1986 red sox

1986 World Series
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1986 World Series
Team / Wins Manager Season
New York Mets (4) Davey Johnson 108-54, .667
Boston Red Sox (3) John McNamara 95-66, .590

Dates: October 18 � October 27
MVP: Ray Knight (New York)
Television: NBC In 2006, a "collector's edition" DVD box set containing the original telecasts of all seven games was issued by Major League Baseball and A&E Home Video.
Announcers: Vin Scully and Joe Garagiola
Umpires: John Kibler (NL), Jim Evans (AL), Harry Wendelstedt (NL), Joe Brinkman (AL), Ed Montague (NL), Dale Ford (AL)
ALCS: Boston Red Sox over California Angels (4-3)
NLCS: New York Mets over Houston Astros (4-2)
World Series Program

The 1986 World Series was a memorable battle between the New York Mets and the Boston Red Sox which helped to spread the legend of the "Curse of the Bambino" to mass public awareness. Game 6 infamously became known due to the error by Bill Buckner that allowed the Mets to win and extend to a 7th game. The NL champion New York Mets eventually beat AL champion Boston Red Sox, winning the series 4 games to 3.

The New York Mets won the National League East division by 21 ? games over the Philadelphia Phillies then defeated the Houston Astros, four games to two, in the National League Championship Series. The Boston Red Sox won the American League East division by 5 ? games over the New York Yankees then defeated the California Angels, four games to three, in the American League Championship Series.

Contents
1 Background
2 Summary
3 Matchups
3.1 Game 1
3.2 Game 2
3.3 Game 3
3.4 Game 4
3.5 Game 5
3.6 Game 6
3.7 Game 7
4 Composite Box
5 Quote(s) of the Series
6 Notes
7 Reference(s)
8 External links
8.1 Mookie Wilson's At Bat



[edit] Background
The New York Mets finished the regular season with a 108-54 record, easily the best in baseball, and ran away with the National League East division, winning by 21? games over the Philadelphia Phillies. They then won the gut-wrenching 1986 National League Championship Series, 4 games to 2, over the Houston Astros. The talent of the team was colored by controversy during much of the season, with scrappy players both on and off the field. On July 19, 1986, Mets infielder Tim Teufel and pitchers Rick Aguilera, Bobby Ojeda, and Ron Darling were arrested after fighting with policemen outside a bar in Houston. Just three days later, they played a game which became a microcosm of their season when two Mets were ejected after a bench-clearing brawl. A total of three ejections in the game forced starting catcher Gary Carter to play third base, and the Mets to play a pitcher in the outfield, with lefthander Jesse Orosco and righty Roger McDowell alternating between the pitcher's mound and the outfield as needed. Despite the adversity, they still won the game in the 14th inning. [1] Former NL MVP George Foster was released a few days after the game, based partly on his refusal to move from the Mets' bench during the fracas.

The Red Sox went 95-66 during the season, winning the American League East division by 5? games over their rivals, the New York Yankees. The gritty play of ALCS MVP Marty Barrett and Rich Gedman; clutch hitting from veterans Jim Rice, Wade Boggs, Don Baylor, Dwight Evans and Dave Henderson; and quality starting pitching, especially from 1986 American League MVP and Cy Young Award winner Roger Clemens, Bruce Hurst and Oil Can Boyd, were the main reasons the Red Sox were able to reach the World Series. The team's defining moment occurred in Game 5 of the 1986 American League Championship Series against the California Angels. With the Angels leading 3 games to 1 in the best-of-7 series and their top reliever Donnie Moore on the mound, the Sox needed a last-out miracle home run from Henderson to survive Game 5; they later loaded the bases and got the go-ahead run on a sacrifice fly from Henderson off Moore in the 11th. The Angels never recovered from this blow, and with Boston capitalizing on some defensive miscues by the Angels, and clutch performances by some of their big name players (namely Rice and Clemens in the deciding game), the Red Sox clinched the pennant with a seven-game win.


[edit] Summary
NL New York Mets (4) vs. AL Boston Red Sox (3)

Game Score Date Location Attendance Time of Game
1 Red Sox � 1, Mets � 0 October 18 Shea Stadium (New York) 57,908 3:18
2 Red Sox � 9, Mets � 3 October 19 Shea Stadium (New York) 57,911 2:44
3 Mets � 7, Red Sox � 1 October 21 Fenway Park (Boston) 33,595 3:09
4 Mets � 6, Red Sox � 2 October 22 Fenway Park (Boston) 33,920 3:22
5 Mets � 2, Red Sox � 4 October 23 Fenway Park (Boston) 34,010 2:55
6 Red Sox � 5, Mets � 6 (10 inn.) October 25 Shea Stadium (New York) 57,908 3:18
7 Red Sox � 5, Mets � 8 October 27 Shea Stadium (New York) 57,911 2:44


[edit] Matchups

[edit] Game 1
October 18, 1986 at Shea Stadium in Flushing, New York

Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Boston 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 5 0
New York 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 1
W: Bruce Hurst (1-0) L: Ron Darling (0-1) S: Calvin Schiraldi (1)
HR: none

In the opener, Boston's Bruce Hurst dazzled the New Yorkers with his looping curve and forkball, allowing only four hits over eight innings. New York's Ron Darling was equally effective, yielding only an unearned run in the seventh inning on an error by second baseman Tim Teufel. That run proved to be the only run of the game, and just as they did in the League Championship Series against Houston, the Mets opened the series with a 1-0 defeat. (Mets legend Tom Seaver, as a member of the Red Sox, got a large standing ovation from the Shea Stadium fans during the Game 1 introductions. Seaver did not pitch in the series because of injury.)


