Thoughts, lists and other compulsive bits about baseball from comedian filmmaker television producer/Red Sox fan Paul Francis Sullivan....
feel free to call him “Sully.”
In my latest series of entries, I want to record how each and every post season series ended. I am doing a blog post for each and every team, listing which pitchers clinched the final out.
And I did a post on some of the more unusual endings, such as a series being clinched with a wild pitch or a runner caught stealing.
I felt it was necessary to list all of the series winning hits. Sure every baseball fan has thought about how cool it would be to get the hit to win the World Series or close out a playoff series. These 24 are the only ones who can claim to have done it.
To be fair, only 23 are walk off hits. One was a sacrifice fly, but I included that as well. There are a few massive home runs and one bunt.
So here they are. I list the batter, the game, the pitcher, who scored and what the final score was.
Every Post Season series that ended with a walk off hit
Most of the players listed are solid big leaguers but not superstars. Only Bill Mazeroski and Goose Goslin were Hall of Famers (and Mazeroski's inclusion in Cooperstown is one of the most controversial votes ever.)
Rickey Henderson crossed the plate twice on a series ending hit, but never as a member of the A's. Surely when you think of Rickey, you think of him as a Toronto Blue Jay or a Seattle Mariner.
So why did I do this list? Well in case anyone out there in the vast internet land happens to wonder out loud "I wonder who got a walk off hit to end a post season series" they would land on this post from your pal Sully.
And I will update it the next time there is a walk off hit to end a post season series.
As of now, Nyjer Morgan's hit against the Diamondbacks is the last one.
One strike from winning the game, putting Lester on the hill... and a Game 4 win would send the game back to Anaheim (sorry Angels, that's where you play) with the pressure on THEIR shoulders.
And instead we get a monumental collapse.
But some Sox fans are getting carried away.
Bob Ryan said this was the worst Red Sox post season loss since 1986.
Really?
It's not even the worst Red Sox post season loss in the last 12 months!!!
Come on... the Red Sox had the tying runs on base with nobody out in the 8th... heart of the line up coming up... just a few days removed from the mind boggling Game 5 come back... a trip to the World Series on the line... and they got a goose egg.
I'll think of J. D. Drew striking out against David Price a hell of a lot more than the Angels rallying against Papelbon.
Last year was a chance to make it back to back pennants... have a great shot to repeat as World Champs and maybe have the word dynasty mentioned.
Instead we got a World Series opening in the Trop!
This year? Holding off a Division Series sweep.
Not as much on the line. And how quickly we forgot the devastation that was 2003!
Lest we forget the Sox had a 5-2 lead in the 8th inning... 1 out and nobody on.
The Yankee dragon was about to be slain by a gritty and lovable bunch.
Plus we all knew that the Yankees for what ever reason couldn't hit Embree, Timlin nor Williamson... and if Pedro let up a hit, Grady would have those three guys to record 5 outs.
And then the most agonizing inning since the 10th of Game 6 in 1986 happened.
We replayed that inning, batter by batter until Posada's little bloop tied the game... and a few innings later when Aaron Boone ended it.
In some ways that was WORSE than Game 6 in 1986.
We had felt we couldn't be burnt again after that... and then let us feel hope as the outs piled up.
And when the ball rolled through Buckner's legs, not only was the game already tied, but there was a Game 7 on the horizon.
When Boone's homer landed... that was it. End of season. End of hope. Many of us wondered if we should just stop rooting for the team.
It was time to buy a copy of Noose Making For Dummies.
A little less devastating than trying to prevent a Division Series sweep.
So folks, it hurt yesterday. But it doesn't carry the weight of "Will we ever see a World Series title in our life times?"
It doesn't have the "will we EVER beat the Yankees" question hanging over it.
Nor does it have the "I wanted to see a Dynasty!" possibility.
It was quite simply "I hope we don't get swept by a better team in the Division Series" situation.
Let's not go nuts folks.
