A bit of a difference in that Yogi Berra gave way to Elston Howard behind the plate. Ellie was past 30 when he took over from Yogi in 1960, catching 91 games that year, and 111 in '61.
The old guard on the Florida Marlins was Darren Daulton. "Dutch" as he was called even before showing up in Florida, had all the experience behind the plate that you'd need. One thing about Daulton that Yogi Berra also had: They both could get around those bases fast!
Which comes in handy if you days at catching were over. By 1996, they sure were. Daulton was hurt that year, and played in the outfield. For five games. His only five games that season.
But Darren still had more to give. Maybe he couldn't get behind the dish, walk out to the mound for a prep talk. But he was still a baseball player. The year started out in Philadelphia, where Dutch had helped the Phillies to a pennant four years earlier, and then ended in Florida.
So, '97 was the first year of interleague play. So, a breakdown of Daulton: 73 games in the outfield, 42 at first, and 7 times DH! If you want to go back to 1995 to find him catching 95 games, do so! Darren wasn't going back there again. The Marlins were happy to have him, but had some kid catching.
The kid's name was Charles Johnson, who wasn't even playing in the bigs when Philadelphia lost to Toronto in the 1993 World Series. Here, he was, in just his second full season wearing the tools of ignorance. Charles career began in 1994 with Florida, who only year earlier were in their first year of existence.
So, Johnson had come a long way. He'd hit 19 home runs and driven home 63 runs in 124 games. The one big negative with Charles was, being a catcher, he couldn't hit for much of an average (Daulton had his troubles hitting for an average, but the wheels made most people forget about that!). Johnson hit just .250 in 1997.
But the Marlins now had three very good players who could catch, if anything should happen. Gregg Zaun got into 21 games, playing both behind the dish and at first, hitting over .300. Darren Daulton, following the trade from the Phillies, had 3 home runs, 21 RBIs and an on-base percentage of .371. His totals for 1997 were very good. 68 RBIs and a .371 on-base percentage. He'd hit 14 home runs.
So Florida got past San Francisco and Atlanta to meet up with the Cleveland Indians in the Fall Classic. Cleveland had been there before, just two years earlier.
For one, the Cleveland Indians had Orel Hershiser, who'd been light's out in the 1995 World Series for the Indians, and unhittable in the 1988 Fall Classic for the Los Angeles Dodgers.
It seemed like Orel had it early. The first two innings were uneventful for him. Cleveland led 1-0, only to have Florida counter with a tally of their own in the bottom of the third.
The fourth inning is what really got Florida going. Bobby Bonilla took all four pitches out of the strike zone. And Darren Daulton singled. Moises Alou hit a three-run bomb to make it 4-1 for the home team. Then it was time for Charles Johnson to come through.
Let Charles explain:
"...When the pitch started coming, I saw it, and then and I was like, 'Wow, it's gonna be a pretty good pitch to hit!"
Hit it, Johnson did. He belted it. Deep to left. The rocket gave Florida back-to-back dingers off Mr. Clutch in the postseason. Hershiser himself seemed very impressed with the distance the young catcher got on it, preferring to have it go way out, rather than the terrible feeling of a ball that barely makes it out. Charles left no doubt off his bat that this blast was heading downtown, literally.
My father always contents that "Game one is the least important game of the (In this case, "World") Series. True, that. However, in context here, what transpired in the fourth frame may have well have made a huge impact on the 1997 Fall Classic. Let me explain again how great the Cleveland right-handed pitcher was that Darren Daulton and Charles Johnson were up against. Orel Hershiser had allowed three runs - total - in the 1988 World Series, going 2-0. Seven years later, and a little past his prime, Orel was 1-1 with a great 2.57 earned run average against the Atlanta Braves in the World Series.