[edit] Game 2
October 19, 1986 at Shea Stadium in Flushing, New York

Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Boston 0 0 3 1 2 0 2 0 1 9 18 0
New York 0 0 2 0 1 0 0 0 0 3 8 1
W: Steve Crawford (1-0) L: Dwight Gooden (0-1)
HR: BOS � Dave Henderson (1), Dwight Evans (1)

After dropping the first game, everybody expected the Mets to come back strong, especially having Dwight Gooden on the mound. With his counterpart Roger Clemens taking the hill for Boston, Game Two figured to be a fabulous duel between baseball's top two pitchers. What it turned out to be was the poorest game of the series, the Red Sox crushing the Mets behind an 18-hit attack. Gooden's excellent pitching in the League Championship Series did not carry over to the World Series, as he lasted only five innings, yielding six runs and eight hits. Clemens was not much better himself, as he departed before five innings and didn't even earn the win.


[edit] Game 3
October 21, 1986 at Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts

Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
New York 4 0 0 0 0 0 2 1 0 7 13 0
Boston 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 5 0
W: Bob Ojeda (1-0) L: Oil Can Boyd (0-1)
HR: NYM � Lenny Dykstra (1)

The Mets regrouped in a big way, scoring four times in the first inning. Their rally began when Lenny Dykstra belted a lead-off homer off Boston's Oil Can Boyd to give the New Yorkers a lift. Boyd settled down after that, allowing no more runs until the seventh inning; however, the Red Sox were unable to mount a comeback as Bob Ojeda, the Mets' main man in the Calvin Schiraldi deal, pitched a gutsy game, allowing five hits for a win.


[edit] Game 4
October 22, 1986 at Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts

Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
New York 0 0 0 3 0 0 2 1 0 6 12 0
Boston 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 2 7 1
W: Ron Darling (1-1) L: Al Nipper (0-1)
HR: NYM � Gary Carter (1,2), Lenny Dykstra (2)

Wanting to give his top three starters (Hurst, Clemens, and Boyd) some extra rest, Boston skipper John McNamara took a gamble by starting Al Nipper in Game Four. His earned run average of 5.38 was the highest for a series starter since Hal Gregg's 5.87 for the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947. Despite his bloated ERA, Nipper allowed an acceptable three runs in six innings for a 4.50 earned run average during that period. It didn't matter, though, as Ron Darling continued to sparkle in the postseason, this time pitching the Mets to even the series at two games apiece, featuring two home runs over the Green Monster by Gary Carter.


[edit] Game 5
October 23, 1986 at Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts

Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
New York 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 2 10 1
Boston 0 1 1 0 2 0 0 0 X 4 12 0
W: Bruce Hurst (2-0) L: Dwight Gooden (0-2)
HR: NYM � Tim Teufel (1)

The Red Sox halted the Mets' momentum behind another dominating performance from Bruce Hurst, leaving Boston just one game away from their first title since 1918. Hurst pitched a complete game, striking out six and allowing just two earned runs. Dwight Gooden had his second consecutive ineffective start for the Mets, being pulled after allowing nine hits and four runs in just four innings. The one bright spot for the Mets was a sharp outing from Sid Fernandez in relief, pitching four scoreless innings and allowing just three hits.


[edit] Game 6
October 25, 1986 at Shea Stadium in Flushing, New York

Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 R H E
Boston 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 2 5 13 3
New York 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 1 0 3 6 8 2
W: Rick Aguilera (1-0) L: Calvin Schiraldi (0-1)
HR: BOS � Dave Henderson (2)

In Game 6 [2], Boston took a quick 2-0 lead on RBI base hits from Dwight Evans and Marty Barrett. The Mets tied the score in the fifth inning on a single from Ray Knight and a run-scoring double play by Danny Heep. An error by Knight led to Barrett scoring in the 7th to give Boston a 3-2 lead.

In the top of the eighth, the Red Sox had Dave Henderson on second with one out. Manager John McNamara then made a questionable decision by sending rookie outfielder Mike Greenwell to pinch hit for starting pitcher Roger Clemens. Don Baylor, who was a big part of the Sox offense all year as their designated hitter, was available since this was the first World Series where the DH would be used only in the American League team's home ballpark. McNamara defended the move, saying it was a lefty-righty percentage move against Roger McDowell, a right-hander. Greenwell struck out. McNamara would also come under fire for replacing Clemens at that point, saying Clemens complained of a blister on his pitching hand and asked to be taken out. Clemens has maintained to this day that, while he did have a blister, he never asked to be removed from the game.