(We wouldn't want Red Sox fans to be irrational!!!)
Wakes won again… making my case for him being the ace of the team this year even more intriguing.
He’s got 9 wins, second only to Roy Halladay and might finally make his first All Star team. (How was he NOT an All Star in 1995? He was third in the Cy Young vote that year!!!)
But there could be a real and tangible title for Tim Wakefield…
One that was unthinkable when he signed with the Red Sox in 1995…
One that was laughable when he was left off of the 1999 ALCS roster…
One that was more than unlikely when he served up Aaron Boone’s homer…
And one that just sounds strange despite 15 seasons in Boston and playing a big part in 7 Red Sox playoff teams including two World Series champions.
He could be the greatest winner in Red Sox history.
Not the greatest pitcher. That title is debatable.
But imagine asking the question “Who has won the most games in Red Sox history?” and having the answer being “Tim Wakefield!”
Now right now, I think the fact that there is a tie at the top is kind of cool.
A skinny Roger Clemens won 3 Cy Youngs in a Red Sox uniform.
He’s tied with Cy Young, who didn’t need an award to tell people he was Cy Young worthy.
They each have 192 wins in a Red Sox uniform.
Wakefield has 173 wins as a Red Sox pitcher.
He’s 20 wins away from being the all time team leader in wins. He’s 27 wins from being the first 200 game winner in Red Sox history, but I digress.
I want him to get those 20 wins and pass Clemens and Young. Wakefield already has a lot of Red Sox records… ones that I’m sure he’d like to give back.
Most homers… most losses… most walks… most hits allowed… most earned runs… most wild pitchers… most starts that made Red Sox fans say “Oh PLEASE don’t suck today!”
And yet he is a stand up guy and a champion.
He deserves a great title. The most wins in Red Sox history would be kind of cool, don’t you think?
It might earn him a retired number without a Hall of Fame entry (a la Johnny Pesky.)
So let’s start the countdown! 19 to tie… 20 to pass Clemens and Young.
(I believe Cy Young is only former Red Sox great Wakefield DIDN’T play with!)
Wakefield threw 7 innings of 1 hit ball yesterday... that's what aces do. This is after he nearly threw a no hitter and pitched a rain shortened complete game.
His awesome win in Oakland jump started this winning streak.
He has 2 wins (which is 2 wins more than anyone thought he'd have.)
Is it time to declare Tim Wakefield (who is third behind Roger Clemens and Cy Young for Red Sox wins) an all time Awesome Red Sox?
I'm not talking "Hall of Famer" or "Superstar" but like a Johnny Pesky. Maybe he's someone so identified with the team that maybe #49 gets retired some day.
This is his 15th season with the Sox. Along the way he has had ups and downs... but it goes a long way to show you how respected he is in Boston that he never wore the goat horns for a second after letting up Aaron Boone's homer.
It shows you the respect that he has in baseball that Joe Torre mentioned him during his post game interview for the 2004 ALCS and implied that while he was crushed, he was happy for Wakefield.
He has given the Red Sox 17 win seasons AND 15 save seasons.
He came up big for the 1995 Division Champs and the 2005 Wild Card team.
And amazingly he has pitched in 17 seasons and has never pitched in an All Star Game. Maybe if he keeps it up this year, he can add that to his resume.
But the most incredible part of his career for me is how he is the link to so many different names, faces and eras of Red Sox baseball.
He was teammates with Mike Greenwell and Roger Clemens... two guys who played for the 1986 AL Champs.
And now he has outlasted most of the members of the 2004 World Champs.
He actually was teammates with Dennis Eckersley, who returned to the Red Sox in 1998. So technically has was teammates with players from 1978, 1986, 2004 and 2007.
The Yawkey family trust was still in control of the team and Dan Duquette was calling the shots when he arrived. Theo Epstein was still in Yale.
Dustin Pedroia was 12.
When he arrived Mo Vaughn and John Valentin were the big bats in the lineup.
