Doc's no-no, The Flip and other top Division Series moments

The most fundamental, monumental and consequential change to Major League Baseball’s postseason structure was the arrival of the Wild Card and the 1995 debut of the Division Series. That’s the alteration that opened October to a new level of randomness. In the time since, 13 non-division winners have reached the World Series and seven have won it all.

To celebrate this influential adjustment, let’s revisit the 25 greatest moments in Division Series history. Note that we’re only accepting entries from the Wild Card era, not the one-off Division Series that took place in that strange, split 1981 season.

Honestly, we couldn’t possibly appease everybody and include each electric event in a round that has provided plenty. So consider the following a strong and fun representative sample of what the best-of-five Division Series has brought to baseball.

1. “The Double” (Mariners vs. Yankees, 1995 ALDS, Game 5)
In baseball history, there have been hundreds of thousands of doubles hit in the regular season or postseason. But only one is formally known as “The Double.” It’s the Edgar Martinez two-bagger that scored Joey Cora and Ken Griffey Jr., erased a 5-4 deficit in the bottom of the 11th inning and just may have saved Major League Baseball in Seattle. This was the first year of the Division Series format, and the sheer sound from the Kingdome is still ringing in our ears.

2. “The Bat Flip” (Blue Jays vs. Rangers 2015 ALDS, Game 5)
This is in the conversation for craziest inning in postseason history. In the top of the seventh, the Blue Jays became incensed when catcher Russell Martin’s throw back to pitcher Aaron Sanchez struck Shin-Soo Choo’s bat and rolled toward third base. When Rougned Odor hustled home, it was initially ruled a dead ball, but the call was reversed and the run counted to give Texas a 3-2 lead. In the bottom of the frame, the Jays scored an unearned run to tie it, and then José Bautista took Sam Dyson deep with a three-run shot punctuated by what The New York Times called “the most ostentatious bat flip in MLB history.” Rogers Centre -- all of Canada, really -- went crazy. (The only thing keeping this from the top spot is that the Blue Jays still had to get six outs afterward.)

3. “The Flip” (Yankees vs. A’s, 2001 ALDS, Game 3)
A very different sort of flip. It’s the play Derek Jeter has called “a perfect storm” -- perhaps the signature moment of his legendary career. With the Yankees up 1-0 in the seventh, Terrence Long smacked a Mike Mussina pitch down the right-field line. Shane Spencer overthrew both cutoff men, but Jeter materialized near the first-base foul line to shovel the ball to catcher Jorge Posada, who nabbed Jeremy Giambi for an unforgettable out.

4. Roy Halladay’s no-no (Phillies vs. Reds, 2010 NLDS, Game 1)
In his very first postseason appearance, Halladay achieved a level of immortality previously only reached by Don Larsen in his 1956 World Series perfect game. But it was actually Halladay’s second no-hitter of the 2010 season -- he threw a perfect game against the Marlins in May --which produced his second Cy Young Award. Halladay got Brandon Phillips to ground a little nubber in front of the plate, and Carlos Ruiz made the difficult play to send Citizens Bank Park into hysterics.

5. An unrivaled rivalry (Dodgers vs. Giants, 2021 NLDS, Game 5)
The 2021 Giants needed every single one of their 107 regular-season wins to outlast the Dodgers in a fantastic NL West race, setting the stage for the first Modern Era postseason series between these two longstanding rivals. Naturally, it went the full five games, and Game 5 was just the fifth postseason winner-take-all between two 100-win teams. And of course, Game 5 was a 1-1 tie going into the ninth, when Cody Bellinger came through with the go-ahead RBI single to give the Dodgers a 2-1 lead they would not relinquish. The great Max Scherzer came on in a rare relief appearance in the bottom of the ninth. With a runner on and two out, Wilmer Flores was called out on a disputed check swing for the final strike of this bitter battle.

