RetroSimba

(Updated May 30, 2020)

Among the factors that make Game 6 of the 2011 World Series an instant classic is the extreme rarity of the type of comeback mounted by the Cardinals.

The Cardinals twice were a strike away from elimination but rallied to score twice in the ninth to tie and twice in the 10th to tie before winning, 10-9, in the 11th on a home run by David Freese. Boxscore

Until Game 6 against the Rangers, only twice before had the Cardinals rallied from two-run deficits in the ninth and 10th innings to win games, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. Both of those occurred in regular-season games.

Here’s a look at both:

CARDINALS vs. PADRES

On May 30, 1982, at St. Louis, the first-place Cardinals scored three in the ninth to tie the score and three in the 10th to beat the Padres, 6-5.

With the Padres ahead, 3-0, the Cardinals’ Keith Hernandez and George Hendrick each singled off Gary Lucas in the bottom of the ninth, and Lonnie Smith doubled, scoring Hernandez.

On a groundout by Mike Ramsey, Hendrick held third and Smith held second. Julio Gonzalez followed with a grounder to shortstop Mario Ramirez, who flipped the ball to third baseman Luis Salazar. As Hendrick broke for home plate, Smith got caught in a rundown and collided with Salazar in the basepath. Smith appeared to have been tagged out, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported, but Salazar was called for obstruction by umpire Joe West. Smith was awarded third base, Gonzalez took second and Hendrick scored, cutting the Padres’ lead to 3-2.

“If we execute the play right, then we’re OK,” Padres manager Dick Williams told United Press International. “It was a routine rundown play, but we didn’t execute it.”

With first base open, Lucas intentionally walked David Green, loading the bases.

Tommy Herr, batting for pitcher Doug Bair, hit a sacrifice fly to left, scoring Smith with the tying run. Ozzie Smith grounded out, ending the inning.

In the 10th, the Cardinals turned to closer Bruce Sutter, who gave up two runs on a pair of singles, a double and a walk.

After Lucas retired the first two Cardinals batters in the 10th, Hendrick singled, Lonnie Smith drove him in with a double and Ramsey singled in Smith with the tying run.

Rattled, Lucas hit Gonzalez with a pitch and was relieved by rookie Floyd Chiffer. Cardinals manager Whitey Herzog countered by sending Dane Iorg to bat for Green.

“What I didn’t want to have happen eventually did,” Williams said to the Associated Press. “… I didn’t want to face Iorg with a right-handed pitcher.”

Said Iorg: “I was calm. I was probably the calmest player out there.”

With the count 1-and-1, Chiffer delivered a high, inside pitch. Iorg swung, breaking his bat, and hit a soft liner to center for a single, scoring Ramsey from second and giving the Cardinals a 6-5 victory. Boxscore

“As long as I have a line drive stroke, it doesn’t make any difference where it hits my bat,” Iorg said.

CARDINALS vs. PHILLIES

On June 6, 1990, at St. Louis, a struggling Cardinals team scored twice in the ninth to tie and three times in the 10th to beat the Phillies, 12-11.

The Phillies went ahead, 9-7, in the top of the ninth on a two-run home run by Ron Jones. “As the ball landed in the right field seats, lightning cracked over the rim of Busch Stadium,” the Philadelphia Daily News reported, “and thunder rumbled and a full moon broke through the dark and stormy skies.”

In the bottom half of the ninth, the Cardinals had Dave Collins on second with two outs when Phillies manager Nick Leyva replaced Pat Combs with closer Roger McDowell.

The move backfired. Ozzie Smith singled, scoring Collins. Smith stole second, Willie McGee walked and Pedro Guerrero drove in Smith with a single, tying the score at 9-9. After a walk to Terry Pendleton, Todd Zeile grounded out, forcing extra innings.

In the 10th, the Cardinals turned to Frank DiPino, who gave up a two-out, two-run single to Sil Campusano.

Undaunted, the Cardinals began the bottom of the 10th with singles by Milt Thompson and Jose Oquendo against McDowell. Denny Walling singled, scoring Thompson.

After Cardinals manager Whitey Herzog sent in Rex Hudler to run for Oquendo, Vince Coleman executed a sacrifice bunt, advancing Hudler to third and Walling to second. Leyva ordered McDowell to walk Ozzie Smith, loading the bases.

With Willie McGee up next, Leyva replaced McDowell with Terry Mulholland and positioned his outfielders to play shallow. McGee responded with a double over the head of center fielder Len Dykstra, scoring Hudler and Walling for a 12-11 Cardinals victory. Boxscore

“That might be the screwiest game I’ve ever seen,” Herzog told the Post-Dispatch.

Said McGee: “The only better game I’ve played in was against Chicago in 1984 when Ryne Sandberg hit two home runs off Bruce Sutter (and McGee hit for the cycle).”

DiPino, amazed he earned the win, said, “I almost fainted in the dugout.”