Now he has David Ortiz, Kevin Youkilis and Mike Lowell behind him.
Just to give you an idea of how long reaching the Wakefield era has been, here is a partial list of players who arrived in Boston after Wakefield and left before him.
RICK AGUILERA
BRONSON ARROYO
MARK BELLHORN
JOHN BURKETT
ORLANDO CABRERA
MATT CLEMENT
ALEX CORA
COCO CRISP
JOHNNY DAMON
BRIAN DAUBACH
ALAN EMBREE
CARL EVERETT
KEITH FOULKE
RICH "EL GUAPO" GARCES
NOMAR GARCIAPARRA
TOM GORDON
SHEA HILLENBRAND
GABE KAPLER
MARK LORETTA
DEREK LOWE
PEDRO MARTINEZ
RAMON MARTINEZ
LOU MERLONI
DOUG MIENTKIEWICZ
KEVIN MILLAR
DOUG MIRABELLI
BILL MUELLER
MIKE MYERS
TROT NIXON
HIDEO NOMO
JOSE OFFERMAN
TROY O'LEARY
MANNY RAMIREZ
EDGAR RENTERIA
DAVE ROBERTS
BRET SABERHAGEN
CURT SCHILLING
MIKE TIMLIN
UGETH URBINA
TODD WALKER
DAVID WELLS
SCOTT WILLIAMSON
That's a lot of Red Sox coming and going... and yet the knuckler goes on!
Come on! Enough water is under the bridge! Plus the Yankees like to bring over former Red Sox heroes (and Derek Lowe might join Dougie, Damon, Embree, Mendoza, Bellhorn and Myers as members of the 2004 ALCS roster to later play for the Yankees.)
Why not take the F---ing from Boone's name? Why not have him homer in a Sox uniform and high five Wakefield?
Besides, if Boone didn't homer, then Theo doesn't go all in for 2004 and deal for Schilling and Foulke and make the Nomar trade. Besides, didn't 2004 in retrospect mean more because it came on the heels of another chapter of the Curse?
And if Aaron Boone didn't bust his knee playing basketball just before the 2004 season, the Yankees wouldn't have gone after A-Rod.
And we all know how wonder THAT has been for Red Sox fans.
Why not? Invite him to spring training.
It's all in the past. In fact I bet, fellow Sox fans, you could watch this clip without cringing.
The Red Sox and Yankees are starting up a new late season series. And last night's 1-0 Yankee win caused some profanity from your pal Sully
So let's look back at the recent rivalry and put together the Yankee team that made Red Sox nation drop the most F-Bombs.
Damn Yankees is no longer strong enough.
IT'S THE ALL F---ING YANKEES TEAM
C - Jorge F---ing Posada Lest we forget his homer in the 99 playoffs and his game tying double off of Pedro in 03
1B - Jason F---ing Giambi. Yeah Tino, Chambliss and Donnie were better Yankees... but I still lament those homers hit in game 7, 2003.
2B - Enrique F---ing Wilson. He had Pedro's number. Don't ask me how!
SS - Bucky F---ing Dent. I know Jeter is great and that catch into the stands was amazing, but Bucky Dent prevented a ring for Yaz, Rice, Lynn, Evans, Tiant, Lee, Remy, Burleson, Scott and Hobson. Pretty powerful stuff 3B - Aaron F---ing Boone. I know it was only one year of misery... but it hurt.
LF - Roberto F---ing Kelly. Lest we forget his 9th inning home run torpedoed the Red Sox 1991 playoff push.
CF - Bernie F---ing Williams. The walk off in game 1, 1999... the year after he turned down the Sox offer! Ooof.
RF - Lou F---ing Pinella. How DID he stab that ball hit by Remy during the 78 playoff game? He couldn't see it! That gets by him and the game is tied!
DH - Reggie F---ing Jackson. The Dent home run game the Sox the lead... but Jackson game them breathing room with another homer. And they would need every single run as it turned out.
