Atlanta Braves and Toronto Blue Jays. He is a member of ...
brought in
Kent Mercker
Kent Franklin Mercker (born February 1, 1968) is an American former Major League Baseball left-handed pitcher. He played for nine teams over his 17-year career.
Career
Mercker was born in Brownsburg, Indiana and lived in several different cities ...
to pitch.
While all of this was going on, Aguilera was warming up in the Twins’ bullpen. On the CBS television broadcast,
Tim McCarver
James Timothy McCarver (born October 16, 1941) is an American former professional baseball player and television sports commentator. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher from to , most prominently as a member of the St. Louis Cardinal ...
noted that the pitcher’s spot was due in two batters.
Kent Hrbek
Kent Alan Hrbek (; born May 21, 1960), nicknamed "Herbie", is a former American Major League Baseball first baseman. He played his entire 14-year baseball career with the Minnesota Twins (1981–1994). Hrbek batted left-handed and threw right-hand ...
was the batter, and McCarver theorized that if Mercker retired Hrbek, Cox would elect to walk the on deck hitter,
Kirby Puckett
Kirby Puckett (March 14, 1960 – March 6, 2006) was an American professional baseball player. He played his entire 12-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career as a center fielder for the Minnesota Twins (1984–1995). Puckett is the Twins' all- ...
, if Knoblauch and Gladden were still on base, and force Kelly to decide to use Aguilera as a pinch hitter for pitcher
Mark Guthrie
Mark Andrew Guthrie (born September 22, 1965) is a former Major League Baseball relief pitcher who played for several teams between 1989 and 2003 and was a member of the 1991 World Series Champion Minnesota Twins.
Career
After graduating from ...
.
On the fourth pitch of the at bat, with Knoblauch running to avoid a potential double play, Hrbek struck out looking. Cox brought in
Jim Clancy to pitch to Puckett and, just as McCarver had thought, put him on intentionally to load the bases. With his hand forced, Kelly summoned Aguilera from the bullpen to pinch hit. Aguilera had some previous success as a hitter, and had in fact come up as an infielder, but he had not had any at bats since he played with the
New York Mets
The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...
in 1989. On the third pitch of the at-bat he flied out to deep center field, leaving the bases loaded and the game deadlocked. Kelly said in an interview that if the game had gone on longer, since he had used up all his relief pitchers, he would have put left fielder Gladden (who had previously made emergency pitching appearances on at least two occasions) on the mound and Aguilera in the outfield.
In the bottom of the 12th, Aguilera remained in the game to pitch and quickly got the first out on one pitch. But then Justice singled to right and after
Brian Hunter popped out, Justice stole second on an 0–2 pitch to Olson. With two outs and first base open and the normally light-hitting Lemke on deck, Aguilera, wary of Olson's stealth status as one of the Braves' best clutch hitters (despite an overall average of only .241, he had batted .373 with two outs and runners in scoring position during the season), pitched him very carefully after the stolen base and walked him. Lemke (who had nearly caused a major Twins rally with his fielding error in the top of the inning) now entered the pantheon of World Series heroes by hitting a single to left that enabled Justice to just beat the throw home from Gladden. His score gave the Braves a 5–4 win and cut the Twins' lead in the Series to two games to one. Clancy took the win while Aguilera received the loss.
The game lasted a then record four hours, four minutes, broken in 2005 in Game 3 of the
2005 World Series
The 2005 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 2005 season. The 101st edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff between the American League (AL) champion Chicago White Sox and the National ...
, which ran five hours, 41 minutes. It was the first of four games in this Series to end with the winning team scoring the deciding run in the ninth inning or later. It was also the first World Series game played in
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to the ...
.
Game 4
Game 4 matched up
Jack Morris
John Scott Morris (born May 16, 1955) is an American former professional baseball starting pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) between 1977 and 1994, mainly for the Detroit Tigers. Morris won 254 games throughout his career.
Armed ...
against Atlanta starter
John Smoltz
John Andrew Smoltz (born May 15, 1967), nicknamed "Smoltzie" and "Marmaduke", is an American former baseball pitcher who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball from 1988 to 2009, all but the last year with the Atlanta Braves. An eight-time A ...
, a former Detroit prospect and Michigan native who idolized Morris as a youngster when he was pitching for the Tigers. Morris was looking to record his second victory of the series while Smoltz was making his first start. Smoltz had won both of his starts against the Pirates in the NLCS, including in the seventh and deciding game in Pittsburgh where he pitched a complete game shutout.
As was the custom in the first three games, the Twins scored first. In the second inning,
Brian Harper
Brian David Harper (born October 16, 1959) is an American former catcher in Major League Baseball who played for teams in both the American and National Leagues during his 16-year career (-). He most recently served as the hitting coach of the D ...
scored on
Mike Pagliarulo
Michael Timothy Pagliarulo, a.k.a. "Pags" (born March 15, 1960), is an American former professional baseball third baseman and later the hitting coach of the Miami Marlins. He played in Major League Baseball for the New York Yankees, San Diego Pa ...
's double. The Braves tied it in the third when
Terry Pendleton
Terry Lee Pendleton (born July 16, 1960) is a former third baseman in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played primarily for the St. Louis Cardinals and Atlanta Braves, but he also spent time with the Florida Marlins, Cincinnati Reds, and Kansas ...
hit his first postseason home run.
The Braves appeared ready to take a lead in the fifth when
Lonnie Smith singled and stole second. Pendleton then followed with a deep fly ball to center field. As
Kirby Puckett
Kirby Puckett (March 14, 1960 – March 6, 2006) was an American professional baseball player. He played his entire 12-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career as a center fielder for the Minnesota Twins (1984–1995). Puckett is the Twins' all- ...
went back to field it, Smith watched from approximately halfway down the baseline to see where the ball was going to land. Puckett got under the ball and Smith went back to tag up, since the fly ball was deep enough for him to advance to third if Puckett caught it.
As Puckett reached up to try and catch the ball, it nicked the top of his glove and dropped behind him. Since Smith had gone to tag up instead of staying where he had been, he now had to start running from a dead stop and was unable to gain much momentum as the relay throw reached the infield. Smith was waved around third anyway, with the relay reaching Harper on the bounce just before Smith got to the plate. Smith’s only recourse was to try to dislodge the ball from Harper, doing so by throwing himself at Harper and bowling him over. Despite the violent collision, Harper held onto the ball and Smith was out.
With Pendleton on third now and Morris having walked
Ron Gant
Ronald Edwin Gant (born March 2, 1965) is an American television news anchor and former professional baseball outfielder, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Atlanta Braves (1987–1993), Cincinnati Reds (1995), St. Louis Cardinals ...
,
David Justice stood in. Morris threw a pitch that got past Harper, but he was able to recover and tag Pendleton out as he tried to score. The game remained tied through the sixth.
In the top of the seventh, Pagliarulo homered to give the Twins the lead, 2–1. With a lead and a bullpen that had allowed only one earned run in the entire post-season, the Twins opted to go for more runs by pinch hitting for Morris and removing him after six innings. He had been effective, allowing only the one run, but had a high pitch count. The move backfired as Braves got the run back in the bottom of the inning when Smith made up for his baserunning gaffe and homered off Twins reliever
Carl Willis
Carl Blake Willis (born December 28, 1960) is an American former professional baseball pitcher and current pitching coach for the Cleveland Guardians of Major League Baseball (MLB). He was previously the pitching coach for the Boston Red Sox and ...
to tie the game.
