The 2011 Major League Baseball wild card chase was a playoff chase involving the Atlanta Braves and St. Louis Cardinals in the National League and the Boston Red Sox and Tampa Bay Rays in the American League.

On the last day of the 2011 regular season, the postseason fate of these four teams fighting for two playoff spots across both leagues was decided.[1] In the National League, the St. Louis Cardinals defeated the Houston Astros to win the National League wild card berth after the Atlanta Braves lost to the Philadelphia Phillies.[2] In the American League, the Tampa Bay Rays defeated their American League East division rivals the New York Yankees with dramatic home runs in the 9th inning by Dan Johnson and later in extra innings by Evan Longoria to win the American League wild card berth after the Baltimore Orioles defeated the Boston Red Sox on a walk-off single.[3][4][5]

On September 2, the Red Sox and Braves had led the American League and National League wild card races by 9 and 8+1⁄2 games, respectively. In their final 25 games, the Red Sox went 7–18 while the Braves went 8–17; in the same timespan, the Rays and Cardinals each won 17 games to secure the wild cards. The Red Sox and Braves became the first teams in history to hold leads as large as eight games in September and miss the postseason.[6] The Cardinals eventually rode the momentum of their win to win the NLDS and NLCS on their way to defeating the Texas Rangers for their 11th World Series title.[7][8][9]

The 2011 season was the final season of the single wild card format, as MLB added second wild card teams to each league starting with the 2012 season.

American League Wild Card race

Boston Red Sox at Baltimore Orioles

Wednesday, September 28, 2011 – 7:05 pm (EDT) at Oriole Park at Camden Yards in Baltimore, Maryland

Team123456789RHE
Boston0011100003110
Baltimore002000002472
WP: Jim Johnson (6–5)   LP: Jonathan Papelbon (4–1)
Home runs:
BOS: Dustin Pedroia (21)
BAL: J. J. Hardy (30)
Attendance: 29,749
Notes: The game was delayed in the middle of the 7th for 1:26 due to rain

The Red Sox were favored by pundits to win the American League pennant prior to the start of the season due to acquisitions of Adrián González, Carl Crawford and Bobby Jenks.[10][11][12] Despite a slow start, Boston darted to the top of the division during the summer months. Injuries plagued the team and they slowly lost first place to the Yankees, but were still in comfortable contention for the wild card. The month of September started an epic slump for the team where the team had allowed the Rays to get back into contention.[13] However, Boston still controlled its own destiny going into their final series with the last place Orioles, but wound up having the season come down to the last game.[14]

The Red Sox had taken a lead for a good part of the game, but the Orioles mounted a comeback. The game was interrupted by a rain delay in the middle of the 7th with Boston ahead 3–2. After play had resumed almost an hour and a half later, the Orioles still trailed by a run in the bottom of the 9th. When leading after eight innings, the Red Sox were 77–0 in 2011.[15] Facing closer Jonathan Papelbon, Chris Davis and Nolan Reimold hit back-to-back doubles with two outs, which tied the game. The next batter, Robert Andino, hit a line drive to left field which Carl Crawford was unable to catch, allowing Reimold to score and the Orioles walked off with the win.[16][17]

After the Orioles won, Andino, who had been a Red Sox killer of late, said, "End of season like this, to make Boston go home sad, crying, I'll take it all day."[18][19]

New York Yankees at Tampa Bay Rays

Wednesday, September 28, 2011 – 7:10 pm (EDT) at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida

Team123456789101112RHE
New York Yankees140110000000791
Tampa Bay Rays0000000610018101
WP: Jake McGee (5–2)   LP: Scott Proctor (2–6)
Home runs:
NYY: Mark Teixeira 2 (39), Andruw Jones (13)
TB: Evan Longoria 2 (31), Dan Johnson (2)
Attendance: 29,518

The Yankees had already won the American League East several days prior to this contest.[20] The Rays had been in third place behind both the Yankees and the Red Sox for much of the season.[21] However, Boston had slowly started to lose many games in September due to poor starting and relief pitching, disappointing hitting from newly acquired free agent Carl Crawford throughout the year, and injuries to key players like Kevin Youkilis. The Rays, who had won the division in 2010, had lost many of their players to free agency. Despite the losses, the Rays had crawled back into contention and faced the Yankees in the final series of the year.

