| 1996 National League Division Series | |||||||||||||
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| Dates | October 1 – 5 | ||||||||||||
| Television | ESPN (in St. Louis) NBC (in San Diego) | ||||||||||||
| TV announcers | Chris Berman andBuck Martinez (in St. Louis) Bob Costas,Joe Morgan, andBob Uecker (in San Diego) | ||||||||||||
| Radio | CBS | ||||||||||||
| Radio announcers | Gene Elston andGary Cohen | ||||||||||||
| Teams | |||||||||||||
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| Dates | October 2 – 5 | ||||||||||||
| Television | ESPN (Game 1) Fox (Games 2–3) | ||||||||||||
| TV announcers | Chris Berman andBuck Martinez (Game 1) Joe Buck andTim McCarver (Games 2–3) | ||||||||||||
| Radio | CBS | ||||||||||||
| Radio announcers | Jerry Coleman andJim Hunter | ||||||||||||
| Umpires | Jim Quick,Gerry Davis,Dana DeMuth,Frank Pulli,Harry Wendelstedt,Greg Bonin (Padres–Cardinals, Games 1–2; Braves–Dodgers, Game 3) Steve Rippley,Eric Gregg,Tom Hallion,Terry Tata,Bruce Froemming,Bill Hohn (Braves–Dodgers, Games 1–2; Padres–Cardinals, Game 3) | ||||||||||||
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The1996National League Division Series (NLDS), the opening round of theNational League side in Major League Baseball’s1996 postseason, began on Tuesday, October 1, and ended on Saturday, October 5, with the champions of the three NL divisions—along with a "wild card" team—participating in two best-of-five series. The teams were:
The St. Louis Cardinals and Atlanta Braves both swept their Division Series, and went on to meet in theNL Championship Series (NLCS). The Braves would rally to win that series four games to three and become the National League champion, but would lose to theAmerican League championNew York Yankees in the1996 World Series.
St. Louis won the series, 3–0.
| Game | Date | Score | Location | Time | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | October 1 | San Diego Padres – 1,St. Louis Cardinals – 3 | Busch Stadium (II) | 2:39 | 54,193[2] |
| 2 | October 3 | San Diego Padres – 4,St. Louis Cardinals – 5 | Busch Stadium (II) | 2:55 | 56,752[3] |
| 3 | October 5 | St. Louis Cardinals – 7, San Diego Padres – 5 | Jack Murphy Stadium | 3:32 | 53,899[4] |
Atlanta won the series, 3–0.
| Game | Date | Score | Location | Time | Attendance |
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| 1 | October 2 | Atlanta Braves – 2, Los Angeles Dodgers – 1(10) | Dodger Stadium | 3:08 | 47,428[5] |
| 2 | October 3 | Atlanta Braves – 3, Los Angeles Dodgers – 2 | Dodger Stadium | 2:08 | 51,916[6] |
| 3 | October 5 | Los Angeles Dodgers – 2,Atlanta Braves – 5 | Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium | 3:19 | 52,529[7] |
Busch Stadium (II) inSt. Louis
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |||||||||||||||||||||
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| San Diego | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| St. Louis | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | X | 3 | 6 | 0 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| WP:Todd Stottlemyre (1–0) LP:Joey Hamilton (0–1) Sv:Dennis Eckersley (1) Home runs: SD:Rickey Henderson (1) STL:Gary Gaetti (1) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Cardinals and Padres met for the first time in the postseason. A three-run home run byGary Gaetti offJoey Hamilton in the first inning put the Cardinals up for good, despite being shut out by Hamilton for the next five innings.Todd Stottlemyre pitched masterfully, allowing only a home run byRickey Henderson.Rick Honeycutt andDennis Eckersley shut the Padres down for the win.
Busch Stadium (II) inSt. Louis
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |||||||||||||||||||||
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| San Diego | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 6 | 0 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| St. Louis | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | X | 5 | 5 | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| WP:Rick Honeycutt (1–0) LP:Doug Bochtler (0–1) Sv:Dennis Eckersley (2) Home runs: SD:Ken Caminiti (1) STL: None | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
A well fought Game 2 saw the Cardinals squander two leads.Scott Sanders facedAndy Benes, a former Padre.Willie McGee put the Cardinals on top on the third with an RBI single after two walks.Ken Caminiti tied the game with a leadoff home run in the fifth. In the bottom of the inning, Sanders allowed two singles and a walk to load the bases with one out beforeRon Gant cleared them with a double offDario Veras to make it 4–1 Cardinals. In the sixth, after back-to-back one-out singles, a two-run single byTony Gwynn aided by center fielderWillie McGee's throwing error made it a one-run game in the Padres sixth. In the eighth, Benes allowed a leadoff single and walk. A sacrifice bunt moved the runners up offRick Honeycutt before an RBI ground out bySteve Finley tied the game, but in the bottom half,Doug Bochtler walked two and threw a wild pitch to put runners on second and third with one out.Tom Pagnozzi's ground out offTrevor Hoffman scoredBrian Jordan and put the Cardinals up 5–4.Dennis Eckersley got his second save of the postseason with a perfect ninth.
Jack Murphy Stadium inSan Diego
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |||||||||||||||||||||
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| St. Louis | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 13 | 0 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| San Diego | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 11 | 2 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| WP:T.J. Mathews (1–0) LP:Trevor Hoffman (0–1) Sv:Dennis Eckersley (3) Home runs: STL:Ron Gant (1),Brian Jordan (1) SD:Ken Caminiti 2 (3) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
In Game 3, the Cardinals looked toDonovan Osborne to put the Padres away. Opposing the potential sweep wasAndy Ashby.Brian Jordan put the Cardinals ahead when he singled to center field to scoreRoyce Clayton, who walked to lead off and moved to second on a single. After back-to-back one-out singles,Chris Gomez's fielder's choice andJody Reed's double scored a run each to put the Padres up 2–1. ThenKen Caminiti homered to make it 3–1 in the third. An RBI single in the bottom of the fourth by Reed after back-to-back leadoff singles made it 4–1 Padres and Osborne was done. A leadoff homer by Ron Gant made it 4–2 in the sixth. Then, Jordan singled, stole second, and scored on a one-out triple byJohn Mabry.Tim Worrell relieved Ashby and allowed an RBI single toTom Pagnozzi to tie the game at four. The Cardinals would take the lead in the seventh whenRay Lankford scored on a bases-loaded double play by Gant. Caminiti's second home run of the game offRick Honeycutt tied the game in the eighth, However, after a walk in the ninth, Jordan hit a two-run home run offTrevor Hoffman that proved to be the series winner. A one-out single byRickey Henderson in the ninth put the tying run at the plate but nothing would be made of it as Eckersley got his third save in as many tries to win the series.
1996 NLDS(3–0):St. Louis Cardinals overSan Diego Padres
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |||||||||||||||||||||
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| St. Louis Cardinals | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 15 | 24 | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| San Diego Padres | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 10 | 25 | 3 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Total attendance: 164,844 Average attendance: 54,948 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | R | H | E | ||||||||||||||||||||
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| Atlanta | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Los Angeles | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| WP:John Smoltz (1–0) LP:Antonio Osuna (0–1) Sv:Mark Wohlers (1) Home runs: ATL:Javy López (1) LAD: None | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Braves were heavy favorites against the Dodgers, who sneaked into the playoffs on a Wild Card berth. This would be managerBill Russell's only postseason series as Dodgers manager.
The Braves sent 24-game winnerJohn Smoltz to the mound for Game 1. Opposing Smoltz would beRamón Martínez. The Braves struck first whenFred McGriff's sacrifice fly broughtMarquis Grissom, who singled to lead off, stole second and moved to third on a groundout, home in the fourth.Todd Hollandsworth tied the game with an RBI-double in the fifth after a lead off double byGreg Gagne. Smoltz and Martinez dueled for eight innings, when Martinez left the game. When the game moved to extra innings, eventual playoff MVPJavy López hit the go-ahead home run in the tenth offAntonio Osuna.Mark Wohlers recorded the save and the Braves led the series 1–0.
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |||||||||||||||||||||
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| Atlanta | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 5 | 2 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Los Angeles | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 0 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| WP:Greg Maddux (1–0) LP:Ismael Valdez (0–1) Sv:Mark Wohlers (2) Home runs: ATL:Ryan Klesko (1),Fred McGriff (1),Jermaine Dye (1) LAD: None | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Greg Maddux facedIsmael Valdez in Game 2. Another pitcher's duel took place.Todd Hollandsworth singled to lead off the first and moved to second on aRyan Klesko error. Hollandsworth moved to third on a groundout, then scored onMike Piazza's groundout. However, Klesko homered with one out in the top half to tie the game at one. The Dodgers took the lead again when Piazza singled to lead off the fourth and moved to second on an error byMarquis Grissom, thenRaul Mondesi's RBI double made it 2–1 Dodgers. Valdez had pitched six innings when Fred McGriff led off the seventh inning with a home run to tie the game at two. After Klesko was called out on strikes,Jermaine Dye hit a home run to give the Braves a 3–2 lead to knock Valdez out of the game and give him the loss.Mark Wohlers got another save in the ninth as the Braves now led the series 2–0 going home.
Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium inAtlanta
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |||||||||||||||||||||
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| Los Angeles | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Atlanta | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | X | 5 | 7 | 0 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| WP:Tom Glavine (1–0) LP:Hideo Nomo (0–1) Sv:Mark Wohlers (3) Home runs: LAD: None ATL:Chipper Jones (1) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Hideo Nomo facedTom Glavine for Game 3. The night would sour for Nomo as he gave up a first-inning run, thanks to a McGriff double that scoredChipper Jones, who singled with two outs, and squandered the series in the fourth. Glavine doubled with two outs, then Grissom walked. A double byMark Lemke scored both Glavine and Grissom. Then Jones homered to put the Braves up 5–0. Nomo was finished and so were the Dodgers. They would scratch out a run apiece in the seventh (onJuan Castro's double to scoreGreg Gagne, who singled with two outs) and eighth (onMike Piazza's sacrifice fly offMike Bielecki afterGreg McMichael allowed a leadoff walk and subsequent double), but no more. Wohlers got his third save in as many tries to end the series.
1996 NLDS(3–0):Atlanta Braves overLos Angeles Dodgers
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | R | H | E | ||||||||||||||||||||
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| Atlanta Braves | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 16 | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Los Angeles Dodgers | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 14 | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Total attendance: 151,873 Average attendance: 50,624 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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