It was Cincinnati's third World Series appearance in six years, losing in 1970 to Baltimore and in 1972 to Oakland. It was the first of back-to-back championships for the Reds. For the Red Sox, the 1975 World Series was their first World Series appearance since losing to St. Louis in seven games in 1967. It would be 11 more years until Boston returned to the World Series in 1986, in which they suffered another seven-game loss to the New York Mets.
This was the fourth time in five years that a seven-game World Series winner (following Pittsburgh in 1971, and Oakland in 1972 and 1973) was outscored.
Reds third baseman Pete Rose was named World Series MVP. Rose batted .370 with 10 hits and two RBIs and scored 3 runs.
Ace pitchers Luis Tiant and Don Gullett were locked in a scoreless duel until the seventh inning. Tiant led off with a single and later scored Boston's first run on a single by Carl Yastrzemski. Then the floodgates opened: Reds reliever Clay Carroll walked Carlton Fisk to force in a run, Rico Petrocelli slapped a two-run single, Rick Burleson had an RBI single, and Cecil Cooper ended the scoring with a sacrifice fly. Tiant finished with a five-hitter against a team that had scored an MLB high 840 runs during the regular season.
Game 2 proved to be a very pivotal game as the Reds were on the brink of being down two games before rallying for victory in the ninth inning. Red Sox starter Bill Lee held the Reds to four hits and a run through eight innings. Johnny Bench led off the ninth with a double to right field. Lee was then replaced by right-handed closer Dick Drago. Bench moved to third on a groundout by Tony Pérez. After George Foster popped out for the second out, Dave Concepción hit a clutch single up the middle that Boston second baseman Denny Doyle fielded behind second base, but had no play at first as Bench scored to tie the game. After Concepcion stole second base, Ken Griffey hit a double into left-center field scoring Concepcion with the game-winner. Rawly Eastwick retired the Sox in the ninth to get the win and even the series.
The Reds' only other run scored in the fourth when Joe Morgan walked, went to third on a Bench single, and scored on a Pérez force out.
The Red Sox sandwiched the Reds' run with single tallies of their own in the first inning on an RBI single by Carlton Fisk, and in the sixth on an RBI single by Rico Petrocelli.
At home, the Reds prevailed in another squeaker in a game that featured the first major controversy of the series that involved the umpires.
For nine innings, the game was a homer-fest as each team put three over the wall. Fisk put the Sox on the board in the second with a homer off Reds starter Gary Nolan. The Reds countered by taking a 2–1 lead in the fourth when Tony Pérez walked and Johnny Bench hit a two-run shot off Sox starter Rick Wise. The Reds then chased Wise in the fifth when Dave Concepción and César Gerónimo hit back-to-back home runs. Pete Rose followed with a one-out triple and scored on Joe Morgan's sacrifice fly to give the Reds a 5–1 lead. The Sox scratched back in the sixth when Reds reliever Pat Darcy issued consecutive walks to Carl Yastrzemski and Fisk, wild-pitched Yastrzemski to third, and then gave up a sacrifice fly to Fred Lynn. In the seventh, former Cincinnati Red Bernie Carbo closed the gap to 5–3 with a pinch-hit homer off Clay Carroll. In the top of the ninth, with Reds closer Eastwick on the mound, Rico Petrocelli singled and Evans hit the game-tying home run, sending the game into extra innings.
After the Red Sox failed to score in the tenth, the Reds sent the bottom of the order to lead off the bottom of the tenth. Cesar Geronimo led off with a single off Jim Willoughby. Reds manager Sparky Anderson then sent pinch-hitter Ed Armbrister up to sacrifice in place of reliever Rawly Eastwick. Armbrister's bunt bounced high near the plate toward the first-base line. Boston catcher Carlton Fisk was quick to pounce on the ball in front of the plate as Armbrister was slow to get out of the box. He hesitated before running and appeared to collide with (or at least impede) Fisk as he was retrieving the ball. Fisk's hurried throw to second base to force out Geronimo sailed over shortstop Rick Burleson into center field as Geronimo went to third base and Armbrister to second. Fisk and Boston manager Darrell Johnson argued that Armbrister should have been ruled out for interference, but home plate umpire Larry Barnett ruled otherwise. The play stood and the Reds had the potential winning run on third with no outs. Willoughby then intentionally walked Pete Rose to load the bases and set up a force play at any base. Johnson then brought in left-hander Roger Moret, to face Ken Griffey, but Anderson countered with right-handed hitting Merv Rettenmund. Rettenmund struck out for out No. 1, but Joe Morgan knocked in Geronimo with the game-winner by hitting a deep fly to center over a drawn in outfield.
