Grand Slam

It was Oct 13, 2013.  Things were looking grim for the Red Sox in their playoff series against the Detroit Tigers.  They'd lost 1-0 at Fenway the night before and tonight they were down 5-1 entering the bottom of the 8th.  If they lost, the Sox would be going to Detroit to play three games down 2-0 in a best of 7 series.

LDC and I had been in the Fenway bleachers the week before to see the Sox beat the Rays on their way to a 3-1 series win and I was watching the game that night and not feeling good about it. 

Detroit starter Max Scherzer was overpowering holding the Sox to two hits and one run while striking out 13 in seven innings but took himself out of the game at that point.

Jose Veras started the 8th for the Tigers, getting the first batter out on a grounder but Will Middlebrooks doubled to left.  Drew Smyly replaced Veras and walked Jacoby Ellsbury on a 3-2 count and was immediately replaced by Al Alburquerque who struck out Shane Victorino.  Two down!  But then Dustin Pedrioa singled, loading the bases.

Joaquin Benoit, the Tigers' closer, came in to face David Ortiz.  Big Papi had not had a good series so far going 0 for 6 with four strikeouts.  Scherzer had faced him three times that night, getting him to K twice while walking the slugger once.  Benoit's first pitch was a changeup which Ortiz hit on a line into the Red Sox bullpen giving us the immortal photo of Tiger center fielder Torii Hunter's legs after he plunged over the low wall in pursuit and behind him the upraised arms of a Boston policeman who was stationed in the bullpen.  The grand slam tied the game.  

  Big Papi's swing against Benoit.

 

The deflated Tigers went on to lose in the bottom of the 9th when the Sox pushed across the winning run.  Ortiz only went 1-15 in the next four games, one of his worst playoff performances, but he came through when it most counted and the Sox took 2 of 3 in Detroit and then won game 6 in Fenway, going on to beat the St Louis Cardinals in the World Series.  Big Papi hit .688 in the World Series and was on base 19 times in 24 plate appearances.  LDC and I were in the bleachers for the final game and experienced the Red Sox winning the World Series at Fenway for the first time since 1918.

I came across this interview with Torii Hunter in which he drops a few nuggets, most startingly that he and Ortiz had dinner the night before the game and Big Papi told him that Benoit was tipping his pitches so he knew what was coming. Hunter said Benoit was dismissive when he told him of Ortiz's claim, responding that he always got him out.  I checked and as of the playoff series, Big Papi was 6 for 22 off of Benoit, but had only 3 hits in his last 15 at bats, and he'd never had an extra base hit against Benoit.

Torii also talks about the longer term effects from hitting his head when falling into the bullpen. And, though not said directly, Hunter implies he did not like Scherzer's decision to take himself out of the game.  Torii Hunter had a distinguished career and was an outstanding outfielder and is in the Almost Good Enough, But Not Quite, To Get Into the Hall of Fame category.