Boston's manager nearly outsmarted himself by starting Casey Fossum vs the Braves who have fared poorly vs lefties all season. Fossum had nothing and allowed 5 runs (4 earned) in a little over 6 innings of work. Luckily for the Red Sox Brave starter Lew Burdette was worse. The hero of the 1957 World Series, where he won 3 vs the Yankees, gave up 7 runs in 6 innings and was tagged with the loss. Fossum notched the win even though his performance dictated he deserved little more than a footnote. Milwaukee scored 4 runs in the bottom of the 3rd to give the Braves a 5-2 lead. Johnny Logan, attempting to make up for his poor performances so far hit a huge 3 run shot to cap off the inning. Burdette was fine until the 5th when the floodgates opened and he yielded 5 runs to the visiting team from Beantown. The trouble started when Fossum lead off with a solid single to right, which was followed by Damon who did the same. Carlos Baerga bunted them both up into scoring position and just like it was drawn up Nomar doubled them both in to cut the deficit to 1. Manny received an intentional pass and Trot Nixon flew out to right. Burdette looked like he was going to get out of the inning without yielding any more damage. Shea Hillenbrand and the light hitting Tony Clark each made life miserable for Burdette as they knocked in 3 runs between the two of them to give Boston a 7-5 lead. The Braves cut the lead to 1 run (7-6) in the bottom of the 8th as they scratched out a run. Just like in game 2 though they had bases loaded and didn't score more, which was their undoing. Manny hit a 2 run shot to put it out of reach in the top of
the 9th and Urbina came on to close it.
Highlights:
Oct 25 02 Boston 1 59 Milwaukee 0Inning: 1 Outs: 1 Bases: 2nd -
Nomar Garciaparra steps in against Burdette hitting .290 on the yearwith 5 home runs and 26 runs batted in he's hitting .294 in September..runner on 1st the first pitch to Garciaparra he swings..flied deep towards right center it's got a chance to go Aaron drifts to his right racing back..at the wall off the wall! Baerga takes a wide round of third there won't be a throw from Aaron Baerga scores Garciaparra rounds second and stops right there double
Oct 25 02 Boston 2 59 Milwaukee 0Inning: 1 Outs: 2 Bases: 1st & 2nd -
the third baseman Shea Hillenbrand steps inhitting .289 8 home runs and 41 RBI's on the season he's hitting .264 in September..runners on 1st and 2nd 0-1 countcurveball Hillenbrand swings..line shot between third and short Logan lunges but he can't come up with it that will be a base hit for Hillenbrand Garciaparra to third Ramirez to second Garciaparra is trying to score there won't be a throw from Pafko Garciaparra crosses the plate Hillenbrand around first and the base coach holds him up single
Oct 25 02 Boston 2 59 Milwaukee 1Inning: 2 Outs: 0 Bases: Empty -
batting 5th, it's Joe Adcock batting .228 on the year with 8 home runs and 25 runs batted in he's hitting .216 in September..runners on 1st and 2nd2 balls, 0 strikes Adcock swings..it's a grounder left side of the infield Garciaparra fields it he tosses to 2nd for one toss to first just in time call it two one run, 2 hits, no errors after 1 complete 02 Boston 2, 59 Milwaukee 1
Oct 25 02 Boston 2 59 Milwaukee 2Inning: 3 Outs: 0 Bases: 1st & 3rd -
Joe Adcock to the plate hitting .226 on the year with 8 home runs and 25 runs batted in hitting .136 with 2 home runs with runners in scoring position he's hitting .214 in September..runners on 2nd and 3rd 1-1 count fastball Adcock swings..here's a grounder..toward third under Hillenbrand's glove and he can't make a play Mathews scores Aaron goes to 3rd Adcock to first Hillenbrand will be charged with an E
Oct 25 02 Boston 2 59 Milwaukee 5Inning: 3 Outs: 1 Bases: Empty -
Johnny Logan steps in against Fossum hitting .268 on the year 3 home runs and 11 RBI's on the season he's hitting .260 in September..runners on 1st and 3rd the payoff pitch curveball Logan swings..here's a deep fly ball towards left center..Damon on the track at the wall..a long way out of here!'Yatcha' gets number 4 a 414 foot blast
Oct 25 02 Boston 4 59 Milwaukee 5Inning: 5 Outs: 1 Bases: 2nd -
Nomar Garciaparra now at bat hitting .292 on the year with 5 home runs and 27 runs batted in..runners on 2nd and 3rd Burdette stares in 1-2 count Garciaparra swings..it's ripped wide of third it's fair all the way to the wall Fossum scores Damon scores Garciaparra rounds first he's trying to stretch it into a double Mathews's throw Garciaparra dives safe! double
