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Major League Baseball
• The Cardinals scored more runs in the first five innings of the 2005 postseason (eight) than they scored over the last 32 innings of their 2004 World Series loss to the Red Sox (seven). Three hours later, the Red Sox allowed eight runs in the first five innings to the White Sox.
• Reggie Sanders drove in six runs in the Cardinals' 8-5 win over the Padres with a pair of bases-loaded hits -- a first-inning single and that rarest of home runs, a grand slam on a 3-0 pitch. Only 11 players even swung at a 3-0 pitch with the bases loaded during the entire 2005 regular season. The last grand slam on a 3-0 pitch was hit by Damian Miller in the Diamondbacks' second game of the 2002 regular season.
• The Padres' five-run rally over the last three innings ended when Ramon Hernandez struck out with the bases loaded and the tying run on first base. Only three other teams in postseason history rallied from a deficit of eight or more runs to put the tying run on base:
1) The Philadelphia A's overcame an 8-0 deficit to defeat the Cubs 10-8 in Game 4 of the 1929 World Series. The Cubs appeared on their way to leveling the Series at two games each, but the A's parlayed their come-from-behind win into a Series victory in Game 5.
2) The Orioles opened a 9-1 lead after three innings in the Game 2 of the 1979 ALCS. But the Angels closed the lead to 9-8 and loaded the bases in the ninth inning before Brian Downing grounded out to end the game.
3) The Yankees took an 8-0 lead in the opening game of the 2004 ALCS. The Red Sox scored five in the seventh and two in eighth, but Mariano Rivera entered to face Kevin Millar with the tying run on third base. Millar popped out and Rivera closed out the Sox in the ninth.
• The White Sox snapped a streak of nine consecutive postseason home losses with a 14-2 win over the Red Sox. Chicago's home losing streak was the second longest in postseason play not only in baseball, but in any of the major professional sports leagues (MLB, NFL, NBA, NHL or MLS). The record is 10 by the Phillies (1915-1978).
The 12-run margin of victory was the second largest ever in the opening game of a postseason series. The largest was the Cubs' 13-0 win over the Padres on the North Side in the opener of the 1984 NLCS. (Incidentally, the White Sox defeated the Dodgers, 11-0, at old Comiskey Park in the first game of the 1959 World Series.)
• The White Sox equaled a postseason record with five home runs, two more than they hit during their nine consecutive postseason losses at home. In fact, the Sox had hit only seven home runs in 20 previous postseason home games.
• A.J. Pierzynski became the fifth catcher to hit two home runs in a postseason game, and an impressive list it is. The others were Yogi Berra (1956), Gene Tenace (1972), Johnny Bench (1976) and Gary Carter (1986).
Scott Podsednik
AP photo
Podsednik, right, supplied the long ball Tuesday instead of Paul Konerko, for a change.
• The most surprising of the White Sox's homers was surely Scott Podsednik's. Podsednik didn't hit a home run in 507 at-bats during the regular season. Only one other player in major-league history homered in a postseason game following a season in which he failed to hit a home run in 500-plus ABs: Lance Johnson, also of the White Sox, homered in Game 4 of the 1993 ALCS against the Blue Jays. Johnson had 540 at-bats without a home run during the regular season.
• Matt Clement was the fourth pitcher to hit two or more batters with pitches in the first inning of a postseason game. The others: Jimmy Key of the Orioles (three in the 1997 ALCS against the Indians), Chad Ogea of the Indians (1998 ALCS against the Yankees), and Al Leiter of the Mets (1999 NLCS against the Braves).
Clement hit 79 batters with pitches over the last six seasons, to rank second in the majors behind Jeff Weaver (83).
• Robinson Cano cleared the bases with a first-inning double in the Yankees' 4-2 win over the Angels. He became only the fourth player to drive in three runs on the first postseason at-bat of his career. The others were Dusty Rhodes of the Giants (three-run homer in 1954), John Lowenstein of the Orioles (three-run homer in 1979) and relief pitcher Mike Jackson of the Reds (three-run double in 1995). No player has hit a grand slam on his first at-bat in the postseason.
• Vladimir Guerrero was caught stealing second base to end the sixth inning with the Angels trailing, 4-0. Would you believe that eight other players were caught stealing to end an inning with their team trailing by four or more runs in a postseason game? It's true, and among the players were Hall of Famers Frank Chance (1906) and Honus Wagner (1909).
• Bubba Crosby started in center field for the Yankees in Game 1, with Bernie Williams serving as the designated hitter. That ended Williams' streak of 115 consecutive Yankees postseason games in which he started in center field -- the longest streak in postseason history at any position for any team. Derek Jeter extended his streak to 111 consecutive starts at shortstop for the Yankees, easily the second longest ever. Chipper Jones ranks a distant third with 73 straight games started at third base for the Braves from 1995 to 2001.