6. Pudge’s play at the plate (Marlins vs. Giants, 2003 NLDS, Game 4)
It took more than a century for a postseason series to end on a play at the plate for the first time. A win away from advancing, the Marlins were clinging to a 7-5 lead in the top of the ninth. The Giants rallied against Ugueth Urbina, and J.T. Snow’s RBI single made it a one-run game. Urbina got two outs, then plunked a batter to move Snow into scoring position. Jeffrey Hammonds smacked a line-drive single to left. Jeff Conine charged in on the ball and fired it home to Ivan Rodriguez. Snow barreled into the catcher, but Pudge managed to hold on … and so did the Fish.

7. Todd Pratt delivers (Mets vs. D-backs, 1999 NLDS, Game 4)
Unexpected October heroes. That’s where it’s at. Or better put: Pratt’s where it’s at. An injury to Mike Piazza forced Pratt, the backup catcher and a former manager of a Domino’s pizza franchise, into the starting lineup. His lone hit in the series was an upper crust kind of moment. Looking to finish off the series, the Mets had scored a run in the eighth to tie it at 3. And with one out in the bottom of the 10th, Pratt hit a long fly ball off Matt Mantei that sailed past the outstretched glove of center fielder Steve Finley to send the Mets to the LCS for the first time in 11 years.

8. Chris Burke’s blast (Astros vs. Braves, 2005 NLDS, Game 4)
Another unlikely hero here. Facing elimination, the Braves took a 6-1 lead into the bottom of the eighth and appeared to be in position to force a Game 5. But the Astros erupted with a Lance Berkman grand slam in the eighth and Brad Ausmus’ game-tying solo shot in the ninth. It dragged deep into extras (thanks in part to Roger Clemens’ rare relief work), where, finally, in the bottom of the 18th, Burke -- who had entered the game as a pinch-runner for Berkman -- wound up connecting with Joey Devine’s 2-0 fastball and cementing his place in October history.

9. Howie Kendrick’s grand slam (Nationals vs. Dodgers, 2019 NLDS, Game 5)
After years of Division Series torture (much of which is chronicled within this list), including three Game 5 losses (2012, ‘16, ‘17), the Nationals finally got the upper hand against a 106-win Dodgers team -- and in the most dramatic of ways. Anthony Rendon and Juan Soto went back-to-back in the eighth to tie it up at 3. The game drifted into the 10th, where Washington loaded the bases against Joe Kelly, setting up Kendrick’s go-ahead slam. The Nats’ wild ride to their franchise’s first title continued.

10. Pedro shuts it down (Indians vs. Red Sox, 1999 ALDS, Game 5)
It was an 8-8 ballgame in the bottom of the fourth. Surely, there was plenty more offense to come, right? Nope. Not when Jimy Williams summoned his ace, Pedro Martinez, out of the ‘pen. The training staff had told Williams that Pedro, who had left Game 1 due to a strained muscle in his back, might be able to pitch an inning or two. He wound up silencing a potent Indians offense (and the Jacobs Field crowd) for six innings in the 12-8 victory, and Boston moved on.

11. Mike Brosseau hits the heat (Rays vs. Yankees, 2020 ALDS, Game 5)
Maybe the ultimate underdog dinger. You had the small-market Rays staring down the big-budget Yankees and their ace, Gerrit Cole, who pitched into the seventh and allowed just one run. It was a 1-1 tie going into the bottom of the eighth. Brosseau, an undrafted utilityman, came in as a pinch-hitter against the mighty Aroldis Chapman, who had been suspended for throwing at Brosseau’s head a month earlier. Brosseau got his revenge by smacking the 10th pitch of the at-bat -- a 100.2-mph fastball -- over the left-field wall to give the Rays the go-ahead. They’d go on to win the AL pennant.

12. Kevin Brown vs. Randy Johnson (Padres vs. Astros, 1998 NLDS, Game 1)
An all-time pitchers' duel. “The Big Unit” had been acquired by Houston at the Trade Deadline and gone 10-1 with a 1.28 ERA for the Astros in the regular season. He was masterful again in this one (though Tony Gwynn did get to him in a classic at-bat) … but Brown was just a bit better. In eight shutout innings, Brown allowed just two hits and two walks while striking out 16 -- an LDS record that still stands and second only to Bob Gibson’s 17 strikeouts in Game 1 of the ‘68 World Series. The Padres won, 2-1, and would go on to send Johnson to another tough-luck loss in their Game 4 clincher.

