These are the greatest homers in LCS history

Established to add another step between the regular season and the World Series as MLB expanded to 24 teams in 1969, the League Championship Series has played host to some of the greatest moments in postseason history.

As far as big home runs go, these four stand out as the most memorable blasts the LCS has ever seen.

Aaron Boone, Yankees
2003 ALCS Game 7 vs. Red Sox

The "Curse of the Bambino" lived on for one more year when Boone led off the bottom of the 11th inning of the American League Championship Series and hit Tim Wakefield's first pitch into the left-field seats, adding another chapter to this legendary rivalry and sending the Yankees to the World Series for the 39th time in franchise history.

Earlier in the winner-take-all Game 7, Boston had New York down to its final five outs with ace Pedro Martinez on the mound and a 5-2 lead, but the Yanks were able to tie it up in the bottom of the eighth, and Mariano Rivera threw three scoreless innings to set the stage for Boone's heroics.

Ozzie Smith, Cardinals
1985 NLCS Game 5 vs. Dodgers

A switch-hitter, Smith had never hit a home run left-handed when he stepped into the lefty batter's box against Tom Niedenfuer and swatted a walk-off blast, sparking Jack Buck's legendary call: "Go crazy, folks! Go crazy! It's a home run, and the Cardinals have won the game by the score of three to two, on a home run by the Wizard!"

Smith's homer put the Cardinals ahead in the National League Championship Series, three games to two, and St. Louis would win again in Los Angeles two days later to punch its ticket to the World Series.

David Ortiz, Red Sox
2004 ALCS Game 4 vs. Yankees

Nearly a year to the day after Boone's walk-off, it looked as though the Yankees would get the better of their rivals in the ALCS once again, as they were three outs away from a series sweep with Mariano Rivera on the mound. But Boston tied Game 4 in the bottom of the ninth when Kevin Millar walked, pinch-runner Dave Roberts stole second and Bill Mueller singled up the middle.

The two clubs traded zeroes until the bottom of the 12th, when Ortiz delivered one of the signature hits of his illustrious career, taking Paul Quantrill deep for a walk-off home run. The Red Sox completed their historic comeback with another walk-off knock from Ortiz in Game 5 and two more wins back in the Bronx, becoming the first team in MLB history to win a postseason series after trailing three games to none. Boston went on to sweep the Cardinals in the World Series, capping an eight-game winning streak set in motion by Ortiz's Game 4 homer, and bringing the Red Sox their first championship since 1918.

Robin Ventura, Mets
1999 NLCS Game 5 vs. Braves

Technically, according to the record books, Ventura's long drive to end this marathon game wasn't a homer, even though it cleared the fence by plenty in right-center field.

Looking to avoid elimination, the Mets were locked in a 2-2 tie with the Braves until the top of the 15th, when Atlanta plated the go-ahead run on a triple by Keith Lockhart. But New York showed resiliency at rainy Shea Stadium, tying the game on Todd Pratt's bases-loaded walk with one out in the bottom of the frame and bringing Ventura to the plate. After smacking Kevin McGlinchy's 2-1 pitch out of the park for a would-be grand slam, the third baseman stopped his home run trot between first and second as he was mobbed by his teammates, and the hit was officially scored an RBI single. It came to be known as the "Grand Slam Single," making it an unforgettable part of postseason lore despite the outcome of the series, a Mets loss in six games.

Best of the rest

Here are some more LCS homers that will live forever.

Miguel Montero, Cubs
2016 NLCS Game 1 vs. Dodgers

En route to their first World Series title since 1908, the Cubs first had to go through the Dodgers in the NLCS, and Montero's go-ahead, pinch-hit grand slam in the eighth inning of Game 1 helped them do it. Watch >

Travis Ishikawa, Giants
2014 NLCS Game 5 vs. Cardinals

Ishikawa sent the Giants to their third World Series in five years with the fourth LCS-clinching home run in history, a three-run shot off Michael Wacha. Watch >

David Ortiz, Red Sox
2013 ALCS Game 2 vs. Tigers

Nearly a decade after his walk-off homer in the 2004 ALCS against the Yankees, Ortiz was still adding to his postseason resume. He turned around the '13 ALCS for Boston with a game-tying grand slam in the bottom of the eighth inning of Game 2. The homer memorably caused a spirited celebration from a Boston police officer near the ball's landing spot as Tigers right fielder Torii Hunter tumbled into the bullpen. The Sox later walked it off on Jarrod Saltalamacchia's ninth-inning single, and they went on to win the series in six games before defeating the Cardinals in six for their third World Series title in 10 years. Watch >

Nelson Cruz, Rangers
2011 ALCS Game 2 vs. Tigers

Two years before Ortiz's colossal clout, Detroit was on the wrong end of another crucial bases-clearing homer in the 2011 ALCS, as Cruz hit a titanic moonshot down the left-field line to end Game 2. Cruz's 11th-inning blast marked the first walk-off grand slam in postseason history and put Texas up, two games to none, on its way to a second straight AL pennant. Watch >

Magglio Ordonez, Tigers
2006 ALCS Game 4 vs. A's

Only three years after losing an AL-record 116 games, the Tigers swept the A's for the league crown on Ordonez's three-run homer, the third LCS-ending home run in history. Watch >

Albert Pujols, Cardinals
2005 NLCS Game 5 at Astros

Although the Astros ultimately would defeat the Cardinals in the 2005 NLCS, Pujols made sure Houston wouldn't be able to celebrate on its home field. With St. Louis one out away from elimination, Pujols crushed a Brad Lidge pitch onto the railroad tracks at Minute Maid Park for a stunning three-run homer that turned a 4-2 deficit into a 5-4 lead and helped the Cards extend the series. Watch >

Derek Jeter, Yankees
1996 ALCS Game 1 vs. Orioles

With the Yankees trailing, 4-3, in the bottom of the eighth, Jeter hit a fly ball to right field, where it was deflected into the stands by 12-year-old fan Jeffrey Maier and ruled a home run -- even though it appeared Maier had reached over the wall and interfered with right fielder Tony Tarasco. The Yankees later won on Bernie Williams' walk-off homer in the 11th, took the series in five games and eventually defeated the Braves in the World Series for their first of four titles in a five-year span. Watch >

Dave Henderson, Red Sox
1986 ALCS Game 5 vs. Angels

Holding a 3-1 lead in the ALCS over the Red Sox, the Angels were one out away from moving on to the World Series, but Henderson struck for a go-ahead, two-run homer to left field in the top of the ninth inning. After the Halos tied the game in the bottom of the frame, Henderson's sac fly in the top of the 11th plated the decisive run, and Boston went on to win the pennant with two more victories at Fenway Park. Watch >

Lenny Dykstra, Mets
1986 NLCS Game 3 vs. Astros

Henderson's home run came just a day after Dykstra hit a walk-off homer in Game 3 of the NLCS, giving his team a 2-1 lead in the NLCS and putting the Mets and Red Sox on a collision course for the 1986 Fall Classic. Watch >

Chris Chambliss, Yankees
1976 ALCS Game 5 vs. Royals

The first LCS-ending homer ever came off the bat of Chambliss, who put the Yankees in the World Series for the first time since 1964. As fans flooded the field, Chambliss made a beeline for the dugout and never actually touched home plate. When he came back later, it had been lifted from the ground and stolen, so Chambliss symbolically touched the now-bare spot where the plate had previously rested. Watch >