The Mets rallied in the bottom of the 8th, tying the game on a Gary Carter sacrifice fly. It could have been much worse for the Sox, as reliever Calvin Schiraldi had loaded the bases with no outs and had a 3-0 count on Carter, who swung away at the next pitch to hit the fly ball. The Mets missed a golden opportunity to win the game in the 9th. After a walk and an error put two men on with nobody out, Howard Johnson was sent to the plate to sacrifice the winning run to third. It was then, however, that Mets manager Davey Johnson made his most criticized decision of the series. After HoJo failed in his first bunt attempt, Davey took the bunt off and had HoJo swing away; HoJo ended up striking out, leaving runners at first and second with one out. Lee Mazzilli followed with a deep fly to left that would have won the game had the runner been at third, but it became the second out as runners held first and second. Lenny Dykstra then flied out for the third out, sending the game to extra innings.

In the top of the 10th inning, Dave Henderson homered to pull the Sox within three outs of a world championship, and Barrett singled in Wade Boggs to make it a 5-3 lead. When Wally Backman and Keith Hernandez were retired to start the bottom of the 10th, the championship seemed at hand. After Hernandez made the second out, he went to the Mets' locker room, took off his uniform, and watched the rest of the game on the clubhouse TV, thinking the game and the Series would be over soon.


Game 6: Ray Knight (not pictured) scores the winning run as Bill Buckner and Bob Stanley watch Mookie Wilson's slow roller.Then, Carter singled to left. Pinch-hitter Kevin Mitchell then singled to center and Shea Stadium started to get loud. Knight went down in the count 0-2 bringing the Mets to their last strike but he hit the next pitch into center field for a single that scored Carter and advanced Mitchell to third base, making the score 5-4 and bringing Shea back to life. Before his at-bat, Mitchell was on the phone in the locker room making plane reservations to fly home to San Diego, thinking the game would be over. He had already gotten out of his uniform and was in street clothes, and, when he was told he was batting, got off the phone and hurriedly got dressed.

The Red Sox replaced pitcher Calvin Schiraldi with Bob Stanley to face left fielder Mookie Wilson. Wilson got the count to 2-1 but fouled the fourth pitch away to bring the Mets to their last strike again. He stayed alive fouling off two more Stanley pitches. Then, the seventh pitch sailed towards Wilson's knees sending him to the ground but the ball hit nothing and went straight to the backstop. Mitchell scored uncontested to tie the game and Shea Stadium erupted while Knight advanced to second base. The Red Sox were shocked to have blown the lead with the game all but over, much as the Angels had done to them in the ALCS almost two weeks prior.

At one point during Wilson's at-bat with Knight on second, Knight strayed so far off the second-base bag that Marty Barrett started yelling for Stanley to try to pick him off. However, because of the raucous Shea Stadium crowd noise, Stanley couldn't hear Barrett. Also, Stanley was intent on trying to retire Wilson.

When things calmed down, Wilson was still at the plate and fouled off two more pitches in a fantastic at bat. Finally, on the tenth pitch, Wilson hit a slow rolling ground ball up the first base line that appeared to be easy to field. The most pressing question in the few seconds was whether the lumbering Bill Buckner, with his chronic bad ankles and knees, would be able to beat the speedy Wilson to first base to finish the inning. The question would never be answered as the ball somehow snuck between his legs under his glove and rolled slowly into right field. Shea Stadium exploded and the Mets' players and fans looked as though they couldn't contain themselves. Knight tried to hold his helmet on while jumping towards home plate with the winning run in a scene that many Mets fans would never forget. Buckner and the stunned Red Sox slowly walked off the field.

Vin Scully's call of the play would quickly become an iconic one to baseball fans, with the normally calm Scully growing increasingly excited:

" So the winning run is at second base, with two outs, three and two to Mookie Wilson. (A) little roller up along first... behind the bag! It gets through Buckner! Here comes Knight, and the Mets win it! "


[edit] Game 7
October 27, 1986 at Shea Stadium in Flushing, New York

Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Boston 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 5 9 0
New York 0 0 0 0 0 3 3 2 x 8 10 0
W: Roger McDowell (1-0) L: Calvin Schiraldi (0-2)
HR: BOS � Dwight Evans (2), Rich Gedman (1); NYM � Ray Knight (1), Darryl Strawberry (1)

