1. Welcome to Baptist Board, a friendly forum to discuss the Baptist Faith in a friendly surrounding.

    Your voice is missing! You will need to register to get access to all the features that our community has to offer.

    We hope to see you as a part of our community soon and God Bless!

1991 the Best World Series ever?

Discussion in 'Sports Forum' started by Dustin, Mar 23, 2007.

  1. Dustin

    Dustin New Member

    Joined:
    Mar 21, 2006
    Messages:
    696
    Likes Received:
    0
    Could it be that the 1991 World Series between the Minnesota Twins and The Atlanta Braves was the greatest ever played? I was but 9 years old then, and wasn't a sports fan of any kind , so this great moment in basball history passed me by. Looking back, Hollywood couldn't write a better script, unless of course the Braves won. :thumbs:

    Here's why it's unique and is actually the best World Series ever.

    1. 1990 saw both the Braves and the Twins finish in the celler of thier respective divisions. The Braves had a few vets and and some raw talented rookies and a hint of thier great mid 90's teams (Smoltz, Glavine, Avery, Justice, Gant, Pendelton, Lemke, Nixon), the Twins had some holdovers from thier 1987 championship team ,some talented young pitchers (Tapani, Erickson, among others), some veterans (Morris, Gladden, Hrbek, Davis) and Kirby Puckett.

    2. Both teams went from worst in 1990 to first in 1991.

    3. The home team won every game in the Series.

    4. 5 of the games were decidind by one run, 3 of those in extra innings.

    5. 4 games were decided on the final pitch.

    6. Best Game 7 ever, hands down. It was 0-0 going to the bottom of the 10th.

    Now even though my eventual team lost, I still as a baseball fan have to admit that this was quite possibly the best World Series ever played.

    My complaints:

    1. The Braves lost, but it did set the 14 year standard for thier play (except for '95) of "destroy the league during the season then bow out in the playoffs."

    2. The Metrodome should have been World Series M.V.P.

    3. Where is Gene Larkin now, I mean , right this second right now, where is he? I don't have a clue either.


    Overall: 1991 was the season that started it all for the Braves. They won 14 straight division titles and eventually and uncharacteristically a World Series in 1995. This was the nucleus of the team I grew to love, and grew to loathe as they were perinially knocked out by mega market teams (the Yankees) , free agency upstarts ('97 Marlins), all around upstarts ('04 and '05 Astros), and their own bullpen (2006).

    The Twins fell off after '91 and didn't make it to the playoffs again till 7 or 8 years later. I guess they just couldn't get it done again. But that year, that one year, they had the best team in baseball.

    Best overall World Series ever.

    Soli Deo Gloria,
    Dustin
     
  2. Tom Bryant

    Tom Bryant Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Apr 13, 2006
    Messages:
    4,521
    Likes Received:
    43
    Faith:
    Baptist
  3. dan e.

    dan e. New Member

    Joined:
    Sep 26, 2006
    Messages:
    1,468
    Likes Received:
    0
    I was just talking about the exact same thing last night with a buddy of mine. The Braves/Twins series in '91 still hurts, as a Braves fan, and I was only 8!! But looking back now, as a better baseball fan, it was an INCREDIBLE World Series. So many of the games decided by 1 run, it was back and forth to force a game 7. The final game went 11 innings in a pitching matchup that is historic. Jack Morris pitched 10 innings!!! John Smoltz pitched 9 innings!! Pitchers just don't do that any more! It was definitely a classic....I just wish Kirby Puckett had not robbed Ron Gant's homerun!!!
     
  4. ccrobinson

    ccrobinson Active Member

    Joined:
    Jan 12, 2005
    Messages:
    4,459
    Likes Received:
    1
    The '91 Series was a great one, no question, but it comes in at #2 on my own personal list. I vote the '75 World Series as best ever, not only for how good the games were, but because it also featured 4 HOF'ers in Bench, Morgan, Yaz and Fisk, and another one (Rose) that I think will eventually get in, but only post-humously.

    I see that Andy has a kindred spirit in contempt for the Metrodome. :smilewinkgrin:
     
  5. PastorSBC1303

    PastorSBC1303 Active Member

    Joined:
    Aug 21, 2003
    Messages:
    15,125
    Likes Received:
    1
    I would say that the 91 series was the best I have ever personally watched. I did not see the 75 series, only highlights on ESPN, etc. It was a great series with lots of highlights.
     
  6. Dustin

    Dustin New Member

    Joined:
    Mar 21, 2006
    Messages:
    696
    Likes Received:
    0
    '75 was a great Series no doubt, but one swing made it as popular as it was. In fact, unless you're a Reds fan or know baseball well, that's ALL you remember. I know of some people who think Boston won the Series that year. That's how big that one swing was. If Fisk doesn't hit it, the '75 Series wouldn't be as talked about as it is. Same as '86, that was a great one too, but Buckner's error is what people remember. Alot of it has to do with where they happened, Fisk's homer in Boston, Buckner's error in New York, and the teams involved as well. The Big Red Machine in Cincy (all the future HOF's on the team), with the Red Sox trying to break the so-called curse, and the Mets which at that time had a big regional following AND a great team because the Yankees weren't doing squat.

