MLB Wild-Card Wednesday: One of the Most Dramatic Days in MLB History

There is only one word that can aptly describe the final day of the MLB regular season in 2011—wow.

On a day that MLB Network dubbed as Wild-Card Wednesday, the baseball world was witness to four meaningful games that would determine the fate of four different teams, and the endings could not have been more spectacular.

Atlanta, Baltimore, Tampa Bay and Houston were the sites for Wednesday night's drama, and depending on the outcomes, the regular season could have been extended for one more day.

In two of the games, teams who had already locked up home field advantage in their respective leagues had nothing to play for other than keeping a few players sharp before the start of the postseason. In the other two games, teams completely out of it were attempting to play the role of spoiler, with the opportunity to send their opponents to a winter of despair.

Here is how the action played itself out on this wild and wooly Wild-Card Wednesday, which could go down as one of the most dramatic days in MLB history.

St. Louis Cardinals at Houston Astros

This particular game was the least dramatic of the four contests. The St. Louis Cardinals, who on Sept. 5 were 8.5 games behind the Atlanta Braves in the race for the National League wild-card slot, had battled all the way back, finally catching the Braves on Tuesday night.

On Wednesday, they sent ace Chris Carpenter out onto the hill, while the Houston Astros, losers of 105 games, sent Brett Myers out to face the Cardinals.

The Cardinals jumped on Myers early, sending 10 men to the plate, scoring five runs on seven hits. Carpenter meanwhile retired the first 10 Astros he faced, and by the time Jose Altuve singled in the fourth, Houston was already facing a 6-0 deficit.

Carpenter was on all night, and by the time the night was over, he had delivered a complete-game two-hit shutout, giving the Cardinals new life in their postseason hunt.

Now all the Cardinals needed to do was wait in the clubhouse and await the outcome of the game between the Atlanta Braves and Philadelphia Phillies.

Philadelphia Philles at Atlanta Braves

The Atlanta Braves were a team that was in a complete free-fall. Heading into Wednesday night's game with the Philadelphia Phillies, the Braves had lost 17-of-26 games in the month of September, and had completely squandered an 8.5 game lead in the National League wild-card race over the St. Louis Cardinals.

However, a win on Wednesday and a Cardinals loss would have prevented a complete collapse. The Braves sent their ace, Tim Hudson, out to the mound to face Joe Blanton of the Phillies.

Hudson started a bit shaky when after two quick outs, he gave up a walk to Hunter Pence and an opposite-field double to Ryan Howard, scoring Pence with the first run of the game.

Chipper Jones got the run right back for the Braves in the bottom half of the inning, with his sacrifice fly plating Michael Bourn, who had singled and stole second and moved to third on a Martin Prado groundout.

Second baseman Dan Uggla, who had been barely hitting .200 in his last nine games, hit a two-run blast in the bottom of the third, giving the Braves a 3-1 lead.

Hudson settled down after the first, working into the seventh before he met some more trouble. Shortstop Jack Wilson booted a grounder from Carlos Ruiz, scoring Raul Ibanez and cutting the Braves lead to 3-2. Hudson was replaced by Eric O'Flaherty, who induced a double-play grounder to end the inning and the Phillies' threat.

With the score still 3-2 in the top of the ninth, closer Craig Kimbrel, who had notched 45 saves already in his rookie season, came on to seal the deal for the Braves.

Kimbrel gave up a single to Placido Polanco, and then later walked both Ben Francisco and Jimmy Rollins to load the bases. It was the first time that Kimbrel had walked two batters in any one appearance all season long.

Chase Utley then hit a sacrifice fly to score the tying run, and manager Fredi Gonzalez had seen enough, pulling Kimbrel and calling on Kris Medlen to induce Michael Martinez to pop up to Chipper Jones, mercifully ending the inning.

The game dragged on to the top of the 13th inning, and Phillies right fielder Hunter Pence, who nearly went to Atlanta at the trade deadline, hit a seeing-eye single that evaded the glove of second baseman Uggla, scoring Brian Schneider to give the Phillies a 4-3 lead.

When first baseman Freddie Freeman grounded into the season-ending double play for the Braves, it marked the first time in MLB history that a team had squandered a lead of at least eight games for a playoff spot in September.

Turns out they would not be the only ones to do that, however...

Boston Red Sox at Baltimore Orioles

The Boston Red Sox were on the verge of a collapse of epic proportions. With a lead of nine games over the Tampa Bay Rays in the race for the American League wild-card on Sept. 3, the Red Sox lost 19 of their next 26 games, and by Tuesday night the Rays and Red Sox were dead-even.

After a rare September win on Tuesday night that kept them tied with the Rays, the Red Sox sent ace Jon Lester to the hill to face the Baltimore Orioles. The Sox had to feel pretty good about their chances with Lester, who was 14-0 lifetime against the Orioles in 17 starts.

Lester certainly did his part, holding the Orioles to just two runs on four hits before a rain delay ended his night. Gritty second baseman Dustin Pedroia staked Lester and the Sox to a 3-2 lead with his solo home run in the top of the fifth.

After a 1 hour, 26 minute rain delay, the score remained the same until the bottom of the ninth. Closer Jonathan Papelbon got two quick outs, and with two strikes on Chris Davis, the Sox were poised to continue their season for at least one more day.

Double-double-single. The Red Sox were undone within mere minutes. Red Sox killer Robert Andino delivered the final blow that knocked the Red Sox out.

The Sox however still had to wait to see if they would become the second team in MLB history to squander at least an eight-game lead for a playoff spot in September.

They didn't have to wait long...

New York Yankees at Tampa Bay Rays

Just a few minutes after the Boston Red Sox blew their one-run lead with a fateful ninth inning collapse, Tampa Bay Rays third baseman took an inside pitch from New York Yankees reliever Scott Proctor and launched it just inside the left field foul pole, lifting the Rays to an incredible come-from-behind 8-7 victory over the Yankees.

The Rays trailed 7-0 heading into the bottom of the eighth inning. However a six-run inning, highlighted by a three-run homer by Longoria, put the Rays within one.

In the bottom of the ninth, pinch-hitter Dan Johnson took a two-out, two-strike pitch and slammed it over the right field fence, dramatically tying the game at 7-7.

Longoria's game-winner not only knocked the Red Sox out of the playoffs, but also culminated one of the most remarkable comebacks in regular season history.

The Rays appeared down and out in early September, facing a nine-game deficit in the wild-card race. But with a 17-10 September, including winning their last five games of the season, the Rays completed the near impossible.

Game 162: A Remarkable Day in MLB History

Two extra-inning games filled with drama, a ninth-inning collapse that spelled doom, and a gorgeous complete-game two-hit shutout. Wild-card Wednesday was certainly an epic day in the history of Major League Baseball.

For a fan who has been following the game for over 45 years, never have I witnessed a day quite like Sept. 28, 2011. Two teams went down in history as the biggest choke artists in MLB history, while two others staged completely improbable comebacks.

It just doesn't get any better than that.

Doug Mead is a featured columnist with Bleacher Report. His work has been featured on the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, SF Gate, CBS Sports, the Los Angeles Times and the Houston Chronicle. Follow Doug on Twitter, @Sports_A_Holic.