13. Chris Carpenter caps clincher (Cardinals vs. Phillies, 2011 NLDS, Game 5)
The Phillies of “Four Aces” fame won 102 games and got eight sterling innings from Roy Halladay in this sudden-death affair. But Chris Carpenter was unstoppable, finishing the complete-game shutout by getting Ryan Howard to ground harmlessly to second for the final out. The 90-win Cardinals, who had only earned a spot in October due to a September surge coupled with the Braves’ stumble, ripped Carpenter’s jersey off in celebration.

14. Tony Peña’s power (Indians vs. Red Sox, 1995 ALDS, Game 1)
This holds a special place as the first of eight (and counting) walk-off home runs in Division Series history. And in true postseason fashion, it came from an unexpected source. Cleveland’s first playoff game in 41 years was rife with drama. The Indians lost a 3-2 lead in the eighth and fell behind 4-3 in the top of the 11th. Albert Belle tied it with a solo homer in the bottom of the inning. The Red Sox asked the umps to check Belle’s bat for cork, prompting an iconic moment in which he pointed to his biceps as a way of saying, “That was all muscle.” Finally, in the 13th, Peña, the backup catcher with a .375 slugging percentage, ignored the take sign on Zane Smith’s 3-0 offering and put it over the 19-foot wall in left.

15. Attack of the midges (Indians vs. Yankees, 2007 ALDS, Game 2)
Same building and another example of little guys helping the home team. The ”Bug Game,” as it came to be called, has a permanent place in baseball’s theater of the bizarre. The Yanks had put a 1-0 lead in the hands of Joba Chamberlain, who had a 0.38 ERA in the regular season. But he became a victim not only of the mighty midges, but of the team trainer spraying him with insect repellant that midges actually find attractive. The end result was that the Tribe tied the game against a rattled Chamberlain. Cleveland went on to take the game and the series, and it still bugs Yankees fans to this day.

16. Yordan Alvarez stuns the M's (Astros vs. Mariners, 2022 ALDS, Game 1)
The Mariners had waited 21 years to reach the postseason. They had torched the great Justin Verlander to take an early 6-2 lead. And they had a 7-5 lead with two on and two out in the ninth. Manager Scott Servais summoned reigning AL Cy Young winner Robbie Ray for a rare relief appearance. And with the count 0-1, the 6-foot-5, 225-pound Alvarez absolutely pulverized the baseball with a blast to the upper deck, sending the Minute Maid Park crowd into a frenzy. Amazingly, it was the first walk-off home run for a team trailing by multiple runs in postseason history. Even more amazing? Alvarez hit another go-ahead homer in Game 2 of a series the Astros went on to sweep.

17. Guardians stay in their Lane (Guardians vs. Tigers, 2024 ALDS, Game 5)
In a winner-take-all decider of a tense, tight series, the Guardians were faced with an unfavorable matchup against Tarik Skubal, who had earned the AL’s pitching Triple Crown in the regular season and shoved against them for seven scoreless innings in Game 1. But after José Ramírez took a 99.9 mph fastball to the elbow with the bases loaded in the fifth to bring home the tying run, midseason trade acquisition Lane Thomas came to the plate and delivered the biggest swing of his life. Thomas connected on Skubal’s first pitch and sent the ball hurtling over the 19-foot wall in left field for the go-ahead grand slam that sent the Guards to a 7-3 victory and the ALCS.

18. The Royals’ crazy eighth (Royals vs. Astros, 2015 ALDS, Game 4)
Kansas City was as cooked as a plate of ribs. Trailing 6-2 in the eighth inning (and 2-1 in the series), the Royals’ chances of winning the game (and keeping their hope of returning to the World Series for a second straight year) were just three percent, per Baseball Reference’s win probability chart. But five straight singles off Will Harris and his replacement Tony Sipp, as well as a costly error by Houston shortstop Carlos Correa keyed a five-run inning and sent the Royals toward a 9-6 victory. They would take Game 5 and, three weeks later, they won it all.