The game entered the bottom of the ninth still tied at two. With one out and
Mark Guthrie
Mark Andrew Guthrie (born September 22, 1965) is a former Major League Baseball relief pitcher who played for several teams between 1989 and 2003 and was a member of the 1991 World Series Champion Minnesota Twins.
Career
After graduating from ...
pitching,
Mark Lemke
Mark Alan Lemke (born August 13, 1965) is a former Major League Baseball player and current broadcaster. Nicknamed "the Lemmer", he was a popular second baseman for the Atlanta Braves from to . He won the 1995 World Series with the Braves over ...
drilled a triple off the left-center field wall.
Jeff Blauser
Jeff is a masculine name, often a short form (hypocorism) of the English given name Jefferson or Jeffrey, which comes from a medieval variant of Geoffrey.
Music
* DJ Jazzy Jeff, American DJ/turntablist record producer Jeffrey Allen Townes
* ...
was walked intentionally to set up a possible double play to force extra innings.
With the pitchers’ spot due up after Blauser,
Bobby Cox
Robert Joe Cox (born May 21, 1941) is an American former professional baseball third baseman and manager in Major League Baseball (MLB). Cox played for the New York Yankees and managed the Atlanta Braves and Toronto Blue Jays. He is a member of ...
sent
Francisco Cabrera to the on-deck circle. Once Blauser was given his intentional walk,
Tom Kelly brought in former Brave
Steve Bedrosian
Stephen Wayne Bedrosian (born December 6, 1957) is an American former Major League Baseball player. Nicknamed "Bedrock", he played from 1981 to 1995 with the Atlanta Braves, Philadelphia Phillies, San Francisco Giants, and Minnesota Twins. Bedrosi ...
to pitch. Cabrera, who had been announced as the next batter, was called back to the dugout and veteran minor leaguer
Jerry Willard
Gerald Duane Willard (born March 14, 1960) is an American former professional baseball catcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1984 to 1994 for the Cleveland Indians, Oakland Athletics, Chicago White Sox, Atlanta Braves, Montreal Ex ...
was sent in to pinch hit. Willard hit a short fly ball to
Shane Mack in right field. Lemke tagged and broke for the plate as soon as Mack caught the ball. Mack’s throw beat Lemke to the plate, but he slid around Harper’s tag attempt and home plate umpire
Terry Tata
Terry Anthony Tata (born April 24, 1940) is a former Major League Baseball (MLB) umpire. His MLB career began when the National League purchased his contract from the Triple-A International League on March 21, 1973. It ended in 1999.
Career
Du ...
called him safe despite the objections of both Harper and Bedrosian.
Tim McCarver explained on the CBS broadcast the specific reason Lemke was called safe. Since the play at the plate was not a force play, Harper needed to tag Lemke with the ball, whether it was in his hand or in his glove. While Harper did have the ball in his possession and had made contact with Lemke, he did not do so with his catcher’s mitt—the contact was up his arm near the elbow and thus, Tata ruled that he had missed the tag. It was not uncommon at the time for umpires to call a runner out when the ball beat them to the plate, regardless of the time or location of the tag, but Tata held to the letter of the law. McCarver later narrated the play as "An arm's length; an elbows width: the subtle difference between out...and safe." The win tied the Series at two games apiece and ensured a return to Minnesota.
Game 5
In Game 5,
Tom Glavine
Thomas Michael Glavine (born March 25, 1966) is an American former professional baseball pitcher who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball, for the Atlanta Braves (1987–2002, 2008) and New York Mets (2003–2007).
With 164 victories durin ...
faced
Kevin Tapani
Kevin Ray Tapani (born February 18, 1964) is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who played for the New York Mets, Minnesota Twins, Los Angeles Dodgers, Chicago White Sox, and Chicago Cubs from 1989 to 2001.
Early life
Tapani was raised in Es ...
in a Game 2 rematch. Unlike the previous game, neither pitcher had his best stuff this time around, with Tapani falling apart in the 4th and Glavine in the 6th. Whereas in their first matchup the game was relatively close, Game 5 would be the biggest offensive outburst of the series for either team. But despite the score, the game was kept close until after the 7th inning stretch.
For three innings, the pitchers matched zeroes. In the fourth,
Ron Gant
Ronald Edwin Gant (born March 2, 1965) is an American television news anchor and former professional baseball outfielder, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Atlanta Braves (1987–1993), Cincinnati Reds (1995), St. Louis Cardinals ...
singled to left and
David Justice homered off the top of the left-field wall for a 2–0 Braves lead.
Sid Bream
Sidney Eugene Bream (born August 3, 1960) is an American former professional baseball first baseman. From 1983 through 1994, he played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Los Angeles Dodgers (1983–85), Pittsburgh Pirates (1985–90), Atlanta ...
followed up with a walk, and
Greg Olson then hit what appeared to be a double play grounder to second. But the ball hit Bream's leg, resulting in Bream being called out for runner interference and Olson safe at first.
Mark Lemke
Mark Alan Lemke (born August 13, 1965) is a former Major League Baseball player and current broadcaster. Nicknamed "the Lemmer", he was a popular second baseman for the Atlanta Braves from to . He won the 1995 World Series with the Braves over ...
, the hero of Games 3 and 4, drilled a triple that scored Olson, and then scored on a double by
Rafael Belliard
Rafael Leonidas Belliard Matias (born October 24, 1961) is a retired professional baseball shortstop who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1982 to 1998 with the Pittsburgh Pirates and Atlanta Braves. He was a member of Atlanta's 1995 W ...
At this point, the Braves led 4–0, their biggest lead in any game in the Series.
In the fifth,
Terry Pendleton
Terry Lee Pendleton (born July 16, 1960) is a former third baseman in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played primarily for the St. Louis Cardinals and Atlanta Braves, but he also spent time with the Florida Marlins, Cincinnati Reds, and Kansas ...
and Gant singled, with Pendleton moving to third. Then Justice hit into a fielder's choice that scored Pendleton and gave the Braves a 5–0 lead. With Glavine working on a two-hitter, the game seemed in hand for the Braves. But Glavine's control deserted him in the sixth inning and he was pulled from the game.
Chuck Knoblauch
Edward Charles Knoblauch (; born July 7, 1968) is an American former professional baseball player. He played 12 seasons in Major League Baseball, from 1991 through 2002, for the Minnesota Twins, New York Yankees, and Kansas City Royals. He p ...
reached on a one-out walk and then went to third on a single by
Kirby Puckett
Kirby Puckett (March 14, 1960 – March 6, 2006) was an American professional baseball player. He played his entire 12-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career as a center fielder for the Minnesota Twins (1984–1995). Puckett is the Twins' all- ...
