Ranking the 10 Most Memorable Heroes in MLB Playoffs History
Baseball heroes are born in October.
The bright lights of postseason baseball and the pursuit of a World Series title give everyone the opportunity to play the hero.
In more than 100 years of playoff baseball, the list of heroic performances is a long one, and we set out to identify the 10 most memorable MLB postseason heroes of all time.
Players were chosen based on their enduring legacy, the importance of their contributions, and their signature playoff moment. The player who delivered a singular iconic moment is often more memorable than the player who had an impressive overall body of work. Just something to keep in mind as you dig into these rankings.
Note: The famous "Shot Heard 'Round the World" off the bat of New York Giants outfielder Bobby Thomson happened in Game 3 of a three-game tiebreaker series to determine the 1951 NL pennant winner. Since it was not technically a postseason moment, it and other moments from tiebreaking playoffs were not included in this article.
10. Edgar Martínez (1995 ALDS)
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The 1995 Seattle Mariners went 19-8 in September to pull into a tie with the California Angels atop the AL West standings, and they clinched a postseason berth behind a complete-game effort from Randy Johnson in a one-game playoff for the division crown.
That earned them a meeting with the New York Yankees in the ALDS, and after falling behind 2-0 in the series, they rallied back to win the next two games and force a decisive Game 5.
The Mariners scored twice in the bottom of the eighth to tie the game, and no one scored again until Randy Velarde delivered an RBI single off Johnson in his third inning of relief work in the top of the 11th.
The Mariners had three outs to go before they were eliminated, but they didn't use any of them. Joey Cora and Ken Griffey Jr. led off the inning with back-to-back singles, and Edgar Martínez delivered the game-winning blow with a two-run double into the left-center gap. Griffey racing around the bases and sliding in ahead of the throw to score from first is the enduring image of that game, but it was Martínez who came through with the big hit.
The Hall of Famer finished 12-for-21 with three doubles, two home runs and 10 RBI in the five-game series, but no hit was bigger than "The Double," as it would come to be known.
9. Derek Jeter (Postseason Career)
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Derek Jeter played roughly an entire extra season's worth of playoff games over the course of his Hall of Fame career.
In 158 career playoff games, he hit .308/.374/.465 and he is the all-time postseason leader in hits (200), doubles (32), total bases (302) and runs scored (111), and he won five World Series titles in seven trips to the Fall Classic.
His entire body of work stands out more than any singular moment, but he did provide some memorable highlights along the way.
His flip to get Jeremy Giambi out at the plate in the 2001 ALDS, his walk-off home run in Game 4 of the 2001 World Series that earned him the nickname "Mr. November" and his World Series MVP win against the New York Mets in the 2000 Subway Series all stand out against a sea of impressive October production.
8. Madison Bumgarner (2014 Postseason)
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Slamming the door on Game 7 of the 2014 World Series with a five-inning save on two days' rest after throwing a 117-pitch complete-game shutout in Game 5 would have been enough to earn Madison Bumgarner a place on this list.
However, his entire body of work that postseason is worth a closer look.
The San Francisco Giants' run to a third World Series title in five years began in the do-or-die Wild Card Game against the Pittsburgh Pirates, and Bumgarner set the tone for what would be a historic October run with a four-hit shutout.
He would go on to work a staggering 52.2 innings in the playoffs on top of the 217.1 he threw during the regular season, finishing 4-1 with a 1.03 ERA, 0.65 WHIP and a .153 opponents' batting average.
The big southpaw entered in the fifth inning of Game 7 to protect a 3-2 lead, and after allowing a leadoff single to Omar Infante, he retired 14 in a row before a two-out single from Alex Gordon in the bottom of the ninth. With the winning run at the plate, he induced a game-ending foul pop-up from Salvador Pérez to finish off five nail-biting innings of protecting a one-run lead.
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7. David Ortiz (Postseason Career)
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David Ortiz was the face of the Boston Red Sox's improbable comeback from down 3-0 to the New York Yankees in the 2004 ALCS, delivering clutch hit after clutch hit to bring his team back from the brink.
He hit a walk-off home run in extra innings in Game 4 after the Dave Roberts steal set up extra innings, then he hit a game-tying, two-run home run in the eighth inning of Game 5 before delivering the walk-off RBI single in the 14th inning. He added a two-run homer in the first inning of Game 7 for good measure.
Almost a decade later, he won the 2013 World Series MVP when he went 11-for-16 with two doubles, two home runs and six RBI against the St. Louis Cardinals.
His career postseason stat line: 85 G, .289/.404/.543, 22 2B, 17 HR, 61 RBI, 51 R.
6. Bob Gibson (World Series Career)
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Few teams have climbed on the back of their ace the way the St. Louis Cardinals did during their three separate trips to the World Series in the 1960s.
Here's a breakdown of Bob Gibson's nine World Series starts:
1964 G2: L, 8.0 IP, 8 H, 4 ER, 9 K
1964 G5: W, 10.0 IP, 6 H, 0 ER, 13 K
1964 G7: W, 9.0 IP, 9 H, 5 ER, 9 K
1967 G1: W, 9.0 IP, 6 H, 1 ER, 10 K
1967 G4: W, 9.0 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 6 K
1967 G7: W, 9.0 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 10 K
1968 G1: W, 9.0 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 17 K
1968 G4: W, 9.0 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 10 K
1968 G7: L, 9.0 IP, 8 H, 4 ER, 8 K
He won World Series MVP in 1964 and 1967, and his start in Game 1 of the 1968 World Series is one of the most dominant postseason pitching performances of all time.
