So we're on the brink of it! I have to be honest, I kind of really really don't want to see an 88 win team beat a 102 win team but hey, if it's going to happen to anyone, make it happen to the Red Sox, right? It's down to Vince Bachler (2-1, 2.86) vs Justin Kindberg (2-1, 1.91) I definitely would favor Kindberg but then, I definitely favored Michael Pesco last night (and I guess I went Grady Little on him as well but look, he was pitching well into the 9th and even then, the Sox should have given him more support than a single frigging run). Bachler has been 2 games below .500 the past 2 years (25-27 total) in spite of above-average ERAs so he has been kind of a hard-luck Harry in the regular season. Still, if St. Louis had a better starter than this guy, I'd use him....
57 degrees out with the wind blowing right to left. Kindberg's a lefty... and I think I will bring in Elijah Johnson for the pivotal Game 7 here. James hit just .194 against LHPs in 36 regular-season at-bats and although I don't expressly have them set up to platoon it still seems right. For Boston, Jeremy Dolak's back and apparently at 100%, so no changes there. I think I'm going to go back to Kristian Schneider, .222 postseason average and knee soreness aside, as he's the guy who got us here. Likewise, I've just got to hope that Jon Glynn can get things going... although you know what? Screw it, Sam Marks is starting in LF with Tom Brown sliding over into RF. Jun Kim just plain has not hit since returning from that strained hamstring and I'm past time to figure out if he's suddenly washed (it's possible; he is 33) or just in a slump. I hate that I'm losing a lot of defense in the outfield but we're up against it. I'm more convinced that Jon Glynn's slump is your garden-variety lack of hitting and the defensive drop-off from him to Jim Coleman is a lot greater so he'll stay in.
Top 1st: Elijah Johnson goes down 3-1 and we're under way! Tom Depew drops a base hit in front of CF Jon Glynn. Casey Satterfield hits one to Sam Marks in left, who catches it in front of the scoreboard for 2 out. Lorenzo Martinez hits it in the air to right center, where RF Tom Brown jogs over to catch for the third out. 0-0.
Bottom 1st: Vince Bachler gets Jon Glynn to ground out weakly... back to him for a 1-3 play. Brian Long also tests the pitcher with a weak comebacker; Bachler picks this one as well. I should note that this isn't the worst play in the world, as Bachler had 5 errors in 37 chances in '71 for an atrocious .865 FA. Mike Miller strikes out swinging to retire the side. 0-0.
Top 2nd: Kindberg gets Mike Galeana to just turn his wrists over on a curve that misses low for out #1. Disla hits what looks like a single into short center but Jon Glynn races in and catches it in a slide! As the saying goes, defense never slumps. John Stuart grounds out to SS Oniji Handa. 3 up, 3 down, and nobody left. 0-0.
Bottom 2nd: Tom Brown flies out to center. Incidentally he finished 5th in the AL in RBIs with 89 of them (it was a different time). Schneider hits a routine groundball to 2nd for the out. Sam Marks tries to place it a little closer to the hole but 2B Tom Depew gets to that one too for the 4-3 putout. 0-0.
Top 3rd: Dusty McCully hits a flare into right that Tom Brown makes a diving catch on for the out! 2 innings, 2 web gems by these outfielders and the incumbent Gold Glover is on the bench! Vince Bachler hits a hard fly to center that Jon Glynn chases down for the out. Elijah Johnson can't find a 1-2 fastball that he swung at for out #3. 0-0.
Bottom 3rd: Handa grounds out weakly to first base. Jeremy Dolak hits it towards second base on the right side of the infield but Tom Depew gets there and makes the throw for the out. Justin Kindberg grounds out to short and through 3 the Biscuit has faced the bare minimum. 0-0.
Top 4th: Tom Depew hits a ball into right center that Tom Brown cuts off before it can get to the wall; nevertheless the Cardinals 2B is still on with a leadoff single. Casey Satterfield hits a ball up the middle but 2B Brian Long just gets to it on the outfield grass. He manages to throw the slowish St Louis RF out at first but there's no play to be made at 2nd. That's 1 out and a runner is in scoring position. Lorenzo Martinez scorches one just past a diving Brian Long and into center field. It looks like it's just going to be a standard single but CF Jon Glynn drops the ball while making the transfer and everyone moves up 90 more feet, which means Tom Depew scores on the play! 1-0, Cardinals! Is this happening? Kristian Schneider takes a groundball from Mike Galeana, looks Lorenzo Martinez backs to second, and throws to first in time for out #2. Rafael Disla knocks one into left field and with 2 outs, Lorenzo Martinez is able to lumber in from second base! It's a 2-0 game! What's worse, Sam Marks is clutching his arm after the throw and has to come out of the game. I'll drop Matt Wilson in there as the Red Sox need hitting more than anything else. Jon Stuart flies out to right field to retire the side but the Cardinals are now up by multiple runs on a Red Sox team that has really, really struggled to score over the past 3 games. 2-0, Cardinals.