Game 7 was delayed a day due to rain, being played on Monday, October 27. The postponement seemed to be a major point in Boston's favor; not only would it give them an additional day to recover from their crushing defeat in Game 6, but it allowed them to bypass Oil Can Boyd (who had lost to the Mets in Game 3) in the seventh game and give series star Bruce Hurst the start. Things looked promising for Boston in the beginning. After two excellent outings, the Mets' Ron Darling struggled as the Red Sox jumped out to a 3-0 lead. Sid Fernandez saved the Mets' hopes, however, by coming on in relief and retiring seven consecutive hitters, striking out four. Meanwhile, after being held to one hit through five innings, the Mets lineup finally figured out Hurst in the sixth, scoring three runs to tie the game. Ray Knight homered off Calvin Schiraldi leading off the seventh to give the Mets their first lead. The Mets scored two more runs in the inning to go up 6-3. A two-run double in the eighth cut the Met lead to 6-5, but Sox reliever Al Nipper gave back those runs in the bottom of the frame on a Strawberry leadoff home run and a Jesse Orosco RBI single. Orosco worked a 1-2-3 ninth to clinch the title, whiffing Marty Barrett for the last out. Final score: Mets 8, Red Sox 5.

Due to the destruction wreaked by Mets fans storming the field when the team clinched the division championship at home, security was tight at Shea Stadium for Game 7 and the crowd was well-behaved in their celebration of the city's first baseball world championship in eight years. The sight of Orosco, flinging his glove into the air and falling to his knees in celebration after getting the final out, would become an iconic image for Mets fans, and would be featured for years as the final footage shown during the end credits of This Week in Baseball-probably to the consternation of the Red Sox and their fans. The Red Sox would finally end their World Series title drought eighteen years from this date.


[edit] Composite Box
1986 World Series (4-3): New York Mets (N.L.) over Boston Red Sox (A.L.)

Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 R H E
Boston Red Sox 1 5 5 1 4 0 4 4 1 2 27 69 4
New York Mets 4 0 2 3 3 3 7 6 1 3 32 65 5
Total Attendance: 321,774 Average Attendance: 45,968
Winning Player's Share: � $86,254, Losing Player's Share � $74,986 *Includes Playoffs and World Series


[edit] Quote(s) of the Series
" ...And the Mets are down to their last out!-- Vin Scully (NBC Sports) as New York Mets were down to the final out of the 1986 season. "
" And it's going to go to the backstop- here comes Mitchell to score the tying run and Ray Knight is on second base! -- Vin Scully (NBC Sports) calling Mets' pinch hitter Kevin Mitchell scoring the tying run on Bob Stanley's wild pitch. "
" ...So the winning run is on second base, with two outs, three and two to Mookie Wilson. Little roller up along first; BEHIND THE BAG! It gets through Buckner! Here comes Knight and the Mets win it! -- NBC Sports play-by-play announcer Vin Scully. "
" ...and a ground ball, trickling, its a fair ball..gets by Buckner!! Rounding third, Knight! The Mets will win the ball game! The Mets win! They win! Unbelievable, the Red Sox in STUNNED DISBELIEF! -- Bob Murphy and Gary Thorne, respectively, on WHN Radio, radio home of the New York Mets. "
" If one picture is worth a thousand words, then you have seen about a million words, but more than that you have seen an absolutely bizarre finish of Game 6 of the 1986 World Series, the Mets are not only alive, they are well, and they play the Red Sox in Game 7 tomorrow. -- NBC's Vin Scully three minutes after Bill Buckner's error. "
" He struck him out! He struck him out! The Mets have won the World Series! And they're crowd- jamming and crowding all over Jesse Orosco! He's somewhere at the bottom of that pile. He struck out Marty Barrett. The dream has come true! The Mets have won the World Series, coming from behind to win the seventh ballgame. -- Bob Murphy calling the final out of the World Series on New York Mets' WHN radio. " 1986 World Series
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1986 World Series
Team / Wins Manager Season
New York Mets (4) Davey Johnson 108-54, .667
Boston Red Sox (3) John McNamara 95-66, .590

Dates: October 18 � October 27
MVP: Ray Knight (New York)
Television: NBC In 2006, a "collector's edition" DVD box set containing the original telecasts of all seven games was issued by Major League Baseball and A&E Home Video.
Announcers: Vin Scully and Joe Garagiola
Umpires: John Kibler (NL), Jim Evans (AL), Harry Wendelstedt (NL), Joe Brinkman (AL), Ed Montague (NL), Dale Ford (AL)
ALCS: Boston Red Sox over California Angels (4-3)
NLCS: New York Mets over Houston Astros (4-2)
World Series Program

The 1986 World Series was a memorable battle between the New York Mets and the Boston Red Sox which helped to spread the legend of the "Curse of the Bambino" to mass public awareness. Game 6 infamously became known due to the error by Bill Buckner that allowed the Mets to win and extend to a 7th game. The NL champion New York Mets eventually beat AL champion Boston Red Sox, winning the series 4 games to 3.

The New York Mets won the National League East division by 21 ? games over the Philadelphia Phillies then defeated the Houston Astros, four games to two, in the National League Championship Series. The Boston Red Sox won the American League East division by 5 ? games over the New York Yankees then defeated the California Angels, four games to three, in the American League Championship Series.

