The 2002

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 ...

(NLCS) was a

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 (AL), ...

playoff series played from October 9 to 14 to determine the champion of 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 ...

, between the Central Division champion

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 ...

and the wild-card qualifying

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Yor ...

. It was a rematch of the 1987 NLCS, in which 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 ...

defeated the

Giants A giant is a being of human appearance, sometimes of prodigious size and strength, common in folklore. Giant(s) or The Giant(s) may also refer to: Mythology and religion *Giants (Greek mythology) *Jötunn, a Germanic term often translated as 'gi ...

in seven games. The Cardinals, by virtue of being a division winner, had the home field advantage. The two teams were victorious in the NL Division Series (NLDS), with the Cardinals defeating the West Division champion and defending World Series champions

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 ...

three games to none, and the Giants defeating the East Division champion and heavily favored

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) National League East, East division. The Braves ...

three games to two. The Giants won the series in five games but were defeated by 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 h ...

in seven games in 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 ...

Summary

St. Louis Cardinals vs. San Francisco Giants

Game summaries

Game 1

Wednesday, October 9, 2002 at Busch Stadium (II) in

St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the Greater St. Louis, ...

The Giants struck first in Game 1 off of Matt Morris with two on via

Benito Santiago Benito Santiago Rivera (born March 9, 1965), is a Puerto Rican former professional baseball player. He played as a catcher in Major League Baseball from 1986 to 2005, most prominently as a member of the San Diego Padres, with whom he was a fou ...

's single to score

Kenny Lofton Kenneth Lofton (born May 31, 1967) is an American former Major League Baseball (MLB) center fielder. Lofton was a six-time All-Star (1994–1999), four-time Gold Glove Award winner (1993–1996), and at retirement, was ranked 15th amon ...

from second. Next inning, Morris struck out the first two batters, then allowed a single to Lofton, who stole second and scored on

Rich Aurilia Richard Santo Aurilia (; born September 2, 1971) is a former Major League Baseball shortstop who played for several teams between 1995 and 2009. Amateur career Aurilia was born in Brooklyn, New York. Before being drafted by Texas, Aurilia was a ...

's single. After

Jeff Kent Jeffrey Franklin Kent (born March 7, 1968) is an American former professional baseball second baseman. He played 17 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1992–2008 for the Toronto Blue Jays, New York Mets, Cleveland Indians, San Francis ...

singled,

Barry Bonds Barry Lamar Bonds (born July 24, 1964) is an American former professional baseball left fielder who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). Bonds was a member of the Pittsburgh Pirates from 1986 to 1992 and the San Francisco Giants f ...

's triple scored two before Bonds scored on Santiago's single. The Cardinals got on the board in the bottom of the inning off of

Kirk Rueter Kirk Wesley Rueter ( ; born December 1, 1970), nicknamed "Woody", is an American former left-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball. Rueter played for the Montreal Expos and the San Francisco Giants. Early life Rueter was born in Centralia, Illi ...

Fernando Viña Fernando Viña (''VEEN-ya'') (born April 16, 1969) is a Cuban-American former Major League Baseball second baseman and former MLB analyst for ESPN. His parents Andres and Olga emigrated from Cuba in 1968. From through , Viña played for the Se ...

's groundout with runners on second and third, but home runs by Lofton in the third and David Bell in the fifth off of Morris gave the Giants a 7−1 lead. Albert Pujols hit a two-run home run in the bottom of the fifth off of Rueter, but the Giants got those runs back in the sixth on Santiago's home run off of

Mike Crudale Michael Christopher Crudale (born January 3, 1977) is a former professional baseball pitcher who played two seasons at the major league level with the St. Louis Cardinals and Milwaukee Brewers in 2002–03. MLB career Selected by the Cardinals i ...

. The Cardinals cut the lead to 9−5 on Miguel Cairo's two-run home run in the bottom of the inning, then made it 9−6 on J. D. Drew's home run in the eighth off of

Tim Worrell Timothy Howard Worrell (born July 5, 1967) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. A right-hander, he pitched all or parts of 14 seasons in Major League Baseball, primarily as a relief pitcher. During his major league career, Worrell ...

, but Robb Nen pitched a scoreless ninth for the save as the Giants went up 1−0 in the series.

