Legends: The Best Players, Games, and Teams in Baseball

by Howard Bryant

  Yankee manager Joe Torre turned once again to the great Rivera, giving him a second chance to close out the series. But it turned out to be déjà vu for Rivera, who gave up a fly ball to Jason Varitek that scored Roberts, and the Red Sox and Yankees were tied again.

  Then some good luck went Boston’s way: In the top of the ninth, with Ruben Sierra on first base, Yankees first baseman Tony Clark hit a double down the right field line. The ball hit the dirt and bounced on one hop into the stands for a ground-rule double. Had the ball stayed low and bounced around the outfield wall, Sierra would have had an excellent chance to score from first and the Yankees would have had the lead again, but it was not to be. Boston escaped the inning without allowing a run.

  As yet another game went to extra innings, nerves frayed and the players wearied. Boston and New York remained tied until late into the night. Then, in the fourteenth inning, Ortiz—who had won Game 4 with a home run and kept the Red Sox alive in this game with a homer in the eighth—hit a single up the middle off of Esteban Loaiza to score Johnny Damon.

  The Red Sox, whom no one in Boston wanted to see lose, had won again!

  This wasn’t happening, was it?

  It was.

  The Red Sox were still alive and going back to New York for the final two games of the series.

  Kevin Millar turned out to be right: When the Red Sox returned to New York for the final two games, they destroyed the Yankees. Curt Schilling, pitching on an injured left ankle that was so bad he bled through his sock, shut the Yankees out early while the Red Sox took a 4–0 lead and held on to win Game 6, 4–2, setting up a winner-takes-all Game 7 at Yankee Stadium, the same place where the Red Sox had lost a year before.

  This time, there would be no suspense. The Yankees were tired and beaten while the Red Sox soared. Ortiz (again!) hit a home run in the first inning. Damon hit a grand slam in the second and it was 6–0 before many of the 56,129 fans expecting a Yankee win had even gotten to their seats.

  The final score was 10–3, Boston. It was the greatest comeback in the history of baseball. No team had ever come back from being down three games to none to win a playoff series. For eighty-six years the Red Sox had found a way to lose to the Yankees, but in 2004, in the most improbable of ways, Boston finally beat the team that had brought them so much pain.

  The World Series went by fast. The Red Sox demolished the St. Louis Cardinals in four straight games to win the World Series for the first time since 1918. The losing was over. The Red Sox had become champions by coming back from three games down and not losing again for the rest of the season.

  From that day since, Red Sox history changed. The Red Sox would no longer be expected to lose, but to win. Ortiz grew into the symbol of victory in Boston, not another player just good enough to lose to the Yankees. Boston would win the World Series again in 2007 and 2013. The magic the Yankees held over them for all those decades would disappear and the two teams would finally be what they were supposed to be: true rivals once and for all.

  “I’m going to say two things,” David Ortiz said in 2014. “The first is I have no idea why Millar was so positive. I thought he was crazy. No one was saying ‘We’re going to lose’ in the clubhouse, but being down that much to the Yankees, well, you knew that something amazing had to happen.

  “The second thing,” Ortiz said, “is that I completely forgot we were down three games to none! I thought it was three games to one. To come all the way back like that? Three games to none? Against the Yankees? I don’t think you’re ever gonna see that again.”

  The 2004 Boston Red Sox

  TOP TEN LIST

  People around Boston will never forget 2004, when the Red Sox won for the first time in 86 years, but other cities have their defining championship moments, too.

  Chicago White Sox 2005: First championship in eighty-eight years.

  Brooklyn Dodgers 1955: Only championship in Brooklyn’s history.

  San Francisco Giants 2010: First ever World Series for San Francsico.

  Toronto Blue Jays 1992: First Canadian team to win a World Series.

  Kansas City Royals 1985: First and only title for the Royals.

  Cincinnati Reds 1975: First World Series win since 1940.

  Milwaukee Braves 1957: Only baseball championship in Milwaukee to this day.

  Pittsburgh Pirates 1960: First title in Pittsburgh since 1925.