With the Reds leading the series 2–1, Luis Tiant pitched his second complete game win of the Series. More importantly, this win forced the Reds to win at least one of two games at Fenway Park to win the Series.
The Reds struck first off Tiant in the first on RBI doubles by Ken Griffey and Johnny Bench. The Sox, however, would get all the runs they needed in the fourth. Dwight Evans tied the game with a two-run triple, then Rick Burleson put the Sox ahead by doubling in Evans off Reds starter Fred Norman. Tiant, continuing his surprising hitting, singled Burleson to third. Burleson then scored on a Tony Pérez error on a ball hit by Juan Beníquez, while Tiant went to second. Carl Yastrzemski drove in Tiant with a single for what would turn out to be the winning run.
The Reds were able to counter with two runs in their half of the fourth on an RBI double by Dave Concepción and an RBI triple by César Gerónimo. The Reds had a shot at winning the game in the bottom of the ninth when, with two on and one out, Ken Griffey sent a deep drive into left-center that Fred Lynn made an over the shoulder catch. Joe Morgan then popped out to first on Tiant's 163rd pitch of the game. Boston's win tied the series at two games apiece and guaranteed a return to Fenway.
Reds' lefty Don Gullett pitched like an ace as the Reds won their final home game in Game5 to put Cincinnati on the brink of their first World Series championship in 35 years. Cincinnati first baseman and cleanup hitter Tony Pérez broke out of an 0–for–15 World Series slump with a pair of home runs while driving in four runs off Boston starter Reggie Cleveland. Pete Rose contributed an RBI double and Dave Concepción hit a sacrifice fly for the other Reds runs, while Gullett pitched 8+2⁄3 innings, limiting the powerful Boston lineup to five hits. Reds closer Rawly Eastwick came on to strike out Boston third baseman Rico Petrocelli for the game's final out.
With a travel day followed by three days of heavy rain in Boston, both pitching staffs got four days of rest. Red Sox manager Darrell Johnson was afforded the luxury of having his top two starting pitchers, Luis Tiant and Bill Lee, available for Games 6 and 7, respectively, while the Reds were able to have their ace, Don Gullett, available for a potential Game 7 after pitching a gem in Game 5.
With the Red Sox in a must win situation, Boston's Fred Lynn opened the scoring in the first with a two-out, three-run homer off Reds starter Gary Nolan. Meanwhile, Tiant breezed through the first four innings, holding the Reds scoreless. The Reds finally broke through in the fifth. With Ed Armbrister on third and Pete Rose on first, Ken Griffey tripled to deep center field on a ball that Lynn just missed making a leaping catch against the wall. He suffered a rib injury, but remained in the game; Lynn told moderator Bob Costas during MLB Network's "Top 20 games in the last 50 years" that, for a short time, he was barely conscious and couldn't feel his legs.[10]Johnny Bench singled Griffey home to tie the game at 3–3.[11]
With two outs in the seventh, George Foster put the Reds ahead with a two-run double high off the center field wall. In the top of the eighth, César Gerónimo led off and hit the first pitch down the right-field line for a home run to chase Tiant and give the Reds a 6–3 lead.
In the bottom of the eighth, Reds reliever Pedro Borbón gave up an infield single off his leg to Lynn, and then walked Rico Petrocelli to bring the tying run to the plate. Rawly Eastwick replaced Borbón, struck out Dwight Evans, and retired Rick Burleson on a line-out to left. Bernie Carbo was called on to bat for reliever Roger Moret. Sparky Anderson was on the top step of the dugout, ready to call in left-hander Will McEnaney to pitch to the left-hand hitting Carbo. Anderson said later that he was concerned that the Sox would call on right-handed Juan Beníquez to pinch hit for Carbo if he made the move. Carbo looked overmatched by Eastwick, missing on a swing for a 2–2 count; he fouled off two more pitches late, the latter just barely fought off to avoid a strikeout. On the next pitch, Carbo tied the game with a three-run home run to center field. It was his second pinch-hit homer in the series, tying the record set by Chuck Essegian in 1959.