. A walk to
Chili Davis
Charles Theodore "Chili" Davis (born January 17, 1960) is a Jamaican-American former professional baseball player. He played as an outfielder and designated hitter from to for the San Francisco Giants (1981–1987), California Angels (1988–199 ...
loaded the bases, and Glavine suddenly had difficulty finding the strike zone. He gave up two runs on bases-loaded walks to
Brian Harper
Brian David Harper (born October 16, 1959) is an American former catcher in Major League Baseball who played for teams in both the American and National Leagues during his 16-year career (-). He most recently served as the hitting coach of the D ...
and
Scott Leius.
Kent Mercker
Kent Franklin Mercker (born February 1, 1968) is an American former Major League Baseball left-handed pitcher. He played for nine teams over his 17-year career.
Career
Mercker was born in Brownsburg, Indiana and lived in several different cities ...
came on to get out of the jam and got the last two outs with one additional run scoring. The game entered the seventh with the Braves leading 5–3.
Minnesota sent
David West out to begin the bottom of the seventh. West had failed to retire a batter in Game 3, facing two batters and giving up two walks (while one of these walks did force a run home, this run was an unearned run charged to starter Scott Erickson).
Lonnie Smith hit his third home run in three nights to give the Braves a 6–3 lead. And then the floodgates opened. Pendleton and Gant walked, Justice singled to score Pendleton, and West was again taken out without retiring a batter; in this game, he was charged with four earned runs without retiring a batter, for an infinite ERA (West retired his first World Series hitter in the
1993 World Series
The 1993 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) season. The 90th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff played between the defending World Series champion and American League (AL) champio ...
with the
Philadelphia Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...
). Brian Hunter singled to score Gant and put two on with nobody out and an 8–3 Braves lead. After Olson popped out, Lemke hit his third triple in his last four at bats, driving home Justice and Hunter, and scoring when Belliard singled to center. The Braves ended the seventh with an 11–3 lead and the announcers began talking about the teams' chances in Game 6.
But there were still two innings left. Davis, playing this game in right field in place of Mack, who was 0–for–15, singled. He moved to second on a ground out and scored on
Al Newman
Albert Dwayne Newman (born June 30, 1960) is a former infielder in Major League Baseball who played for the Montreal Expos (1985–1986), Minnesota Twins (1987–1991) and Texas Rangers (1992). Newman was a switch-hitter and threw right-handed. ...
's triple. In the bottom of the eighth, Pendleton doubled and Gant tripled, scoring Pendleton. Justice grounded out to the pitcher, scoring Gant, and Hunter then ended the Braves' offensive barrage with a home run.
Both managers emptied their benches to give playing time to non-starters.
Randy St. Claire gave up a run when Gladden tripled (the fifth triple of the game) and scored on a fielder's choice by
Junior Ortiz, but the game ended in a 14–5 Braves rout, the Series' only lopsided game. The Braves scored just under half their total runs for the series in these eight innings. They now had their first lead in Series games, three to two. The marquee wall at Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium read "Three at home and one at the Dome." The Washington/Minnesota franchise had now lost 14 straight World Series road games dating to
1925
Events January
* January 1
** The Syrian Federation is officially dissolved, the State of Aleppo and the State of Damascus having been replaced by the State of Syria.
* January 3 – Benito Mussolini makes a pivotal speech in the Italia ...
, a streak that remains active as the Twins have not advanced to a World Series since 1991.
Game 6
The Twins returned to the
Metrodome
The Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome (commonly called the Metrodome) was a domed sports stadium located in downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota. It opened in 1982 as a replacement for Metropolitan Stadium, the former home of the National Football League' ...
, where they had a 9–1 postseason record (including 4–0 in the World Series). After the reshuffling of the Braves' rotation following Game 1,
Steve Avery started for Atlanta on three days' rest. The Twins kept their three-man rotation, with
Scott Erickson, who had been batted around in Game 3, getting the start for Minnesota.
In the top of the first, the Braves got two runners on, but stranded them. In the bottom of the first,
Chuck Knoblauch
Edward Charles Knoblauch (; born July 7, 1968) is an American former professional baseball player. He played 12 seasons in Major League Baseball, from 1991 through 2002, for the Minnesota Twins, New York Yankees, and Kansas City Royals. He p ...
singled with one out and then
Kirby Puckett
Kirby Puckett (March 14, 1960 – March 6, 2006) was an American professional baseball player. He played his entire 12-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career as a center fielder for the Minnesota Twins (1984–1995). Puckett is the Twins' all- ...
strode to the plate looking to break out of the slump he had been in for most of the series. He tripled to left field, scoring Knoblauch, his first big play of the game.
After retiring
Chili Davis
Charles Theodore "Chili" Davis (born January 17, 1960) is a Jamaican-American former professional baseball player. He played as an outfielder and designated hitter from to for the San Francisco Giants (1981–1987), California Angels (1988–199 ...
for the second out of the inning, Avery faced another slump-ridden batter in
Shane Mack, who was hitless so far in the series. Mack hit a broken-bat single to score Puckett.
Scott Leius followed with a single, advancing Mack to third, but Avery escaped further damage by retiring
Kent Hrbek
Kent Alan Hrbek (; born May 21, 1960), nicknamed "Herbie", is a former American Major League Baseball first baseman. He played his entire 14-year baseball career with the Minnesota Twins (1981–1994). Hrbek batted left-handed and threw right-hand ...
to keep the game at 2-0.
In the top of the third, the Braves hit Erickson hard, but failed to score. After
Terry Pendleton
Terry Lee Pendleton (born July 16, 1960) is a former third baseman in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played primarily for the St. Louis Cardinals and Atlanta Braves, but he also spent time with the Florida Marlins, Cincinnati Reds, and Kansas ...
reached with one out,
Ron Gant
Ronald Edwin Gant (born March 2, 1965) is an American television news anchor and former professional baseball outfielder, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Atlanta Braves (1987–1993), Cincinnati Reds (1995), St. Louis Cardinals ...
drove a pitch deep to left field. Puckett, giving chase, tracked the ball down and then leaped to snare it before it could hit the 13-foot
Plexiglas
Poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) belongs to a group of materials called engineering plastics. It is a transparent thermoplastic. PMMA is also known as acrylic, acrylic glass, as well as by the trade names and brands Crylux, Plexiglas, Acrylite, ...
barrier over the left field wall. Pendleton, who had reached second and was trying to advance to third, was forced to turn around and barely beat Puckett’s throw back to first.
In the fourth, the Twins appeared ready to increase their lead, putting runners at second and third with one out. But Avery buckled down and retired the side to keep the game close. Another critical play occurred in the fifth when
Rafael Belliard
Rafael Leonidas Belliard Matias (born October 24, 1961) is a retired professional baseball shortstop who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1982 to 1998 with the Pittsburgh Pirates and Atlanta Braves. He was a member of Atlanta's 1995 W ...
kept the Twins from completing a double play with a fierce slide. His hustle enabled
Lonnie Smith to reach first. This became important when Pendleton golfed Erickson's next pitch into the seats, his second World Series home run, to tie the game at two. With two outs, Justice lifted what appeared to be a go-ahead home run for the Braves to right, but at the last instant, the ball hooked foul by about two feet. Erickson retired Justice and the Twins came to bat with the score tied.
Dan Gladden
Clinton Daniel Gladden III (born July 7, 1957) is an American former Major League Baseball player and current radio broadcaster. He was the starting left fielder with the Minnesota Twins' two World Series Championship teams in 1987 and 1991.
