1987 National League Championship Series

Game 1

Tuesday, October 6, 1987 at Busch Stadium (II)

Busch Memorial Stadium

Busch Memorial Stadium, also known as Busch Stadium, was a multi-purpose sports facility in St. Louis, Missouri that operated from 1966 to 2005....

in St. Louis, Missouri

St. Louis, Missouri

St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...

The Giants struck first on an RBI groundout by Candy Maldonado

Candy Maldonado

Candido Maldonado Guadarrama is a former Major League Baseball outfielder from to for the Los Angeles Dodgers, San Francisco Giants, Cleveland Indians, Milwaukee Brewers, Toronto Blue Jays, Chicago Cubs, and Texas Rangers. Chris Berman, a fellow ESPN analyst, called him the "Candyman"...

, but the Cardinals tied it in the third on Vince Coleman

Vince Coleman

Vincent Maurice Coleman is an American former Major League Baseball player, best known for his years with the St. Louis Cardinals. Primarily a left fielder, Coleman played from to and set a number of stolen base records. He was a switch-hitter and threw right-handed.-Biography:Coleman attended...

's RBI single. Jeffrey Leonard

Jeffrey Leonard

Jeffrey N. Leonard is a former left fielder in Major League Baseball with a 14-year career from to...

gave the Giants a short-lived lead in the fourth on a solo homer, as the Cards quickly re-tied it when Ozzie Smith

Ozzie Smith

Osborne Earl "Ozzie" Smith is an American former baseball shortstop who played in Major League Baseball for the San Diego Padres and St. Louis Cardinals from 1978 to 1996...

tripled and Willie McGee

Willie McGee

Willie Dean McGee is a retired professional baseball player who won two batting titles and was named Major League Baseball's National League MVP. McGee primarily played center and right field, winning three Gold Glove Awards for defensive excellence. McGee spent the majority of his 18-year career...

drove him home with a single.

The Cardinals took control of the game in the sixth by plating three runs off Giants starter Rick Reuschel

Rick Reuschel

Rickey Eugene Reuschel is a former professional baseball pitcher from the early 1970s into the early 1990s. His nickname was "Big Daddy" because of his portly physique...

. Terry Pendleton

Terry Pendleton

Terry Lee Pendleton is a former third baseman in Major League Baseball, and a former hitting coach and current first base coach of the Atlanta Braves. He played primarily for the St. Louis Cardinals and Atlanta Braves, but he also spent time with the Florida Marlins, Cincinnati Reds, and Kansas...

, Curt Ford

Curt Ford

Curtis Glenn Ford , is a former professional baseball player who played in the Major Leagues from 1985-1990. He played for the St. Louis Cardinals and Philadelphia Phillies...

, and pitcher Greg Mathews all had RBI singles in the rally. Ken Dayley

Ken Dayley

Kenneth Grant Dayley is a former professional baseball player. A left-handed pitcher, Dayley played all or part of eleven seasons in Major League Baseball between 1982 and 1993.- Braves :...

pitched the ninth and got the save.

Game 2

Wednesday, October 7, 1987 at Busch Stadium (II)

Busch Memorial Stadium

Busch Memorial Stadium, also known as Busch Stadium, was a multi-purpose sports facility in St. Louis, Missouri that operated from 1966 to 2005....

in St. Louis, Missouri

St. Louis, Missouri

St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...

The Giants pulled even in the series on the strength of a complete-game shutout by Dave Dravecky

Dave Dravecky

David Francis Dravecky is a Christian motivational speaker, author, and former Major League Baseball player for the San Diego Padres and San Francisco Giants...

. Dravecky got all the runs he needed in the second on a Will Clark

Will Clark

William Nuschler Clark, Jr. is a former first baseman in Major League Baseball best known for his years with the San Francisco Giants from to .Will was known by the nickname of "Will the Thrill"...

two-run homer. For good measure, Jeffrey Leonard

Jeffrey Leonard

Jeffrey N. Leonard is a former left fielder in Major League Baseball with a 14-year career from to...

added a solo homer in the fourth, his second in two NLCS games. Two more runs came across in the eighth for the Giants on a rare Ozzie Smith

Ozzie Smith

Osborne Earl "Ozzie" Smith is an American former baseball shortstop who played in Major League Baseball for the San Diego Padres and St. Louis Cardinals from 1978 to 1996...

throwing error.