Bottom 4th: Jon Glynn belts a 0-1 fastball up the middle, past CF Elijah Johnson, and all the way to the wall for a leadoff double. That's a way to break out of a slump! Brian Long follows it up with a single into center field that scores Glynn from first base. 2-1! The only "bad" thing there is that Glynn didn't have a chance to steal third and now has "only" as many postseason steals (5) as hits (5). Mike Miller's also looking to hit something hard and he does, but right at Dusty McCully, who initiates a 6-4-3 double play. Tom Brown hits a ball that looks like it could be a single but Tom Depew gets there in time to turn it into a 4-3 putout. 2-1, Cardinals, but the Red Sox fiiiinally show some signs of life.
Top 5th: Dusty McCully bounces one to Kristian Schneider, who throws him out by a step, 5-3. Incidentally, both runs last inning have been counted as earned by the scorer, which seems rough. I guess the argument is that Depew would have scored anyway? Vince Bachler is for sure staying in, having thrown just 32 pitches over the first 4 innings. He hits one of those deceptively hard balls to straightaway center. Jon Glynn jogs to his left, then his right, then back to his left to pull it down. Elijah Johnson strokes a 2 out single to right, which Tom Brown catches on one hop. He steals second! I know I saw plenty during the regular season but weirdly I don't think I've seen a single CS the entire month of October. Tom Depew hits a ball into center that Jon Glynn is able to catch up to easily for the final out of the inning. 2-1, Cardinals.
Bottom 5th: Kristian Schneider crushes a 2-2 fastball over the Green Monster for his first HR of the postseason! That ties the game! Was that the first Red Sox HR of the postseason too? I know it's at least been a few days. That brings up Matt Wilson, in for Sam Marks; he flies out to center. Oniji Handa walks, which is a minor miracle in and of itself. Biscuit Bachler rolls his arm around a little and looks like he might have tweaked something but insists he's OK to keep pitching. Jeremy Dolak, hitting .357 in October, grounds out to Dusty McCully, who's got no choice but to throw to first as Handa sprints into second too quickly for the force there. Justin Kindberg singles to right and Oniji Handa gets all the way home, just ahead of Casey Satterfield's throw, and the Red Sox have pulled into the lead, 3-2! That's Justin Kindberg's 4th hit in 12 post-season at-bats. He's doing his best to make the trophy happen. Jon Glynn tests Elijah Johnson on a fly to deep center but the cagey vet and 11-time Gold Glover passes it, catching the ball just short of the warning track for out #3. 3-2, Red Sox.
Top 6th: Kindberg strikes out Casey Satterfield on 3 pitches. That's only Kindberg's 3rd K, which, I mean, is fine for 1971, don't get me wrong. A light October rain begins to fall. Lorenzo Martinez hits one into left-center that Matt Wilson is able to run over to catch for out #2. Mike Galeana comes up with that game-tying power; Kindberg neutralizes him by getting 2 quick strikes on the third baseman and, after fouling one off, he hits a groundball straight to Kristian Schneider for out #3. 3-2, Red Sox.
Bottom 6th: Brian Long hits a line drive that Lorenzo Martinez just happens to be in front of for out #1. Mike Miller hits a line shot into center; this time nobody's there to catch it before it drops and he's got himself a base hit. Tom Brown's been hitting everything hard, practically, but this time around it comes back to bite him as his shot to 3rd is turned into an around the horn double play to end the inning. 3-2, Red Sox.