So, the kid and the veteran had helped seal Orel's fate. Daulton would leave the game in the fifth, as Jeff Conine took over. But the move actually worked, as Conine singled home the run that made it 5-2 for the home side, right there in the bottom of the fifth. Orel Hershiser was lifted, but the uprising continued. Charles Johnson's was up later that inning. He was patient, and new pitcher Jeff Juden threw a wild pitch on ball four, bringing Bobby Bonilla for a sixth run! The Marlins added one more to the Indians' two, making the final score, 7-4.
So the kid, Johnson, was retired in his final appearance, finishing the game 1-3. Daulton was 1-2. But, both had contributed to a big first win for a team playing it's first Fall Classic contest.
Cleveland made it abundantly clear that this was going to be a long World Series. They rumbled to a 6-1 win in the second contest. Neither Darren Daulton (Who only got to bat once) nor Charles Johnson (0-3) helped. The 1997 World Series was tied, 1-1, with the next three in Cleveland.
It was there, at Jacobs Field, that the home team brought out the whupping sticks. The Indians pushed across two runs in the bottom of the first to erase an early 1-0 Marlins lead.
Charles Johnson played a part in tying this third game. He singled to start the third, eventually scoring on a Gary Sheffield five-pitch bases on balls. The visitors seemed poised to knock Cleveland starter Charles Nagy out of the game, as they still had the bases loaded, one away. Bobby Bonilla hit into a double play to end that.
But Florida was going to be touching home a lot this night. It was Darren Daulton's turn to do something about the contest. He led off the fourth with a bang. A four-bagger bang. The solo shot gave the Marlins the lead back.
Daulton probably remembered what had happened in the third contest of the 1993 World Series. He was on the Phillies, they'd scored at will against pitchers Todd Stottlemyre and reliever Al Leiter. That game, back and forth, ended 15-14 for the opposition (The Toronto Blue Jays). Daulton, of course, caught that contest. Here, Charles Johnson was catching...Al Leiter.
Johnson, for his part, had singled back in the first. Nothing came of it. And he would be retired the next two times up. But he had to be concerned about another problem: His pitcher was struggling with control!
Leiter unraveled in the bottom of the fourth. He got two outs around three walks. The Marlins did their best to calm down the lefty. Leiter was running out of fluid.
It was conference time on the hill, with first basemen Darren Daulton there first. See how it pays to have not one, but two catchers out there? Soon, the two combatants from the Fall Classic of '93 (Who were now on the same side) were joined by the whole infield, plus pitching coach Larry Rothschild. Daulton had hit a two-run home run off Al Leiter in the fourth game of the October Classic four years earlier, but his team had lost. Here, Darren hit a solo shot to help Leiter, but now the pitcher was screwing up that effort.
The talk did little. The same problems persisted. Leiter issued his fourth free pass of the inning by walking Omar Vizquel. So much for the lead. The Indians took the lead themselves (Again!) on a two-run single off the bat of Manny Ramirez. This contest was becoming had to decipher. As it was, the home side led, 5-3.
But Jim Thome hit a two-run blast off Al Leiter in the fifth. Walk number six (in just 4 2/3 innings pitched) finished off Leiter. Félix Heredia came in, apparently for mop-up duty. This game was a lost cause for Florida.
At least, that's how it looked until an old catcher got on base. There was a walk, but this time by the Cleveland pitcher, in the top of the sixth. Darren Daulton was on again. Jim Eisenreich, another member of 1993 Philadelphia team came up. And he belted a two-run home run. 7-5.
"I think the Jim Eisenreich home run was the biggest hit of the game," Gary Sheffield would say. Jim Leyland, the Florida manager, believed it important. How about what an old catcher, and now first basemen's take on it?
"When I came in the dugout, after Eise hit the (two-run) home that got us two (runs) back...Everybody was upbeat, and said, 'Whatever it takes, you know, we gotta keep going..."
And some big bats kept the visitors going. Florida tied it in the seventh, and that set the stage for a big ninth.
Darren Daulton came up in the ninth, following Bobby Bonilla's leadoff walk. Daulton's clutch single sent Bonilla to third. The throw to try and get the man at third backfired. All that resulted is the ball went past third basemen Matt Williams. And that resulted in Bonilla being awarded home as the ball was in and among a bunch of sideline cameras. That Marlins had the lead for good!
