October 22nd, 1975
World Series, Game 7
Cincinnati Reds at Boston Red Sox
Fenway Park, Boston
In
what some have argued is the best, most exciting World Series of all time, the
Cincinnati Reds and Boston Red Sox had settled nothing after six games. And
while many baseball fans and experts have never stopped talking about the
miraculous Carlton Fisk home run that gave Boston a dramatic, extra inning
victory to tie the series in Game 6, few realize that Game 7 was just as exciting.
The
Reds, who had been a strong team for most of the decade but had yet to win the
World Series, were led by Pete Rose, George Foster, Johnny Bench, Tony Perez
and Ken Griffey at the plate, and Don Gullett, Gary Noland and Rawly Eastwick
on the mound.
It had been 35 years
since Cincinnati had last won the Fall Classic (1940), but the Red Sox drought
was even longer at 57 years (1918). Boston was led offensively by Fisk, Fred
Lynn, Dwight Evans and Bernie Carbo, but had to do without the services of
All-Star left-fielder Jim Rice who had injured his wrist on the last weekend of
the regular season when hit by a pitch. Boston’s top two pitchers were Luis
Tiant and Bill “Spaceman” Lee.
The Red Sox took the
first game by a 6-0 score, and led Game 2 by a score of 2-1 in the ninth inning
before Cincinnati game from behind to tie the Series with a 3-2 victory. As the
Series shifted to Riverfront Stadium for the middle three games, the Reds took
advantage of an error (the Red Sox argued there should have been batter
interference) to win Game 3 in ten innings, 6-5.
Boston took the fourth
game, 5-4, and then Cincinnati captured Game 5, 6-2, to take a three games to
two lead to Fenway Park. After Game 6 was postponed three days due to rainy
weather, Fisk’s home run gave Boston a 7-6 win in 12 innings to set up Game 7.
Bill Lee would get the
start on the mound for Boston while Cincinnati would counter with Don Gullett.
And the Red Sox looked like they had the momentum with them, carried over from
Game 6, when they got to Gullett for three runs in the bottom of the third. An
RBI single by Carl Yastrzemski and two bases loaded walks accounted for the
scoring.
Things were looking
good for the Sox as Lee shut out the Big Red Machine over the first five
innings and took the 3-0 lead into the sixth. But the Reds refused to concede
as Pete Rose led off the inning with a single. One out later, Bench hit into a
force play but managed to stay out of the inning-ending double play. The next
batter, Tony Perez, smashed a two-run home run to left field and the Boston
lead was trimmed to 3-2.
An inning later, Rose
hit an RBI single that scored Ken Griffey and Game 7 was all timed up at three.
It would stay that way until the top of the ninth, when with runners on first
and third and two out, Joe Morgan would collect the RBI single that would drive
home Griffey with what would be the Series-deciding run.
The Red Sox went in
order in their half of the ninth and the Reds were World Champions. It was the
first of two in a row for Cincinnati. As for Boston, they would have to wait
another 11 years before reaching the post season again.
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