Top 7th: Justin Kindberg himself has only thrown 75 pitches; one positive side effect of mostly pitching to contact. Rafael Disla hits a soft comebacker that he scoops up and throws to first for the first out. He actually had slightly reverse splits vs lefties this year - .233 vs .211 vs RHP - but I'm not sure that can be really trusted since he shut both sides down. Kindberg does give up his first walk of the game to John Stuart to give the inning the 1 on, 1 out, flavor. At that, I think it's time to pinch-hit for Dusty McCully. Jeremy Webb (.200, 0, 10), who hit .269 with a .354 OBP at AAA Tulsa in the first half, gets the call. He flies out to right field for 2 outs. That brings up Vince Bachler... who I think I'm going to leave in. Like, this is a low-leverage situation still and the consequences of his getting out are relatively small. He dutifully whiffs and that retires the side. 3-2, Red Sox.
Bottom 7th: Joe Wicker steps in at short for McCully. That's his 6th appearance this postseason. Kristian Schneider comes up with 2 HRs in 2 at-bats in mind and basically does the opposite, hitting a weak groundball back to Biscuit Bachler for the first out. Matt Wilson flies out the other way to left and continues to go hitless agaisnt his former team. Oniji Handa forces 2B Tom Depew to make a decent play at 2nd for the final out, a 4-3 grounder. 3-2, Red Sox.
Top 8th: Kindberg is still at 93 pitches, although there's a very good chance I'll pinch-hit for him in the bottom of the inning; Matt Brock's struggles aside, I don't really want to make the Grady Little mistake twice in 2 nights. In any case, this inning starts with Elijah Johnson popping out to center field for out #1. Tom Depew hits what looks like a seeing-eye single into right... but 2B Brian Long makes a diving stop, gets up, collects himself, and throws to first for the out! Say what you will about Boston, they are a fine defensive team. The rain looks like it's stopped. Casey Sattefield belts one over the head of CF Jon Glynn and all the way to the wall for a 2 out double. That web gem by Long now looks about ten times more impactful. Kindberg still needs to punch out Lorenzo Martinez, arguably the best power hitter in the National League, though. He works it to a 2-1 count and then belts one down the right field line. That's extra bases for sure... but what is this? Tom Brown sacrifices his body and dives into the corner... and comes up with the ball! The inning is over! 3-2, Red Sox still hanging on!
Bottom 8th: I think I'm actually going to leave Dolak in here... Bachler strikes him out for out #1. Speaking of pitching to contact, that's only Biscuit's 2nd K. He was a finesse guy in the regular season as well with 5.7 Ks per 9 (which, as I think I've stated, is technically above average but only technically). Pinch-hitting for Justin Kindberg is IF Dwayne Fraser, making his 2nd appearance in October. He flies out to right. Jon Glynn makes it 2 doubles in 2 at-bats with line shot off the Green Monster in left field! And he's down, clutching his knee! It's bad enough that he has to come out. Jim Coleman will pinch-run for him and probably take over in center. Brian Long grounds to 2nd and unfortunately the Red Sox don't get that insurance run. 3-2, Red Sox, and it's hang-on time!
Top 9th: Coleman will indeed take over in center. To try and mitigate the loss of range, the Red Sox will also move Tom Brown over to left and bring in Jun Kim to play right and hit 6th, should it come to that. But most importantly of all, Matt Brock (1-1, 5.71) is on to try and earn his 2nd postseason save of 1971 and hopefully not implode. He faces Matt Galeana, he of the 7 HRs and 15 RBIs in the month of October. Galeana singles into left and already you can start to hear the Boston faithful boo. Brock comes back and gets Rafael Disla, a 2-time batting champion and career .334 hitter, to strike out swinging. That brings up John Stuart, no slouch himself - he hit .294 this season and is a 4-time NL Silver Slugger. Brock throws one high and away that advances Mike Galeana to 2nd! Score it a wild pitch. Stuart belts one into left but the wind picks it up and allows Tom Brown to catch it at the warning track for out #2. One more out to go! With Jeronimo Argumedo available, I bring in Ethan Keesee to pinch-hit for the backup SS Joe Wicker. Keesee is 1 for 4 in the postseason, all as a pinch-hitter, but that one hit was a double. He hits one into left... that Tom Brown races in on and catches! THE RED SOX HAVE WON THE WORLD SERIES!
Wow, that was... a lot more dramatic than expected and that I'd kind of anticipated. NGL, I felt like this was going to be over on the next game starting with Game 4. Even that blowout 12-1 Game 5 win wasn't really and truly out of hand until the bottom of the 8th. And hey, the silver lining here is, no Boston fans in my world get to whine about The Curse of the Bambino!