MLB Playoffs 2015: Which Wild Card teams have won the World Series?
2004 – Boston Red Sox
In 2002, it was the Anaheim Angels that rallied behind a monkey and the Wild Card. In 2003, the Florida Marlins did it for a second time. Could the Boston Red Sox possibly become the third consecutive team to win a World Series after being a Wild Card entrant into the postseason and in the process end an 86-year drought?
You bet they could. All they had to do was make the greatest comeback of all-time to do so.
After the disappointment of losing to the New York Yankees in game seven of the 2003 ALCS on a walk-off home run (freakin’ Aaron Boone), the Boston Red Sox were eager to prove they belonged on the game’s biggest stage. Boston felt they were one piece shot of taking the next step and went out and landed ace Curt Schilling to help push their cause forward.
Despite going 98-64 in the regular season, Boston still finished second to the rival Yankees in the American League East. A key midseason trade of former star Nomar Garciaparra brought in defensive stalwarts Doug Mientkiewicz and Orlando Cabrera, not to mention speedy outfielder Dave Roberts, and helped Boston overcome a midseason slump that catapulted them to the postseason with momentum.
The Red Sox made quick work of the Anaheim Angels in the Divisional Series, sweeping Anaheim to set-up a rematch of the 2003 ALCS. However momentum quickly shifted and the Yankees captured a 3-0 lead in the series, punctuated by a 19-8 thumping of Boston in game three.
Left for dead, the Red Sox did the unthinkable. Down 4-3 in game four, a ninth inning walk to Kevin Millar set-up the biggest stolen base in Red Sox history, with Dave Roberts pinch-running and taking second. Bill Mueller then laced a game-tying single, setting up a dramatic 2-run walk-off home run from David Ortiz in the 12th inning. Game five brought similar drama, with Red Sox again rallying from a deficit to force extra innings before Ortiz walked Boston off with an RBI single in the bottom of the 14th to send the series back to New York.
Momentum clearly back in Boston’s favor, the Red Sox road Curt Schilling and his Bloody Sock past the slapping Alex Rodriguez and the Yankees in game six, winning 4-2. Game seven was all but an afterthought at that point, with Boston trouncing the Yankees 10-3 in the finale to complete the comeback.
The World Series itself featured a match-up between the St. Louis Cardinals and the Red Sox, but given Boston’s comeback in the ALCS, they were seen as the clear favorites. Only game one provided any drama, with Boston getting a 2-run home run from Mark Bellhorn in the bottom of the eighth to take the see-saw battle 11-9. The remainder of the series was settled by Boston’s pitching, which held the Cardinals to just three runs over the next three games on the way to the sweep.
86 year and worth the wait.
Next: 2002 - Anaheim Angels