Base ...
responded with a walk and a steal of second. He moved to third on Knoblauch's lineout to right and scored on Puckett's center field sacrifice fly. The Twins led 3–2. Avery was relieved after the inning. The Twins kept their one-run lead into the seventh.
Mark Lemke
Mark Alan Lemke (born August 13, 1965) is a former Major League Baseball player and current broadcaster. Nicknamed "the Lemmer", he was a popular second baseman for the Atlanta Braves from to . He won the 1995 World Series with the Braves over ...
singled to center, knocking Erickson out of the game, and went to second on a wild pitch by reliever
Mark Guthrie
Mark Andrew Guthrie (born September 22, 1965) is a former Major League Baseball relief pitcher who played for several teams between 1989 and 2003 and was a member of the 1991 World Series Champion Minnesota Twins.
Career
After graduating from ...
. After a strikeout, Smith walked and Pendleton reached on an infield single. The Braves now had the bases loaded and one out as CBS commentator Jack Buck said the Series was now on the line. Gant hit what seemed to be a sure double play ground ball off
Carl Willis
Carl Blake Willis (born December 28, 1960) is an American former professional baseball pitcher and current pitching coach for the Cleveland Guardians of Major League Baseball (MLB). He was previously the pitching coach for the Boston Red Sox and ...
. The ground ball retired Pendleton, but the speedy Gant beat the relay to first and Lemke scored the tying run, charged to Erickson. Willis got out of the jam by striking out Justice to end the inning with the score tied at three. Willis was charged with a blown save, but he pitched two more scoreless innings, the eighth and ninth. Atlanta kept the Twins off the scoreboard, with left-handed specialist
Mike Stanton pitching the seventh and eighth innings and struggling closer
Alejandro Peña
Alejandro Peña Vásquez (born June 25, 1959) is a former relief pitcher in Major League Baseball. Listed at 6' 1" , 200 lb. , he batted and threw right-handed.
Peña made his Major League debut on August 13, 1981 (in time to be included on t ...
pitching the ninth and tenth innings.
The game remained tied at three until the 11th.
Bobby Cox
Robert Joe Cox (born May 21, 1941) is an American former professional baseball third baseman and manager in Major League Baseball (MLB). Cox played for the New York Yankees and managed the Atlanta Braves and Toronto Blue Jays. He is a member of ...
sent Game 1 starter
Charlie Leibrandt
Charles Louis Leibrandt, Jr. (; born October 4, 1956) is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who played from 1979 to 1993 for the Cincinnati Reds, Kansas City Royals, Atlanta Braves, and Texas Rangers. Leibrandt was a productive pitcher thr ...
to the mound to face Puckett, who recalled telling Davis that he planned to bunt for a base hit, to which Davis responded, "Bunt my ass. Hit it out and let's go home!" Puckett replied that he would take a few pitches first—a rare move for him, as he was known as a free swinger who often went after the first pitch. After uncharacteristically taking a strike and two balls from Leibrandt, Puckett launched the next pitch into the left-center-field seats for a dramatic game-winning home run that tied the Series at three games apiece. Buck famously called the home run with the line "And we'll see you tomorrow night!"
This moment is captured in a statue of Puckett just outside Gate 34 at the Twins' new home,
Target Field
Target Field is a baseball stadium in the North Loop, Minneapolis, historic warehouse district of downtown Minneapolis. Since its opening in 2010, the stadium has been the home ballpark of Major League Baseball's Minnesota Twins. The stadium hos ...
. The statue is of Puckett rounding second base, pumping his fists after hitting the dramatic walk-off home run.
Puckett's home run forced the first Game 7 since the
1987 World Series
The 1987 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1987 season. The 84th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff played between the American League (AL) champion Minnesota Twins and the Natio ...
, which was also played at the Metrodome. With his walk-off home run, he completed the game a double shy of
hitting for the cycle
In baseball, hitting for the cycle is the accomplishment of one batter who hits a single, a double, a triple, and a home run in the same game. Collecting the hits in that order is known as a "natural cycle". Cycles are rare in Major League Ba ...
.
Aguilera took the decision for the Twins after pitching the 10th and 11th innings, while Leibrandt earned his second loss of the series. He took it hard. Normally known as one of the friendliest and most cordial Braves, a despondent Leibrandt refused to answer questions from reporters after the game. He also lost Game 6 of the
1992 World Series by allowing an extra-base hit to the Blue Jays'
Dave Winfield
David Mark Winfield (born October 3, 1951) is an American former Major League Baseball (MLB) right fielder. He is the special assistant to the executive director of the Major League Baseball Players Association. Over his 22-year career, he playe ...
for the eventual game- and series-winning runs, but was significantly more philosophical about that misfortune, saying, "I was devastated last year. I'm down right now, but I'll get over it."
Game 7
Game 7 saw a rematch of the Game 4 starters.
Jack Morris
John Scott Morris (born May 16, 1955) is an American former professional baseball starting pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) between 1977 and 1994, mainly for the Detroit Tigers. Morris won 254 games throughout his career.
Armed ...
returned to the mound for his third start of the Series while
John Smoltz
John Andrew Smoltz (born May 15, 1967), nicknamed "Smoltzie" and "Marmaduke", is an American former baseball pitcher who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball from 1988 to 2009, all but the last year with the Atlanta Braves. An eight-time A ...
made his second for the Braves. Going into the game, this Series had been regarded as one of the best ever. Game 7 reinforced that point. A symbolic moment for this Series occurred on the first at-bat when Braves leadoff hitter
Lonnie Smith shook hands with Twins catcher
Brian Harper
Brian David Harper (born October 16, 1959) is an American former catcher in Major League Baseball who played for teams in both the American and National Leagues during his 16-year career (-). He most recently served as the hitting coach of the D ...
just before stepping up to the plate. This seen as a gesture of the respect the teams had for each other, though Morris later admitted that in the competitive heat of the moment he had not been happy with his catcher about it, even though Smith extended his hand initially.
Neither team was able to score a run early on. The Twins had their first opportunity in the bottom of the third inning, when
Dan Gladden
Clinton Daniel Gladden III (born July 7, 1957) is an American former Major League Baseball player and current radio broadcaster. He was the starting left fielder with the Minnesota Twins' two World Series Championship teams in 1987 and 1991.
Base ...
doubled and advanced to third on a flyout by
Chuck Knoblauch
Edward Charles Knoblauch (; born July 7, 1968) is an American former professional baseball player. He played 12 seasons in Major League Baseball, from 1991 through 2002, for the Minnesota Twins, New York Yankees, and Kansas City Royals. He p ...