  New York Yankees 1977: The Yankee Dynasty returns.

  Philadelphia Phillies 1980: Founded in 1883, the Phillies finally win!

  Joy and Heartbreak

  THE 2011 WORLD SERIES

  On the night of October 27, 2011, the mood was somber at Busch Stadium. The announced crowd that night for Game 6 of the World Series was 47,325, a continuous sea of red hats and windbreakers, white St. Louis Cardinals home replica jerseys underneath. St. Louis is as passionately and deeply committed to its baseball team as any city in America. Even after the Cardinals’ opponent, the Texas Rangers, had piled on run after run all game long, taking a sizable lead into the late innings, thousands of loyal Cardinals fans were prepared to cheer for their team, to congratulate them on a great season even though it was the Rangers who were just moments away from winning their first-ever World Series.

  The Rangers had been here before. A year earlier, they had reached the World Series for the first time in their 38-year history. They beat the vaunted New York Yankees in the American League Championship Series four games to two, and were pitted against the San Francisco Giants, another team that had never won the World Series, not since leaving New York for the Bay Area in 1958. Texas had been heavily favored because of their great offensive lineup—including the dynamic American League MVP Josh Hamilton, all-time franchise hits leader Michael Young, the always-dangerous Vladimir Guerrero, and the young power-hitting outfielder Nelson Cruz. Yet the Giants’ superior pitching surprised the mighty Rangers in stunning fashion, helping San Francisco to win the championship in five easy games. The Rangers had enjoyed a magical year and losing was hard, but the team that had always lived in the shadow of the Dallas Cowboys was becoming a baseball power.

  They returned in 2011 as fully loaded as ever, losing the aging Guerrero but adding all-star third baseman Adrian Beltre, who could do it all: hit for power, hit for average, and play the field with Gold Glove defense. They had six all-stars in 2011 and wound up running away with the division, winning it by ten games.

  And then there were the 2011 Cardinals, a team that wasn’t even supposed to make the playoffs. They had been so far out of a playoff spot as the calendar turned to September—10 1/2 games—that the possibility of making the World Series wasn’t even a thought in the minds of the Cardinals’ faithful.

  But then two things happened simultaneously: First, the Cardinals just kept fighting. In fact, they went 23–9 to finish the season, easily their hottest stretch of the year. Second, the Atlanta Braves just kept losing, suffering one of the greatest collapses in the history of the game. The Braves blew that 10 1/2-game lead and capped it off by losing on the final day of the season to give the Cardinals a last-minute postseason berth.

  St. Louis then slipped by Philadelphia in the National League Division Series, beating the 102-win Phillies 1–0 in Philadelphia in a classic Game 5 series finale. Then, in the National League Championship Series, the Cards went on to beat Milwaukee in six games. Somehow the team that wasn’t even in the playoff race as late as September had reached the World Series.

  The powerhouse Rangers, hungry to complete what they had begun the season before, had defeated the Tigers in the American League Championship Series and now awaited the Cardinals.

  The Rangers may have fielded a lineup full of big hitters, but the Cardinals had a couple of stars of their own, including a legend at first base, Albert Pujols. Pujols had won the National League Most Valuable Player Award three times! He had also already won a World Series t
itle with the Cardinals, back in 2006. He was clearly on a path that would lead to the Hall of Fame one day.

  Yet his biggest moment was still to come. It occurred in Game 3, when he forever etched his name in the World Series record books by hitting three home runs. Only two players had ever done that before, and they were two of the biggest names ever: Babe Ruth and Reggie Jackson.

  Pujols provided a legendary moment on the biggest stage, propelling the Cardinals to a two-games-to-one lead. But mighty Texas rebounded quickly, going on to win the next two games at home to gain a 3–2 lead.

  The series returned to St. Louis with the Rangers one game away from their first World Series championship. They could practically taste the victory.

  Game Six . . . Game Six . . . Game Six! . . . So many emotions running through the fans of both teams. At first, the game was close, but when back-to-back home runs from Beltre and Cruz helped the Rangers take a 7–4 lead after seven innings, it was looking like a Texas victory parade was imminent.