Oct 25 02 Boston 5 59 Milwaukee 5Inning: 5 Outs: 2 Bases: 2nd & 3rd -
Shea Hillenbrand comes up against Burdette two for two today..runners on 1st and 2nd2 balls, 0 strikes curveball Hillenbrand swings..lined down the third base line that's a fair ball that could be extra basesall the way to the wall Garciaparra scores Ramirez goes to third Hillenbrand with a standing double
Oct 25 02 Boston 7 59 Milwaukee 5Inning: 5 Outs: 2 Bases: 1st -
Tony Clark to the plate hitting just .145 on the year.128 against righties hitting .000 with runners in scoring position and two out he's hitting just .107 in September..2 runners in scoring position 0 balls, 1 strike Clark swings..smashed on the ground between 1st and 2ndA dcock lunges it's a base hit Ramirez will score Hillenbrand will score from 2nd Aaron fires it back in Clark rounds first and holds
Oct 25 02 Boston 7 59 Milwaukee 5Inning: 7 Outs: 0 Bases: Empty -
Tony Clark steps in against Jay Varitek is in the on deck circle if he gets on..runner on 2nd 0-2 count fastball Clark swings..it's drilled between third and short it's a base hit Nixon takes a look at home he's heading for home here comes the throw from Pafko Clark is heading to second Nixon slides for the plate Crandall with the tagout!
Oct 25 02 Boston 9 59 Milwaukee 6Inning: 9 Outs: 1 Bases: Empty -
Manny Ramirez to the plate man on 1st 1-1 count Ramirez swings..here's a deep fly ball toward left..Maye on the warning track at the wall..Home Run Home Run number 14 for Ramirez that's HR number 13 for September! 355 foot homer
With their backs against the wall the Braves put their whole season on lefty Juan Pizarro's shoulders. Down 3 games to none the Braves needed some sort of spark, so manager Fortel decided to shake up his lineup a bit. Lee Maye moved into the #2 slot and played left and Johnny Logan dropped to the 8th slot. Boston counted on the steady John Burkett to close it out for the sweep. Milwaukee struck first in the home half of the 2nd, when Joe Adcock led off with a triple to deep center. Two batters later Johnny Logan grounded out and got the RBI to give the Braves a 1-0 lead. Neither team scored until the Red Sox notched 2 in the top of the 5th to take a 2-1 lead. Sanchez tripled to lead off the fame. Two batters later Manny received an intentional pass and two batters later Shea Hillenbrand doubled them both home. In the home half of the inning the Braves tied the score on a two out solo shot by the red hot Aaron. Burkett probably should have pitched around him, but with the score tied and the bases empty he decided to take his chances with Hammerin' Hank, who blasted one deep into the Wisconsin's autumn. The Sawx scored one in the 7th and the Braves tied it back up at 3 in the bottom of the 8th. Heading to the 9th the score was knotted at 3. Both starters were done for the day and neither would be involved in the decision. Tim Wakefield came on in the 6th for Boston and Bob Rush entered in the 8th for the Braves. The 9th looked to be a fast 3 up and 3 down inning for rush. Wakefield struck out to lead off the inning. One has to be surprised he wasn't pinch hit for, but that's another story in itself...Damon then grounded back to the originator for the second out and all looked good for the Braves. Rey Sanchez got a cheap flare for a single and up stepped Nomar to the plate. After homering in his last AB, Garciaparra looked very comfortable at the plate. Rush had no choice to pitch to him as the even hotter Ramirez was glaring at him from the on deck circle. Rush hung a curve ball and Nomar hit it 398 feet into the parking lot to give the Braves a 2 run lead and a chance to close out the series in 4. Urbina came on to close it out by striking out the side after walking Del Crandall. The Sawx swept the Braves in a highly contested series, where each game was extremely close and could have probably gone either way. The crowd at Starbucks, where it was played, were treated to some great baseball action. Congratulations to the 2002 Boston Red Sox for winning the KOD 2 World Series and being crowned the best team ever for teams that finished out of the money the year after or before finishing in 1st.