. But Smoltz struck out
Kirby Puckett
Kirby Puckett (March 14, 1960 – March 6, 2006) was an American professional baseball player. He played his entire 12-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career as a center fielder for the Minnesota Twins (1984–1995). Puckett is the Twins' all- ...
to end the inning. The Braves put a runner into scoring position with one out in the top of the fifth, as
Mark Lemke
Mark Alan Lemke (born August 13, 1965) is a former Major League Baseball player and current broadcaster. Nicknamed "the Lemmer", he was a popular second baseman for the Atlanta Braves from to . He won the 1995 World Series with the Braves over ...
reached third on a sacrifice bunt by
Rafael Belliard
Rafael Leonidas Belliard Matias (born October 24, 1961) is a retired professional baseball shortstop who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1982 to 1998 with the Pittsburgh Pirates and Atlanta Braves. He was a member of Atlanta's 1995 W ...
and a bunt single by Smith. But Morris got
Terry Pendleton
Terry Lee Pendleton (born July 16, 1960) is a former third baseman in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played primarily for the St. Louis Cardinals and Atlanta Braves, but he also spent time with the Florida Marlins, Cincinnati Reds, and Kansas ...
to pop out and then struck out
Ron Gant
Ronald Edwin Gant (born March 2, 1965) is an American television news anchor and former professional baseball outfielder, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Atlanta Braves (1987–1993), Cincinnati Reds (1995), St. Louis Cardinals ...
to end the threat.
Neither team threatened again until the eighth inning. Morris retired the Braves in order in both the sixth and seventh, and Smoltz only allowed a single by Gladden in the bottom of the fifth and walked Puckett the next inning before inducing a double play. With Morris and Smoltz both still working on shutouts, the game entered the road half of the eighth with the top of the Atlanta lineup due up. Smith started the inning with a single.
What followed proved to be the first in a costly series of events for the Braves. With Pendleton up, manager
Bobby Cox
Robert Joe Cox (born May 21, 1941) is an American former professional baseball third baseman and manager in Major League Baseball (MLB). Cox played for the New York Yankees and managed the Atlanta Braves and Toronto Blue Jays. He is a member of ...
called for a hit and run and Smith took off. Pendleton responded by hitting a deep fly ball into the gap in left center field on a 1-2 pitch for a double, and with the hit and run called Smith likely would have scored. However, as he rounded second Smith stopped running for a moment and ended up having to stop at third base after the relay throw reached the infield. The middle of the Twins’ infield, Knoblauch at second and
Greg Gagne at shortstop, feigned like they were going to start a double play, and some thought Smith might have fallen for it. Smith himself later denied this, saying that he had been following the trajectory of the ball and wanted to see if either Puckett in center field or Gladden in left would catch the ball.
To further complicate matters, on the pitch before Pendleton’s double Morris got him to swing and miss at a pitch in the dirt. Pendleton contended that he had made contact with the ball and asked home plate umpire
Don Denkinger
Donald Anton Denkinger (; born August 28, 1936) is a former Major League Baseball umpire who worked in the American League from 1969 to 1998. Denkinger wore uniform number 11, when the AL adopted uniform numbers in 1980. He is best remembered ...
for an appeal. Denkinger then asked third base umpire
Terry Tata
Terry Anthony Tata (born April 24, 1940) is a former Major League Baseball (MLB) umpire. His MLB career began when the National League purchased his contract from the Triple-A International League on March 21, 1973. It ended in 1999.
Career
Du ...
to rule, and Tata said the ball was foul tipped. While the ball did bounce in the dirt, there was no conclusive replay angle that confirmed the foul tip. Morris contended in 2009 that he had indeed struck Pendleton out and that Denkinger had made the wrong call.
Nonetheless, although the run had not scored, both runners were now in scoring position and a hit would likely drive them both in and give the Braves the first runs of the game. With the middle of the order looming and nobody out, Morris faced Gant looking for a way out of the jam he now found himself in. He was able to induce a weak groundout to first, which did not allow either runner to advance and gave Minnesota its first out.
The next batter was
David Justice, and
Tom Kelly emerged from the dugout to talk to his ace. Morris was not pleased to see his manager, as he thought that he was coming to the mound to remove him from the game. Instead, he was there to discuss strategy. Justice was a significant enough power threat that Kelly thought of intentionally walking Justice and pitching instead to
Sid Bream
Sidney Eugene Bream (born August 3, 1960) is an American former professional baseball first baseman. From 1983 through 1994, he played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Los Angeles Dodgers (1983–85), Pittsburgh Pirates (1985–90), Atlanta ...
, who had been struggling throughout the series with only three hits.
Morris agreed with Kelly, and Justice was walked to load the bases for Bream. This proved to be the last in the series of events that ended up costing the Braves, as Morris induced a ground ball up the first base line. First baseman
Kent Hrbek
Kent Alan Hrbek (; born May 21, 1960), nicknamed "Herbie", is a former American Major League Baseball first baseman. He played his entire 14-year baseball career with the Minnesota Twins (1981–1994). Hrbek batted left-handed and threw right-hand ...
threw home to retire Smith, whose gaffe set the series in motion. Harper then fired back to Hrbek to retire Bream, who had been playing with chronic knee injuries (five previous surgeries and playing with a large brace on one knee still) and as a result was regarded as one of the slowest baserunners in the league. The rare 3-2-3 double play ended the inning, and the Braves did not have a runner reach base for the remainder of the game.
In the bottom of the eighth,
Randy Bush
Randy is a given name, popular in the United States and Canada. It is primarily a masculine name. It was originally derived from the names Randall, Randolf, Randolph, as well as Bertrand and Andrew, and may be a short form (hypocorism) of them ...
pinch-hit for Gagne to lead off for the Twins, and singled off Smoltz, then was removed in favor of the faster
Al Newman
Albert Dwayne Newman (born June 30, 1960) is a former infielder in Major League Baseball who played for the Montreal Expos (1985–1986), Minnesota Twins (1987–1991) and Texas Rangers (1992). Newman was a switch-hitter and threw right-handed. ...
to pinch-run. Smoltz then retired Gladden but gave up a single to Knoblauch, his eighth hit of the Series. With one out, runners on the corners, and Puckett coming to the plate, Cox elected to remove Smoltz from the game.
Mike Stanton entered and was ordered to intentionally walk Puckett to load the bases—an unusual decision as managers usually only issue intentional walks when first base is open, not in circumstances where the walk will advance a runner into scoring position. But in this case, the next batter was Hrbek, who, though normally a power threat, had not had a hit since Game 3, and whom Stanton had struck out three times in a row (a reason the Braves used Stanton, a left-handed specialist). This time, Stanton got Hrbek to hit a relatively soft line drive to Lemke, who then stepped on second to double-up Knoblauch. The game continued with no score.
The Braves went down in order in the top of the ninth, as Morris retired Brian Hunter, Greg Olson, and Lemke. The Twins, with a chance to win the game in their final at-bat, led off with a
Chili Davis
Charles Theodore "Chili" Davis (born January 17, 1960) is a Jamaican-American former professional baseball player. He played as an outfielder and designated hitter from to for the San Francisco Giants (1981–1987), California Angels (1988–199 ...
single. After
Jarvis Brown
Jarvis Ardel Brown (born March 26, 1967) is an American Major League Baseball outfielder who played for the Minnesota Twins, San Diego Padres, Atlanta Braves, and Baltimore Orioles. He won the World Series with the Twins.
Career
Brown was born i ...
came in to run for Davis, Harper attempted to move him over with a bunt down the first base line. Stanton misstepped coming to play the bunt, allowing Harper to reach base without a play. To make matters worse for Atlanta, Stanton's misstep caused him to strain a muscle in his back, and he had to be removed from the game. Cox was forced to bring in
Alejandro Peña
Alejandro Peña Vásquez (born June 25, 1959) is a former relief pitcher in Major League Baseball. Listed at 6' 1" , 200 lb. , he batted and threw right-handed.