Contents
1 Background
2 Summary
3 Matchups
3.1 Game 1
3.2 Game 2
3.3 Game 3
3.4 Game 4
3.5 Game 5
3.6 Game 6
3.7 Game 7
4 Composite Box
5 Quote(s) of the Series
6 Notes
7 Reference(s)
8 External links
8.1 Mookie Wilson's At Bat



[edit] Background
The New York Mets finished the regular season with a 108-54 record, easily the best in baseball, and ran away with the National League East division, winning by 21? games over the Philadelphia Phillies. They then won the gut-wrenching 1986 National League Championship Series, 4 games to 2, over the Houston Astros. The talent of the team was colored by controversy during much of the season, with scrappy players both on and off the field. On July 19, 1986, Mets infielder Tim Teufel and pitchers Rick Aguilera, Bobby Ojeda, and Ron Darling were arrested after fighting with policemen outside a bar in Houston. Just three days later, they played a game which became a microcosm of their season when two Mets were ejected after a bench-clearing brawl. A total of three ejections in the game forced starting catcher Gary Carter to play third base, and the Mets to play a pitcher in the outfield, with lefthander Jesse Orosco and righty Roger McDowell alternating between the pitcher's mound and the outfield as needed. Despite the adversity, they still won the game in the 14th inning. [1] Former NL MVP George Foster was released a few days after the game, based partly on his refusal to move from the Mets' bench during the fracas.

The Red Sox went 95-66 during the season, winning the American League East division by 5? games over their rivals, the New York Yankees. The gritty play of ALCS MVP Marty Barrett and Rich Gedman; clutch hitting from veterans Jim Rice, Wade Boggs, Don Baylor, Dwight Evans and Dave Henderson; and quality starting pitching, especially from 1986 American League MVP and Cy Young Award winner Roger Clemens, Bruce Hurst and Oil Can Boyd, were the main reasons the Red Sox were able to reach the World Series. The team's defining moment occurred in Game 5 of the 1986 American League Championship Series against the California Angels. With the Angels leading 3 games to 1 in the best-of-7 series and their top reliever Donnie Moore on the mound, the Sox needed a last-out miracle home run from Henderson to survive Game 5; they later loaded the bases and got the go-ahead run on a sacrifice fly from Henderson off Moore in the 11th. The Angels never recovered from this blow, and with Boston capitalizing on some defensive miscues by the Angels, and clutch performances by some of their big name players (namely Rice and Clemens in the deciding game), the Red Sox clinched the pennant with a seven-game win.


[edit] Summary
NL New York Mets (4) vs. AL Boston Red Sox (3)

Game Score Date Location Attendance Time of Game
1 Red Sox � 1, Mets � 0 October 18 Shea Stadium (New York) 57,908 3:18
2 Red Sox � 9, Mets � 3 October 19 Shea Stadium (New York) 57,911 2:44
3 Mets � 7, Red Sox � 1 October 21 Fenway Park (Boston) 33,595 3:09
4 Mets � 6, Red Sox � 2 October 22 Fenway Park (Boston) 33,920 3:22
5 Mets � 2, Red Sox � 4 October 23 Fenway Park (Boston) 34,010 2:55
6 Red Sox � 5, Mets � 6 (10 inn.) October 25 Shea Stadium (New York) 57,908 3:18
7 Red Sox � 5, Mets � 8 October 27 Shea Stadium (New York) 57,911 2:44


[edit] Matchups

[edit] Game 1
October 18, 1986 at Shea Stadium in Flushing, New York

Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Boston 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 5 0
New York 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 1
W: Bruce Hurst (1-0) L: Ron Darling (0-1) S: Calvin Schiraldi (1)
HR: none

In the opener, Boston's Bruce Hurst dazzled the New Yorkers with his looping curve and forkball, allowing only four hits over eight innings. New York's Ron Darling was equally effective, yielding only an unearned run in the seventh inning on an error by second baseman Tim Teufel. That run proved to be the only run of the game, and just as they did in the League Championship Series against Houston, the Mets opened the series with a 1-0 defeat. (Mets legend Tom Seaver, as a member of the Red Sox, got a large standing ovation from the Shea Stadium fans during the Game 1 introductions. Seaver did not pitch in the series because of injury.)


[edit] Game 2
October 19, 1986 at Shea Stadium in Flushing, New York

Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Boston 0 0 3 1 2 0 2 0 1 9 18 0
New York 0 0 2 0 1 0 0 0 0 3 8 1
W: Steve Crawford (1-0) L: Dwight Gooden (0-1)
HR: BOS � Dave Henderson (1), Dwight Evans (1)

After dropping the first game, everybody expected the Mets to come back strong, especially having Dwight Gooden on the mound. With his counterpart Roger Clemens taking the hill for Boston, Game Two figured to be a fabulous duel between baseball's top two pitchers. What it turned out to be was the poorest game of the series, the Red Sox crushing the Mets behind an 18-hit attack. Gooden's excellent pitching in the League Championship Series did not carry over to the World Series, as he lasted only five innings, yielding six runs and eight hits. Clemens was not much better himself, as he departed before five innings and didn't even earn the win.