Game 2

Thursday, October 10, 2002 at Busch Stadium (II) in

In Game 2, the Giants went up 1−0 on Rich Aurilia's home run in the first off of Woody Williams. His two-run home run in the fifth made it 3−0. Jason Schmidt pitched shutout innings before allowing Eduardo Pérez's home run in the eighth. The Giants added a run in the ninth on Ramón Martínez's groundout off of

Jason Isringhausen Jason Derik Isringhausen ( born September 7, 1972) is an American former professional baseball pitcher and coach. He pitched in Major League Baseball from 1995 through 2012 for the New York Mets, Oakland Athletics, St. Louis Cardinals, Tampa Bay ...

with runners on first and third while Robb Nen pitched a scoreless bottom of the inning for his second consecutive save. The Giants went up 2−0 in the series heading to San Francisco.

Game 3

Saturday, October 12, 2002 at

Pacific Bell Park Oracle Park is a Major League Baseball stadium in the SoMa neighborhood of San Francisco, California. Since 2000, it has been the home of the San Francisco Giants. Previously named Pacific Bell Park, SBC Park, and AT&T Park, the stadium's curre ...

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

In Game 3, the Giants loaded the bases in the second with no outs off of

Chuck Finley Charles Edward Finley (born November 26, 1962) is an American retired professional baseball pitcher. He pitched from 1986 to 2002 for three teams in Major League Baseball (MLB), primarily with the California Angels (later renamed the Anaheim A ...

, but only scored once on Rich Aurilia's sacrifice fly. The Cardinals responded in the third off of

Russ Ortiz Russell Reid Ortiz (born June 5, 1974) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. Ortiz during his career played for the San Francisco Giants, Atlanta Braves, Arizona Diamondbacks, Baltimore Orioles, Houston Astros and Los Angeles Dodger ...

when with runners on second and third,

Édgar Rentería Édgar Enrique Rentería Herazo (; born August 7, 1975), nicknamed "The Barranquilla Baby", is a Colombian former professional baseball shortstop. He threw and batted right-handed. He played for the Florida Marlins, the St. Louis Cardinals, th ...

's sacrifice fly and

Jim Edmonds James Patrick Edmonds (born June 27, 1970) is an American former professional baseball center fielder and a broadcaster for Bally Sports Midwest. He played for the California/Anaheim Angels, St. Louis Cardinals, San Diego Padres, Chicago Cubs, ...

's groundout scored a run each. They added to their lead on home runs by Mike Matheny in the fourth and Edmonds in the fifth, but Barry Bonds's three-run home run in the fifth tied the game. In the sixth,

Eli Marrero Elieser Marrero (born November 17, 1973), is a former Major League Baseball player. Marrero started his career as a catcher, but spent time at first base, third base and in the outfield. Playing career Marrero was selected in the third round of ...

's leadoff home run off of Jay Witasick proved to be the game winner as the Cardinals' 5−4 win cut the Giants' series lead to 2−1.

Game 4

Sunday, October 13, 2002 at

The Cardinals took an early lead off Liván Hernández, scoring two runs in the first inning on a Jim Edmonds groundout and a single by Tino Martinez. After being held scoreless for five innings the Giants' bats would answer in the sixth, when J. T. Snow hit a two-run double to score Jeff Kent and Barry Bonds. In the eighth, Benito Santiago would deliver the key blow for San Francisco with a two-run home run following an intentional walk to Bonds (with nobody on base). In the ninth, the Cardinals would threaten against Robb Nen, cutting the deficit to 4–3 with a Jim Edmonds single, which put runners at first and third base with one out for slugger Albert Pujols. However, Nen struck out Pujols and J. D. Drew to give the Giants a 3–1 series advantage.

Game 5

Monday, October 14, 2002 at

Game 5 was a pitchers' duel between Matt Morris and Kirk Rueter as the Giants looked for their first pennant since 1989. Fernando Viña started the scoring with a seventh-inning sac fly, but the Giants responded with a sac fly by Barry Bonds. In the ninth, Matt Morris retired the first two batters before allowing consecutive singles to David Bell and Shawon Dunston. Steve Kline was then brought in to pitch to Kenny Lofton, who had yelled at the Cardinals dugout earlier after an inside pitch. On the first pitch, Lofton delivered a single to right field, scoring Bell as J. D. Drew's throw was off-line, clinching the pennant for the Giants, their first since 1989.