19. Tim Lincecum’s masterpiece (Giants vs. Braves, 2010 NLDS, Game 1)
Halladay has the no-hitter. But which pitcher has the greatest game score in Division Series history? Timmy! His two-hit complete-game shutout in a 1-0 victory included 14 strikeouts and only one walk for a game score of 96 to Halladay’s 94. In the second inning, Lincecum threw 14 pitches, nine for strikes -- and every one of them was a swing and miss. The game’s lone run was controversial, with Buster Posey called safe but clearly out on a stolen-base attempt (this was before replay review) and scoring on Cody Ross’ two-out single. The Giants’ even-year magic had begun.

20. Slamcisco Lindor (Mets vs. Phillies, 2024 NLDS, Game 4)
Lindor had hit a go-ahead homer in the ninth inning against the Braves to punch the Mets’ playoff ticket on the final day of the regular season. So leave it to Lindor to come through in the clutch again when the Mets trailed, 1-0, in the sixth and were in danger of the series going back to Philly for a Game 5. The Phillies turned to their closer, Carlos Estévez, to face Lindor with the bases loaded, and the Mets’ shortstop crushed a 99 mph fastball over the right-center-field fence to send Citi Field into a frenzy. It was only the fifth time in postseason history that a player hit a go-ahead grand slam in the sixth inning or later.

21. Tony Womack’s walk-off (D-backs vs. Cardinals, 2001 NLDS, Game 5)
Before there could be Luis Gonzalez’s game-winning RBI single off Mariano Rivera, there was Tony Womack’s game-winning RBI single off the Cards’ Steve Kline in the D-backs’ clincher. Moments earlier, Womack had failed to get down a suicide squeeze, and Midre Cummings was caught trying to score from third. But Womack’s soft flare to shallow left scored Danny Bautista from second, and Arizona was on its way.

22. Justin Verlander ousts Oakland … twice (Tigers vs. A’s, 2012 & ‘13 ALDS, Game 5)
We’ll cheat and count these as one moment, but Verlander has two of the best clinching pitching performances in LDS history, and they just so happened to come against the same team in successive seasons. He broke the heart of the upstart A’s with a complete-game, four-hit shutout in ’12, striking out 11 in a 6-0 win. He didn’t quite go the distance a year later, but his eight shutout innings with 10 strikeouts were plenty in a 3-0 victory that felt like a repeat episode.

23. Buster Posey’s grand slam (Giants vs. Reds, 2012 NLDS, Game 5)
This series was nuts. The Reds lost ace Johnny Cueto to injury in the first inning of Game 1 but won anyway. They took a 2-0 lead to Cincinnati, and because the format was altered to reduce travel with the Wild Card Game shoehorned into the schedule, they had the next three games at home. But they lost all three, with the final dagger coming via the NL Most Valuable Player. With the Giants up 2-0 in the fifth, Posey connected on a Mat Latos offering, and catcher Ryan Hanigan’s instant reaction spoke for all of Cincinnati.

24. Raul Ibanez’s pinch-hit prowess (Yankees vs. Orioles, 2012 ALDS, Game 3)
Yeah, 2012 was a pretty good year for the Division Series. Two outs away from falling into a 2-1 series deficit, Yankees manager Joe Girardi sent Raul Ibanez up as a pinch-hitter … for three-time MVP Alex Rodriguez. And Ibanez lined a solo shot to right off Jim Johnson to tie it up. In the 12th, Ibanez did it again, leading off and crushing a 2-2 pitch from Brian Matusz into the second deck.

25. The Legend of Tony Plush (Brewers vs. D-backs, 2011 NLDS, Game 5)
Brash, productive and very, very goofy, Nyjer Morgan -- and his alter ego, Tony Plush -- became a cult hero in Milwaukee in 2011. And he etched his place in permanent Brew Crew lore in the 10th inning of this Game 5. Carlos Gomez singled and stole second, and “Tony Clutch” came through by slapping the game-winning single up the middle to clinch Milwaukee’s first postseason series win in 29 years. His, um, colorful postgame antics were as indelible as the hit itself.