Emotionally deflated from the nightmarish result, the Red Sox lost Game Seven two nights later, 8-5, and would have to live with The Curse for another two decades. But the next three Mets singled to reduce the Boston lead to one Bob Stanley, replacing Schiraldi on the mound, next threw a wild pitch that brought home the tying run and placed the winning run (Ray Knight) at second and that’s when Mookie Wilson pulled a three-hop grounder to first baseman Buckner-aging and ailing, but left in the game because Boston manager John McNamara wanted him on the field when the Sox celebrated-and the ball skimmed beneath Buckner’s glove, through his legs and into right field, allowing Knight to joyously race home with the winning run. When Boston reliever Calvin Schiraldi retired the first two Mets in the bottom half of the 10th, the Red Sox sensed, at long last, their first championship since 1918 even the Shea Stadium scoreboard was conceding, prematurely displaying a public note of congrats to the Red Sox. 4 below), came to the rescue again when he launched a solo shot to give Boston the lead an insurance run was added when Marty Barrett singled in Wade Boggs, who had doubled. In the 10th, Dave Henderson-who had literally saved the Sox’ season in the ALCS (see no. The few Boston baseball fans who remained unconvinced of the Curse of the Bambino likely became converts after Game Six of the 1986 World Series, when Billy Buckner’s legendary gaffe capped an unlikely three-run, 10th-inning rally for the New York Mets that deepened the mystique that the Red Sox were forever hexed by their sale of Babe Ruth to the New York Yankees in 1920.īoston led the series three games to two coming in, and fought for nine innings to a 3-3 tie as the resilient Mets erased slim Red Sox leads throughout. October 25, 1986: Through Billy’s Buckshoes But Red Sox fans will remember most the moment it all began, when Roberts nabbed the bag and eventually became a hero for the ages by giving the team added life that would extend beyond their wildest expectations. Louis for its first championship since 1918. The Red Sox failed to win the game in the ninth despite leaving the bases loaded, survived the next three innings as the Yankees left five men on base (including a bases-loaded situation of their own in the 11th) and, with Manny Ramirez on first in the bottom of the 12th, David Ortiz blasted a two-run homer that secured the win, staved off elimination and, most historically, launched the Red Sox on an unprecedented four-game comeback-the momentum from which propelled Boston to an easy World Series triumph over St. Roberts quickly stole second, barely beating out a good throw from Jorge Posada the theft paid off when Bill Mueller drove Roberts home with a clean single. But Rivera walked leadoff batter Kevin Millar, who in turn was replaced at first base by pinch-runner Dave Roberts, a speedy part-time veteran picked up by the Red Sox in August. Making matters worse, they were three outs from elimination in Game Four, headed into the bottom of the ninth trailing 4-3 and facing off against Yankee closer Mariano Rivera, whose uncanny postseason success was second to none. No team in the history of baseball had ever come back after falling behind in a postseason series three games to none, and few would have given the Red Sox, with a championship drought of 86 years and counting-and walloped in the first three games of the ALCS by the archrival New York Yankees by scores of 10-7, 3-1 and 19-8-little chance to overcome such a burden.
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