_in_front_of_the_Seattle_Kingdome_Stadium_on_6_October_1982_(6371846).jpg) The Kingdome in Seattle | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Date | October 2, 1995 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Venue | The Kingdome | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| City | Seattle,Washington | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Umpires | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Attendance | 52,356[1][2] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Television | ESPN | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| TV announcers | Jon Miller andJoe Morgan | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Radio | CBS KMPC (CAL) KIRO (SEA) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Radio announcers | CBS:Ernie Harwell andAl Downing KMPC:Bob Starr andMario Impemba KIRO:Dave Niehaus andRick Rizzs | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The1995 American League West tie-breaker game was aone-game extension toMajor League Baseball's (MLB)1995 regular season; theCalifornia Angels andSeattle Mariners met to determine the winner of theAmerican League's (AL)West Division. It was played at theKingdome inSeattle, on October 2, 1995.[3]
The game was necessary after both teams finished thestrike-shortened 144-game season with identicalrecords of78–66 (.542).[3][4] Scoreless until the fifth inning, Seattle held a slim 1–0 lead at the seventh-inning stretch. The Mariners then broke it open and won9–1 to secure the franchise's first postseasonberth.[1][2] It was counted as the 145th regular season game for both teams, with all the events in the game added to regular season statistics.
On August 3, the Angels were 56–33 (.629), 11games ahead of the second placeTexas Rangers,[5] and 13 ahead of the third-place Mariners, at 43–46 (.483).[6][7] By the end of the month, the Angels(67–50 (.573)) were on a six-game losing streak and their lead was trimmed to7+1⁄2 games over both Texas and Seattle.[8][9] On September 21, the Angels lost their seventh-straight and the Mariners pulled even at 72–63 (.533), with Texas four games behind.[10][11] Five days later, Seattle had won its seventh straight and built a three-game lead with five to go.[12][13] They were then shut out by the Angels.[14][15] The Mariners won the first two games at Texas to clinch at least a tie with two remaining,[16] but lost the last two while the Angels swept theOakland Athletics to finish on a five-game winning streak.[3][17]
At the time, the Angels' lead relinquishment was the third-largest in major league history, behind the1978 Boston Red Sox and1951 Brooklyn Dodgers.[10]
After winning the tie-breaker, the Mariners met theNew York Yankees in theAL Division Series. After two losses atYankee Stadium, the second in 15 innings, Seattle swept the next three games at home, capped by an 11th-inningdouble byEdgar Martínez in Game 5. The Mariners hosted and won the opener of theAL Championship Series, but lost to theCleveland Indians 4 games to 2. The Angels did not return to the postseason until2002.
Both teams entered the tiebreaker with long histories of frustration and disappointment. California had previously won three AL West Division titles (1979,1982, and1986), but never advanced to theWorld Series.[18] In particular, the Angels lost a 2–0 series lead in the then-best-of-five1982 ALCS to theMilwaukee Brewers,[19] and were one strike away from defeating theBoston Red Sox in Game 5 of the1986 ALCS but ended up losing that game and the next two to lose the best-of-seven series that they had led 3–1.[20] They had not returned to the postseason since the 1986 loss.[18]
Seattle, on the other hand, had only had two winning seasons since the franchise began play in1977 (1991 and1993), and had never been close to the postseason.[21] The team had gone through three ownership changes in its first 15 years, its most recent coming in1992 when a consortium led byHiroshi Yamauchi bought the team fromJeff Smulyan,[22] who had threatened to relocate the team as a consequence of its losing ways.
As a consequence of the1994–95 Major League Baseball strike, the 1995 season started on April 25, and was shortened to 144 games instead of the normal 162. California took an early lead in the AL West standings and traded first place with theTexas Rangers through May and June.[23] The Angels took the lead on July 2, and held on to that lead throughout the rest of July and all of August. Seattle, meanwhile, spent most of June through August in third or fourth place. They bottomed out on August 2, thirteen games out of first place and three games under .500.[6]
The Angels' fortunes began to change when they were swept by theBoston Red Sox from August 21–23, then after winning one game, went into a 9-game losing streak beginning August 25. Seattle had an August record of 16–13 (.552), while California had an August record of 13–17 (.433).[6][23] Seattle took second place on September 2, with Texas in a losing streak it never recovered from.[5]
Then in September, California went into a second 9-game skid from September 13–23, allowing Seattle to take first place on September 22 in the middle of their own 7-game winning streak. California sank to three games behind with five games left in the season, but won all five,[23]— a shutout of Seattle in the Kingdome followed by a four-game sweep of theOakland Athletics[24]—while Seattle lost their last two at Texas,[6] forcing the tiebreaker.
