1999 National League Division Series
Teams
Team (Wins) Manager Season Atlanta Braves (3) Bobby Cox 103–59, .636, GA:6+1⁄2 Houston Astros (1) Larry Dierker 97–65, .599, GA:1+1⁄2
Dates	October 5 – 9
Television	ESPN
TV announcers	Jon Miller,Rick Sutcliffe (Games 1, 3–4) andJoe Morgan (Game 2)
Radio	ESPN
Radio announcers	Jim Durham andMark Grace
Teams
Team (Wins) Manager Season New York Mets (3) Bobby Valentine 97–66, .595, GB:6+1⁄2 Arizona Diamondbacks (1) Buck Showalter 100–62, .617, GA: 14
Dates	October 5 – 9
Television	ESPN (Games 1–2) NBC (Game 3) ESPN2 (Game 4)
TV announcers	Chris Berman,Ray Knight, andBuck Martinez (Games 1–2, 4) Bob Costas andJoe Morgan (Game 3)
Radio	ESPN
Radio announcers	Charley Steiner andDusty Baker
Umpires	Mike Winters,Charlie Williams,Rich Rieker,Gerry Davis,Bruce Froemming,Jerry Meals (Braves–Astros, Games 1–2; Mets–Diamondbacks, Games 3–4) Brian Gorman,Wally Bell,Mark Hirschbeck,Dana DeMuth,Randy Marsh,Paul Schrieber (Mets–Diamondbacks, Games 1–2; Braves–Astros, Games 3–4)
← 1998 NLDS 2000 →

The1999National League Division Series (NLDS), the opening round of theNational League side in Major League Baseball’s1999 postseason, began on Tuesday, October 5, and ended on Saturday, October 9, with the champions of the three NL divisions—along with a "wild card" team—participating in two best-of-five series. They were:

• (1)Atlanta Braves (Eastern Division champion, 103–59) vs. (3)Houston Astros (Central Division champion, 97–65): Braves win series, 3–1.
• (2)Arizona Diamondbacks (Western Division champion, 100–62) vs. (4)New York Mets (Wild Card, 97–66): Mets win series, 3–1.^[1]

The Diamondbacks were participating in the postseason in only their second year of existence, the fastest any expansion team had ever qualified. The Atlanta Braves and New York Mets went on to meet in theNL Championship Series (NLCS). The Braves became the National League champion, and were defeated by theAmerican League championNew York Yankees in the1999 World Series.

Atlanta won the series, 3–1.

New York won the series, 3–1.

Turner Field inAtlanta

A pitcher's duel betweenShane Reynolds andGreg Maddux highlighted Game 1. The Astros struck first in the top of the second whenTony Eusebio singled inCarl Everett.Gerald Williams would tie the game in the bottom of the fifth, singling homeJose Hernández.Daryle Ward would give the Astros the lead on a home run in the top of the sixth. The score would remain the same until the ninth. WithMike Remlinger pitching for Atlanta, Houston loaded the bases with one out asCarl Everett's sacrifice fly put them up 3–1, then a three-run homer byKen Caminiti capped the inning's scoring. The Braves were retired 1-2-3 in the bottom versusBilly Wagner as the Astros took a 1–0 series lead. From 1995–2020, this was the only Division Series in the Braves won after losing either Game 1 or 2 of the series. Not until2021, did the Braves repeat the feat after losing Game 1 and subsequently winning the next three games.

Turner Field inAtlanta

A brilliant performance byKevin Millwood stole the show. Had it not been forKen Caminiti's home run in the second and an error, Millwood would have pitched a perfect game. The Braves would take Game 2 behind his masterful performance. Atlanta drew first blood whenGerald Williams singled to lead off the first off José Lima, stole second, moved to second on a groundout, and scored onBrian Jordan's single. With the game tied at 1,Ryan Klesko singled with one out in the sixth, moved to third on a double and scored onEddie Perez's sacrifice fly to put Atlanta up 2–1. Next inning,Bret Boone doubled with one out, moving to third on an error and afterChipper Jones was intentionally walked,Brian Jordan's sacrifice fly scored Boone and moved Jones to second.Scott Elarton relieved Lima and allowed an RBI single to Klesko, Two wild pitches moved him to third before he scored onAndruw Jones's RBI single. The Braves' 5–1 win tied the series heading to Houston.

