October 6, 1995
Seattle Mariners 7 (W: Johnson, 1-0; SV: Charlton, 1)
New York Yankees 4 (L: McDowell, 0-1)
Yankees lead series, 2-1
JOHNSON'S 10 KS KEEP M'S ALIVE
What remains to be seen is whether Randy Johnson delivered the turning point for Seattle tonight or if he merely delayed the inevitable. After waiting 19 seasons for a post-season game, the Kingdome was rocking with hungry and desperate fans who wanted just one playoff win from their hometown team and had their ace on the mound, albeit with only three days' rest. But Johnson on three days is better than most pitchers on four, and the tall lefty went seven innings and struck out ten as the Mariners won their first playoff game in history with a 7-4 triumph over New York that saw Don Mattingly strike out three times in a row for only the sixth time in his career. Johnson, who threw 126 pitches in his three-hitter that clinched the division title on Monday, threw 116 pitches (65 strikes) before his shoulder stiffened in the seventh inning and Lou Piniella yanked him. Seattle chased six runs across the plate in the middle innings and cruised to the win, setting up tomorrow night's game of Scott Kamienecki versus Chris Bosio.
Cleveland Indians 8 (W: Nagy, 1-0)
Boston Red Sox 2 (L: Wakefield, 0-1)
Indians win series, 3-0
TRIBE WINS FIRST POST-SEASON SERIES SINCE 1948, BOSOX NIGHTMARES CONTINUE
Forty-seven years after the Cleveland Indians swept the city of Boston by taking a one-game playoff from the Red Sox to clinch a berth in the 1948 World Series and beating the then-Boston Braves in the World Series in six games, the Tribe finally got to celebrate in the post-season for once. Thankfully for all the heartache the Red Sox have endured since 1918, this one was relatively painless. A two-run Jim Thome home run off of Tim Wakefield was all Cleveland needed to win the game, but they made sure to leave no doubt as they clobbered the Boston bullpen for five runs in the seventh inning to turn a close game into an 8-2 rout. Charles Nagy went seven innings and gave up only four hits and one run as he got the victory.
Cleveland awaits the winner of the Seattle-New York series before opening play in the ALCS on Tuesday night. And wouldn' t you know it? The Reds have the lesser record and open at home while the Indians have the best record in baseball and have to open on the road. And it's worth noting that Cleveland was only 5-4 against the Mariners and played the Yankees to a 6-6 draw in games. The ALCS could be as interesting as a Cincinnati-Atlanta matchup in the NLCS appears to be
HIGHLIGHTS BELOW:
1) Reds vs Dodgers - start of video
2) Mariners vs Yankees - starts at 1:00
3) Braves vs Rockies - starts at 2:13
4) Indians vs Red Sox - starts at 3:08
Seattle Mariners 7 (W: Johnson, 1-0; SV: Charlton, 1)
New York Yankees 4 (L: McDowell, 0-1)
Yankees lead series, 2-1
JOHNSON'S 10 KS KEEP M'S ALIVE
What remains to be seen is whether Randy Johnson delivered the turning point for Seattle tonight or if he merely delayed the inevitable. After waiting 19 seasons for a post-season game, the Kingdome was rocking with hungry and desperate fans who wanted just one playoff win from their hometown team and had their ace on the mound, albeit with only three days' rest. But Johnson on three days is better than most pitchers on four, and the tall lefty went seven innings and struck out ten as the Mariners won their first playoff game in history with a 7-4 triumph over New York that saw Don Mattingly strike out three times in a row for only the sixth time in his career. Johnson, who threw 126 pitches in his three-hitter that clinched the division title on Monday, threw 116 pitches (65 strikes) before his shoulder stiffened in the seventh inning and Lou Piniella yanked him. Seattle chased six runs across the plate in the middle innings and cruised to the win, setting up tomorrow night's game of Scott Kamienecki versus Chris Bosio.
Cleveland Indians 8 (W: Nagy, 1-0)
Boston Red Sox 2 (L: Wakefield, 0-1)
Indians win series, 3-0
TRIBE WINS FIRST POST-SEASON SERIES SINCE 1948, BOSOX NIGHTMARES CONTINUE
Forty-seven years after the Cleveland Indians swept the city of Boston by taking a one-game playoff from the Red Sox to clinch a berth in the 1948 World Series and beating the then-Boston Braves in the World Series in six games, the Tribe finally got to celebrate in the post-season for once. Thankfully for all the heartache the Red Sox have endured since 1918, this one was relatively painless. A two-run Jim Thome home run off of Tim Wakefield was all Cleveland needed to win the game, but they made sure to leave no doubt as they clobbered the Boston bullpen for five runs in the seventh inning to turn a close game into an 8-2 rout. Charles Nagy went seven innings and gave up only four hits and one run as he got the victory.
Cleveland awaits the winner of the Seattle-New York series before opening play in the ALCS on Tuesday night. And wouldn' t you know it? The Reds have the lesser record and open at home while the Indians have the best record in baseball and have to open on the road. And it's worth noting that Cleveland was only 5-4 against the Mariners and played the Yankees to a 6-6 draw in games. The ALCS could be as interesting as a Cincinnati-Atlanta matchup in the NLCS appears to be
HIGHLIGHTS BELOW:
1) Reds vs Dodgers - start of video
2) Mariners vs Yankees - starts at 1:00
3) Braves vs Rockies - starts at 2:13
4) Indians vs Red Sox - starts at 3:08