By Sam Tonks
The Boston Red Sox secured an astonishing piece of Major League Baseball history in a 6-2 win over Baltimore Orioles on Monday. Their 106th win of the season is highest in franchise history, eclipsing their 1912’s side 105 record, on their way to the World Series.
Fenway Park flashed up signs with ‘106’ whilst fans celebrated being witness to a phenomenal feat in Baseball history. Red Sox now have their sights on the World Series now with home-field advantage. Here’s a look back at four of their greatest ever victories…
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Red Sox vs St Louis Cardinals, 2013
Emotions were running high in the city of Boston. Two turbulent campaigns and the tragedy of the Boston Marathon terrorist attack gave the Red Sox an increased sense of pride and unity in the face of adversity. It was Game Six, the finale, of the World Series 2013, St Louis Cardinals visited Fenway Park.
Cardinals rookie pitcher, Michael Wacha was unbeaten in four post-season starts and was intending to add a fifth to his record and be the hero to save the series for St Louis, forcing a seventh game. Red Sox led 3-2 going into the final encounter and the hope of clinching a World Series, at home, for the first time since 1918 was on the line.
Wacha cracked under pressure in the third innings, allowing Shane Victorino’s deep hit to bring three runners home. They doubled their lead in the following innings gave Red Sox a 6-0 lead with five left. A heroic performance from pitcher John Lackey nullified the Cardinals and Red Sox sealed a 6-1 win, setting off emotional celebrations. Six months after the pain on Boyston Street, there was euphoria at Fenway Park.
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Red Sox vs New York Giants, 1912
If sports fans can be relied on for one thing, it's passionate memories of their team. As well as the highest highs of individual brilliance, we also remember the lowest of lows - the mistakes and errors that stay with us forever. There have been many occasions in sport when a player’s blunder on a grand stage is remembered in history, for Fred Snodgrass, it’s ‘The ‘$30,000 muff’.
The 1912 World Series was taken to seven-games, due to Game Two ending in a draw, Red Sox were leading 3-2 with Giants relying on veteran pitcher Christy Matthewson to take the series to an eighth game. 22-year-old rookie Hugh Bedient faced his toughest test against the brilliant Matthewson, but led the Red Sox resilience as the game went into extra innings at 1-1.
The Giants’ Fred Merkle edged them ahead with Red Sox now at the bat to save Game Seven. Dave Engle floated a shot to the centre and what looked a simple catch for Snodgrass, but it was dropped and proved costly, $30,000 to be exact. That was the prize difference between the winners and losers of the series as Red Sox prevailed with Tris Speaker and Steve Yerkes scoring to win their first of four World Series in the next seven years.
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Red Sox vs Philadelphia Phillies, 1915
Harry Hooper hit two home runs all season for the Red Sox, but he matched that in the final game of the World Series at Philadelphia, it was almost like that saying ‘London Buses’.Â
Phillie owner William Baker, who set up temporary setaing in the deep right-centre field portion of the Baker Bowl, but he didn’t account for the rules. Any ball that even bounced into the temporary seats would be considered, per the ground rules, as a home run, you can see where this is going.
Hooper capitalised, doing it twice; in the third inning off starter Erskine Mayer to tie the game at 2-2. A solo bouncing shot in the ninth, broke a 4-4 tie and clinched the series for Boston, without needing a rubber game. It ended a hard-fought five-game series for the Red Sox in which every contest but one was decided by a single run.
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Red Sox vs New York Yankees, 2004
No team in the history of baseball had ever come back after falling behind in a post-season series 3-0. Few would have given the Red Sox, with a championship drought of 86 years and counting and comprehensively defeated in the first three games of the ALCS by arch-rivals Yankees by scores of 10-7, 3-1 and 19-8 little chance to overcome such a burden.Â
If they needed any more to do, they were three outs from it being all over in Game Four, trailing 4-3 in the ninth innings and facing Mariano Rivera in red-hot form. Dave Roberts, a speedy part-time veteran picked up by the Red Sox in August was on-hand. 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.
The Red Sox failed to win the game in the ninth but as the game went into extra-innings, David Ortiz blasted a shot sealing two home-runs and the win. It evaded 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. Louis for its first championship since 1918. 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.
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London Stadium hosts Boston Red Sox v New York Yankees for a weekend of fixtures in June 2019, in the historic MLB London Series 19. To be the first to hear about on-sale information, ticket details and more, register with London Stadium now...