This might be just a random name to readers under the age of 40, but the last player other than Williams to start a Yankees postseason game in center field was Jerry Mumphrey in the 1981 World Series. Dave Winfield started in CF in two of the six games of that series. [/b][/quote]
Major League Baseball
• The Cardinals scored more runs in the first five innings of the 2005 postseason (eight) than they scored over the last 32 innings of their 2004 World Series loss to the Red Sox (seven). Three hours later, the Red Sox allowed eight runs in the first five innings to the White Sox.
• Reggie Sanders drove in six runs in the Cardinals' 8-5 win over the Padres with a pair of bases-loaded hits -- a first-inning single and that rarest of home runs, a grand slam on a 3-0 pitch. Only 11 players even swung at a 3-0 pitch with the bases loaded during the entire 2005 regular season. The last grand slam on a 3-0 pitch was hit by Damian Miller in the Diamondbacks' second game of the 2002 regular season.
• The Padres' five-run rally over the last three innings ended when Ramon Hernandez struck out with the bases loaded and the tying run on first base. Only three other teams in postseason history rallied from a deficit of eight or more runs to put the tying run on base:
1) The Philadelphia A's overcame an 8-0 deficit to defeat the Cubs 10-8 in Game 4 of the 1929 World Series. The Cubs appeared on their way to leveling the Series at two games each, but the A's parlayed their come-from-behind win into a Series victory in Game 5.
2) The Orioles opened a 9-1 lead after three innings in the Game 2 of the 1979 ALCS. But the Angels closed the lead to 9-8 and loaded the bases in the ninth inning before Brian Downing grounded out to end the game.
3) The Yankees took an 8-0 lead in the opening game of the 2004 ALCS. The Red Sox scored five in the seventh and two in eighth, but Mariano Rivera entered to face Kevin Millar with the tying run on third base. Millar popped out and Rivera closed out the Sox in the ninth.
• The White Sox snapped a streak of nine consecutive postseason home losses with a 14-2 win over the Red Sox. Chicago's home losing streak was the second longest in postseason play not only in baseball, but in any of the major professional sports leagues (MLB, NFL, NBA, NHL or MLS). The record is 10 by the Phillies (1915-1978).
The 12-run margin of victory was the second largest ever in the opening game of a postseason series. The largest was the Cubs' 13-0 win over the Padres on the North Side in the opener of the 1984 NLCS. (Incidentally, the White Sox defeated the Dodgers, 11-0, at old Comiskey Park in the first game of the 1959 World Series.)
• The White Sox equaled a postseason record with five home runs, two more than they hit during their nine consecutive postseason losses at home. In fact, the Sox had hit only seven home runs in 20 previous postseason home games.
• A.J. Pierzynski became the fifth catcher to hit two home runs in a postseason game, and an impressive list it is. The others were Yogi Berra (1956), Gene Tenace (1972), Johnny Bench (1976) and Gary Carter (1986).
Scott Podsednik
AP photo
Podsednik, right, supplied the long ball Tuesday instead of Paul Konerko, for a change.
• The most surprising of the White Sox's homers was surely Scott Podsednik's. Podsednik didn't hit a home run in 507 at-bats during the regular season. Only one other player in major-league history homered in a postseason game following a season in which he failed to hit a home run in 500-plus ABs: Lance Johnson, also of the White Sox, homered in Game 4 of the 1993 ALCS against the Blue Jays. Johnson had 540 at-bats without a home run during the regular season.
• Matt Clement was the fourth pitcher to hit two or more batters with pitches in the first inning of a postseason game. The others: Jimmy Key of the Orioles (three in the 1997 ALCS against the Indians), Chad Ogea of the Indians (1998 ALCS against the Yankees), and Al Leiter of the Mets (1999 NLCS against the Braves).
Clement hit 79 batters with pitches over the last six seasons, to rank second in the majors behind Jeff Weaver (83).
• Robinson Cano cleared the bases with a first-inning double in the Yankees' 4-2 win over the Angels. He became only the fourth player to drive in three runs on the first postseason at-bat of his career. The others were Dusty Rhodes of the Giants (three-run homer in 1954), John Lowenstein of the Orioles (three-run homer in 1979) and relief pitcher Mike Jackson of the Reds (three-run double in 1995). No player has hit a grand slam on his first at-bat in the postseason.
• Vladimir Guerrero was caught stealing second base to end the sixth inning with the Angels trailing, 4-0. Would you believe that eight other players were caught stealing to end an inning with their team trailing by four or more runs in a postseason game? It's true, and among the players were Hall of Famers Frank Chance (1906) and Honus Wagner (1909).
• Bubba Crosby started in center field for the Yankees in Game 1, with Bernie Williams serving as the designated hitter. That ended Williams' streak of 115 consecutive Yankees postseason games in which he started in center field -- the longest streak in postseason history at any position for any team. Derek Jeter extended his streak to 111 consecutive starts at shortstop for the Yankees, easily the second longest ever. Chipper Jones ranks a distant third with 73 straight games started at third base for the Braves from 1995 to 2001.
This might be just a random name to readers under the age of 40, but the last player other than Williams to start a Yankees postseason game in center field was Jerry Mumphrey in the 1981 World Series. Dave Winfield started in CF in two of the six games of that series. [/b][/quote]
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