    But the Twins and the Braves were practical nobody's at the time. Except when Atlanta thrashed the Twins 14-6 in Game 5, they were all close games. I think it was just the best overall.

    Now if we were basing it on one moment, then yeah '75 trumps '91, but I'm talking overall. Carleton Fisk also wins my award for greatest World Series homer for a guy who played on the losing team. The swing just overshadows the Series, but overall, it's still a definate top 10.

    Soli Deo Gloria,
    Dustin
     
  7. ccrobinson

    ccrobinson Active Member

    Joined:
    Jan 12, 2005
    Messages:
    4,459
    Likes Received:
    1
    The '75 Series would've ended at 6 if he hadn't it, so, yes, I agree.

    Even though it went 7 games, the '86 Series was not a great series. Games 2, 3 and 4 weren't close. It's unfortunate that all anybody remembers is Buckner's error, because Bob Stanley came in with his totally worthless "palmball" and poured gas on the fire. Stanley lost that game as much as anybody else did.

    While not putting the '91 Series at the top of my list for best ever, I do think it was the loudest ever. The Metrodome was loud, as usual, but the Braves fans were very loud as well. Having been subjected to years and years of losing, those fans were raucous. The Tomahawk Chop chant, for lack of a better word, was so loud and downright eerie at times during those 3 games in Atlanta.
     
  8. Bob Alkire

    Bob Alkire New Member

    Joined:
    Mar 23, 2001
    Messages:
    3,134
    Likes Received:
    1
    I would say the 1955 World Series, when the Dodgers won for the first time and the only one for Brooklyn. Look at all the Hall of Fame players on the field for that one.
     
  9. TomVols

    TomVols New Member

    Joined:
    Oct 30, 2000
    Messages:
    11,170
    Likes Received:
    0
    I agree. Of course I would...I'm a Reds' fan!

    The '91 series was a very good one, maybe top five of all time. The Rent-A-Braves make it hard for me to give that props. At least they lost :)
     
  10. TomVols

    TomVols New Member

    Joined:
    Oct 30, 2000
    Messages:
    11,170
    Likes Received:
    0
    CCRobinson wrote:
    Amen and Amen.
     
  11. Andy T.

    Andy T. Active Member

    Joined:
    Apr 8, 2005
    Messages:
    3,147
    Likes Received:
    0
    Don't get me started, Dustin - I don't have time for this! I tend to agree with you about '91, except 4 of the games were played in the worst sports stadium of ALL-TIME! Let me count to ten. ;) I watched all of Games 6 and 7 in the "commons area" at my college (my senior year). Those were two very exciting games! If Lonnie Smith doesn't get fooled by Chuck Knoblach on a decoy, the Braves would have won Game 7 in 9 innings. Poor Lonnie, he was never a very good baserunner despite having blazing speed. The '91 NLCS was a great one, too (as was '92 - remember Sid Bream chugging into home).

    You're tempting me to post another list of the Greatest World Series' of All-Time. Without taking much thought, here are some ones that pop into my head after perusing the list from 1903-2006:

    '75 (probably the consensus #1)
    '01 (D-Backs/Yankees)
    '91 (probably top 5 for sure)
    '68 (Tigers/Cardinals)
    '86 (Sloppy Series - but exciting nonetheless)
    '79 (Pirates/Orioles)
    '64 (Cards/Yanks)
    '62 (Yanks/Giants)
    '60 (Pirates/Yanks)
    '57 (Braves/Yanks)
    '55 (Bums/Yanks)
    '52 (Yanks/Bums)
    '47 (Yanks/Bums)
    '34 (Cards/Tigers)
    '26 (Cards/Yanks)
    '25 (Pirates/Senators)
    '24 (Senators/Giants)
    '12 (Red Sox/Giants)
     
    #11 Andy T., Mar 26, 2007
    Last edited by a moderator: Mar 26, 2007
  12. Andy T.

    Andy T. Active Member

    Joined:
    Apr 8, 2005
    Messages:
    3,147
    Likes Received:
    0
    '75 was a great Series even without Fisk's homer. Game 6 itself was a classic going into extra innings. Most people forget Bernie Carbo's pinch-hit 3-run homer in the 8th inning tied the game. And it was a monster shot - going to straight-away center. There were also other memorable moments, like Dwight Evans robbing Joe Morgan of a homer in right-field, and I think Dewey also threw someone out at home, too. Game 7 was a classic, too - the Reds erased a 3-0 deficit and scored in the top of the 9th with a single by Morgan, I think. Look at the other games - Game 2 was a one-run game with Cincy coming from behind in the 9th; Game 3 - one-run game with the Sox rallying to tie, but Cincy winning in the 10th; Game 4 was another one-run game. The Series had run-scoring mixed in with a few pitching gems. Plus, it had the added factor of exhibiting arguably one of the greatest teams of all-time.

    This is all subjective, but I think the '75 Series stands apart from the others.
     
Loading...