3 Man Rotation
El Duque F---ing Hernandez. Shut down the Sox in 1999 finale to win the ALCS MVP
Ron F---ing Guidry Let up Yaz's home run and little else in the 1978 playoff game.
Mike F---ing Torrez Yeah, I know he was on the Red Sox. But he was a Yankee the year before and some thought he was a double agent!
Closer - Rich F---ing Gossage. Yeah, Rivera won the 2003 ALCS MVP, but his blown save in 2004 cost him this job. Besides, what image hurt Sox fans more than Yaz popping up weakly to Nettles?
Set Up Man - Ramiro F---ing Mendoza. All due respect to El Duque, Mendoza SHOULD have won the 1999 ALCS MVP. He wiggled out of potential series turning jams in games 2 and 5... killing any World Series hopes Manager - Joe F---ing Torre. He just sits there. And he doesn't seem to do anything... and they still won! I know his moves may have cost them the 2004 pennant, but I used to curse him out so much that he deserves this spot.
A pretty solid team... let's hope there are no new members after this week!
Last year I made it clear that the Red Sox/Yankees rivalry is just better than the other baseball rivalries and everyone else just has to deal with it.
I stand by that.
And tomorrow the Yankees go to Fenway to play the Red Sox. I'm sorry, let me correct myself... Tomorrow the Yankees go to Fenway to play the Defending World Champion Boston Red Sox. That's better.
And yeah, neither team is off to a blazing start at 5-5... but please. If the Orioles win the Division I will buy you a house.
And by "you" I mean anyone currently reading this blog.
When the rivalry reached its breaking point between 2003-2005.
With the rivalry already rich in history, tradition and venom, think about the chapters added just 5 years ago that are already legendary:
- Pedro throwing Zimmer to the ground - Grady leaving Pedro in too long - Aaron Boone extending the curse another year - The race to get A-Rod - Jeter flying into the stands in that wonderful extra inning game - The Varitek/A-Rod brawl game ending with Bill Meuller's walk off against Mariano - Pedro declaring the Yankees to be his daddy - The Yankees winning 19-8 in Fenway to take a 3-0 lead - 3 outs from a sweep, Roberts steals and scores on Meuller's hit... Papi's walk off in extras - 6 outs from elimination, Sox rally back and Papi wins it again in 14 - Schilling's bloody sock - A-Rod slaps the ball from Arroyo's glove - Johnny Damon's grand slam blows open the clinching game in the Bronx - The Red Sox get their rings in front of the visiting Yankees - Yankees and Red Sox finish 2005 tied... but the Yankees are the Division Champs because of the 10-9 head to head record - Johnny Damon defects to the Yankees in the off season.
Hey Cubs and Cardinals fans... list that many memorable moments of your rivalry!
For us, that's only going back to the start of the Iraq war.
Now I know the rest of baseball hates us (yes Red Sox fans... people hate us now) because our teams tend to gobble up all the big players.
They have a point and I have another list.
Here are players added to the Yankees starting in 2003: Hideki Matsui Alex Rodriguez Gary Sheffield Tom Gordon Kevin Brown Javier Vasquez Randy Johnson Carl Pavano Jaret Wright Johnny Damon Bobby Abreu
And that's not including Roger Clemens and Andy Pettite, who left and came back for big bucks.
But Red Sox fans shouldn't get smug about the Yankees free spending.
The faces added to the Sox starting in 2003: David Ortiz Kevin Millar Bill Meuller Curt Schilling Keith Foulke Edgar Renteria Matt Clement David Wells Josh Beckett Mike Lowell Daisuke Matsusaka Hideki Okajima J. D. Drew Julio Lugo
And of course this doesn't include big buck free agents Manny Ramirez (signed before 2001) and Johnny Damon (signed before 2002)
So yeah, both teams are guilty as charged of stockpiling other people's stars. Granted not all of the moves worked, but they have enough dough to absorb the Kevin Browns and Matt Clements of the world.
