The Sox wasted no time scoring against Bob Ojeda in the top of the first inning. Wade Boggs singled off the gloves of both Ray Knight and Rafael Santana but Marty Barrett lined out to center. Bill Buckner came to the plate as some idiot in a parachute with a "Go Mets" sign plummeted onto the field and was escorted peacefully out of the park by police. Buckner flied out to center but Jim Rice worked a walk. Dwight Evans silenced the crowd with a double off the left field wall that scored Boggs and moved Rice to third. Rich Gedman flied out to right to end the inning but the Sox were up 1-0.
Roger Clemens took the ball in the bottom of the first inning and Len Dykstra froze for strike three to begin. Wally Backman also was caught looking and Keith Hernandez flied out to center to end the inning.
The Sox struck again in the top of the second inning although Dave Henderson flied out to center to start. Spike Owen hit a comebacker through the legs of Ojeda for a single. Clemens struck out but Boggs played some hit and run to single Owen all the way to third. Barrett singled to left to score Owen to increase the lead. Buckner almost caught Darryl Strawberry asleep in right but he made the catch in time. Still, the Sox were up 2-0.
Could Clemens pitch with the lead in the bottom of the second? YES! Gary Carter flied out to center but Strawberry walked. Knight whiffed on a high fastball but Strawberry swiped second. Clemens froze Mookie Wilson to end the inning.
Ojeda got himself on track in the top of the third inning by freezing Rice with a nasty curve to start. Evans flied out to right and Gedman whiffed to end the inning. Clemens stayed tough in the bottom of the third by whiffing Santana and Ojeda. Dykstra grounded out to short to end the inning.
The Sox failed to add on to the lead in the top of the fourth inning as Henderson hit a broken bat liner to center to start. Owen singled in the hole at short, but Clemens popped up his bunt up the elevator shaft. Boggs grounded out to short to end the inning. Clemens returned to the mound in the bottom of the fourth and got Backman to fly out to left to start. Hernandez popped up to third and Boggs reached into the stands to get it. Carter squibbed one to the mound and Clemens through him out to end the inning.
The Sox threatened in the top of the fifth as Barrett lined a single but both Buckner and Rice flied out to right. Evans walked and with a chance to put the Mets away....Gedman flied out to left to end the inning. The Mets finally woke up in the bottom of the fifth inning. Strawberry walked and took second on a fastball in the dirt. Knight lashed a single for the Mets first hit and Strawberry scored to cut the lead to one. Wilson singled Knight all the way to third before Ray scored to tie the game on a double play by pinch hitter Danny Heep (for Santana). Ojeda grounded out to second to end the inning but the Mets had tied it 2-2.
Kevin Elster took over at short and Ojeda returned for the top of the sixth inning. Henderson grounded out to short but Owen beat out an infield single. Owen was erased on another failed bunt by Clemens and Boggs grounded out to second to end the inning. Clemens recovered in the bottom of the sixth to free Dykstra to start. Backman beat out a great diving stab by Owen for a single. Hernandez singled Backman to third but Roger caught Carter looking for a huge second out. Strawberry grounded out to second to end the inning, balsy inning for Clemens.
That was it for Ojeda on 3 days rest as Mets manager Davey Johnson brought in Roger McDowell to pitch the top of the seventh inning. Barrett walked but moved to second on the ground out by Buckner. Rice hit a routine grounder that KNIGHT AIRMAILED! Instead of runner at third and 2 out, its 1st and 3rd with one out. Sox manager John McNamara decided to play hit and run to stay out of the double play. The move worked as Evans hit a double play ball to second but Rice was safe at second, Evans out at first and Barrett scoring to give the Sox the lead. A huge play of the game came when Gedman singled and Rice gunned it for home....OUT! Rice was out at the plate but it was 3-2 Sox with just 9 outs to go.
Clemens was determined in the bottom of the seventh inning and he got Knight to fly out to right to start. Wilson grounded out to second and Elster flied out to center to end the inning. For some reason that was it for Clemens after 7 dominant innings.
The Sox wasted a golden chance to add some insurance in the top of the eighth due to McNamara's ignorance. Henderson led off with a single off the arm of Elster and moved to second on the sacrifice bunt by Owen. McNamara defied all logic by bringing in rookie Mike Greenwell rather than Don Baylor to pinch hit for Clemens, which was defying logic since Clemens was pitching a gem. Right on cue Greenwell waived at a pitch in the dirt for strike three. Boggs was intentionally walked but Barrett chased McDowell with a walk to load the bases. Mets manager Davey Johnson brought in Jesse Orosco and once again McNamara defied all logic by leaving Don Baylor on the bench and letting the crippled Buckner hit. Sure enough, Buckner flied out to center to end the inning. Thanks a lot McNamara.
With Clemens out of the game, Calvin Schiraldi took the mound in the bottom of the eighth just 6 outs from the world title. Lee Mazzilli pinch hit for Orosco and singled to right. Dykstra bunted back to the mound but the idiot Schiraldi tried to get Mazzilli at second....and bounced the throw in the dirt to allow everyone to be safe. Backman dropped down a sacrifice bunt to put both runners in scoring position and naturally Carter hit a sac fly to left to tie the game, also moving Dykstra to third. Rice getting thrown out at home, McNamara's boneheaded pinch hit decisions and now Schiraldi throwing to the wrong base led to the game being tied. Strawberry flied out to center to end the inning but it was 3-3.