Game 2 featured a battle of respective aces (Warren Spahn vs Derek Lowe). Both put up goose eggs for the first 3 innings, then both teams exchanged runs in the 4th. Boston went up 3-1 in the fifth as Rey Sanchez knocked in Trot Nixon and Jose Offerman with a 2 out single. Milwaukee scratched back to get 1 in the 6th as Aaron doubled with 2 outs and Adcock singled him home. Milwaukee tied it up in the top of the 9th as Billy Bruton led off with a single. Logan went down on strikes and Aaron made it second and third with a double off the green monster. Mathews hit a sac fly to Nixon in right and Adcock flew out to end the inning. The Braves were ecstatic to have tied it, but this should have been an inning where they scored more and they sure as heck knew it. The bottom of the 8th saw the Red Sox post 3 runs to take a 6-3 lead. Varitek hit a long double that he sliced down the right field line to score Sanchez from second and Manny all the way from first. Normally sure handed Johnny Logan booted a hard smash by Hillenbrand, which scored Varitek and left the Braves for dead. Milwaukee forgot to get the memo alerting them to their demise and rallied in the top of the 9th to get 2 runs, but couldn't get the tying run when Urbina tightened his britches and fanned Logan (the defacto goat) to end it.
All tied going into the 8th when Manny hit his second of the day to put the Bosox up by 1. Buhl went 8 for the Braves and scattered 3 runs, but he did not get enough offensive support to win. Pedro finally got to the 7th and only gave up 2 runs, which came on a Hank Aaron 2 run shot in the 5th. Embree pitched 1 2/3 scoreless innings and Urbina came on in the 9th to close it out. Boston scored first when Trot Nixon hit into a fielder's choice to plate Johnny Damon who led off the game with a single. Pedro struck out 10 as he got to the 7th for the first time in weeks. Boston surprised everyone by not going with Lowe and putting their trust in Pedro.
Game 1: For 6+ inning John Burkett went pitch for pitch with 1988 Cy Young award winner Frank Viola giving up only 1 run. Neither starter would have a hand in the decision as it all fell on the shoulders of each team's respective bullpens. The Twins struck first in the top of the 9th as Arrojo gave up a solo shot to Tim Laudner. Curiously the Twins had Smith start the bottom of the 9th, but couldn't hold Boston down. Reardon was brought in with 2 outs and the bases loaded and yielded a single to Shea Hillenbrand to plate Doug Mirabelli for the winning run. Lots of second guessing in this one for both managers. Minnesota will be second guessed for not having Reardon start the 9th and Boston could have been second guessed for using both of their catchers in the game and not being able to pinch run for the led footed Doug Mirabelli in the 9th.
brought their lumber for this one. Both starters (Blyleven and Oliver) were ineffective at best. Boston nursed a 1 run lead until the 7th, when Tim Wakefield came on to yield 4 runs and put the Twins up for good. Tommy Herr doubled home Greg Gagne with 2 outs and Kirby Pucket singled him home to give the Twins the lead for good. Juan Berenguer came on in the 7th and pitched 3 scoreless innings for the save.