As Carbo approached third base on his home run trot, Carbo yelled out to former teammate Rose, "Hey, Pete, don't you wish you were that strong?" To which Rose replied, "This is fun."
In the bottom of the ninth, the Red Sox appeared poised to win. Denny Doyle walked on four pitches and went to third on a Carl Yastrzemski single; McEnaney, the Reds' seventh pitcher, replaced Eastwick and intentionally walked Carlton Fisk, loading the bases with no outs to face the left-handed hitting Lynn. He flied out to Foster in foul territory in left; Doyle tagged up and attempted to score but was thrown out as Bench caught the ball on a bounce and made a sweeping tag from fair territory to nip him just before his hand touched the plate. With runners at first and third, McEnaney retired Petrocelli with a ground ball to end the jam.
Rose led off the top of the 11th and was awarded first base after a pitch lightly grazed him. Griffey bunted, but Fisk's throw forced out Rose at second base. Joe Morgan hit a deep drive to right off Dick Drago that looked to be for extra bases. Evans made a leaping catch near the visitors bullpen in deep right to rob Morgan and doubled-up Griffey at first.
In the top of the 12th, Boston's Rick Wise caught Gerónimo looking with two men on to end the threat. In the bottom of the inning, Pat Darcy, the Reds' eighth pitcher, remained in the game after retiring the previous six batters in order. As the game passed four hours, Fisk led off; with a 1–0 count, he lifted a sinker down the left-field line and the ball struck the foul pole well above the Green Monster.[11] In what has now become an iconic baseball film highlight, NBC's left-field game camera (in the scoreboard)[12] caught Fisk wildly waving his arms to his right after hitting the ball and watching its path while drifting down the first base line, as if he was trying to coax the ball to "stay fair." The ball indeed stayed fair and Fisk triumphantly leaped into the air as the Red Sox tied the Series. (The cameraman in the scoreboard was supposed to follow the flight of the ball but was distracted by a nearby rat and ended up capturing Fisk instead.)[13][11] This would be the last time in World Series play that a catcher hit a home run in extra innings until J. T. Realmuto did so in the 2022 World Series, 47 years later.[14] To date, this is the last World Series game the Reds have lost.
This game ranked No. 7 in ESPNSportsCentury Greatest Games of the 20th Century in 1999.
The game was scoreless until the third inning when Reds starter Don Gullett experienced control problems. After giving up an RBI single to Carl Yastrzemski, Gullett walked Carlton Fisk to load the bases. He then walked Rico Petrocelli and Dwight Evans to force in two more runs before striking out Rick Burleson for the final out. Gullett pitched a scoreless fourth before being relieved by Jack Billingham. The Reds bullpen pitched five scoreless innings to give the offense a chance to rally.
Boston starter Bill Lee was again sharp, as he shut out the Reds through five innings. In the sixth, with Pete Rose on first base and one out, Johnny Bench hit a routine grounder that appeared would be an inning-ending double play. Shortstop Burleson fielded the grounder and under-handed the ball to Denny Doyle covering second base to force Rose out at second. But as Doyle pivoted to make a throw to first base, Rose slid high and hard into Doyle to force an errant throw that sailed into the Boston dugout preventing the double play as Bench moved onto second base. On a 1–0 count, Lee threw a blooper pitch to Tony Pérez who slammed the ball over the Green Monster and onto Lansdowne Street for a two-run home run, his third home run in the final three Series games, to draw the Reds to within 3–2.
The Reds tied it in the seventh when Ken Griffey walked, stole second, and scored on a two-out single to centerfield by Rose.
In the ninth, Griffey led off with a walk, was sacrificed to second by César Gerónimo, and went to third on a groundout by Dan Driessen. Boston left-handed reliever Jim Burton then walked Rose to set up a forceout, but Joe Morgan reached down and blooped a low breaking ball into center field to score Griffey with the go-ahead run. It was the second time in the series Rose was intentionally walked prior to Morgan driving in the game-winning run. Morgan, the 1975 National League MVP, also knocked in the game-winner in Game 3.
Will McEnaney retired the Sox in order, with Yastrzemski flying out to center fielder Geronimo to end the game, clinching a World Series championship that had eluded the Reds for 35 years, and extending the Curse of the Bambino to 57 years. It would not be broken until 2004, after the Red Sox went 86 years without a championship.
This was the final World Series play-by-play assignment for Gowdy, who had been NBC's lead baseball announcer since 1966. Garagiola took over full-time as the network's primary play-by-play voice for baseball the following season. It was the only World Series broadcast for Stockton (who became a prominent national sportscaster forCBS, Fox, and TNT) and for Martin.
This was also the final Series broadcast for NBC Radio, which had retained exclusive rights to the event since 1957. CBS Radio would become the exclusive national radio network for MLB beginning the following season.
This is the earliest World Series telecast for which all games survive today in their entirety. Portions of many previous Series telecasts also survive, but the general practice of the networks in the past was to reuse old tapes to save money and space. All subsequent World Series telecasts since this one also have had all their games preserved.
Carl Michael Yastrzemski Sr., nicknamed "Yaz", is an American former professional baseball player who played his entire career with the Boston Red Sox of Major League Baseball (MLB). He started his career primarily as a left fielder, but also played 33 games as a third baseman. Later in his career, he was mainly a first baseman and designated hitter.
The 1967 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1967 season. The 64th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff between the American League (AL) champion Boston Red Sox and the National League (NL) champion St. Louis Cardinals. In a rematch of the 1946 World Series, the Cardinals won in seven games for their second championship in four years and their eighth overall. The Series was played from October 4 to 12 at Fenway Park and Busch Memorial Stadium. It was the first World Series since 1948 that did not feature the Yankees, Dodgers, or Giants.
The 1976 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1976 season. The 73rd edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff played between the National League (NL) champion Cincinnati Reds and the American League (AL) champion New York Yankees. The Reds swept the Series in four games to repeat as champions, avenging their 1939 and 1961 World Series losses to the Yankees. The 1976 Reds became, and remain, the only team to sweep an entire multi-tier postseason, one of the crowning achievements of the franchise's Big Red Machine era. They also became the third NL team to win consecutive World Series, and remain the last to do so.
The 1970 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1970 season. The 67th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff between the American League champion Baltimore Orioles and the National League champion Cincinnati Reds (102–60). The Orioles won, four games to one.
Bernardo Carbo is an American former professional baseball outfielder and designated hitter who played 12 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). He began his career with the Cincinnati Reds, and went on to play with five other teams, including two stints with the St. Louis Cardinals and Boston Red Sox.
The 1975 American League Championship Series pitted the Boston Red Sox against the three-time defending World Series champion Oakland Athletics for the right to advance to the World Series. The Red Sox swept the series in three games to win their first AL pennant in eight years, which ended Oakland's pursuit of a fourth consecutive World Series title.
Edwin Martin III was an American sportscaster, known primarily as a play-by-play announcer for Major League Baseball's Boston Red Sox from 1961 to 1992.
The 1976 National League Championship Series was a postseason series between the two division champions of the National League in the Cincinnati Reds and the Philadelphia Phillies. This was the eighth NLCS held in baseball history. For the fourth time in seven seasons, the Reds won the best-of-five series to reach the World Series. They did so in a three game sweep, winning easily in the first two games before ending the series in their last at bat in Game 3.
The history of the Boston Red Sox begins in 1901, as one of the original franchises of the American League.
James Arthur Willoughby is a former pitcher in Major League Baseball who played from 1971 through 1978 for the San Francisco Giants, Boston Red Sox and Chicago White Sox. Listed at 6' 2" (1.89 m), 185 lb. (84 k), he batted and threw right handed.
The 1975 National League Championship Series was a best-of-five match-up between the East Division champion Pittsburgh Pirates and the West Division champion Cincinnati Reds. It was the seventh NLCS in all. The Reds swept the Pirates in three games and went on to win the World Series against the Boston Red Sox.