It was in this game that Leonard aroused the ire of the Cardinal fans by going into a "Cadillac home run trot" around the bases. Leonard took an unusually long amount of time getting around the bases after his homer in the fourth and seemed to be taunting the Cardinals home crowd, who responded with taunts and boos of their own.

Game 3

Friday, October 9, 1987 at Candlestick Park

Monster Park

Candlestick Park is an outdoor sports and entertainment stadium located in San Francisco, California, in the Bayview Heights area. The stadium was originally built as the home of Major League Baseball's San Francisco Giants, who played there from 1960 until moving into Pacific Bell Park in 2000...

in San Francisco, California

San Francisco, California

San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...

In Game 3, Joe Magrane

Joe Magrane

Joseph David Magrane is a former Major League Baseball pitcher and is currently a color commentary broadcaster for the MLB Network. He was teamed with play-by-play announcer Dewayne Staats from 1998 to 2008 as part of the Tampa Bay Rays television team.Magrane served as an analyst for NBC Sports'...

(STL) and Atlee Hammaker

Atlee Hammaker

Charlton Atlee Hammaker is a former Major League Baseball left-handed pitcher who played the majority of his career for the San Francisco Giants from 1982 to 1990. He also played for the Kansas City Royals, San Diego Padres, and Chicago White Sox...

(SF) were set to face off. The matchup was not expected to be quite as low scoring as the series had been to date. The predictions were correct, as San Francisco broke first with four runs in the first three innings, looking to take the series lead. In the second inning, consecutive hits from Chili Davis

Chili Davis

Charles Theodore "Chili" Davis is the hitting coach for the Oakland Athletics. Davis is a former outfielder/designated hitter who played in Major League Baseball with the San Francisco Giants , California Angels , Minnesota Twins , Kansas City Royals and New York Yankees...

, Will Clark

Will Clark

William Nuschler Clark, Jr. is a former first baseman in Major League Baseball best known for his years with the San Francisco Giants from to .Will was known by the nickname of "Will the Thrill"...

and Bob Brenly

Bob Brenly

Robert Earl Brenly is an American former professional baseball player, coach and manager in Major League Baseball. He played the majority of his career as a catcher with the San Francisco Giants and played half a season for the Toronto Blue Jays...

put the Giants on the board. Yet another home run from Leonard tacked on a fourth run in the third.

After looking completely beaten through five innings, the Cardinals heated things up in the sixth with a two-run home run from hot-hitting Lindeman, and then a triple

Triple (baseball)

In baseball, a triple is the act of a batter safely reaching third base after hitting the ball, with neither the benefit of a fielder's misplay nor another runner being put out on a fielder's choice....

by Willie McGee

Willie McGee

. But, in the seventh is when they really made their attack, not only tying the game, but scoring four to take the lead, 6–4. The four runs came on a large rally, highlighted by a two-run single

Single (baseball)

In baseball, a single is the most common type of base hit, accomplished through the act of a batter safely reaching first base by hitting a fair ball and getting to first base before a fielder puts him out...

by left fielder

Left fielder

In baseball, a left fielder is an outfielder who plays defense in left field. Left field is the area of the outfield to the left of a person standing at home plate and facing towards the pitcher's mound...

Vince Coleman.

With right-handed Todd Worrell

Todd Worrell

Todd Roland Worrell is a retired Major League Baseball relief pitcher who played for the St. Louis Cardinals and Los Angeles Dodgers from to ....

pitching for the Cards, manager

Manager (baseball)

In baseball, the field manager is an individual who is responsible for matters of team strategy on the field and team leadership. Managers are typically assisted by between one and six assistant coaches, whose responsibilities are specialized...

