2001 World Series

Baseball in 2001 will always be remembered not for the games that took place during the regular season, but for the patriotism and heroic tributes that took place in the wake of the 9/11 terrorists attacks. It somehow seemed fitting that the city of New York, led by Mayor Rudy Giuliani, would show immeasurable strength and host the event after suffering such devastating loss a few months earlier. As usual, the Yankees remained on top of the American League as baseball's most storied franchise prepared to face one of its newest as the National League's Arizona Diamondbacks had just won their first pennant in their fourth year of existence. Many fans felt that this was the year to beat the perennial champions and as a banner hung at Arizona's Bank One Ballpark stated:

The simple, yet bold statement was well written and foretold the future as the youngest expansion team in Major League history would come from behind during the ninth inning to dethrone the kings of baseball.

Midway through Game 1 it was difficult to tell who were the three time defending champions and which was the franchise making it's Classic debut. Arizona ace Curt Schilling continued his remarkable postseason with seven superb innings and Luis Gonzalez homered, drove in two runs and scored twice as the Diamondbacks stunned the Yanks, 9-1. Taking advantage of a rough start by New York's Mike Mussina and some sloppy defense, the Diamondbacks seized the opening advantage that resulted in titles nearly 60 percent of the time. Nothing changed the following day as Randy Johnson tossed a three hitter and Matt Williams added a three run homer in the seventh for 4-0 victory. The Big Unit was dominant from the start, allowing just a walk and a single over the first seven innings. He struck out eleven and improved to 3-1 in the postseason. In his last three outings, he allowed just two runs and thirteen hits in twenty-five innings.

New York finally bounced back in Game 3 as Roger Clemens and Mariano Rivera combined on a three hitter and Scott Brosius snapped a sixth inning tie with an RBI single for the 2-1 triumph. Leading two-games-to-none, Arizona had a chance to put a stranglehold on the series with a win. The Diamondbacks got a great outing from starter Brian Anderson but committed three crucial errors, three wild pitches and ran themselves out of the opening inning. Despite the win, the Yankees continued to struggle offensively. They got only seven hits, including a home run by Jorge Posada in the second, but the 1-2 combo of Clemens and Rivera prevented an Arizona attack that scored thirteen runs in the first two games. Shutdown by the return of Schilling (on three days' rest), the defending champions were staring at the possibility of a three-games-to-one deficit in Game 4. With one out, Paul O'Neill shot an opposite-field single in front of left fielder Luis Gonzalez and after Bernie Williams struck out, Tino Martinez hit the first pitch he saw from reliever Byung-Hyun Kim over the wall in right-center field. As the ball cleared the outfield barrier, the hometown crowd of 55,863 erupted as the invigorated Yankees spilled out of the dugout. The stadium that had fallen deadly silent after the Diamondbacks scored two runs (in the eighth) was deafening now and would not stop celebrating until Martinez came out on the deck for a curtain call. Rivera (1-0) cruised through the tenth and improved to 2-0 with five saves and a 0.71 ERA in nine postseason appearances. Derek Jeter completed the cycle in what had evolved into one of the most memorable games of all time by lining a 3-2 pitch over the right-field wall for the game-winner.

Game 5 looked to go the distance as well with Mussina returning to save face against Miguel Batista. The veteran right-hander improved greatly and allowed only five hits (including a pair of solo home runs in the fifth) while walking three and striking out ten. One of the two solo homers hit in the fifth came off the bat of little-used backup Rod Barajas (a .160 hitter in the regular season) who was in for starter Damian Miller (a late scratch with a strained calf). With the Diamondbacks holding a 2-0 lead, Arizona manager Bob Brenly returned to Kim to start the ninth. Jorge Posada opened the inning with a double but the Korean sidearmer easily retired the next two batters. With one out to go, things finally appeared to go in Kim's favor, but Scott Brosius begged to differ with a clutch, two-run blast that tied the game at two apiece. Needles to say, the repentive reliever was removed immediately in favor of Mike Morgan, who lasted two-innings himself before being replaced by Albie Lopez in the 12th. Despite Arizona's fresh arm, Game 4's finale was replayed after Alfonso Soriano singled (with one out) scoring Chuck Knoblauch with the 3-2, game-winning run. After sprinting to a two game lead, the National League champs were now forced into a do-or-die situation for Game 6. Once again, Johnson returned for Arizona to extend the race and responded with a brilliant six hitter that was sweetened with seven strikeouts. At the plate, Johnson's teammates dominated as well, scoring fifteen times over the first four innings for a shocking 15-2 massacre.

Game 7 looked to extend the Yankees consecutive-win streak, but the "never-say-die" Diamondbacks rose to the challenge and put together one of the greatest late-game comebacks in World Series history. After Kim had surrendered the trio of heartbreaking home runs in New York, the Diamondbacks returned home and rallied against the incomparable Rivera who had converted twenty-three straight postseason saves and had struck out the side in the eighth (with a 2-1 lead). As Luis Gonzalez stepped up to the plate in the bottom of the ninth, the Yankees infield moved in to prevent base-runner Jay Bell from scoring. The positional strategy proved disastrous as "Gonzo" connected for a shallow looping single (that just cleared the infield in center) sending home the winning run and sealing the World Series title. The Diamondbacks (many of them veterans getting their first taste of the World Series) exploded from the dugout as the "neighborhood bully" Yankees had finally fallen to the "new kids on the block".