The Cincinnati Reds, a Major League Baseball team, were originally members of the American Association from 1882 to 1889; the team has played in the National League ever since, being one of only five 19th-century teams still playing in its original city.
The 1967 Boston Red Sox season was the 67th season in the franchise's Major League Baseball history. The Red Sox finished first in the American League (AL) with a record of 92 wins and 70 losses. The team then faced the National League champion St. Louis Cardinals in the 1967 World Series, which the Red Sox lost in seven games.
The 1974 Boston Red Sox season was the 74th season in the franchise's Major League Baseball history. The Red Sox finished third in the American League East with a record of 84 wins and 78 losses, seven games behind the Baltimore Orioles.
The 1975 Boston Red Sox season was the 75th season in the franchise's Major League Baseball history. The Red Sox finished first in the American League East with a record of 95 wins and 65 losses. Following a sweep of the Oakland Athletics in the ALCS, the Red Sox lost the World Series to the Cincinnati Reds in seven games.
The 1977 Boston Red Sox season was the 77th season in the franchise's Major League Baseball history. The Red Sox finished tied for second in the American League East with a record of 97 wins and 64 losses, 2+1⁄2 games behind the New York Yankees.
The 1976 Cincinnati Reds season was a season in American baseball. The Reds entered the season as the reigning World Series champions. The Reds dominated the league all season and won their second consecutive National League West title with a record of 102–60, finishing ten games ahead of the Los Angeles Dodgers. With the best record in baseball, they went on to defeat the Philadelphia Phillies in the NLCS in three straight games to reach the World Series. They proceeded to win the title in four straight games over the New York Yankees. They were the third and most recent National League team to achieve this distinction, and the first since the 1921–22 New York Giants. The Reds drew 2,629,708 fans to their home games at Riverfront Stadium, an all-time franchise attendance record. As mentioned above, the Reds swept through the entire postseason with their sweeps of the Phillies and Yankees, achieving a record of 7-0. As of 2024, the Reds are the only team in baseball history to sweep through an entire postseason in the divisional era.
The 1978 American League East tie-breaker game was a one-game extension to Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1978 regular season. The game was played at Fenway Park in Boston on the afternoon of Monday, October 2 between the rival New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox to determine the winner of the American League's (AL) East Division.
Carlton Fisk's 1975 World Series home run was a baseball play that occurred in Game 6 of the 1975 World Series on October 21, 1975, at Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts. The Boston Red Sox defeated the Cincinnati Reds, 7–6, forcing a deciding seventh game, when Carlton Fisk hit a home run in the 12th inning home run to cap off what many consider to be the best World Series game ever played.
The 1975 Major League Baseball postseason was the playoff tournament of Major League Baseball for the 1975 season. The winners of each division advance to the postseason and face each other in a League Championship Series to determine the pennant winners that face each other in the World Series.
References
Adelman, Tom. (2003). The Long Ball: The Summer of '75—Spaceman, Catfish, Charlie Hustle, and the Greatest World Series Ever Played. Boston, Massachusetts: Little, Brown. ISBN0-316-06899-3.
Frost, Mark. (2009). Game Six: Cincinnati, Boston, and the 1975 World Series: The Triumph of America's Pastime. New York: Hyperion. ISBN1-4013-2310-3.
Gammons, Peter. (1985). Beyond the Sixth Game: What's Happened to Baseball Since the Greatest Game in World Series History. Boston, Massachusetts: Houghton Mifflin. ISBN0-395-35345-9.
Hornig, Doug. (2003). The Boys of October: How the 1975 Boston Red Sox Embodied Baseball's Ideals—and Restored Our Spirits. New York: McGraw-Hill. ISBN0-07-140247-0.
Lowitt, Bruce. (1999). "Rats! Fisk's homer" St. Petersburg Times, November 23, 1999
Neft, David S., and Richard M. Cohen. (1990). The World Series. 1st ed. New York: St Martins. ISBN0-312-03960-3. (Neft and Cohen 355–360)
Posnanski, Joe. (2009). The Machine: A Hot Team, a Legendary Season, and a Heart-stopping World Series: The Story of the 1975 Cincinnati Reds. New York: William Morrow. ISBN0-06-158256-5.
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