Fall Classics – the down-to-the-wire World Series games that we look forward to every year. When a championship is at stake, the entire world is watching, and history is created.
It could be a variety of sensational plays that make a good game, such as home runs, stolen bases, or incredible outings from pitchers. After a grueling 162-game season, players then have to make the most of every chance they get to win the World Series.
In this article, I highlight the best World Series games ever and explain why I think they’re significant. Fall Classics are what create heroes, icons, legends, and villains. What happens in the postseason can also have an everlasting effect on the game of baseball.
It was a World Series between two teams that were suffering the greatest title droughts in US sports. The Cubs would take the series to game 7 after falling 3-1 behind initially. It was the final game of the year, and there was plenty of theatrics.
This clash had everything you want when there’s a World Series on the line. Both managers made strange mid-game adjustments, rain delays took place, and there was a late-inning home run.
The Cubs were up 5-1 early on, thanks to home runs from Dexter Fowler and Javier Baez. However, Joe Madden decided to pull Cubs starting pitcher Kyle Hendricks from the game and went with Jon Lester. That’s when the Indians began to mount a comeback.
Lester stayed in the game until the eighth inning. Madden then replaced him with Aroldis Chapman, who quickly gave up a two-run blast to Rajai Davis. It was tied 6-6 when the game entered extra innings.
A rain delay then ensued. It lasted briefly, and at the top of the 10th inning, the Cubs scored two runs to reclaim the lead. It was enough to finish off the Indians and win the game 8-7. The Cubs captured their first World Series in 108 years – the longest active title drought at the time.
This is another wild one – it ranks among the greatest World Series games ever because the Red Sox would suffer a devastating heartbreak. They were close to capturing a championship, but it would slip through their fingers.
The game likely wouldn’t have gone to extra innings if Roger Clemons wasn’t removed for a pinch hitter. He had allowed only one earned run through the game’s first seven innings. The Red Sox were up 3-2, but manager John McNamara wanted more run support.
Pinch hitter Mike Greenwell would end up striking out. Then, reliever Calvin Schiraldi would give up a run to the Mets in the bottom half of the inning. The game would go into extra innings with a tied score of 3-3.
The Red Sox showed signs of life in the top of the 10th inning, putting up two scores. In the bottom of the 10th, the team retired the first two batters before mayhem ensued.
The Mets came up with consecutive singles from Gary Carter, Kevin Mitchell, and Ray Knight. This would cut down the Red Sox lead to a single run. Then, after a wild pitch scored another run, the Red Sox suffered an unfortunate blunder.
Mookie Wilson would hit a routine ground ball down to Bill Buckner at first base. The ball went right through the legs of Buckner, and the Mets would win the game. In game 7, the Mets won the final World Series game, knocking off the Red Sox with an 8-5 victory.
Many also consider the final contest in 1991 between the Twins and Braves one of the great World Series games of all time. It consisted of brilliant pitching performances from both teams. Twins starter Jack Morris was absolutely masterful throughout the entire contest.
There were only a few scoring opportunities in the game. The closest came in the top of the eighth inning when the Braves had a runner on first base and no outs. The batter, Terry Pendleton, hit a double to left-center field. The runner, however, only made it to third base.
The Braves had runners on third and second base but failed to score a single run in the eighth. The Twins would then eventually break the stalemate and win in the bottom of the 10th, with Gene Larkin hitting a single to left field with the bases loaded.
Diehard Phillies fans will tell you that this game was an absolute nail-biter. Philadelphia was putting up an epic battle throughout the 1993 World Series. They also got pretty close to preventing the Blue Jays from winning a second consecutive title.
The Phillies were fresh off surviving an elimination game and had to travel to Canada for game 6. The Blue Jays were looking to put the game out of reach early on, scoring three runs in the first inning. After five innings, the score was 5-1 in favor of Toronto.
In the top of the seventh inning, the Phillies would rally and score five runs. Lenny Dykstra hit a three-run home run, and the rest of the lineup would scrounge up a couple more runs. They took a 6-5 lead and held it until the bottom of the ninth.
The Blue Jays would ultimately rally when the Phillies only needed two outs to end the game. With Rickey Henderson and Paul Molitor both on base, Joe Carter hit a three-run home run to win the game. It remains one of only two walk-off home runs to end a World Series in history.
It’s a Fall Classic that everyone remembers because the Marlins were a relatively new franchise. They went up against the Cleveland Indians, a team that featured several superstar players, including Manny Ramirez, Jim Thome, and David Justice.
The Indians held a 2-0 lead for most of the game, and things looked glum for the Marlins. However, Bobby Bonilla would hit a home run in the top of the seventh, cutting the Indians’ lead down to a single run.
The score was 2-1 in the bottom of the ninth. Cleveland brought in reliever Jose Mesa to close out the game, be he couldn’t get the job done. Mesa surrendered a single run on a sacrifice fly by Craig Counsell.
In the 11th inning, Edgar Renteria would hit the game-winning single up the middle. The bases were loaded and there were two outs in the inning. It was the second time in three years that the Indians failed to win the World Series.
Another exceptional game is next, and this one will definitely live in the memory of everyone who witnessed the spectacle. The Cardinals were somehow able to force a game 7 against the Texas Rangers after a crazy game 6.
In this particular contest, both teams committed numerous errors and base-running mistakes. The first six innings were uncharacteristically sloppy and haphazard for a World Series game. The score was tied 4-4 when even more craziness ensued.
Both Adrian Beltre and Nelson Cruz would blast home runs for the Rangers in the seventh. Texas then held a 7-5 lead heading into the ninth inning, and that’s when the Cardinals struck back. David Freese, with two outs and two runners on base, smashed a two-run triple.
Josh Hamilton hit a two-run homer for the Rangers in the 10th, going back up two scores. The Cardinals, however, would respond right away. Lance Berkman hit a two-out, two-strike RBI single, tying the game at 9-9.
Freese’s heroics would be a factor yet again when he hit a walk-off home run in the 11th inning. It capped off a game filled with excitement and high-pressure situations. The Cardinals would then go on to win game 7 and capture the 2011 World Series.
There are many classic examples that we consider to be among the best World Series games of all time. We can also expect there to be many more compelling matchups in the future. Baseball, as they say, is the American pastime, and it produces plenty of magical moments.
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