His final World Series stat line: 9 GS, 8 CG, 7-2, 1.89 ERA, 0.89 WHIP, 92 K, 81.0 IP
5. David Freese (2011 World Series)
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The Texas Rangers were one strike away from a World Series victory when David Freese delivered a two-run triple over the outstretched glove of Nelson Cruz in right field to send Game 6 to extra innings.
The St. Louis Cardinals third baseman came through again two innings later, leading off the bottom of the 11th inning with a walk-off home run to send the series to a decisive Game 7 the following night.
The Rangers got on the board early in Game 7, plating two runs off St. Louis starter Chris Carpenter in the top of the first inning, but the Cardinals answered with two runs of their own in the bottom of the inning.
The source?
You guessed it. It was a two-run double off the bat of Freese to score Albert Pujols and Lance Berkman and swing the momentum back into the St. Louis dugout, and the Cardinals went on to a 6-2 victory.
All of those World Series heroics came after Freese also won NLCS MVP honors by going 12-for-22 with three doubles, three home runs and nine RBI in six games against the Milwaukee Brewers.
4. Jack Morris (1991 World Series)
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A clutch pitching performance doesn't resonate quite like a game-winning hit or a World Series-winning home run, but what Jack Morris did in Game 7 of the 1991 World Series will forever be mentioned among the greatest individual feats in baseball history.
The 36-year-old Morris signed a one-year, $7 million deal prior to the 1991 season to anchor a young starting rotation, and he did just that, going 18-12 with a 3.43 ERA in 246.2 innings to finish fourth in AL Cy Young voting.
After winning both of his starts against the Toronto Blue Jays in the ALCS, he continued to throw the ball well in Game 1 (W, 7.0 IP, 5 H, 2 ER) and Game 4 (ND, 6.0 IP, 6 H, 1 ER) of the World Series against the Atlanta Braves.
When a walk-off home run from Kirby Puckett forced Game 7, the Twins turned to Morris on three days' rest with the season on the line.
Morris traded zeroes with a young John Smoltz for seven innings before the Braves went to the bullpen with one out in the eighth inning, but Morris kept plugging away through nine innings and on into his 10th inning of work.
When Gene Larkin delivered the walk-off RBI single in the bottom of the 10th, it cemented Morris' start as one of the greatest of all-time: A 10-inning, complete-game shutout in Game 7 of the World Series.
3. Kirk Gibson (1988 World Series)
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"I don't believe what I just saw!"
That legendary call from announcer Jack Buck perfectly captured a moment that was truly like something out of a movie.
In his first season with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1988, outfielder Kirk Gibson took home NL MVP honors, but by the time the World Series rolled around, he was battling two bum legs and absent from the starting lineup in Game 1 against a loaded Oakland Athletics team.
A grand slam from Jose Canseco in the fourth inning gave the A's an early lead, and it was still 4-3 when All-Star closer Dennis Eckersley took the ball to try to nail down a Game 1 victory.
After two quick outs, Mike Davis worked a walk and the Dodgers called on the hobbled Gibson to pinch-hit. With a 3-2 count, Gibson got the backdoor slider he was looking for, and he muscled the pitch over the right-field fence for the unlikeliest of walk-off home runs.
The image of Gibson pumping his fist while rounding the bases has become an indelible part of baseball history, and it set the tone for the Dodgers to upset the heavily favored Athletics in five games.
2. Joe Carter (1993 World Series)
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The Toronto Blue Jays jumped out to an early 3-1 lead in the 1993 World Series, but the Philadelphia Phillies staved off elimination in Game 5 behind a five-hit shutout from Curt Schilling, and the series looked poised to go the distance when Philadelphia handed the ball to closer Mitch Williams with a 6-5 lead in the ninth inning of Game 6.
Despite his "Wild Thing" nickname, Williams had been one of the best closers in baseball during the regular season, converting 43 of 49 save chances with a 3.34 ERA in 65 appearances.
He issued a leadoff walk to Rickey Henderson and a one-out single to Paul Molitor, putting runners on first and second with one out for cleanup hitter Joe Carter.
One of the most feared sluggers in baseball, Carter had 33 home runs and 121 RBI during the 1993 season, and after flailing at a 2-1 slider, he crushed a 2-2 fastball down the left-field line and over the wall for just the second World Series-ending home run in history.
Blue Jays radio announcer Tom Cheek had the legendary call: "Touch 'em all, Joe! You'll never hit a bigger home run in your life!"
1. Bill Mazeroski (1960 World Series)
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There's only one way to top Joe Carter's walk-off home run in Game 6 of the World Series to clinch a title, and that's with a walk-off home run in Game 7 of the World Series to clinch a title.
That's exactly what Bill Mazeroski did in 1960.
The Pittsburgh Pirates second baseman is in the Hall of Fame largely on the strength of his elite defense, and he finished his 17-year career with a modest 138 home runs, never hitting more than 19 in a single season.
He was the No. 8 hitter in the Pittsburgh lineup for Game 7 of the World Series against the New York Yankees.
The Pirates built an early 4-0 lead, but the Yankees took a 5-4 lead in the sixth inning and extended their lead with two more runs in the top of the eighth. The Pirates answered with a five-run bottom of the inning, but the Yankees again battled back to tie things at 9-9 with a pair of runs in the top of the ninth.
Mazeroski led off the bottom of the ninth and hit the second pitch he saw from Ralph Terry over the left-field wall for the walk-off winner. The sea of fans surrounding him as he rounded third base and headed for home is a wild scene through the lens of today's game.
It's been more than 60 years since that moment, but it still stands as the biggest home run ever hit, and it has made Mazeroski an immortal figure in postseason lore.
All stats courtesy of Baseball Reference.
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