Game 1
Tim Wakefield was the starting pitcher for the Red Sox, Woody Williams for the Cardinals. In the bottom of the 1st inning, Williams gave up a leadoff double to Johnny Damon, then hit Orlando Cabrera in the shoulder with a wild pitch. After Manny Ramirez flied out to deep right field, David Ortiz followed with a three-run home run. Still in the 1st, Kevin Millar scored on a Bill Mueller single to put the Red Sox up 4-to-0.
In the top of the 2nd inning, Jim Edmonds reached base on a bunt single. He would later score on a Mike Matheny sacrifice fly to make the score 4-1. Larry Walker homered to right field in the top of the 3rd inning to cut the lead to 4-2, but the Red Sox stopped the progress of the Cardinals with a double play which retired Albert Pujols and Scott Rolen. In the bottom of the 3rd, a single by Damon scored Mueller and chased Woody Williams. Dan Haren replaced him. Cabrera drove in Doug Mirabelli with a single. Mark Bellhorn scored on a fielder's choice to shortstop Edgar Rentería to widen the Boston lead to 7-2. Preventing further damage, Kevin Millar grounded out with the bases loaded to end the 3rd.
In the top of the 4th inning, Edmonds scored again on a Matheny sacrifice fly, with Reggie Sanders scoring on a throwing error by first baseman Kevin Millar. Tony Womack, who had moved to third base on the error, scored on a So Taguchi ground out to third baseman Bill Mueller, cutting the Red Sox lead to two. In the top of the 6th inning, So Taguchi reached on an infield single, advancing to second when Boston pitcher Bronson Arroyo threw the ball into the stands. Cardinal shortstop Edgar Rentería doubled on a line drive to center fielder Johnny Damon, scoring Taguchi. A Larry Walker double drove in Rentería, tying the game at 7.
In the bottom of the 7th inning, a Manny Ramírez single, combined with a poor throw by Jim Edmonds, led to a run by Mark Bellhorn; the Red Sox regained the lead, 8-to-7. A David Ortiz line drive connected with the collarbone of second baseman Tony Womack, sending him to the bench, and Orlando Cabrera scored to put the Red Sox up 9-7. Marlon Anderson replaced Womack.
In the top of the 8th inning, with one out, Mike Matheny singled and was replaced at first by pinch-runner Jason Marquis. Pinch hitter Roger Cedeno followed with another base hit, sending Marquis to second. With Boston closer Keith Foulke now pitching, Edgar Rentería singled on a ground ball to left fielder Manny Ramírez. Jason Marquis scored on a Ramírez fielding error on that play. In the next at bat, Larry Walker hit a single to Ramírez, who fumbled the catch into a second error, and Roger Cedeño scored to tie the game at 9. After an intentional walk to Albert Pujols, the Cardinals had the bases loaded with one out. Foulke, however, induced Scott Rolen to pop out to third and struck out Jim Edmonds. The Red Sox answered in the bottom of the inning, however. After Jason Varitek reached on a fielding error by Rentería, Mark Bellhorn homered off the right field foul pole, and the Red Sox led 11-9. Bellhorn thus became the first second baseman to hit home runs in three consecutive playoff games, the first two coming in games 6 and 7 of the 2004 American League Championship Series against the Yankees.
In the top of the 9th inning, Keith Foulke struck out Cedeño with a runner at second to end the game. Despite blowing an early lead, the Red Sox won 11-to-9, setting a new record for the highest scoring World Series opening game. The previous record had been set in 1932.
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Team |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
6 |
7 |
8 |
9 |
R |
H |
E |
|
St. Louis |
0 |
1 |
1 |
3 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
9 |
11 |
1 |
|
Boston |
4 |
0 |
3 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
2 |
X |
11 |
13 |
4 |
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WP: Keith Foulke (1-0) LP: Julián Tavárez (0-1) |
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HRs: StL – Larry Walker (1) Bos – David Ortiz (1), Mark Bellhorn (1) |
Game 2
October 24: Boston's Fenway Park was again the site for game 2. The Cardinals' starting pitcher was Matt Morris, while Curt Schilling started for the Red Sox.
Schilling allowed a two-out double to Albert Pujols, but escaped without allowing a run when Scott Rolen's hard-hit line drive was snared by third baseman Bill Mueller. In the home half, Manny Ramírez and David Ortiz walked with two out, setting the stage for Jason Varitek to bring both runners home with a triple that landed in the deepest part of the yard.