Astrodome inHouston, Texas

The turning point of the series occurred in Game 3.Tom Glavine facedMike Hampton, who were both coming off career years. The Astros struck first whenCraig Biggio led off the bottom of the first with a single, moved to second on a groundout and after a walk toJeff Bagwell, scored onKen Caminiti's RBI single. A walk loaded the bases before another walk toTony Eusebio scored Bagwell made it 2–0 Astros. The Braves responded with a towering three-run home run byBrian Jordan in the sixth. The Astros tied the game in the seventh whenRuss Johnson doubled offTerry Mulholland and scored onBill Spiers's single offMike Remlinger. In the bottom of the tenth, with the bases loaded and nobody out,John Rocker was called in to save the game. There was no margin for error. An unbelievable play byWalt Weiss preventedKen Caminiti from scoring offTony Eusebio's hit up the middle. Weiss dived and stopped the ball and threw home. Another forceout at the plate made it two outs.Ricky Gutiérrez struck out to end the threat. Jordan got them the win in the top of the 12th with a two-run double offJay Powell after back-to-back one-out singles.Kevin Millwood, who threw 9 innings the game before, retired the Astros in order in the bottom of the inning to earn the save and put the Braves one game away from the NLCS.

Astrodome inHouston, Texas

Shane Reynolds was once again called on to save the Astros, but facing him this time would beJohn Smoltz.Chipper Jones put the Braves on the board in the top of the first with a sacrifice fly after a leadoff double byGerald Williams. ABret Boone single drove in the second Atlanta run in the third after a leadoff double by Smoltz, who moved to third on a groundout. The Braves piled on in the sixth. After back-to-back leadoff singles,Chris Holt relieved Reynolds and allowed an RBI single toAndruw Jones and two-run singleEddie Perez. AfterWalt Weiss singled,Scott Elarton relieved Holt and after a sacrifice bunt, Williams's RBI single made it 7–0 Braves.Tony Eusebio homered to cut the lead to six in the seventh. In the eighth, after a hit-by-pitch and single, a three-run home run byKen Caminiti brought the Astros to within three runs.Terry Mulholland relieved Smoltz and after a one-out single,Tim Bogar's RBI double cut the lead to two with five outs to go.John Rocker halted the Houston rally and brought the Braves back to the NLCS for the eighth straight year and history of the Astrodome to a close.

1999 NLDS(3–1):Atlanta Braves overHouston Astros

Bank One Ballpark inPhoenix, Arizona

TheArizona Diamondbacks won the National League Western Division in the franchise's second year. They were managed byBuck Showalter and finished the season with 100 wins. TheNew York Mets clinched the Wild Card in a one-game winner-take-all playoff against the Cincinnati Reds and qualified for the playoffs for the first time since losing the1988 National League Championship Series against theLos Angeles Dodgers.

Masato Yoshii facedRandy Johnson in Game 1.Edgardo Alfonzo got the scoring started for the Mets in the top of the first with a one-out home run. Then a two-run home run byJohn Olerud after a walk made it 3–0 Mets in the third.Jay Bell's sacrifice fly after a one-out triple made it 3–1 in the bottom of the third, butRey Ordóñez's sacrifice bunt with runners on first and third made it 4–1 Mets in the fourth.Erubiel Durazo's home run made it 4–2 in the bottom of the fourth. Then a two-run home run byLuis Gonzalez tied the game at four and ended Yoshii's night. The game remained tied into the ninth inning. A controversial move by manager Showalter allowed Johnson to stay in the game. Two singles and a walk loaded the bases and knocked Johnson out of the game. He was relieved byBobby Chouinard. After the second out, Alfonzo hit a grand slam to put the Mets out in front 8–4.Armando Benítez shut the D'Backs down 1–2–3 in the bottom half to finish the game.

