Sixty years later, baseball had another Bobby Thomson experience. The last day of the season, playoff berth hanging in the balance, Tampa's Evan Longoria lined a fastball over a low- perched left-field fence Wednesday night.
That the wall was short because of Carl Crawford — he had it changed so he could make more defensive plays — bathed the home run in irony. The Tampa Bay Rays would have never been in this position had their former left fielder not missed Robert Andino's flyball three minutes earlier in Baltimore with a flimsy dive.
Dr. Heimlich does make house calls. The Red Sox choke was complete. And the Rays, playing before dozens of friends and diehard fans, were heading back to the postseason. They erased a seven-run deficit with six outs remaining. Dan Johnson, armed with a .108 average, hit a two-out, two-strike home run in the ninth.
Football has ratings, gambling and fantasy leagues. But the NFL won't match Wednesday's baseball reality show. For two hours, the national pastime wasn't past our collective bedtime.
All that was missing was blood on Longoria's uniform and lights exploding as the New York Knights went bonkers.
Thomson's home run off Brooklyn Dodger Ralph Branca was forever the high-water mark for baseball drama — "The Giants win the Pennant!" Longoria's home run is now the modern-day standard for baseball's most memorable moment.
It was a breathtaking way to pull the curtain on the regular season, making individual awards pale by comparison, it seems. The performances still matter.
The envelopes please:
When a player nearly has something in common with a Rockies hitter — before the humidor — it's time to take notice. According to ESPN, Braun was percentage points away from becoming the first player outside of Larry Walker and Ellis Burks to hit .335, slug .601 and hit 30 home runs and steal 30 bases. He finished with a .332 average, second to the Mets' Jose Reyes for a batting title, and a .597 slugging percentage. Braun also is a terrific baserunner, decent in left field and allergic to pressure.
My apologies to Matt Kemp. Making the rounds in clubhouses over the last month, my guess is that Kemp will top Braun for the Players Choice Award. The Dodgers, however, were irrelevant. And for me, the MVP still is tied, in part, to team performance when evaluating similar candidates.
Roy Halladay could win this award every year. And now that he's quoting Shakespeare, his acceptance phone call will only get better. Halladay, Ian Kennedy and Cliff Lee all had compelling arguments. But Clayton Kershaw won the pitching Triple Crown, tied for best in wins, while leading in strikeouts (248) and ERA (2.28). He could very well be Sandy Koufax, the sequel. Sure he works in the National League West, where ERAs shrink in San Francisco, Los Angeles and San Diego. But Kershaw mauled everybody everywhere. Just 23, this won't be the last Cy Young he wins.
Craig Kimbrel deserved better. His workload crashed down on him over the last two weeks. But the right-hander's season can't be ignored, regardless of how it finished. He posted a 2.10 ERA with 46 saves. First baseman Freddie Freeman, who absolutely torched the Rockies, deserves consideration as well.
The Mets' Reyes backed his way into the batting title, removing himself from Wednesday's game after a bunt single to protect his average. Somewhere Ted Williams is thawing in his grave. . . . Any chance of the Rockies landing pitching relies almost squarely on a trade. Those pitchers the Rockies have interest include Ricky Nolasco, Wade Davis, Matt Garza, Carl Pavano and Kevin Slowey, among others. . . . Tulowitzki will spend a large chunk of his offseason working out with Jason Giambi in Las Vegas. "I want to be able to pick his brain, especially about how to relax more in big moments. He's been one of the best at it." . . . Dexter Fowler will attempt to add weight this offseason by hiring a chef. . . . Former Rockies manager and hitting instructor Don Baylor recovered quickly from a fainting spell and returned to the D-backs' dugout for the playoff game Saturday. . . . Tampa Bay's Matt Moore looked like he was playing catch at 98 mph. As Toronto pitcher Ricky Romero said, "That's easy cheese."
Background: Little did the Rockies know when the Rangers pulled the plug on the Young deal in December that it would so dramatically change the course of both teams. The Rockies offered Eric Young Jr. in the trade and were willing to take on $32 million of Michael Young's remaining $48 million. The Rangers, in the end, decided to decline. Young was furious, feeling he had been lied to throughout the process. He was ready to leave, but his anger was focused on general manager Jon Daniels, not his teammates. Trade talk squashed and Young showed up at spring training as the same pro he's always been.
What's up: It's laughable that many Twitter followers scolded me last winter for stressing how well Young would have fit the Rockies. He doesn't have range. He can't hit away from Arlington? Really. He played five different positions and tied for the AL-best with 213 hits. He also played 40 games at third base and 14 at second, two of the biggest sinkholes in the Rockies' lineup for much of the season.
Renck's take: Young is a winner. The Rockies did everything they could to get him, and the Rangers, in a fit of reason, backed off. The trade won't be revisited. Young represents the type of right-handed bat the Rockies need, someone who can move runners, use gaps, be a poster child for a hitting coach. Maybe that's free agent Michael Cuddyer, though the Rockies will lose the bidding if someone steps up with a three-year deal. Think Young likes pressure? He has a hit in all 18 games he's played at new Yankee Stadium. Young only had 11 home runs this season, but clobbered 41 doubles. He's just the fifth player since 1960 with at least 200 hits, 40 doubles and 100 RBIs in the same season (Todd Helton is on that list). Can you imagine that production for the Rockies in the second or fifth spot? For sanity's sake, it's probably better if you don't. — Troy E. Renck
Francona gets affixed with goat horns to go with his two rings
What: The Red Sox let manager Terry Francona walk, his eight-year run ending with an awkward news conference and press-release exit.
When: The Red Sox brass pulled the plug Friday after Francona asked for an answer on his status, rather than spend the weekend dangling in the wind.
Background: Presidents. Dogs. Charlie Sheen. Those are the only people who age more quickly than a Red Sox or Yankees manager in today's social media world. I have covered the Red Sox in the playoffs multiple times, and the passion is ridiculous. Fans in Boston take every game, every pitch, every at-bat seriously. (It could be argued Red Sox fans have become Yankees' fans with their expectations.) It would be akin here to the Broncos playing 162 games. So, when the Red Sox went 6-18 over their final 24, squandering a lead and a playoff spot, there was going to be a scapegoat.
Renck's take: Francona didn't like his current team. He's a players' manager, a style that won him two more World Series than any of the Red Sox skippers over the previous 86 years. But it doesn't work when the players don't hold each other accountable. Reports of the pitchers drinking during games and players being out of shape reflected poorly on Francona. Make no mistake, this was ownership's call, not GM Theo Epstein. Francona stayed loyal to terrible starters, namely John Lackey. The team had a 5.84 ERA in September. So suddenly Francona can't manage? He deserves a break from the fire-glare, and would be an ideal fit for the Cubs after the first question of the interview: Comfortable breaking curses? Check.
1. Cardinals: Trailed Braves by 10 1/2 games Aug. 25, then sprayed champagne. That's earning the burn.
2. Rays: The bigger the moment, the calmer Evan Longoria gets.
3. Rangers: Deepest lineup, strong bullpen; if seeding playoffs, they look like a No. 1.
1. Red Sox: 7-20 September matches worst in team history, and, oh yeah, apparently they didn't make the playoffs.
2. Braves: Matched the '64 Phillies for largest lead blown by an NL team in September.
3. Twins: The uncertain futures of Joe Mauer, Justin Morneau a chilling concern.
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