[edit] Game 3
October 21, 1986 at Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts

Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
New York 4 0 0 0 0 0 2 1 0 7 13 0
Boston 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 5 0
W: Bob Ojeda (1-0) L: Oil Can Boyd (0-1)
HR: NYM � Lenny Dykstra (1)

The Mets regrouped in a big way, scoring four times in the first inning. Their rally began when Lenny Dykstra belted a lead-off homer off Boston's Oil Can Boyd to give the New Yorkers a lift. Boyd settled down after that, allowing no more runs until the seventh inning; however, the Red Sox were unable to mount a comeback as Bob Ojeda, the Mets' main man in the Calvin Schiraldi deal, pitched a gutsy game, allowing five hits for a win.


[edit] Game 4
October 22, 1986 at Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts

Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
New York 0 0 0 3 0 0 2 1 0 6 12 0
Boston 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 2 7 1
W: Ron Darling (1-1) L: Al Nipper (0-1)
HR: NYM � Gary Carter (1,2), Lenny Dykstra (2)

Wanting to give his top three starters (Hurst, Clemens, and Boyd) some extra rest, Boston skipper John McNamara took a gamble by starting Al Nipper in Game Four. His earned run average of 5.38 was the highest for a series starter since Hal Gregg's 5.87 for the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947. Despite his bloated ERA, Nipper allowed an acceptable three runs in six innings for a 4.50 earned run average during that period. It didn't matter, though, as Ron Darling continued to sparkle in the postseason, this time pitching the Mets to even the series at two games apiece, featuring two home runs over the Green Monster by Gary Carter.


[edit] Game 5
October 23, 1986 at Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts

Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
New York 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 2 10 1
Boston 0 1 1 0 2 0 0 0 X 4 12 0
W: Bruce Hurst (2-0) L: Dwight Gooden (0-2)
HR: NYM � Tim Teufel (1)

The Red Sox halted the Mets' momentum behind another dominating performance from Bruce Hurst, leaving Boston just one game away from their first title since 1918. Hurst pitched a complete game, striking out six and allowing just two earned runs. Dwight Gooden had his second consecutive ineffective start for the Mets, being pulled after allowing nine hits and four runs in just four innings. The one bright spot for the Mets was a sharp outing from Sid Fernandez in relief, pitching four scoreless innings and allowing just three hits.


[edit] Game 6
October 25, 1986 at Shea Stadium in Flushing, New York

Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 R H E
Boston 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 2 5 13 3
New York 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 1 0 3 6 8 2
W: Rick Aguilera (1-0) L: Calvin Schiraldi (0-1)
HR: BOS � Dave Henderson (2)

In Game 6 [2], Boston took a quick 2-0 lead on RBI base hits from Dwight Evans and Marty Barrett. The Mets tied the score in the fifth inning on a single from Ray Knight and a run-scoring double play by Danny Heep. An error by Knight led to Barrett scoring in the 7th to give Boston a 3-2 lead.

In the top of the eighth, the Red Sox had Dave Henderson on second with one out. Manager John McNamara then made a questionable decision by sending rookie outfielder Mike Greenwell to pinch hit for starting pitcher Roger Clemens. Don Baylor, who was a big part of the Sox offense all year as their designated hitter, was available since this was the first World Series where the DH would be used only in the American League team's home ballpark. McNamara defended the move, saying it was a lefty-righty percentage move against Roger McDowell, a right-hander. Greenwell struck out. McNamara would also come under fire for replacing Clemens at that point, saying Clemens complained of a blister on his pitching hand and asked to be taken out. Clemens has maintained to this day that, while he did have a blister, he never asked to be removed from the game.

The Mets rallied in the bottom of the 8th, tying the game on a Gary Carter sacrifice fly. It could have been much worse for the Sox, as reliever Calvin Schiraldi had loaded the bases with no outs and had a 3-0 count on Carter, who swung away at the next pitch to hit the fly ball. The Mets missed a golden opportunity to win the game in the 9th. After a walk and an error put two men on with nobody out, Howard Johnson was sent to the plate to sacrifice the winning run to third. It was then, however, that Mets manager Davey Johnson made his most criticized decision of the series. After HoJo failed in his first bunt attempt, Davey took the bunt off and had HoJo swing away; HoJo ended up striking out, leaving runners at first and second with one out. Lee Mazzilli followed with a deep fly to left that would have won the game had the runner been at third, but it became the second out as runners held first and second. Lenny Dykstra then flied out for the third out, sending the game to extra innings.

In the top of the 10th inning, Dave Henderson homered to pull the Sox within three outs of a world championship, and Barrett singled in Wade Boggs to make it a 5-3 lead. When Wally Backman and Keith Hernandez were retired to start the bottom of the 10th, the championship seemed at hand. After Hernandez made the second out, he went to the Mets' locker room, took off his uniform, and watched the rest of the game on the clubhouse TV, thinking the game and the Series would be over soon.