And out and a walk later and Florida had runners on the corners with just one away. The big problem was, the inning could end, via a double play, with the Marlins getting just one run, and the Indians more than capable of erasing that.
So, it appeared Florida gifted Cleveland the second out. As Charles Johnson batted, with a chance for some serious insurance, Cliff Floyd appeared to be a dead duck at first. Erick Plunk, the Indians reliever, threw over to first, only to have the ball hit the umpire. The confusion, though, allowed for the hustling Darren Daulton to score! A huge run!
Charles Johnson made Cleveland pay with a single, and the rally would really continue. Before the top of the ninth ended, the Indians watched as the Marlins crossed home a total of seven times! Daulton himself was the last out of the top of the ninth, but man, what an inning.
And those runs would really come in handy.
This was one of those games where neither side rolled over and played dead. Two touchdowns to one for Florida. Three more outs, what more could happen with a 14-7 lead?
Well, Cleveland was a tad mad about the top of the ninth, so the only way to feel better is a good bottom of the frame. Darren Daulton would not be around for the "fun", as Jeff Conine was now at first. Charles Johnson saw some of his hurlers struggle.
With just one out, the home team loaded the bases. The Marlins did get the second out, but it came via a sacrifice fly off the bat of Tony Fernandez. But then Marquis Grissom singled, and Bip Roberts stroked a hit that good enough for two bases. Runs 7-11 for Cleveland, all scoring with two away.
Omar Visquel grounded out to second for the last out. A wild game that saw a combined 25 runs score. Darren Daulton, Al Leiter, Jim Eisenreich, had seen this all before. So had Tony Fernandez. These four men had all played in the fourth contest of 1993.
But, unfortunately, the four runs that Cleveland scored in the ninth gave them momentum that carried over to the critical game four. This one was no contest. The Florida pitching took a fearful pounding.
Starter Tony Saunders was strafed for six runs. By the time Darren Daulton doubled and scored on a Jim Eisenreich single in the top of the fourth, it merely broke the shutout. The 6-0 shutout.
Charles Johnson batted next. There were two on, and the Marlines needed another two runs. The catcher hit into a force. Daulton walked and scored again on a Moises Alou blast. But now it was the sixth inning, and the visitors were still down three tallies. Any chance for more offence ended when Charles Johnson hit into an inning-terminating double play.
Daulton added a single in the top of the eighth, as he was clearly the Marlins best player in this lost cause contest. The Cleveland Indians had themselves a 10-3 win. The 1997 Fall Classic was square again, 2-2.
The alternating of victories would continue, as Florida came up big in the fifth game. Orel Hershiser was much better this game, although Darren Daulton made sure to remind him this wasn't 1988 or 1995, for that matter. His leadoff double in the second, touched by a fan, opened the door. Not only did it lead to the game's first run, it started the way towards a bit of a rally. Who else but Charles Johnson drove him home. The visiting Marlins added another run, but when Craig Counsell tried to score behind Johnson, he was out, and the rally had to settle for two runs.
Hershiser sent the next ten man down, and now Orel was looking like his 1988 form. The sixth inning saw Cleveland lead 4-2. That is, until Florida got to Hershiser. Moises Alou hit a big three-run bomb to turn that two-run deficit into a 5-4 lead. Orel Hershiser was still pitching, Jeff Conine and Charles Johnson followed the big blast with singles to get of the starting pitcher. Another run scored before the third out was recorded.
So it was still 6-4 in the top of the eighth, but no doubt Florida took notice of the fact that Cleveland had scored 21 runs in the last two games. This lead was not safe. Moises Alou singled to start the eighth. He stole second. And one out later, it was Charles Johnson who came up with a clutch single to cash in Alou.