I have no sympathy for Red Sox fans who whine about the Yankee spending. We're an Evil Empire too. It's what we wanted... revel in it!
Well guess what? Just when you thought the rivalry couldn't get better/more annoying... behold the new direction of the Yankees and the Defending World Champion Boston Red Sox:
We're growing our own stars now! No more mercenaries! I loved the 2004 team more than any baseball team in my life... but let's face it, they were mercenaries.
Now a home grown Red Sox team is slowly rising led by Kevin Youkilis, a product of the farm system, and the Captain Jason Varitek, who was drafted by Seattle but has spent his entire big league career in Boston.
And the Yankees have their stable veterans, Derek Jeter, Jorge Posada and Mariano Rivera.
And those veterans are looking over a batch of young talent that should bring about debates for the next generation.
Who is better? Dustin Pedroia or Robinson Cano? Jacoby Ellsbury or Melky Cabrera? Jonathan Papelbon or Joba Chamberlain? Clay Buchholz and Jon Lester or Phil Hughes and Ian Kennedy?
Shortstop Jed Lowrie is on the World Champion Boston Red Sox roster going into this weekend and Yankee outfielder Austin Jackson won't be far behind.
The debates can even seep into players from the Orient... Which ace is better? Daisuke Matsusaka or Ching Mein Wang? And who will win when Francona brings in Hideki Okajima to face Hideki Matsui.
Sure both teams will still have their imported stars. Hell, both teams MVP candidates (David Ortiz, Manny Ramirez and Alex Rodriguez) were swiped from other teams.
But the prospect of both teams building the next great rivalry teams from the ground up and using their dough to keep them together is so great that I don't care if it pisses the rest of baseball off.
One big difference from the rivalry now and the teams of the past: No matter how great the Red Sox players were, Yankee fans always had the simple retort of "No Ring."
Williams vs DiMaggio and Mantle? Williams was good... no ring. Rice, Yaz, Lynn and Evans vs. Reggie, Piniella, Rivers and Chambliss? Sox were more talented... no rings. Fisk vs. Munson? Munson career was cut short and he still had the rings! Clemens and Boggs? They needed to go to the Yankees to get their rings.
Cue the 1918 chant.
Now? Well Papelbon, Lester, Buccholz, Ellsbury, Pedroia, Matsusaka and Okajima all got theirs. Youkilis and Varitek got their second rings.
And the Yankees haven't won a playoff series since Dave Roberts stole second.
The Rivalry has a new dynamic in the 21st century (with the Red Sox leading 2-1 in titles).
It's going to be good. Deal with it, rest of baseball.
That I identify him to my wife as my least favorite player in all of baseball? Where is this going?
All that is swept away now. It's what you do in October that people remember!
Do Red Sox fans remember that Dave Henderson was a backup outfielder for the Sox who didn't even arrive in Boston until mid August of 1986 and only started 7 regular season games for the Sox?
Nope. They remember the game 5 homer and some even remember the World Series homers.
How many Red Sox fans in 2004 really knew who Dave Roberts was when the playoffs started? He was a 5th outfielder (Gabe Kapler usually came in for defense before Roberts). Now he is as beloved as Paul Revere.
When you mention to a Yankee fan the name Aaron Boone, do they think of a guy who spent only 2 months with the team and was batting .125 in the ALCS before being benched? Or do they remember a certain home run that will earn him standing ovations at old timers games for generations to come?
Bucky Dent, Gene Tenace, Darrell Porter, Francisco Cabrera, Scott Speizio... All defined not by a disappointing season but by October heroics.
If the Red Sox win game 7 and go to the World Series... nobody will remember the lousy season J. D. Drew had. They'll just remember the slam that set the tone for Game 6.
I've been wrong before (see my love for the Gagne trade when it happened) and I will be wrong again.
So let me say it loud and proud... J. D. DREW ROCKS!