Game 6: Ray Knight (not pictured) scores the winning run as Bill Buckner and Bob Stanley watch Mookie Wilson's slow roller.Then, Carter singled to left. Pinch-hitter Kevin Mitchell then singled to center and Shea Stadium started to get loud. Knight went down in the count 0-2 bringing the Mets to their last strike but he hit the next pitch into center field for a single that scored Carter and advanced Mitchell to third base, making the score 5-4 and bringing Shea back to life. Before his at-bat, Mitchell was on the phone in the locker room making plane reservations to fly home to San Diego, thinking the game would be over. He had already gotten out of his uniform and was in street clothes, and, when he was told he was batting, got off the phone and hurriedly got dressed.

The Red Sox replaced pitcher Calvin Schiraldi with Bob Stanley to face left fielder Mookie Wilson. Wilson got the count to 2-1 but fouled the fourth pitch away to bring the Mets to their last strike again. He stayed alive fouling off two more Stanley pitches. Then, the seventh pitch sailed towards Wilson's knees sending him to the ground but the ball hit nothing and went straight to the backstop. Mitchell scored uncontested to tie the game and Shea Stadium erupted while Knight advanced to second base. The Red Sox were shocked to have blown the lead with the game all but over, much as the Angels had done to them in the ALCS almost two weeks prior.

At one point during Wilson's at-bat with Knight on second, Knight strayed so far off the second-base bag that Marty Barrett started yelling for Stanley to try to pick him off. However, because of the raucous Shea Stadium crowd noise, Stanley couldn't hear Barrett. Also, Stanley was intent on trying to retire Wilson.

When things calmed down, Wilson was still at the plate and fouled off two more pitches in a fantastic at bat. Finally, on the tenth pitch, Wilson hit a slow rolling ground ball up the first base line that appeared to be easy to field. The most pressing question in the few seconds was whether the lumbering Bill Buckner, with his chronic bad ankles and knees, would be able to beat the speedy Wilson to first base to finish the inning. The question would never be answered as the ball somehow snuck between his legs under his glove and rolled slowly into right field. Shea Stadium exploded and the Mets' players and fans looked as though they couldn't contain themselves. Knight tried to hold his helmet on while jumping towards home plate with the winning run in a scene that many Mets fans would never forget. Buckner and the stunned Red Sox slowly walked off the field.

Vin Scully's call of the play would quickly become an iconic one to baseball fans, with the normally calm Scully growing increasingly excited:

" So the winning run is at second base, with two outs, three and two to Mookie Wilson. (A) little roller up along first... behind the bag! It gets through Buckner! Here comes Knight, and the Mets win it! "


[edit] Game 7
October 27, 1986 at Shea Stadium in Flushing, New York

Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Boston 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 5 9 0
New York 0 0 0 0 0 3 3 2 x 8 10 0
W: Roger McDowell (1-0) L: Calvin Schiraldi (0-2)
HR: BOS � Dwight Evans (2), Rich Gedman (1); NYM � Ray Knight (1), Darryl Strawberry (1)

Game 7 was delayed a day due to rain, being played on Monday, October 27. The postponement seemed to be a major point in Boston's favor; not only would it give them an additional day to recover from their crushing defeat in Game 6, but it allowed them to bypass Oil Can Boyd (who had lost to the Mets in Game 3) in the seventh game and give series star Bruce Hurst the start. Things looked promising for Boston in the beginning. After two excellent outings, the Mets' Ron Darling struggled as the Red Sox jumped out to a 3-0 lead. Sid Fernandez saved the Mets' hopes, however, by coming on in relief and retiring seven consecutive hitters, striking out four. Meanwhile, after being held to one hit through five innings, the Mets lineup finally figured out Hurst in the sixth, scoring three runs to tie the game. Ray Knight homered off Calvin Schiraldi leading off the seventh to give the Mets their first lead. The Mets scored two more runs in the inning to go up 6-3. A two-run double in the eighth cut the Met lead to 6-5, but Sox reliever Al Nipper gave back those runs in the bottom of the frame on a Strawberry leadoff home run and a Jesse Orosco RBI single. Orosco worked a 1-2-3 ninth to clinch the title, whiffing Marty Barrett for the last out. Final score: Mets 8, Red Sox 5.

Due to the destruction wreaked by Mets fans storming the field when the team clinched the division championship at home, security was tight at Shea Stadium for Game 7 and the crowd was well-behaved in their celebration of the city's first baseball world championship in eight years. The sight of Orosco, flinging his glove into the air and falling to his knees in celebration after getting the final out, would become an iconic image for Mets fans, and would be featured for years as the final footage shown during the end credits of This Week in Baseball-probably to the consternation of the Red Sox and their fans. The Red Sox would finally end their World Series title drought eighteen years from this date.