With one away in the top of the ninth, and Florida still up 7-4, Bobby Bonilla doubled. Darren Daulton singled. Moises Alou singled, 8-4. The inning promised more. Daulton turned on the jets as Jose Mesa pitched to Jeff Conine. All Conine could do was pop out. All Charles Johnson could do was swing and miss on a 1-2 pitch.
Would you believe it? More ninth inning fireworks. By Cleveland. Four runs here in game three. Down 8-4, the Indians rallied for three more touches of home! This just wasn't going to be easy. But by winning 8-7, the Marlins were heading home, up three games to two.
Alas, just like when down 1-0 and 2-1, Cleveland bounced back. You'd kind of figure Florida would settle this nonsense at home. But no. The Indians had an ace up their sleeve in pitcher Chad Ojea.
Truth be told, Ojea lasted just five inning (Plus one batter pitched to in the bottom of the sixth). But by the time the Cleveland starter left, it was 4-1 for the visitors. Florida got their lone run in the bottom of fifth. Moises Alou and Charles Johnson started a rally with singles. Craig Counsell hit into a force at second. Darren Daulton would bat for pitched Kevin Brown. Daulton was once again helping out what would have been his battery mate earlier in his career.
All Daulton could do was get it to right, where Manny Ramírez caught it. Alou tagged up and scored. Devon White kept the inning alive with a single. Devo was 2-0 when the World Series got to a game six. The tying run was at the plate, Edgar Rentería. Edgar grounded out.
New pitcher Félix Heredia got the Marlins 1-2-3 in the top of the sixth, keeping the Tribe within three runs. And when Gary Sheffield drew a leadoff walk to begin the bottom of the frame, the Marlins appeared to have some momentum. Chad Ojea had told his team that if he wasn't pitching up to par, not to hesitate to make the call to the bullpen.
That's exactly what happened, as Michael Jackson came in to pitch. Not the singer. But Jackson would not only beat it (The rally), but beat Florida, too. And Michael earned a hold for his efforts.
Jim Eisenreich drew a walk with one away. Florida had the tying run at the plate. Moises Alou grounded out to second, advancing both runners. A single would put the Marlins in business.
Well, it appeared that the score would be 4-3, as Charles Johnson sent one on the ground to left. But that's where Cleveland shortstop Omar Vizquel went deep into the hole between second and third. The throw to first got Johnson out by a whisker.
The home team didn't let that discourage their efforts. The next inning, they loaded the bases. Nothing came of it. Charles Johnson hit 3-2 pitch to left in the eighth that neither Vizquel nor anyone else could get to. The Marlins could not get their catcher home.
One final attempt to make it a ballgame came in the bottom of the ninth, as Devon White hit a one-out triple. There, White stayed as Jose Mesa got the next two batters on a strikeout and a groundout. Cleveland had tied the 1997 World Series for the third time.
So, the Fish and The Tribe had battled to a deciding seventh contest. It would be Al Leiter, hoping to make up for a poor showing his previous time out, going for Florida. Leiter pitched much better.
Leiter pitched well, but his mound adversary was a little better. Jared Wright was presented with a 2-0 lead via a two-run single off the bat of Tony Fernández. Tony had ten RBIs in the 1993 postseason as a teammate of Al Leiter. Now, he was up to ten in just fourteen playoff games four years later.
Leiter settled down. But two men who had helped all throughout the series, Darren Daulton and Charles Johnson, were MIA for this game. Well, their bats were. Each was without a hit after three trips to the dish.
The Marlins got one run back in the seventh on a home run by Bobby Bonilla. But that's all the home team got as the game moved into the bottom of the ninth.
The Tribe were up a run, and had their ace reliever Jose Mesa on the hill. Mesa, with fifteen saves and an 2.40 earned run average in 1997, was looking to nail down the first Cleveland Fall Classic win in nearly a half-century.
Moises Alou greeted him with a single. The tying run was aboard. But Bobby Bonilla, who'd hit a four-bagger last time up, swung on and missed a 3-2 pitch from Mesa. One out, one on. A double play and Cleveland wins it all.