Peña made his Major League debut on August 13, 1981 (in time to be included on t ...
to pitch to Shane Mack. Despite his earlier struggles, Peña induced a ground ball double play from Mack to record the first two outs. He then gave
Mike Pagliarulo
Michael Timothy Pagliarulo, a.k.a. "Pags" (born March 15, 1960), is an American former professional baseball third baseman and later the hitting coach of the Miami Marlins. He played in Major League Baseball for the New York Yankees, San Diego Pa ...
an intentional walk and struck out pinch hitter
Paul Sorrento
Paul Anthony Sorrento (born November 17, 1965) is the Los Angeles Angels assistant hitting coach. He is a former first baseman in Major League Baseball. From 1989 through 1999, Sorrento played for the Minnesota Twins (1989–1991), Cleveland Indi ...
for the last out, marking the third time in the series that a game would be decided in extra innings.
Refusing to come out of the game, Morris pitched the top of the tenth. A Twin Cities sportswriter wrote that on that night, "
orris Orris may refer to:
People
* Peter Orris
* Orris C. Herfindahl
* Orris Pratt
Places
* Adam Orris House
* Orris Baragwanath Pass
Other uses
*Orris root
*Orris oil
Orris oil (orris butter or Beurre d'Iris) is an essential oil derived from ...
could have outlasted
Methuselah
Methuselah () ( he, מְתוּשֶׁלַח ''Məṯūšélaḥ'', in pausa ''Məṯūšālaḥ'', "His death shall send" or "Man of the javelin" or "Death of Sword";
gr, Μαθουσάλας ''Mathousalas'') was a biblical patriarch and a f ...
." He successfully rebuffed several attempts by Kelly to remove him during the game, and was supported by pitching coach
Dick Such
Richard Stanley Such (born October 15, 1944) is a former pitcher and coach in Major League Baseball (MLB). A right-handed hurler who batted left-handed, Such stood tall and weighed .
Playing career
Born in Sanford, North Carolina, Such attende ...
. Confronted with Morris's insistence on pitching the 10th, Kelly is purported to have said, "Oh hell. It's only a game." And as he had been for most of the night, Morris was effective, retiring
Jeff Blauser
Jeff is a masculine name, often a short form (hypocorism) of the English given name Jefferson or Jeffrey, which comes from a medieval variant of Geoffrey.
Music
* DJ Jazzy Jeff, American DJ/turntablist record producer Jeffrey Allen Townes
* ...
, Smith, and Pendleton in order. Morris threw 126 pitches in the game. Smoltz later said that if he had had the experience Morris had at the time, he might also have tried to argue his way out of being removed from the game when he got in trouble in the 8th, but as a young and fairly inexperienced pitcher, he didn't feel he had the standing to argue with Cox the way Morris did with Kelly. (Though this admission shows Smoltz’s competitive fire, the truth is this would have made no difference in the actual game situation, because Smoltz was removed on the second mound visit of an inning—a circumstance under which a manager is required by the rules to remove the pitcher.)
Peña faced Gladden to start the bottom half of the inning, and the Twins' leadoff hitter lifted a fly ball to left field after breaking his bat upon the impact. The ball landed in front of the charging Hunter for a bloop hit, and the ball then took a high bounce that Hunter was unable to field. Center fielder Gant backed up the play and caught the hop, but Gladden dashed to second and beat Gant's throw to the bag. Kelly then called for a sacrifice bunt, and Knoblauch executed to put the winning run on third with one out. As he'd done in the eighth, Cox called for an intentional walk to the resurgent Puckett. Hrbek, who had not gotten a hit in his last 16 at-bats dating back to his single in the eighth inning of Game 3, was next up. Despite Hrbek's .115 Series average (3 hits in the Series, two of which were in Game 1) and lack of speed, and even though the Braves had left-hander
Kent Mercker
Kent Franklin Mercker (born February 1, 1968) is an American former Major League Baseball left-handed pitcher. He played for nine teams over his 17-year career.
Career
Mercker was born in Brownsburg, Indiana and lived in several different cities ...
, who had struck Hrbek out in a similar situation earlier in the series, warming up in the bullpen along with right-hander
Jim Clancy, Cox decided to call a second consecutive intentional walk, loading the bases to set up a force play at home plate and the possibility of a double play, which would have ended the inning.
This left Kelly with a tough decision. Brown, who pinch ran for designated hitter Davis, was due up and he had not recorded a hit in the series. Entering the 10th inning, Kelly had already used four of the seven players on his bench (Bush, Newman, Brown, and Sorrento). Then in the top half of the inning, he had inserted
Scott Leius, normally a third baseman, into the game at shortstop in place of pinch hitter Sorrento. This left Kelly with backup catcher
Junior Ortiz—a weak hitter whom he would need if the game continued and something happened to Harper and who he would often use as a late-game defensive replacement as he was a better defensive catcher than Harper—and utility man
Gene Larkin
Eugene Thomas Larkin (born October 24, 1962) is an American former switch-hitting first baseman, designated hitter, and right fielder in Major League Baseball who played his entire seven-season career with the Minnesota Twins. During his playin ...
, who was playing with an injured knee but had gotten one hit in three previous series plate appearances.
Since he would not have needed to play him in the field, as he would have filled the designated hitter role if the game advanced beyond the tenth, Kelly decided to send Larkin to the plate. On the first pitch he saw, Larkin drove a single into deep left-center over the drawn-in outfield, scoring Gladden with the series-winning run and giving the Twins their second world championship since moving to Minnesota. Morris was the first player to embrace Gladden at the plate, followed by others. At the same time, Larkin was mobbed at first base. The two jubilant groups eventually merged in the middle of the diamond. The victorious players were soon joined by their families on the field, including Morris's two sons. Later, the Twins players did a victory lap around the perimeter of the
Metrodome
The Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome (commonly called the Metrodome) was a domed sports stadium located in downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota. It opened in 1982 as a replacement for Metropolitan Stadium, the former home of the National Football League' ...
.
For the first time since , a seventh game of the World Series ended 1–0. It was also the first World Series-deciding game to go into extra innings since Game 4 of the
1939 Series. This World Series was also the first to end with an extra-inning Game 7 since , when the home team, the
Washington Senators (who became the Twins in
1961
Events January
* January 3
** United States President Dwight D. Eisenhower announces that the United States has severed diplomatic and consular relations with Cuba ( Cuba–United States relations are restored in 2015).
** Aero Flight 311 ...
), won it in their last at-bat. The same thing happened in the
1997 World Series
The 1997 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1997 season. The 93rd edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff between the American League (AL) champion Cleveland Indians and the National L ...
, when the
Florida Marlins
The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The club's home ballpark is LoanDepot Park.