Composite line score

2002 NLCS (4–1):

over

Aftermath

In the

era (1993-2007), the 2002 postseason would be the only October where the Giants would experience a run of success, let alone win a playoff series (winning two). However, it still did not lead to an elusive World Championship for San Francisco. In the 2002 World Series against the

, the Giants were eight outs away from winning the Series in Game 6, but late game home runs by

Scott Spiezio Scott Edward Spiezio (; born September 21, 1972) is an American former professional baseball infielder. He is well-known for his time as a member of the Anaheim Angels, when he hit a three-run home run in Game Six of the 2002 World Series against ...

and

Darin Erstad Darin Charles Erstad (; born June 4, 1974) is an American former professional baseball player and the former head coach of the University of Nebraska Cornhuskers Nebraska Cornhuskers baseball, baseball team. Erstad spent most of his playing caree ...

, as well as a two-RBI double by

Troy Glaus Troy Edward Glaus (; born August 3, 1976) is an American former professional baseball first baseman and third baseman. Glaus played in Major League Baseball with the Anaheim Angels (–), Arizona Diamondbacks (), Toronto Blue Jays (–), St. Lou ...

helped the Angels overcome a five-run, seventh-inning deficit to win. A three-run double by

Garret Anderson Garret Joseph Anderson (born June 30, 1972) is an American former professional baseball left fielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the California / Anaheim Angels / Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Atlanta Braves, and Los Angeles D ...

was the difference in the Angels' Game 7 win to clinch the series. The two teams set a record for combined most home runs in a World Series (21), which stood until the 2017 World Series. The Giants did not win a World Series until 2010. Despite

Dusty Baker Johnnie B. "Dusty" Baker Jr. (born June 15, 1949) is an American baseball manager and former player who is the manager of the Houston Astros in Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played in the MLB for 19 seasons, most notably with the Lo ...

's success in San Francisco, he had an increasingly strained relationship with owner

Peter Magowan Peter Alden Magowan (April 5, 1942 – January 27, 2019) was an American businessman. He was the managing general partner of the San Francisco Giants of Major League Baseball from 1993 to 2008. He was the chief executive officer of Safeway Inc. ...

, one that even the Giants' first pennant in thirteen years could not mend. Baker and the Giants mutually parted ways after the season. Baker was not out of work for long as he was quickly snatched up by the

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 ...

to become their manager. Baker's Cubs reached the 2003 National League Championship Series, but the team famously fell apart in Game 6 when the Cubs were up 3-0 and five outs from their first World Series appearance in almost 60 years. He would experience success managing the Cincinnati Reds (2010-2013), Washington Nationals (2016-2018), and the Houston Astros (2020-present) in later years. In 2012, his Reds faced his former team the Giants in the

National League Division Series In Major League Baseball, the National League Division Series (NLDS) determines which two teams from the National League will advance to the National League Championship Series. The Division Series consists of two best-of-five series, featuring ...

. Unfortunately for Baker, his team would again fall apart after leading the series 2-0, eventually losing to the Giants in five games. Baker would finally win a World Series as a manager in

2022 File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; 2022 Sri Lankan protests, Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretari ...

with the Astros. The St. Louis Cardinals would continue to be a perennial playoff team until 2016, winning two World Championships in

2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...

and

2011 File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...

. Meanwhile, San Francisco would begin re-tooling their roster after losing a close

NL West The National League West is one of Major League Baseball's six divisions. This division was formed for the 1969 season when the National League expanded to 12 teams by adding the San Diego Padres and the Montreal Expos. For purpose of keeping a re ...

race to the Dodgers on the last weekend of the season in 2004. They did not make the postseason from 2004-2009. The Giants continued their winning ways in the October against St. Louis, beating them in the 2012 National League Championship Series and the 2014 National League Championship Series, on their way to two World Championships in those seasons. In 2021, Dusty Baker and

Tony La Russa Anthony La Russa Jr. (; born October 4, 1944) is an American former professional baseball player, coach, and manager. His MLB career has spanned from 1963 to 2022, in several roles. He is the former manager of the St. Louis Cardinals, Oakland At ...

would face off again in the

American League Division Series In Major League Baseball, the American League Division Series (ALDS) determines which two teams from the American League will advance to the American League Championship Series. The Division Series consists of two best-of-five series, featuring e ...

. By then, the two men were the oldest managers in MLB at a combined age of 149. Baker's Astros beat La Russa's White Sox in four games on his way to his fourth League Championship Series as manager. He proceeded to win the that series, which made him at the age of 72 the second oldest manager to appear in a

, with the 19-year gap between pennants being the second longest for a manager in MLB history.

Notes

External links

2002 NLCS at Baseball-Reference
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