The batter was Charles Johnson. He'd been a hero all this 1997 World Series. But tonight, he was a zero. Zero hit.
He took a pitch that was just outside at the knees for ball one. It was at this point, that a great perspective was made on air by play-by-play man Bob Costas:
"I don't care how much the game changes, when it gets to it's essence, there's a connection through all the years. And now [Jose] Mesa, and each of these hitters...Stand where [Grover Cleveland] Alexander and [Tony] Lazzeri stood. Where [Ralph] Terry and [Bill] Mazeroski stood. Where Terry and Willie McCovey stood..."
Classic moments all of them. And now, which was it going to be for Jose Mesa and Charles Johnson? A two-run home run would win it for the Marlins. Tony Fernández was out at second base for the Tribe. Al Leiter was no longer on the hill, but had been a teammate of Fernández in 1993 (Tony played shortstop that year), and had seen Joe Carter take Mitch Williams out of the park for a walk-off home run. Right behind Joe Carter, catching for Philadelphia, had been Darren Daulton. Jim Eisenreich was in right field for the Phillies when Carter hit it out. Here, though, four years later, Jim was at first now, having come into the game in the top of the ninth as part of a double-switch. Daulton had been lifted in favour of a pinch hitter in the eighth.
Johnson took one on the corner, this time a strike. "...This is what it boils down to right here: On the line," concurred Bob Uecker, who was with Costas and Joe Morgan in the NBC broadcast booth. Another pitch that was away from Johnson was fouled off. Charles was now in a 1-2 hole.
Mesa came back on the outside corner again, but this time, Johnson got the good part of the bat on it. He went the other way to right for a clutch single. On the big hit, Moises Alou turned on the jets, putting runners on the corners.
Joe Morgan, who's clutch single had plated the World Series-winning run back in 1975, had this to say about the Florida catcher: "Bob, we've seen [Cleveland pitcher] Jared Wright come of age tonight, [and] we've also seen Charles Johnson in this series! Here's another young player with no fear..."
This would be Johnson's last contribution to the 1997 World Series. Greg Zaun took over on the bases. Johnson had been representing the winning run in this seventh contest. First, though, Florida had to get Alou home.
That was accomplished via a sacrifice fly off the bat of Craig Counsell. But without Charles Johnson's single, the home team would not have been in position to tie it via a flyball. The inning ended when Jim Eisenreich grounded out.
Two innings later, it was Edgar Rentería who won the 1997 World Series for Florida. The team that had begun play in 1993, now had a World Series triumph just four years later. They would add another in 2003, but this '97 team was special. And while Rentería was certainly the man who would get all the spotlight in years to come for the walk-off single, there was no doubt an old and new catcher had helped make this all possible.
References
Major League Baseball Productions, "1997 World Series." Youtube, uploaded by billny33, 6 Sept. 2014. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cpNU3an32do&t=4600s.
Morissey, Scott C. 114 World Series in 1 Book. Updated ed., Pandamonium Publishing House, 2020.
Nemec, David et all. 20th Century Baseball Chronicle: A Year-by-year History of Major League Baseball. Collector's Edition. Publications International, 1993.
1997 World Series. Episodes 1-7, National Broadcasting Company (NBC), 1997, https://www.youtube.com/. Accessed 20 Mar. 2023.
1997 World Series. Episodes 1-7, National Broadcasting Company (NBC), 1997, https://www.youtube.com/. Accessed 20 Mar. 2023.
Major League Baseball Productions, "1997 World Series." Youtube, uploaded by billny33, 6 Sept. 2014. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cpNU3an32do&t=4600s.
Sports Reference LLC. Baseball-Reference.com - Major League Statistics and Information. http://www.baseball-reference.com/. 20 Mar. 2023.
Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, https://en.wikipedia.org/. 20 Mar. 2023.
YouTube, Google, https://www.youtube.com/. 20 Mar. 2023.
No comments:
Post a Comment