The franc ...
beat the
Cleveland Indians
The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive F ...
in the 11th inning of Game 7. (Game 7 of the
2016 World Series
The 2016 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 2016 season. The 112th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff between the National League (NL) champion Chicago Cubs and the American Leag ...
also went to extra innings, when the visiting
Chicago Cubs
The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is located ...
defeated the
Cleveland Indians
The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive F ...
in 10 innings.) This game set a World Series record for the longest scoreless tie in Game 7. Only one other World Series game went longer without a run, Game 6 of the
1956 World Series, which went to two outs in the bottom of the 10th before the winning run scored.
The 1991 World Series was the second of five seasons in which the home team won all seven games in the Series. The other time this happened was in 1987, which was also won by the
Twins
Twins are two offspring produced by the same pregnancy.MedicineNet > Definition of TwinLast Editorial Review: 19 June 2000 Twins can be either ''monozygotic'' ('identical'), meaning that they develop from one zygote, which splits and forms two em ...
over the
St. Louis Cardinals
The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals ha ...
. This was replicated in the
2001 World Series
The 2001 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 2001 season. The 97th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff between the National League (NL) champion Arizona Diamondbacks and the three-t ...
when the
Arizona Diamondbacks
The Arizona Diamondbacks (colloquially known as the D-backs) are an American professional baseball team based in Phoenix. The Diamondbacks compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The f ...
won Game 7 at home with a walk-off bloop hit. Game 7 of this series was the last World Series game played at the Metrodome before the Twins moved out at the end of the
2009 season, and the last postseason game played there until
2002
File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...
, when the Twins lost the
ALCS to the
Angels
In various theistic religious traditions an angel is a supernatural spiritual being who serves God.
Abrahamic religions often depict angels as benevolent celestial intermediaries between God (or Heaven) and humanity. Other roles incl ...
.
Composite line score
1991 World Series (4–3):
Minnesota Twins
The Minnesota Twins are an American professional baseball team based in Minneapolis. The Twins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central Division. The team is named after the Twin Cities area w ...
(A.L.) over
Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The Braves were founded in ...
(N.L.)
Aftermath
The home team did not win every game again until the
2001 World Series
The 2001 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 2001 season. The 97th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff between the National League (NL) champion Arizona Diamondbacks and the three-t ...
between the
Arizona Diamondbacks
The Arizona Diamondbacks (colloquially known as the D-backs) are an American professional baseball team based in Phoenix. The Diamondbacks compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The f ...
and the
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Amer ...
. Seven Twins players appeared in both the 1987 and 1991 Series, playing for the Twins both times:
Kirby Puckett
Kirby Puckett (March 14, 1960 – March 6, 2006) was an American professional baseball player. He played his entire 12-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career as a center fielder for the Minnesota Twins (1984–1995). Puckett is the Twins' all- ...
,
Kent Hrbek
Kent Alan Hrbek (; born May 21, 1960), nicknamed "Herbie", is a former American Major League Baseball first baseman. He played his entire 14-year baseball career with the Minnesota Twins (1981–1994). Hrbek batted left-handed and threw right-hand ...
,
Greg Gagne,
Dan Gladden
Clinton Daniel Gladden III (born July 7, 1957) is an American former Major League Baseball player and current radio broadcaster. He was the starting left fielder with the Minnesota Twins' two World Series Championship teams in 1987 and 1991.
Base ...
,
Gene Larkin
Eugene Thomas Larkin (born October 24, 1962) is an American former switch-hitting first baseman, designated hitter, and right fielder in Major League Baseball who played his entire seven-season career with the Minnesota Twins. During his playin ...
,
Randy Bush
Randy is a given name, popular in the United States and Canada. It is primarily a masculine name. It was originally derived from the names Randall, Randolf, Randolph, as well as Bertrand and Andrew, and may be a short form (hypocorism) of them ...
and
Al Newman
Albert Dwayne Newman (born June 30, 1960) is a former infielder in Major League Baseball who played for the Montreal Expos (1985–1986), Minnesota Twins (1987–1991) and Texas Rangers (1992). Newman was a switch-hitter and threw right-handed. ...
. In addition, the Braves'
Terry Pendleton
Terry Lee Pendleton (born July 16, 1960) is a former third baseman in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played primarily for the St. Louis Cardinals and Atlanta Braves, but he also spent time with the Florida Marlins, Cincinnati Reds, and Kansas ...
also played in the 1987 Series, as a Cardinal.
After the Twins' triumph, the
1993 Phillies,
1998 Padres,
2007 Rockies and the
2008 Rays followed previous seasons' last-place finishes with a World Series appearance, but fell short. But the
2013 Red Sox joined the 1991 Twins as the only other team to win the World Series a year after finishing in last place.
After Game 7,
CBS Sports
CBS Sports is the sports division of the American television network CBS. Its headquarters are in the CBS Building on W 52nd Street in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, with programs produced out of Studio 43 at the CBS Broadcast Center on W 5 ...
analyst
Tim McCarver
James Timothy McCarver (born October 16, 1941) is an American former professional baseball player and television sports commentator. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher from to , most prominently as a member of the St. Louis Cardinal ...
consoled Atlanta fans by stating that this was an excellent team and that he expected they would "be around" for some time to come. In fact, the Braves won an unprecedented 14 consecutive division titles (three as members of the NL West, and the last 11 in the East), not counting the strike-aborted
1994 season. They returned to the World Series
the next year, losing in six games to the
Toronto Blue Jays
The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...
. The Braves made three more trips to the World Series before the decade ended, defeating the
Cleveland Indians
The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive F ...
in
1995
File:1995 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: O.J. Simpson is O. J. Simpson murder case, acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman from the 1994, year prior in "The Trial of the Century" in the United States; The ...
and losing in
1996
File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A Centennial Olympic Park bombing, bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical Anti-abortion violence, anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 8 ...
and
1999
File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shootin ...
to the Yankees.
The
Twins
Twins are two offspring produced by the same pregnancy.MedicineNet > Definition of TwinLast Editorial Review: 19 June 2000 Twins can be either ''monozygotic'' ('identical'), meaning that they develop from one zygote, which splits and forms two em ...
contended for the 1992 American League Western Division title for much of the season but finished six games behind the
Oakland Athletics
The Oakland Athletics (often referred to as the A's) are an American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The te ...
, who won the division for the fourth time in five seasons. The Twins' 90–72 record was their last winning campaign until
2001
The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a Participants in ...
, Kelly's last season as manager. Over the next several seasons, the players that made up the core of the 1987 and 1991 Twins slowly began to leave. Gladden, the left fielder, departed in the offseason for Detroit. Morris, the pitching hero of the series, signed with Toronto and returned to the World Series the next year. Gagne and Davis departed after the 1992 season and Harper at the end of the
1993 season
File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peace ...
. Hrbek's production began falling due to injuries that kept him off the field for much of the next two seasons, and he retired in
1994
File:1994 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1994 Winter Olympics are held in Lillehammer, Norway; The Kaiser Permanente building after the 1994 Northridge earthquake; A model of the MS Estonia, which Sinking of the MS Estonia, sank in ...
. The Twins traded away both Erickson and Tapani (neither ever regained his 1991 form) in
1995
File:1995 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: O.J. Simpson is O. J. Simpson murder case, acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman from the 1994, year prior in "The Trial of the Century" in the United States; The ...
, and Puckett retired due to a loss of vision in his right eye caused by
glaucoma
Glaucoma is a group of eye diseases that result in damage to the optic nerve (or retina) and cause vision loss. The most common type is open-angle (wide angle, chronic simple) glaucoma, in which the drainage angle for fluid within the eye rem ...