The Red Sox made their first of four errors in the game in the top of the 2nd inning, when third baseman Bill Mueller dropped a foul fly off the bat of Jim Edmonds. But Schilling bore down and got Edmonds out. Reggie Sanders walked and Tony Womack singled, but Mueller redeemed himself by catching a Mike Matheny line drive and tagging the running Sanders for a double play.
St. Louis reached the scoreboard in the 4th inning, thanks to Boston's second error. With Pujols on third, Sanders hit a ball that Mueller booted, allowing Pujols to score and narrow the gap to 2-1.
Boston wasted no time again extending their lead. Kevin Millar was hit by a Morris pitch, and Mueller doubled to right with two out, putting runners on first and third for Mark Bellhorn, who hit a ball almost as far as Varitek's first-inning blast, scoring both runners and making it a 4-1 game.
Cal Eldred relieved Morris in the 5th inning, and he was victimized in the 6th. Trot Nixon led off with a single to center. With two out, Johnny Damon singled to left and then Orlando Cabrera hit a ball midway up the Green Monster in left field that plated both Nixon and Damon, stretching the Red Sox advantage to 6-1.
In the top of the 6th, Mueller's bad day in the field continued, as he committed his World Series record-tying third error of the game, misplaying a ground ball hit by Scott Rolen. Bellhorn failed to play a ground ball by Edmonds a moment later, but the Sox got out of the jam when Mueller redeemed himself by fielding Reggie Sanders's ground ball for a fielder's choice.
The Cardinals would score their last run in the 8th inning. Reliever Mike Timlin walked Edgar Rentería, who moved to third on a grounder by Larry Walker and a single by Pujols. Scott Rolen then hit a sacrifice fly to center field, bringing Rentería home with the game's final run. Keith Foulke came on to strike out Jim Edmonds to end the rally.
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Team |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
6 |
7 |
8 |
9 |
R |
H |
E |
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St. Louis |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
2 |
5 |
0 |
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Boston |
2 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
0 |
X |
6 |
8 |
4 |
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WP: Curt Schilling (1-0) LP: Matt Morris (0-1) |
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Game 3
October 26: For Game 3, the scene shifted to Busch Stadium in St. Louis, Missouri.
Manny Ramírez opened the scoring for the Red Sox with two out in the top of the 1st inning, sending a 2-2 pitch from the Cardinals' starting pitcher, former Red Sox player Jeff Suppan, into the bleachers over the wall in left-center field, which is 372 feet from home plate.
The starting pitcher for the Red Sox was Pedro Martinez. In the bottom of the 1st, the Cardinals loaded the bases with one out, but Jim Edmonds hit a fly ball to left fielder Ramirez, who threw home to catcher Jason Varitek to retire Larry Walker attempting to score from third, for an inning-ending double play. Replays showed that Walker had taken off because Albert Pujols, the runner at second, had led too far off the base, and would easily have been doubled off.
The Cardinals threatened again in the top of the 3rd inning, as Suppan beat out an infield single to third base and Edgar Rentería delivered a double to right-center field. But Walker grounded to first, and Suppan hesitated in his attempt to score. David Ortiz, making a rare appearance at first base (as there is no designated hitter in the National League), took the throw from second baseman Mark Bellhorn, retired Walker, and threw to third, where Bill Mueller tagged Suppan for a double play.
Trot Nixon extended the Red Sox lead to 2-0 in the top of the 4th, hitting a single to right field that scored Mueller, who had started the rally with a two-out double to left center.
Johnny Damon led off the Red Sox's 5th inning with a double to right, confounding Walker, who had trouble navigating the wet grass and warning track. Orlando Cabrera followed with a single to right, and Ramírez singled to left, scoring Damon. After Ortiz flied to center and Varitek grounded into a fielder's choice, Mueller singled sharply past first base, allowing Cabrera to score the Red Sox's fourth run. At that point, Cardinals manager Tony La Russa replaced Suppan with Al Reyes (Cardinals starting pitchers failed to finish the 5th inning in all 3 games played so far), who got the final out.