Yankees manager Joe Girardi indicated that he would approach the final games so that the team's pitching staff would be set up for the 2011 ALDS against the Detroit Tigers.[22] Suspicions rose to whether or not the Yankees would compete intensely due to them wanting to rest their aging players for the playoffs and to keep the Red Sox out, their fierce rivals whom they had a lopsided losing record to that season.[23] Girardi indicated that many of his post-season pitchers would not be pitching that game. The Yankees, however, started the game strong by taking a 5–0 lead by the 2nd inning. Their lead grew to 7–0, which they held as the game entered the bottom of the 8th inning. In the 8th inning, the Rays scored six runs, capped off by a three-run home run by Evan Longoria. In the bottom of the 9th inning, down to his final strike, struggling Rays first baseman Dan Johnson hit a solo home run near the right field foul pole to tie the game. Already depleted from wanting to get pitchers who were not going to be on the postseason roster in, the Yankees went into extra innings with struggling pitchers. During Tampa Bay's half of the 12th inning, Evan Longoria hit his second home run of the game, a walk-off home run that cleared a short wall near the left field foul pole to win the game for the Rays just minutes after the Orioles' victory over the Red Sox.[24] The win clinched the American League Wild Card for the Rays.[25]

Seat No. 10 in the first row behind the right-field foul pole has been painted white in honor of Dan Johnson's, game-tying, ninth-inning, pinch-hit blast during Game 162. They have also renamed the section beyond the left field foul pole "162 Landing" in honor of Longoria's game winning, 12th-inning home run.

National League Wild Card race

The National League wild-card race came down to the fate of two games on the last day of the regular season.

St. Louis Cardinals at Houston Astros

Wednesday, September 28, 2011 – 7:05 pm (CDT) at Minute Maid Park in Houston, Texas

Team123456789RHE
St. Louis5010100018120
Houston000000000021
WP: Chris Carpenter (11–9)   LP: Brett Myers (7–14)
Home runs:
STL: Allen Craig (11)
HOU: None
Attendance: 24,359

The National League Central had been a two-way race late into the season with the Cardinals and Milwaukee Brewers vying for contention. After the Reds had fallen off, the Brewers had clinched the division.[26][27] The Cardinals battled back despite perennial all-star Albert Pujols serving on the disabled list and pitcher Adam Wainwright sitting out the entire year due to Tommy John surgery.[9] Upon Pujols' return, the Cardinals came within one game by defeating the Astros under nine innings of dominant pitching by ace pitcher Chris Carpenter.[28]

Philadelphia Phillies at Atlanta Braves

Wednesday, September 28, 2011 – 7:10 pm (EDT) at Turner Field in Atlanta, Georgia

Team12345678910111213RHE
Philadelphia10000010100014110
Atlanta10200000000003101
WP: Justin De Fratus (1–0)   LP: Scott Linebrink (4–4)   Sv: David Herndon (1)
Home runs:
PHI: None
ATL: Dan Uggla (36)
Attendance: 45,350

The Philadelphia Phillies had clinched a playoff berth, the division title, and the best league record for weeks. For most of the season, the Atlanta Braves had been in 2nd place in the National League East by a good margin and well ahead in the wildcard standings.[29] The Phillies had something to play for, a franchise record in wins. They battled back to force the game into extra innings where they won and in effect, not only eliminated the Braves from post-season contention,[30] but also set that record with 102, surpassing the previous record of 101 set back-to-back in 1976 and 1977 during their run of three straight division championships from 1976 to 1978.[31][32] Charlie Manuel also became the manager with most wins in the history of the Phillies with 646 wins, surpassing Gene Mauch, the manager of the Phillies when they collapsed in a similar way the Braves did in 1964.[31]

Notes

Some of the notable plays and events in the four games involved happened within minutes of the notable moments of other games involved, which can be seen when watching the four games simultaneously.[33] Some examples include:

  • The Braves taking a 3–1 lead over the Phillies on a two run home run by Dan Uggla minutes before the Orioles took a 2-1 lead on a two run home run by J.J. Hardy.
  • The first pitch of the Cardinals-Astros game taking place just seconds after Hardy hit his two run home run.
  • The Red Sox took a 3–2 lead on Dustin Pedroia’s solo shot mere seconds after the Yankees extended their lead to 6–0 on Mark Texiera’s solo home run (his second of the game).
  • The Phillies and Rays both coming back from down 2–3 and 0–7 respectively to tie their games and force extra innings during the entirety of the Red Sox–Orioles rain delay (both teams were an out away from losing their games when the game tying plays in each game happened, with the Rays being a strike away).
  • The Rays cutting their deficit down to one run on a three run home run by Evan Longoria minutes before the Cardinals won their game to guarantee at least a tie with the Braves.
  • Greg Golson being tagged out at third by Evan Longoria on a fielder’s choice seconds before Chris Davis hit a two-out double off of Jonathan Papelbon on the first pitch he saw.
  • Nolan Reimold hitting his game-tying ground rule double off of Papelbon on a 2–2 count to tie the game between the Orioles and Red Sox at 3 seconds after the Rays escaped the top of the 12th inning against the Yankees without allowing a run after allowing three base runners to reach base in the inning.
  • Longoria hitting a walk-off home run to give the Rays the wild card with an 8–7 win roughly three minutes after Robert Andino hit his walk-off double to give the Orioles a 4–3 win over the Red Sox.

Aftermath

The Rays would go on to lose the Division Series in four games to the Texas Rangers, winning only Game 1.

The Cardinals would go on to win the World Series over the Rangers, overcoming a 2–1 deficit in the Division Series and twice coming back from being a strike away from losing the 2011 World Series in Game 6, which was won on a walk-off home run by David Freese.