Roger Craig

Roger Craig (baseball)

Roger Craig may refer to:*Roger Craig , former NFL running back*Roger Craig , former pitcher, coach and manager in Major League Baseball...

pinch hit

Pinch hitter

In baseball, a pinch hitter is a substitute batter. Batters can be substituted at any time while the ball is dead ; the manager may use any player that has not yet entered the game as a substitute...

left-handed batter Harry Spilman

Harry Spilman

William Harry Spilman is a retired Major League Baseball first Baseman for the Cincinnati Reds , Houston Astros , Detroit Tigers , and San Francisco Giants...

for Robby Thompson

Robby Thompson

Robert Randall "Robby" Thompson is an American professional baseball coach and former college and professional player. He played his entire career in Major League Baseball as the second baseman for the San Francisco Giants from to . Thompson is the current bench coach for the Seattle Mariners...

. Spilman homered to right field, putting new life back in the Giants, even with two down. However, third baseman

Third baseman

A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run...

Kevin Mitchell flew out to center field, and the Cards had completed a stunning comeback.

Cardinals slugger Jack Clark

Jack Clark (baseball)

Jack Anthony Clark , also known as "Jack the Ripper," is a former Major League Baseball player. From 1975 through 1992, Clark played for the San Francisco Giants , St. Louis Cardinals , New York Yankees , San Diego Padres and Boston Red Sox...

made his only appearance in the Series in Game 3. Nursing a sprained ankle, he came up as a pinch-hitter and struck out looking. His injury caused him to be left off the roster for the World Series, so the Cardinals could add another pitcher.

Game 4

Saturday, October 10, 1987 at Candlestick Park

Monster Park

in San Francisco, California

San Francisco, California

The Giants knotted the series at 2–2 by the longball and another complete-game pitching performance, this time by Mike Krukow

Mike Krukow

Michael Edward "Mike" Krukow is a former starting pitcher in Major League Baseball. He is currently a television color commentator for the San Francisco Giants.-Early life:...

. Krukow was touched for two runs in the second on RBI singles by opposing pitcher Danny Cox

Danny Cox

Danny Bradford Cox , is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. He pitched for the St. Louis Cardinals from 1983 to 1988, the Philadelphia Phillies from 1991 to 1992, the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1992, and then the Toronto Blue Jays from 1993 to 1995, when he retired...

and Vince Coleman

Vince Coleman

, but then pitched shutout ball the rest of the way. Robby Thompson

Robby Thompson

hit a solo homer in the fourth, Jeffrey Leonard

Jeffrey Leonard

Jeffrey N. Leonard is a former left fielder in Major League Baseball with a 14-year career from to...

put the Giants ahead 3–2 in the fifth with his fourth homer in the NLCS, and Bob Brenly

Bob Brenly

closed out the scoring with a solo shot in the eighth.

Game 5

Sunday, October 11, 1987 at Candlestick Park

Monster Park

in San Francisco, California

San Francisco, California

Tom Herr

Thomas Mitchell Herr is a former second baseman in Major League Baseball who played from 1979 to 1991 for the St. Louis Cardinals, Minnesota Twins, Philadelphia Phillies, San Francisco Giants, and New York Mets...

put the Cardinals up 1–0 in the first off Rick Reuschel

Rick Reuschel

Rickey Eugene Reuschel is a former professional baseball pitcher from the early 1970s into the early 1990s. His nickname was "Big Daddy" because of his portly physique...

with a sacrifice fly, then the Giants tied it in their half of the first on a Kevin Mitchell RBI single.

The Cardinals looked on the verge of breaking it open against Reuschel in the third. Tony Pena

Tony Peña

Antonio Francisco Peña Padilla is a former professional baseball player, manager and current coach. He played as a catcher in Major League Baseball for the Pirates, Cardinals, Red Sox, Indians, White Sox, and Astros. Peña was the manager of the Kansas City Royals between 2002 and 2005. He...

and pitcher Bob Forsch

Bob Forsch

Robert Herbert Forsch was an American right-handed starting pitcher who spent most of his sixteen years in Major League Baseball with the St. Louis Cardinals before finishing his playing career with the Houston Astros...

led off the inning with consecutive singles, and then Vince Coleman

Vince Coleman

beat out a bunt, loading the bases with none out. Ozzie Smith

Ozzie Smith

Osborne Earl "Ozzie" Smith is an American former baseball shortstop who played in Major League Baseball for the San Diego Padres and St. Louis Cardinals from 1978 to 1996...

could only produce a sacrifice fly, however, and Herr bounced into a double play to end the threat. