Three times in his career, Whitey Ford accepted the starting assignment in a Game 6 with his Yankees facing the dire commandment – win or go away. The first time this not so impossible mission presented itself, Ford got to stand atop his home mound of dirt, and, perhaps feeling […]
There’s exhilarating footage of Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig taking batting practice before the 1927 World Series – a kind of perfect encapsulation of the knockout combination these two provided. Watching one finish and the other begin, there is a sense and acknowledgment of the devastation about to be wrought: […]
A brief history of the timeline connecting the dots between teams repeating as World Series champions begins in 1908, when the Cubs of Tinker, Evers and Chance (along with Steinfeldt and a quartet of pitchers) took down the Tigers in five games. Soon after, the Athletics (1910-1911), Red Sox (1915-1916) […]
“Sandy Koufax for two weeks …” For nearly 20 years, that’s how I’ve thought of (and described to others) what Kenny Rogers did from October 6 through October 22 in 2006. That was, and is, overstating the case a little bit, but somehow the hyperbole seems appropriate, for what that […]
The victims of the first-ever perfect game in World Series history, the 1956 Brooklyn Dodgers had little time to regroup and recharge in their return to the diamond just a day later: a must-win Game 6 at Ebbets Field. A Duke Snider single in the first eliminated any concern about […]
It’s October 10, 1948. A reported 86,288 fans are on needles and pins at Cleveland Municipal Stadium to see if the Indians can clinch the franchise’s first World Series title since 1920. The incomparable Bob Feller gets the start for Cleveland, a shot at redemption after losing Game 1 to […]
Entering 2025, the postseason account books showed 67 players who drove in at least 14 runs through their first 18 games, with Lou Gehrig and Adolis García tied for the most, 22. A second focus revealed a much smaller collection to have scored at least 17 runs through their first […]
Currently, Édgar Rentería ranks in a tie with Chris Coghlan for 43rd on the all-time Marlins games played list, with 393. Despite that relatively minimal participation, the 1997 Fall Classic hero ranks first on the franchise’s list when it comes to walk-off hits, with seven (and that’s NOT counting his […]
The 2007 Devil Rays finished the year 30 games below .500 and posted their 10th losing season in as many years of existence (it was also the ninth time in those 10 seasons the club had failed to reach even 70 victories). Pretty bleak, for certain. But on September 5 […]
When it comes to Dodgers kapowing a ballgame with a walk-off home run over the last half century, Andre Ethier is king. 2008 saw the first example of this flair, kind of a supporting role in the team’s drama that season. The following year, the 27-year-old grabbed hold of the […]