The Mets pulled a double switch when Rick Aguilera was brought in to pitch and Mazzilli took over in left, removing Strawberry from the game in the top of the ninth. Rice whiffed but Elster went OLE! on a ball hit by Evans, allowing Dwight to reach first. It didn't matter as Gedman banged into a double play to end the inning. The Mets damn near won the game in the bottom of the ninth as Knight worked a leadoff walk. Wilson bunted and Gedman fired to second....SAFE! Owen jumped up and down as Barrett sprinted over screaming at the umpire. McNamara ran out of the dugout to argue but unfortunately that was the right call, Owen came off the bag. Howard Johnson pinch hit for Elster and Schiraldi got a huge out by striking him out on a check swing. Mazzilli then crushed a 2-0 pitch to right...foul. Mazilli then straightened out a fly ball to left but it was caught for the second out. Dykstra also flied out to left to end the inning and on to extras we went.
The Sox looked to have the game in the bag when Henderson led off the top of the 10th with a home run to left off Aguilera to silence the crowd. Owen struck out and once again McNamara made the idiotic decision to leave Baylor on the bench against the rattled Aguilera, letting Schiraldi strike out. Letting Schiraldi hit loomed large when Boggs sliced a double down the left field line and Barrett singled him home, taking second on the horrible throw by Dykstra. Buckner was hit with a pitch but Rice lined out to end the inning with the Sox ahead 5-3, once again just 3 outs from the world titles.
Just three outs away from victory in the bottom of the tenth inning, it all went to hell. Schiraldi did manage to get Backman to fly out to left to start. When Hernandez flied out to center, an ominous message flashed across the scoreboard reading CONGRATULATIONS WORLD CHAMPION RED SOX. There was still one out to go and as it turned out, it never came. Suddenly Schiraldi came unglued as Carter lined a base hit to center to start the rally. Kevin Mitchell pinch hit for Aguilera and singled to center as well. Schiraldi then had Knight down 0-2 putting the Sox one strike away from winning it all. Once again it didn't happen as Knight hit a flare to center to score Carter and send Mitchell to third. That was it for Schiraldi as McNamara finally pulled the plug and brought in Bob Stanley to pitch to Wilson. Stanley worked Wilson to a 2-2 count putting the Sox once again one strike away from victory even after the 3 straight hits....instead Gedman mishandled a Stanley sinker and it went to the backstop, scoring Mitchell with the tying run. At this point it should be noted despite being lifted for Dave Stapleton all year, Buckner was still out there in the bottom of the tenth. This made the end even more bitter as Wilson hit a routine grounder to Buckner....RIGHT THROUGH HIS LEGS! Knight came around to score and just like that, the Mets had won. From a 5-3 lead with 2 outs and nobody on to a bitter 6-5 defeat just...like...that. It was one of the most if not THE most ignominious collapses in baseball history. Forget the Merkle boner, forget Bobby Thompson, forget Fred Snodgrass or Fred Lindstrom...the play by Buckner will be remembered forever by baseball fans.
Jackass of the Night should be John McNamara for all the dumb decisions he made all night but conventionally I'm going with Calvin Schiraldi. He blew the game in the ninth AND 10th, it never should have come down to Buckner having to make a play.
The Good:
Wade Boggs was 3 for 5 with a walk and 2 runs scored.
Marty Barrett was 3 for 4 with 2 walks, 2 rbi's and a run scored.
Dave Henderson was 2 for 5 including the go-ahead homer in the top of the tenth.
Spike Owen was 3 for 4 with a run scored.
Roger Clemens was outstanding, allowing 2 runs, 1 earned in 7 innings pitched.
The Bad:
Bill Buckner was 0 for 5 with a hit by pitch but allowed the winning run to score on an error.
Mike Greenwell struck out as a pinch hitter.
The Ugly:
Jim Rice was 0 for 5 but walked.
Dwight Evans was just 1 for 4 with a walk but drove in 2 runs.
Rich Gedman was just 1 for 5 and allowed the tying run to score on a ball he should have handled.
Bob Stanley allowed 2 inherited runners to score but one was on what should have been a passed ball and the other on an error by Buckner.
Final Thoughts:
Congratulations Red Sox, you now own the biggest choke in MLB history. No team has ever led by 2 with 2 out and no one on base, come within one strike away...and lose. So many...many things went wrong even before the final play of the game. Rice getting thrown out at home, McNamara's failure to bring in Don Baylor to pinch hit. McNamara letting Buckner take the field in the bottom of the tenth. McNamara not going to a rested Stanley to begin the bottom of the tenth and taking Clemens out after the 7th inning after allowing just 1 earned run. It never should have come to the ground ball through Buckner's legs but that was just icing on the bitter sundae. How do you come back from this? You had the Mets dead to rights and now they have all the confidence in the world. The worst part is, there's still a Game 7 to play. Yup, there's still another game to blow as well. Oil Can Boyd goes up against Ron Darling on 3 days rest tomorrow night at Shea Stadium in the winner take all Game 7. Yippie.....
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