October 30th, 2013
World Series, Game 6
St. Louis Cardinals at Boston Red Sox
Fenway Park, Boston
In
the 2013 World Series, both the St. Louis Cardinals and Boston Red Sox were
trying to become the first team to win three Fall Classics in the new
millennium. After Boston had ended an 86-year drought in 2004, they won another
championship in 2007. But this Red Sox team was vastly different from the 2004
team, with only several players still on board from 2007. The mainstay, of
course, was David Ortiz. If Boston won, he would be the only player to have
been a member of all three championship teams.
The
Cardinals, meanwhile, had won it all in 2006 and 2011. Their roster in 2013 was
vastly different from the 2006 team as well, with catcher Yadier Molina and
pitcher Adam Wainwright being the only holdovers.
Boston
took the first game at Fenway Park rather easily, with the final score being
8-1. But the Cards came back and took Game 2, 4-2, and then took Game 3 in St.
Louis, 5-4, on a controversial interference call in the bottom of the
ninth. With runners on second and third,
Molina was thrown out on a plate on a ground ball to second baseman Dustin
Pedroia. But Boston catcher, Jarrod Saltalamacchia threw wide of third, trying
to throw out Cardinal runner Alan Craig. Boston third baseman, Will
Middlebrooks’ legs got tangled with Craig’s and umpire John Joyce immediately
called obstruction, meaning Craig automatically scored. Boston protested but
the call was correct. Even though the contact initiated by Middlebrooks was accidentally,
it was still interference.
However,
Boston rebounded to take Games 4 and 5 by scores of 4-2 and 3-1 to take a three
games to two lead back to Fenway. Incidentally, Game 4 also ended with a bit of
controversy. In the bottom of the ninth, with two out, Boston closer Koji
Uehara picked Cardinal base runner Kolten Wong off of first base. St. Louis
claimed Uehara balked, but replays (again) confirmed the correct call was made.
For
Game 6, with Boston trying to win the World Series at Fenway for the first time
since 1918, John Lackey would get the start on the mound for the Sox while
Michael Wacha would get the ball for St. Louis.
The
game was scoreless until the bottom of the third when outfielder Shane
Victorino came to the plate with the bases loaded and two out. On the fourth
pitch of the at bat, Victorino doubled off the Green Monster, clearing the
bases and giving Boston a 3-0 lead.
They
would add three more in the bottom of the fourth. A lead off home run by
Stephen Drew made it 4-0. RBI singles by Mike Napoli and Ortiz would make it
6-0. Meanwhile, Lackey was cruising along, shutting out the Cardinals until the
top of the seventh. An RBI single by Carlos Beltran would score the only run of
the game by St. Louis.
Boston
didn’t score again, but they didn’t need to. Uehara pitched a one-two-three top
of the ninth, striking out Matt Carpenter for the final out and giving Boston
their third World Championship in the last ten years.
David
Ortiz would earn MVP honours by batting .688 in the Series, with two homers,
six RBIS, 11 hits, eight walks and seven runs scored.
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