Seattle received home field advantage for the tiebreaker by winning a coin toss late in the season (done in the event of multiple ties for the division or Wild Card), which was the format used for tiebreakers until 2009 as opposed to head-to-head matchups.[25]
As per normal MLB practice at the time,[26] the home team for this game was determined by a series ofcoin tosses held on September 18 to determine home teams for all potential one-game tiebreakers.[27] Allstatistics compiled during the game were added to each player's and/or team's regular season statistics.[28] The game was nationally televised onESPN withJon Miller andJoe Morgan making the call.[29]
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |||||||||||||||||||||
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| California Angels | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Seattle Mariners | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 4 | X | 9 | 12 | 0 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| WP:Randy Johnson (18–2) LP:Mark Langston (15–7) Home runs: CAL:Tony Phillips (27) SEA: None Attendance: 52,356[1][2] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The first six innings of the game were largely a pitchers' duel between SeattleaceRandy Johnson and California'sMark Langston, the Mariners' former ace who was traded to theMontreal Expos for Johnson in1989.[30] Seattle put runners in scoring position in the first and fifth innings, but only scored one run in the fifth whenDan Wilson scored on asingle byVince Coleman.[31] Johnson was perfect until the sixth inning, whenRex Hudler singled[30] but wasstranded at second base.[31]
In the seventh inning, Langston allowed a single toMike Blowers, then allowedTino Martinez on base viafielder's choice, thenhitJoey Cora toload the bases with twoouts.[31]Luis Sojo followed with adouble to right field that glanced off offirst basemanJ. T. Snow's glove and rolled under the Angels'bullpen bench, scoring Blowers, Martinez, and Cora. Sojo himself scored on the play as a result of Langston's throwingerror,[30] and Langston was replaced byrelief pitcherBob Patterson.[31]
Now trailing by five runs, the Angels threatened again in the eighth inning with runners on second and third, but Hudler grounded out to end the threat.[31] In the bottom of the eighth, the Mariners again had the bases loaded when Tino Martinez singled to scoreEdgar Martínez, followed by a Dan Wilson double that scoredJay Buhner and Blowers, and finally asacrifice flydouble play hit by Cora that scored Tino Martinez, but got Wilson thrown out at third.[31]Tony Phillips led off the ninth for the Angels with ahome run to avoid ashutout, but Johnson retired the next three Angels hitters[31] to record his sixth complete game and 18th win of the season.[32]
The Angels' defeat in the tiebreaker marked a continuation of the team's struggles at the time. It was the closest the Angels came to the postseason during their playoff drought that lasted from1987 through2001. They would return to the playoffs in2002, and win their first (and so far only)World Series that year.[18]
The game was a stepping stone in what is widely regarded in Seattle as the most memorable season in Mariners franchise history.[33][34] Having secured their first ever postseason berth, the Mariners went on to play theNew York Yankees in theALDS.[35] They would defeat the Yankees in Game 5 of the ALDS, on the heels ofEdgar Martínez'series-winning double,[35] but ultimately were defeated by theCleveland Indians in theAmerican League Championship Series, 4 games to 2.[36]
The game marked the beginning of the most successful era in Seattle franchise history, as they would go on to win AL West Division championships again in1997 and2001 (with the latter seeing Seattle tie the Major League record with 116 wins), and an AL Wild Card berth in2000.[21] However, they failed to reach the World Series each time[21] and remain the only MLB franchise to never reach the Fall Classic.[37]
Off the field, the Mariners' AL West championship as well as its memorable run in the postseason served as a catalyst for public funding for a newballpark. Less than two weeks before the tiebreaker, the residents ofKing County, Washington (whosecounty seat is Seattle) voted against a sales tax increase to fund a new stadium,[38] but shortly after their ALDS victory, theWashington State Legislature reconvened and approved a separate funding package for a new stadium. The new stadium, now calledT-Mobile Park, opened in July 1999.