Bank One Ballpark inPhoenix, Arizona

Kenny Rogers took on postseason veteranTodd Stottlemyre, who was hoping to even the series before moving to New York. Both pitchers were on even terms into the third inning. The Mets got on the board thanks to an RBI groundout byJohn Olerud in the third afterRickey Henderson hit a leadoff single, stole second and moved to third on a groundout. However, that was all the Mets got against Stottlemyre, who pitched6+1⁄3 masterful innings. The Diamondbacks loaded the bases against Rogers in the bottom of the third after two outs on two singles and a hit-by-pitch. Then,Greg Colbrunn walked to tie the game at one.Steve Finley gave the Diamondbacks their first-ever postseason lead with a two-run single to right field. Then Finley had two more RBIs with a double to center in the fifth offPat Mahomes. In the seventh, the Diamondbacks loaded the bases on a walk, double and hit-by-pitch offOctavio Dotel when Finley walked to force in a run, thenTurner Ward's RBI groundout offJohn Franco made it 7–1 Diamondbacks. The score would stand as the D'Backs evened the series at a game apiece.

Shea Stadium inQueens, New York

In Game 3,Omar Daal facedRick Reed. The Diamondbacks blew opportunities in the first two innings and that would cost them as the Mets would take a 1–0 lead onRey Ordóñez's RBI single that scoredBenny Agbayani. In the third,Edgardo Alfonzo doubled with one out and scored onJohn Olerud's single. A single moved him to third before he scored onRobin Ventura's groundout aided by an error byAndy Fox to give the Mets a 3–0 edge. The Diamondbacks made it a one-run game whenKelly Stinnett doubled and pinch hitterTurner Ward, batting for Daal, hit a two-run homer in the fifth. The Mets blew the game open in the sixth against the Diamondback bullpen. Darren Holmes walked two andRickey Henderson's one-out RBI single made it 4–2 Mets. After an intentional walk,Dan Plesac relievedDarren Holmes and allowed a two-run single to Orelud and RBI single toRoger Cedeño. After Cedeno stole second and Ventura grounded out,Darryl Hamilton's two-run single scored both Olerud and Cedeno made it 9–2 Mets.Turk Wendell,John Franco, andOrel Hershiser held the Diamondbacks scoreless over the last three innings and the Mets were one win away from the NLCS.

Shea Stadium inQueens, New York

In the potential clinching Game 4,Brian Anderson facedAl Leiter. The game would remain scoreless until the bottom of the fourth, whenEdgardo Alfonzo's leadoff home run made it 1–0 Mets, butGreg Colbrunn homered to tie the game in the fifth. Then Agbayani's RBI double with two on made it 2–1 Mets. In the eight, Leiter allowed a two-out walk and subsequent single beforeJay Bell's two-run double offArmando Benítez gave the Diamondbacks the lead, but the Mets tied the game in the bottom half when Alfonzo drew a leadoff walk offGregg Olson, moved to third on an error, and scored on a sacrifice fly byRoger Cedeño offGreg Swindell. During the bottom of the 8th inning, Mets 3rd base coachCookie Rojas was ejected for arguing a foul ball hit byDarryl Hamilton, and would be suspended for 5 games for shoving the left field umpire Charlie Williams. As the game moved to extra innings,John Franco came on in relief in the tenth and shut the Diamondbacks down 1–2–3. The Mets would win the series whenTodd Pratt hit a home run to center field offMatt Mantei. Steve Finley failed to catch the ball after making a leap to the wall.

Buck Showalter would eventually be fired in2000 in Arizona as the team underperformed. Like what happened in1995-1996 New York with the Yankees, the D'Backs won the World Series the year after he was fired in2001. Buck managed the Rangers from 2003-2006 and the Orioles from 2010-2018 before he landing with the Mets in 2022.

1999 NLDS(3–1):New York Mets overArizona Diamondbacks

• ATL vs. HOU at Baseball-Reference
• NYM vs. ARI at Baseball-Reference

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