  Yet, as they had already proven that season, the Cardinals weren’t a team to give up easily. And they knew that their three-run deficit could have easily been more. Texas had missed a couple of opportunities to score even more runs. So even though they were two innings away from losing the World Series, the Cardinals had hope. And hope is a powerful thing.

  They began by scoring once in the bottom of the eighth inning. Now they were down by just two runs. Which was great, except . . . now the Rangers were just three outs away from winning the championship with a two-run lead. Every Ranger on the field and in the dugout could practically feel the win in their hands.

  The top of the ninth was a quiet one for Texas. Their lead would remain two runs headed to the bottom of the ninth. Neftali Feliz entered the game to pitch for Texas. Feliz was the Rangers’ fireballing closer, the pitcher who came into the game and finished the job. The year before, Feliz had won the Jackie Robinson Award as the American League Rookie of the Year with 40 saves. Thirty-two times in 2011, Feliz entered the game with a lead and walked away with a save. Now, the biggest one of his career was three outs away.

  Backup infielder Ryan Theriot was the first batter. Feliz handled him easily. Theriot struck out swinging.

  One out.

  The next batter was the dangerous Pujols. Pujols wasted no time and swung at the first pitch, rocketing a double to center. Feliz began to fret, so much so that he walked the next batter, veteran outfielder Lance Berkman.

  The next batter was the young and talented Allen Craig, who had hit a home run his last time at bat. It took Feliz six pitches, but he regained control. On that sixth pitch, Craig swung and missed, striking out.

  Two outs! Every Ranger stood by the top step of the dugout, eager to run onto the field in celebration.

  Third baseman David Freese was up next. David Freese had grown up in nearby Wildwood, right next to St. Louis. He’d been a Cardinals fan his whole life and was now playing in the World Series for his boyhood team. Freese had already won the NLCS MVP Award, hitting .545 against Milwaukee.

  None of that mattered now. What mattered was keeping the Cardinals’ season alive. What mattered now was doing something, anything, to get on base, because making an out meant the season was over.

  Feliz was throwing ninety-six miles an hour. He got ahead of Freese, one ball, two strikes. The Rangers were one strike away from being champions. Feliz looked to his catcher for the sign.

  He threw a fastball.

  Freese connected, hitting a hard shot out to right field. The right fielder, Nelson Cruz, stepped forward, then back . . . and back . . . and then he jumped, his glove out in the air. At first the fans couldn’t tell if he had caught the ball or not. He hadn’t! The ball bounced off the wall just out of Cruz’s reach and ricocheted back into the outfield.

  Pujols scored!

  Berkman scored!

  Freese slid into third base with a triple. The game was tied 7–7 and the St. Louis fans were going crazy!

  Feliz tried to regroup, knowing that a single mistake—a wild pitch, a passed ball, a hit—would give the game to the Cardinals.

  And to his credit, regroup he did. Right after Freese’s triple, the great Cardinals catcher, Yadier Molina, lined out to right field. The inning was over. Feliz walked to the dugout, tears in his eyes.

  The two teams would play extra innings.

  The Rangers were devastated but not defeated. With one out in the top of the tenth, Elvis Andrus singled and Josh Hamilton, the powerful center fielder, followed by homering to right center. The Rangers once again had the lead, 9–7!

  To the bottom of the tenth, the Rangers again three outs away from winning the World Series. Darren Oliver, the Rangers’ soft-throwing left-hander, replaced Feliz. The Cardinals again were down to their last three outs, again down by two runs.

  This time, the bottom, weaker part of the order was up, but the first two batters singled. Scott Feldman replaced Oliver as pitcher and got the next batter out. It was Theriot’s turn again. Would he get a hit? No, he grounded out to third, but a run scored on the play, making it 9–8. The Cardinals were again down to their final out.

  And this time Albert Pujols was up. The Rangers weren’t taking any chances with Pujols. They walked him intentionally.

  Lance Berkman was next. The count went to 2–2.

  The Rangers, for the second time this game, were one strike away from the championship.