References

  1. ↑ Baxter, Kevin (September 29, 2011). "The wildest night ever; Cardinals, Rays earn final postseason spots after Braves, Red Sox collapse". Los Angeles Times. p. C1.
  2. ↑ GOOLD, DERRICK. "Cardinals claim wild card as Braves lose in the 13th". STLtoday.com. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
  3. ↑ "Red Sox miss out on postseason after loss to O's and Rays' win". ESPNBoston.com. ESPN Internet Ventures. Associated Press. September 29, 2011. Archived from the original on January 5, 2012. Retrieved January 7, 2012.
  4. ↑ "Evan Longoria homers in 12th as Rays storm into postseason". ESPNNewYork.com. ESPN Internet Ventures. Associated Press. September 29, 2011. Archived from the original on December 9, 2011. Retrieved January 7, 2012.
  5. ↑ Orioles rally for win, help keep Red Sox out of playoffs – The Bangor Daily News Retrieved May 1, 2012.
  6. ↑ Corcoran, Cliff (September 29, 2011). "Where collapses by Red Sox and Braves rank among worst ever". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved May 22, 2022.
  7. ↑ Jenkins, Bruce (September 29, 2011). "Wild-card Wednesday was plain crazy". San Francisco Chronicle. Archived from the original on February 6, 2012.
  8. ↑ Castrovince, Anthony (September 29, 2011). "Walk-off wins-day delivers grandest finales". MLB.com. Archived from the original on October 2, 2011.
  9. 1 2 Leach, Matthew (October 29, 2011). "Eleventh heaven: Cardinals are Series champs". MLB.com. Archived from the original on January 1, 2012. Retrieved January 6, 2012.
  10. ↑ Ulman, Howard (September 29, 2011). "Red Sox add another epic collapse to their history". The Boston Globe. Associated Press. Archived from the original on July 7, 2012. Retrieved January 7, 2012.
  11. ↑ Lundblad, Jeremy (September 29, 2011). "Red Sox numbers tell ugly tale". ESPNBoston.com. ESPN Internet Ventures. Archived from the original on October 26, 2011. Retrieved January 8, 2012.
  12. ↑ Krasny, Ros (April 1, 2011). "MIT professor picks Red Sox over rival Yankees in 2011". FoxNews.com. Reuters. Archived from the original on April 28, 2015. Retrieved January 21, 2012.
  13. ↑ MacMullan, Jackie (September 30, 2011). "Unlikable Red Sox flunked chemistry". ESPNBoston.com. ESPN Internet Ventures. Archived from the original on October 2, 2011. Retrieved October 1, 2011.
  14. ↑ Shaughnessy, Dan (September 29, 2011). "Still Tied, One Game Left". The Boston Globe. p. A1. Retrieved October 9, 2011.
  15. ↑ Edes, Gordon (September 29, 2011). "A hurt for the ages". ESPNBoston.com. Archived from the original on October 1, 2011. Retrieved January 7, 2011.
  16. ↑ Shaughnessy, Dan (September 29, 2011). "Dream Year Ends in Tatters". The Boston Globe. p. A1. Archived from the original on July 22, 2012. Retrieved September 29, 2011.
  17. ↑ Araton, Harvey (September 29, 2011). "One Out Away, Red Sox Lose to Seal September Meltdown". The New York Times. p. B11. Archived from the original on April 4, 2015. Retrieved October 9, 2011.
  18. ↑ Hardacker, Jonathan (September 29, 2011). "Robert Andino Happy to Send Red Sox Home 'Sad, Crying'". NESN.com. New England Sports Network. Archived from the original on October 3, 2011. Retrieved January 7, 2012.
  19. ↑ Connolly, Dan (September 29, 2011). "Spoiler Alert Andino's walk-off single completes Orioles' come-from-behind win over Red Sox, who see their postseason dreams crushed". The Baltimore Sun.
  20. ↑ Benjamin, Amalie (September 22, 2011). "Rays fall back after sweep by Yankees". The Boston Globe. Archived from the original on March 30, 2012. Retrieved October 3, 2011.
  21. ↑ Bryant, Howard (September 29, 2011). "Seasons change in a matter of minutes". ESPN.com. Archived from the original on October 26, 2011. Retrieved January 7, 2012.
  22. ↑ Matthews, Wallace (September 29, 2011). "Ivan Nova, Freddy Garcia to start". ESPNNewYork.com. ESPN Internet Ventures. Archived from the original on December 9, 2011. Retrieved January 7, 2012.
  23. ↑ "2011 Boston Red Sox Schedule, Box Scores and Splits". baseball-reference.com. Archived from the original on December 10, 2011. Retrieved January 14, 2012.
  24. ↑ Goodall, Fred (September 29, 2011). "Rays clinch AL wild card with stunning rally". 7online.com. Associated Press. Retrieved September 29, 2011.
  25. ↑ Chastain, Bill (September 29, 2011). "Down seven, Rays walk off with AL Wild Card". MLB.com. Archived from the original on June 17, 2013. Retrieved January 6, 2012.
  26. ↑ Fallstrom, R.B. (September 24, 2011). "Cubs beat Cards 5–1, give NL Central to Brewers". Yahoo! Sports. Associated Press. Archived from the original on July 16, 2012. Retrieved January 8, 2012.
  27. ↑ Fly, Colin (September 24, 2011). "Fielder, Braun lift Brewers to NL Central crown". Yahoo! Sports. Associated Press. Archived from the original on September 29, 2011. Retrieved January 8, 2012.
  28. ↑ Leach, Matthew (September 29, 2011). "Go Wild, folks: Cards headed to the postseason". MLB.com. Archived from the original on December 10, 2011. Retrieved January 7, 2012.
  29. ↑ O'Brien, David (September 29, 2011). "Collapse complete Braves lose final game 4–3 in 13 innings, 13 out of last 18". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. p. C1. Archived from the original on January 1, 2012. Retrieved January 7, 2012.
  30. ↑ Tierney, Mike (September 29, 2011). "Braves Complete Their Fall To Earth". The New York Times. p. B15. Archived from the original on April 4, 2015.
  31. 1 2 Brookover, Bob (September 29, 2011). "Marathon Milestones: Manuel, Phillies Break Team Records". The Philadelphia Inquirer. p. A1. Archived from the original on October 2, 2011.
  32. ↑ Parrillo, Ray (September 29, 2011). "Historic Victory". The Philadelphia Inquirer. p. D1.
  33. ↑ MLB September 28, 2011 Game 162 wild card chase in real time on YouTube
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