[edit] Composite Box
1986 World Series (4-3): New York Mets (N.L.) over Boston Red Sox (A.L.)

Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 R H E
Boston Red Sox 1 5 5 1 4 0 4 4 1 2 27 69 4
New York Mets 4 0 2 3 3 3 7 6 1 3 32 65 5
Total Attendance: 321,774 Average Attendance: 45,968
Winning Player's Share: � $86,254, Losing Player's Share � $74,986 *Includes Playoffs and World Series


[edit] Quote(s) of the Series
" ...And the Mets are down to their last out!-- Vin Scully (NBC Sports) as New York Mets were down to the final out of the 1986 season. "
" And it's going to go to the backstop- here comes Mitchell to score the tying run and Ray Knight is on second base! -- Vin Scully (NBC Sports) calling Mets' pinch hitter Kevin Mitchell scoring the tying run on Bob Stanley's wild pitch. "
" ...So the winning run is on second base, with two outs, three and two to Mookie Wilson. Little roller up along first; BEHIND THE BAG! It gets through Buckner! Here comes Knight and the Mets win it! -- NBC Sports play-by-play announcer Vin Scully. "
" ...and a ground ball, trickling, its a fair ball..gets by Buckner!! Rounding third, Knight! The Mets will win the ball game! The Mets win! They win! Unbelievable, the Red Sox in STUNNED DISBELIEF! -- Bob Murphy and Gary Thorne, respectively, on WHN Radio, radio home of the New York Mets. "
" If one picture is worth a thousand words, then you have seen about a million words, but more than that you have seen an absolutely bizarre finish of Game 6 of the 1986 World Series, the Mets are not only alive, they are well, and they play the Red Sox in Game 7 tomorrow. -- NBC's Vin Scully three minutes after Bill Buckner's error. "
" He struck him out! He struck him out! The Mets have won the World Series! And they're crowd- jamming and crowding all over Jesse Orosco! He's somewhere at the bottom of that pile. He struck out Marty Barrett. The dream has come true! The Mets have won the World Series, coming from behind to win the seventh ballgame. -- Bob Murphy calling the final out of the World Series on New York Mets' WHN radio. "
" Got 'em!!! -- NBC's Vin Scully calling the final out of Game 7. "
" The worst nightmare is letting the winning run score on a ground ball going through your legs..... -- Red Sox's Bill Buckner being interviewed by ESPN on October 7, 1986.(Unknowingly prophesying his own fate 18 days beforehand.) "
" And that's one of the many reasons.... an unexpected guest at Shea Stadium! -- Vin Scully while parachutist Michael Sergio landed behind the pitcher's mound at Shea Stadium in Game 6. "
" Can you believe this ball game at Shea!? -- Vin Scully (NBC Sports) during the bottom of the 10th inning of Game 6. "
" Daaaryyl, Daaaryyl, Daaaryyl! -- Red Sox fans mocking Mets outfielder Darryl Strawberry in Game 5 at Fenway Park. "
" It is so noisy at Shea you can't even hear the airplanes --Vin Scully NBC Sports after Mets' third baseman Ray Knight hit the lead off home run in the bottom of the 7th of Game 7. "
" Caaalviiin, Caaalviiin, Caaalviiin! -- Met fans serenading Red Sox relief pitcher Calvin Schiraldi after giving up a lead off home run to Mets' third baseman Ray Knight in the bottom of the 7th inning of Game 7. "
" It's so quiet in New York you can almost hear Boston! -- Vin Scully in the top of 10th inning of Game 6 after Red Sox's Dave Henderson hit a dramatic home run.

" Got 'em!!! -- NBC's Vin Scully calling the final out of Game 7. "
" The worst nightmare is letting the winning run score on a ground ball going through your legs..... -- Red Sox's Bill Buckner being interviewed by ESPN on October 7, 1986.(Unknowingly prophesying his own fate 18 days beforehand.) "
" And that's one of the many reasons.... an unexpected guest at Shea Stadium! -- Vin Scully while parachutist Michael Sergio landed behind the pitcher's mound at Shea Stadium in Game 6. "
" Can you believe this ball game at Shea!? -- Vin Scully (NBC Sports) during the bottom of the 10th inning of Game 6. "
" Daaaryyl, Daaaryyl, Daaaryyl! -- Red Sox fans mocking Mets outfielder Darryl Strawberry in Game 5 at Fenway Park. "
" It is so noisy at Shea you can't even hear the airplanes --Vin Scully NBC Sports after Mets' third baseman Ray Knight hit the lead off home run in the bottom of the 7th of Game 7. "
" Caaalviiin, Caaalviiin, Caaalviiin! -- Met fans serenading Red Sox relief pitcher Calvin Schiraldi after giving up a lead off home run to Mets' third baseman Ray Knight in the bottom of the 7th inning of Game 7. "
" It's so quiet in New York you can almost hear Boston! -- Vin Scully in the top of 10th inning of Game 6 after Red Sox's Dave Henderson hit a dramatic home run.