  And for the second time this game, the Cardinals refused to lose. Berkman singled to center to tie the game 9–9!

  The Rangers didn’t score in the top of the eleventh.

  David Freese, who had kept the season alive in the ninth, led off the bottom of the inning for St. Louis.

  Mark Lowe was the new Texas pitcher.

  Lowe and Freese battled to a full count, three balls and two strikes. With the pressure on, one swing of the bat away from ending the game, David Freese did it again. He hit Lowe’s next pitch over the wall for a home run!

  Game over. The Cardinals would live to play another game. And David Freese had become a legend in his own time.

  The Cardinals and Rangers would play Game 7, the final match to decide the championship.

  The next night proved to be fairly anticlimactic. The Rangers managed to score a run in the first inning, but their energy was clearly spent from the heartbreak of the night before. The Cardinals, on the other hand, coming off an improbable comeback win, were soaring at home, so close to a championship that back in September never seemed possible. The Cardinals won Game 7 with ease. The final score was 6–2.

  In the Rangers clubhouse, few players had anything to say, for no words could make up for being so close to a championship only to lose in such a heartbreaking manner. There were teams, like the 1986 Red Sox, that had been a strike away from winning the World Series, but no team in baseball history had ever been one strike away twice.

  The photos of the 2011 series, as with so many other championships, focus on the winners—photos of World Series MVP David Freese and Yadier Molina leaping up in the air, and their frenzied fans doing the same, enjoying the happiest moments of their lives. The other side of those emotions, of the Rangers defeated and deflated, pained and drained by the competition and the losing, is for a time the loneliest feeling in the world.

  Their manager, Ron Washington, would feel the hurt of losing the World Series for years to come. After the game, he immediately congratulated the Cardinals for their victory, before returning to his office and uttering these words: “This is competition. It’s why we play. We lost today, but we’ll keep fighting and fighting until one day we win. That’s baseball.”

  The 2011 World Series

  TOP TEN LIST

  The Texas Rangers didn’t win the World Series in 2010 or in 2011, but by appearing in back-to-back World Series, the Rangers made Texas, better known for its football, p
ay attention to baseball as well. Here are ten teams that didn’t always win, but deserve to remain in the hearts of their fans.

  Brooklyn Dodgers 1947–55: Jackie Robinson and the Boys of Summer.

  Kansas City Royals 2014: After twenty losing seasons and no playoff appearances between 1986 and 2013, the Royals made an unlikely World Series run and, despite losing the decisive Game 7 to the Giants by one run, the team brought winning baseball back to Kansas City.

  Seattle Mariners 1995–2001: This group never reached the World Series, but they did win three division titles and a wild card playoff led by Ken Griffey Jr., Edgar Martinez, a young Alex Rodriguez, and pitcher Randy Johnson.

  Cleveland Indians 1995–2001: This group led by stars such as Manny Ramirez, Albert Belle, Jim Thome, and Roberto Alomar reached the World Series in 1995 and 1997, but lost both.

  Atlanta Braves 1991–2005: Fourteen consecutive division titles! They were led by the greatest pitching staff of all time, featuring future Hall-of-Famers Greg Maddux and Tom Glavine.

  Boston Red Sox 1974–1978: Lot of heartbreak in Boston, but the Sox had Carl “Yaz” Yastrzemski, Jim Rice, Carlton Fisk, Luis Tiant, and the most exciting World Series in history.

  San Francisco Giants 1960–1969: Willie Mays, Willie McCovey, Orlando Cepeda, Gaylord Perry, and Juan Marichal—five Hall of Famers!

  Oakland A’s 1987–1992: Jose Canseco, Mark McGwire, Rickey Henderson, Dennis Eckersly, and Dave Stewart. Three World Series appearances, one win.

  Milwaukee Brewers 1978–1983: Nicknamed “Harvey’s Wallbangers” for their ability to hit home runs, they were the first and only Brewers team to reach the World Series, in 1982. Rollie Fingers, Robin Yount, and Paul Molitor were all inducted into the Hall of Fame.