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| | Tuesday, December 28 | |||||
| 1908: Joss vs. Walsh Oct. 2, 1908: Cleveland Indians 1, Chicago White Sox 0 Talk about drama. It's the last week of a tense three-way pennant race. The league's two best pitchers -- both future Hall of Famers -- squared off in perhaps the greatest duel ever. Chicago's Ed Walsh, who would win 40 games that year, fanned 15 and allowed only an unearned run. But Cleveland's Addie Joss pitched a perfect game. However, Detroit wins the pennant by ½-game over Cleveland and 1½ over Chicago when they defeat the White Sox on the season's final day. 1926 World Series, Game 7 Oct. 10, 1926: St. Louis Cardinals 3, New York Yankees 2 Some stories grow into legends. Like this one. Grizzled veteran Pete Alexander had won Game 6 for the Cardinals and, as the story goes, celebrated with a few cocktails after the game. But with St. Louis ahead 3-2 in the seventh inning, the Yankees loaded the bases with two outs. Ol' Pete got the call to face Tony Lazzeri, who drilled a long fly down the line ... that drifted foul. Alexander then struck out Lazzeri and shut down the Yankees the rest of the way, with Babe Ruth ending the game in a failed steal of second base. 1951 National League playoff Oct. 3, 1951: New York Giants 5, Brooklyn Dodgers 4 The Giants win the pennant! The Giants win the pennant! The Giants win the pennant! Russ Hodges' call has immortalized the final game of the 1951 tiebreaker between the city rivals. The Dodgers led 4-1 entering the bottom of the ninth at the Polo Grounds, but Don Newcombe tired. Ralph Branca, wearing No. 13, came in to face Bobby Thomson, who had homered off Branca two days earlier. Thomson delivered the game-winning, three-run homer into the left-field stands. It was Branca's sixth loss that season to the Giants. 1956 World Series, Game 5 Oct. 8, 1956: New York Yankees 2, Brooklyn Dodgers 0 Don Larsen pitched the only no-hitter in postseason play -- and it was a perfect game. Larsen, a nondescript right-hander, threw 97 pitches, fanned seven and retired Dale Mitchell on a called third strike for the final out. 1960 World Series, Game 7 Oct. 13, 1960: Pittsburgh Pirates 10, New York Yankees 9 One game for the season and never did a Game 7 have so much action. It goes back and forth as Pittsburgh led 4-0, the Yankees rallied back for a 7-4 lead by the eighth, the Pirates scored five in the bottom of the inning. The Yankees tallied twice in the top of the ninth to tie it 9-9. Bill Mazeroski then wins the World Series with a leadoff home run in the bottom of the ninth, the only Game 7 to end on a home run. Oct. 21, 1975: Boston Red Sox 7, Cincinnati Reds 6 This game had it all. Fred Lynn's three-run homer staked Boston to a first-inning lead. Lynn is later shaken up after colliding with the outfield wall. The Reds led 6-3 in the eighth, but Bernie Carbo tied it up with a pinch-hit three-run homer. The Sox load the bases with no outs in the ninth, when Lynn flied to George Foster in left, who nailed Denny Doyle at the plate for a double play. In the 11th inning, Dwight Evans made a spectacular play in right off Joe Morgan's shot and doubles Ken Griffey off first. Finally, Carlton Fisk leads off the bottom of the 12th and lofts a fly ball toward the Green Monster. Fisk stands at home plate, waving the ball fair, coaxing it with body language ... and it hits the foul pole for the game-winning home run. 1986 NLCS, Game 6 Oct. 14, 1986: New York Mets 7, Houston Astros 6 The Astros trailed the Mets in the series, 3 games to 2, but led 3-0 entering the ninth and had the apparently invincible Mike Scott ready for Game 7. But the Mets scored three runs to tie it up. Both teams scored in the 14th inning, the Astros tying it when Billy Hatcher homers off the foul pole. The Mets scored three in the 16th, the Astros score two and Jesse Orosco finally fans Kevin Bass with two on to send the Mets to the World Series. 1991 World Series, Game 7 October 13, 1991: Minnesota Twins 1, Atlanta Braves 0 Perhaps the most exciting World Series of all time (five one-run games, three in extra innings) ended with a classic pitchers' duel between Jack Morris and John Smoltz. The Braves failed to score a run due to Lonnie Smith's baserunning blunder in the seventh. The game goes to the 10th. Morris stays in and tosses another scoreless inning. The Twins then win it on Dan Gladden's broken-bat hustle double and Gene Larkin's single. |  ALSO SEE Greatest Games  | |||||