Yankees vs Red Sox ALCS '04?

Question

I was wondering if there was anyone else who remembered this because my friend told me about how the Red Sox won because of the low wall in Right Field. He said that one of the Yankees hit a ground-rule double over the right field wall, where as in any other stadium it would've been a bases-clearing double/triple. He said that it would've ended the series in an earlier game. I was just wondering if anyone else noticed that way back when.

Answer 1

That did happen.  I'm not sure if that was the only incident that cost them the series however.  

It's not just the fact that the wall is low, it had to do with it being the short distance to the fence in right Field.  In any other ball park, the right fielder would be playing deeper and it may have been caught for an out.

Answer 2

Here's what I remember.  Bottom of the ninth, Yanks lead the series 3-0, Yanks lead the game 4-3.  Mariano Rivera, the greatest closer in post-season history, is on to close out the hapless Red Sox.  Kevin Millar leads off with a walk.  David Roberts comes on to pinch run.  His whole career as a base stealer is focused on this moment.  He takes a big lead.  Rivera throws over several times to hold Roberts on.  Rivera pitches to Mueller.  Roberts goes.  And takes second just safely.   Mueller singles up the middle, scoring Roberts and tying the game.  A couple of innings later, Big Papi hits a long fly ball to the Red Sox bullpen.  Jump on his back fellas, says Joe Castiglione.  The next night, down 3 games to 1, Big Papi does it again, driving in Damon.  The next night, in Yankee Stadium the Red Sox defy the odds by winning again , this time on Bellhorn's disputed home run to left.  And in game 7, Damon homers twice, driving a stake in the heart of the team he would jump ship to 14 months later.  That's what I remember.  The other stuff is just ground rules that have applied for the better part of a century in those two parks.

Answer 3

Ya thats true

Answer 4

Yes, that is true. In the top of 9th inning of Game 5 with the score tied 4-4, Ruben Sierra was at first for the Yankees with 2 out, when Tony Clark lined a ground rule double down the RF line. In any other stadium, this would be an RBI double or maybe even triple (though Clark is a slow runner). The Yankees would've taken a 5-4 lead, and since the Sox didn't score in the bottom of the 9th, probably would have won the series that night. Instead, they got Miguel Cairo to pop out with 2 RISP.

To whoever said that the RF would play deeper in a different park, that's up for debate, but it is possible. As a Yankee fan, this play is the one that annoys me more than the rest. Of course, it doesn't help that in game 6, Clark had a chance to win it when Foulke served up a meatball in the 9th and he missed it and struck out.

Game 7, I don't remember exactly what happened, or if something was wrong with him, but WHY IN THE WORLD WASN'T EL DUQUE STARTING?! He's been known as a big-game pitcher, and up to that point he only had 1 career postseason loss. I know he started 3 days earlier, but it wouldn't have been too hard to do better than what Brown did. I think he pitched 1.2 IP. In the words of Jeremy Shockey, they got "outplayed AND outcoached" that series. I still love Torre, and think he was a GREAT manager, but come on. Kevin Brown had proven his inconsistancy all season, then again in Game 3, and you send him out there to start game 7? Confusing...

Answer 5

Maybe so, but remember this, it didn't. The Yankees choked, the Sox won.