Martinez' outing ended after the 7th inning. He finished with six strikeouts, two walks, and three hits allowed. He retired the last 14 hitters, beginning with Walker's grounder. Mike Timlin came on to pitch the 8th.
Walker homered to center field off Keith Foulke with one out in the Cardinals' 9th to break up the shutout, as the rain returned. Foulke escaped further damage, and the Red Sox won the game 4-1, their seventh straight playoff victory. Walker's homer was the first and only run allowed by Foulke during the 2004 playoffs.
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Team |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
6 |
7 |
8 |
9 |
R |
H |
E |
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Boston |
1 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
2 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
4 |
9 |
0 |
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St. Louis |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
1 |
4 |
0 |
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WP: Pedro Martínez (1-0) LP: Jeff Suppan (0-1) |
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HRs: Bos – Manny Ramírez (1) StL – Larry Walker (2) |
Game 4
October 27: The fourth and final game of the 2004 World Series also took place at Busch Stadium.
Johnny Damon, the game's first batter, got the scoring under way for the Red Sox with a home run into the bullpen in right field. It was the first World Series game-opening homer since Derek Jeter of the New York Yankees in the 2000 World Series against the New York Mets.
Against the Cardinals' starting pitcher, Jason Marquis, Manny Ramírez singled with one out in the 3rd inning to equal the postseason hitting streak record of 17 games (tied with Hank Bauer and Derek Jeter). David Ortiz followed with a double down the right-field line. Jason Varitek hit a ground ball to first which Albert Pujols fielded, firing home to Yadier Molina, who tagged Ramirez for the inning's second out. But Marquis then walked Bill Mueller and gave up a double to Trot Nixon off the wall in right-center field, scoring Ortiz and Varitek, and missing a grand slam by a mere 2 feet. Nixon actually got his signs messed up, thinking he had a green light to swing on a 3 ball, no strike count, a rarity in baseball since it forces the opposing pitcher to throw a strike.
In the top of the eighth, Mueller led off with a single to right-center off reliever Danny Haren, and Nixon followed with his third double of the night, down the right-field line. Gabe Kapler pinch-ran for Nixon, and Cardinals manager Tony La Russa countered by calling on Jason Isringhausen to try to shut the door. It was Isringhausen's first appearance of the series, as the Cards generally use him as their closer. Isringhausen promptly walked Mark Bellhorn, loading the bases, but he got out of the inning with two strikeouts and another outstanding fielding play by Pujols. With the infield in, he snagged a Damon grounder and threw home, forcing out Mueller.
Lowe's night on the mound ended when he was pinch-hit for in the eighth inning. He finished with four strikeouts, one walk, and three hits allowed in his seven shutout innings, making three consecutive no-earned-run games for Boston starting pitchers (20 innings total). He became the winning pitcher in the deciding game of all three postseason series.
Bronson Arroyo came on to pitch the bottom of the eighth, and he walked Reggie Sanders with one out before yielding to reliever Alan Embree, who struck out pinch-hitter Hector Luna and got Larry Walker to pop up, ending the inning.
Keith Foulke, the Red Sox closer, came in to pitch the bottom of the ninth. Pujols started the inning by lacing a single through Foulke's legs. Scott Rolen flied to Kapler in right for the first out. Foulke then struck out Jim Edmonds and got Edgar Rentería to bounce back to the mound, ending the game and the Series with a 3-0 Red Sox victory. In a somewhat fitting coincidence, their World Series victory came 18 years to the day (October 27) after their loss to the New York Mets in the 1986 World Series, and on the night of a lunar eclipse. As well, Renteria, who would make the last out, wore number 3 for the Cardinals, the same number made famous (or infamous) by Babe Ruth when he played for the Yankees. This combination of coincidences convinced many that the "Curse of the Bambino" had finally been vanquished. Also, outfielders Johnny Damon(whose number was 18) and Gabe Kapler (whose number was 19) ran to jump into each others arms, and then ran next to each other to jump into the victory pile, in which some fans claim was "1918" fading away. Manny Ramírez was named MVP.
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Team |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
6 |
7 |
8 |
9 |
R |
H |
E |
|
Boston |
1 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
3 |
9 |
0 |
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St. Louis |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
4 |
0 |
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WP: Derek Lowe (1-0) LP: Jason Marquis (0-1) |
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HRs: Bos – Johnny Damon (1) |