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Jack Buck: “Good evening, everyone, from beautiful T-Mobile Park in Seattle — and if you’ve just joined us, well, you missed a fine one. The Mariners, backs against the wall, have taken Game 3 of this Division Series by a score of five to two over the New York Yankees. It was old-fashioned October baseball — tight, tense, and full of those little moments that make you say, ‘That’s the game right there.’”
Tim McCarver: “And Jack, this was one of those nights where patience paid off. Seattle had traffic all night — twelve hits, plenty of baserunners — but they just couldn’t get that big swing until the eighth inning. And wouldn’t you know it, the catcher, Gaetano Papasogli, jumps on the first pitch he sees from Cameron Nevarez, and drives it to deep right-center for a run-scoring double. You could feel that stadium lift.”
Jack Buck: “Oh, you really could, Tim. The place was shaking. Papasogli’s been red-hot this series — that’s his third double, and he’s hitting close to .475. When he came through, you could almost sense the whole dugout exhale.”
Tim McCarver: “And give credit to the young man on the mound — John Sandbulte. Six and two-thirds innings, only three hits, and the only real mistake was that home run he gave up to Andy Miller back in the second inning. After that, he settled right in. Used that sinker and changeup combination to keep the Yankees pounding it into the ground all night.”
Jack Buck: “He pitched like a man who didn’t want his season to end. And now the Mariners trail two games to one — they’ve got new life here in the Pacific Northwest. The crowd of 39,367 saw a club that refused to fold.”
Tim McCarver: “And if you’re New York, you can’t be too discouraged. They’ve still got the edge in the series, but they were held to just three hits tonight — that’s not going to get it done in October. And you know, Jack, when the big bats like Romero and Kim go quiet, that lineup feels a little shorter.”
Jack Buck: “Tomorrow’s another chance, Tim. That’s what makes postseason baseball so special — every day can rewrite the story. But tonight, the story belongs to the Mariners: Sandbulte’s brilliance on the mound, Papasogli’s clutch double in the eighth, and a city that still believes.”
[Pause — you can almost hear the crowd roaring as the camera pans the stands]
Jack Buck (softly, with that signature warmth): “From T-Mobile Park in Seattle, the final again — Mariners 5, Yankees 2. For Tim McCarver, I’m Jack Buck saying... so long from Seattle.”
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