. Knoblauch was the last hitter of the 1991 team to remain in Minnesota, eventually forcing a trade after the
1997 season to the Yankees, with whom he won three additional World Series titles. After being traded to the playoff-bound Red Sox in 1995, Aguilera returned to the Twins in 1996, used by Kelly as a starter. Aguilera returned to the pen in 1997, and stayed until midway through the
1999 season, the last remaining player from the 1991 team. Traded to the Cubs, he finished his career with Chicago that season.
This was the last World Series that
Fay Vincent
Francis Thomas Vincent Jr. (born May 29, 1938), known as Fay Vincent, is a former entertainment lawyer, securities regulator, and sports executive who served as the eighth Commissioner of Major League Baseball from September 13, 1989 to Septembe ...
presided over as
commissioner
A commissioner (commonly abbreviated as Comm'r) is, in principle, a member of a commission or an individual who has been given a commission (official charge or authority to do something).
In practice, the title of commissioner has evolved to in ...
, as the owners forced him to resign near the end of the 1992 season.
The Twins and Braves have met four times in
interleague play
Interleague play in Major League Baseball refers to regular-season baseball games played between an American League (AL) team and a National League (NL) team. Interleague play was first introduced during the 1997 Major League Baseball season. Pri ...
since the 1991 World Series. In 2002, the Braves finally experienced a Metrodome win by taking two games from the Twins in a three-game series; the Twins swept a three-game series from the Braves at the Metrodome in 2007.
The Braves ultimately finished with an all-time record of 2–8 in the stadium before it closed as a baseball venue in 2009. In 2010, the teams played a three-game series at the new
Target Field
Target Field is a baseball stadium in the North Loop, Minneapolis, historic warehouse district of downtown Minneapolis. Since its opening in 2010, the stadium has been the home ballpark of Major League Baseball's Minnesota Twins. The stadium hos ...
, where the Braves won two out of three games. After the 1991 Series, the Twins did not play in Atlanta again until 2011 for two preseason exhibition games at
Turner Field
Turner Field was a baseball stadium located in Atlanta, Georgia. From 1997 to 2016, it served as the home ballpark to the Atlanta Braves of Major League Baseball (MLB). Originally built as Centennial Olympic Stadium in 1996 to serve as the c ...
. The Braves and Twins split the series 1–1. Then, as part of the new season-long interleague schedule, the Twins played their first regular-season series against the Braves at Turner Field in May 2013; the Braves swept the three-game set.
To date, this is the most recent appearance (and win) by a Minnesota-based
Big Four team in the final round of its sport. In addition to the
2002 Twins reaching the
ALCS before falling to the
Anaheim Angels
The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. Since 1966, the team ha ...
in five games, the closest a Minnesota-based team has come to reaching the final round of its sport since the 1991 World Series were the
NFL's
Minnesota Vikings
The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansion ...
reaching the
NFC Championship Game
The NFC Championship Game is the annual championship game of the National Football Conference (NFC) and one of the two semi-final playoff games of the National Football League (NFL), the largest professional American football league in the world. ...
in
1998,
2000
File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...
,
2009
File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...
, and
2017
File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...
, the
NHL
The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...
's
Minnesota Wild
The Minnesota Wild are a professional ice hockey team based in Saint Paul, Minnesota. The Wild competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference and play their home games at the Xcel Ener ...
reaching the
Stanley Cup Western Conference Final in
2003
File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry into Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an epidemic in China, and was a precursor to SARS-CoV-2; A des ...
, and the
NBA
The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...
's
Minnesota Timberwolves
The Minnesota Timberwolves are an American professional basketball team based in Minneapolis. The Timberwolves compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Northwest Division. Founded in 19 ...
reaching the
Western Conference Finals in
2004
2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO).
Events January
* January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...
.
Broadcasting
In 1991,
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...
used three field reporters,
Jim Kaat
James Lee Kaat (; born November 7, 1938) is an American former professional baseball player and television sports commentator. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a left-handed pitcher for the Washington Senators / Minnesota Twins (–), ...
(both teams as well as the
trophy
A trophy is a tangible, durable reminder of a specific achievement, and serves as a recognition or evidence of merit. Trophies are often awarded for sporting events, from youth sports to professional level athletics. In many sports medals (or, in ...
presentation),
Lesley Visser
Lesley Candace Visser (born September 11, 1953) is an American sportscaster, television and radio personality, and sportswriter. Visser is the first female NFL analyst on TV, and the only sportscaster in history who has worked on Final Four, ...
(
Twins
Twins are two offspring produced by the same pregnancy.MedicineNet > Definition of TwinLast Editorial Review: 19 June 2000 Twins can be either ''monozygotic'' ('identical'), meaning that they develop from one zygote, which splits and forms two em ...
' dugout) and
Andrea Joyce
Andrea Joyce Kuslits (born August 17, 1954), better known as Andrea Joyce, is an American sportscaster who works for NBC Sports after working 10 years with CBS Sports.
Biography
Education and early career
Joyce graduated from the University of ...
(
Braves
The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. The Braves ...
' dugout).
This was also the last World Series broadcast by
Jack Buck
John Francis "Jack" Buck (August 21, 1924 – June 18, 2002) was an American sportscaster, best known for his work announcing Major League Baseball games of the St. Louis Cardinals. His play-by-play work earned him recognition from numerous hal ...
. In 1992, CBS replaced him in the role of lead play-by-play man with
Sean McDonough
Sean McDonough (born May 13, 1962) is an American sportscaster, currently employed by ESPN and WEEI Red Sox Radio Network.
Early life
The son of ''Boston Globe'' sportswriter Will McDonough, McDonough graduated from the S. I. Newhouse Sch ...
and he returned to his role as the lead
broadcaster for the
St. Louis Cardinals
The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals ha ...
. Buck called postseason action for the Cardinals several times before the decade was over, but his health steadily worsened and he succumbed to
lung cancer
Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma (since about 98–99% of all lung cancers are carcinomas), is a malignant lung tumor characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissue (biology), tissues of the lung. Lung carcinomas derive from tran ...
in 2002, two years before the
Cardinals
Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to:
Animals
* Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds
**''Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae
**''Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, the ...
returned to the
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the World ...
.
The Series telecast drew an overall national
Nielsen rating
Nielsen Media Research (NMR) is an American firm that measures media audiences, including television, radio, theatre, films (via the AMC Theatres MAP program), and newspapers. Headquartered in New York City, it is best known for the Nielsen rati ...
of 24.0 and a 39 share for CBS; Game 7 drew a 32.2 rating and 49 share. As of 2021, no subsequent World Series has approached either number in national TV ratings.
Quotes
See also
*
1991 Japan Series
Notes
External links
1991 Minnesota Twins1991 Atlanta Braves'Worst-to-First' World Series a real winnerESPN 25 – 100: Twins win epic Game 7 duel with BravesThe Greatest World Series of Them All
{{Authority control
World Series
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the World ...
Minnesota Twins postseason
Atlanta Braves postseason
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the World ...
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the World ...
1991 in Atlanta
1990s in Minneapolis
October 1991 sports events in the United States
Sports competitions in Atlanta
Sports competitions in Minneapolis