duel. The only duel we saw was for the title of who was worse. Pedro "the enigma" Martinez again pitched poorly and was gone after 5 innings and 6 earner runs. Allan Anderson gave up 7 runs in 7 innings. Pedro got the win, but the bullpen really won it for Boston as Wakefield, Banks, Embree and Urbina held the Twins scoreless over the final 3 innings. The big inning for Boston was the top of the 6th, where they touched Anderson for 3 runs, two of which came off of Johnny Damon's bat as he hit one deep into the hefty bag. Rey Sanchez followed up with a triple and Nomar doubled him home for the ultimate winning run.
laugher. Derek Lowe continued his mound dominance as he went 7 scoreless innings. Damon banged out 4 hits off of Les Straker and company and Manny showed some signs of life by going yard.
be the difference maker.
in his regular slot or go with knuckleballer Tim Wakefield. Normally this would be a no brainer, but Pedro has been knocked around most of the season and hasn't been able to escape the 6th inning. Wakefield got the ball and proceeded to throw 5 1/3 scoreless innings. Willie Banks gave up 1 hit in almost 3 innings of pitching and Urbina came on in the 9th to nail it down. Minnesota's starter, Allan Anderson, had nothing and once the Bosox tapped him for 4 runs in the 1st the Twins season was as good as gone. The big blow came off of the bat of Manny who stood at home for an eternity to pose as his missile cleared the green monster and broke some windows on Landsdowne street. Manny's 3 run shot followed an RBI double by Nomar. Boston scratched out another run in the 4th to increase their lead to 5-0 and put them in the KOD3 Fall Classic.
Game 1: El Sid looked good until the 7th, when he ran out of gas and the Mets ran out of answers for the balanced Brave attack. Lou Burdette was steady enough to complete the game and nab the win. the 5 run 7th did the Mets in and erased their 3-2 lead. Joe Adcock hit 3 homers in a row and helped chase the big man from Hawaii off the hill.
led off the 11th with a sharp double down the left field line. Johnny Logan bunted him over to third and the Mets were in big trouble. Aaron and Mathews both received intentional passes, which setup Joe Adcock's sac fly to George Foster to score Bruton.
out the Mets in a 4 game sweep, but the Mets were not having any of that. Ed Lynch tossed a complete game gem allowing only 2 runs and tossing only 78 pitches in the process. The Mets tagged Brave starter Bob Buhl for 4 runs early on and never looked back. Strawberry hit a towering solo shot that hit the huge scoreboard in right and the Mets had a pulse.
the scoreboard. Three runs off of Gooden in a game is a miracle. 3 in one inning is of biblical proportions. The 8th inning started with pinch hitter Lee Maye, taking time out of his singing career, who grounded weekly to first. Billy "the catalyst" Bruton sliced a double down the left field line and Johnny Logan followed with an infield single to make it 1st and 3rd. Still the Mets had a 2 run lead. Gooden challenge Henry Aaron, who should never be challenged. Aaron singled back through the originator to cut the lead to 1. Eddie Mathews was pitched to cautiously and the bases were soon loaded with only 1 out. Wes Covington, who had been a big 
disappointment all year, fought off Gooden's "lord Charles and blooped a single over the outstretched arms of Wally Backman to score Logan to tie it. One batter later Adcock grounded out weekly, but Aaron came across to score and just like that a 2 run lead was now a 1 run deficit. The top of the 9th saw the shell shocked Mets go down in order to closer Don McMahon and the Braves clinched the NL Pennant. The Mets battled back hard in this series, but when you are down 3-0 you have no margin for error. Gooden threw 146 pitches and obviously ran out of gas in the 8th. Bob Rush notched the win as he pitched 2 1/2 innings in relief of starter Juan Pizarro.
