1987 World Series recap
Twins defeat Cardinals, 4 games to 3
The Twins were just 29-52 on the road during the regular season, but luckily for them the first two and last two World Series games were scheduled for Minnesota's Metrodome.
Twins fans had plenty to cheer about in Game 1, as their team romped over the Cardinals, 10-1. Left fielder Dan Gladden knocked in five runs, and Minnesota ace Frank Viola tossed eight innings of five-hit ball. Game 2 was closer, but not close enough for the Cardinals as the Twins scored six times in the fourth on their way to an 8-4 decision.
In St. Louis for Game 3, the Twins got six shutout innings from unheralded Les Straker. Cardinal starter John Tudor was nearly as good, and after six innings the Twins' lead was just 1-0. Fireballing Juan Berenguer replaced Straker in the seventh, the Cards quickly grabbed a 3-1 lead, and that's how it ended. St. Louis evened the Series with an easy 7-2 triumph in Game 4, the Cards tallying six in the fourth inning. And they ran their streak to three games with a 4-2 decision in Game 5.
The Series was back in Minnesota for Game 6, but early on it looked like the Cardinals didn't care. With Willie McGee's RBI single in the fifth, St. Louis took a 5-2 lead. Then the Twins exploded, with four runs in the bottom of the fifth and four more in the sixth, the latter four coming on Kent Hrbek's grand slam. They wound up winning easily, 11-5, forcing a decisive Game 7.
The Cardinals took a 2-0 lead in the second ... and that was it, as Viola allowed just two more hits through the eighth inning. Meanwhile, the Twins scored single runs in four different frames on their way to a 4-2, Series-clinching triumph. The Twins thus became the first team to win the World Series by winning four games at home, and their regular-season winning percentage (.525) was the lowest ever for a World Series Champion.
Managers: Tom Kelly, MIN; Whitey Herzog, STL
MVP: Frank Viola, MIN: 2-1, 3.72 ERA, 19.1 IP, 16 K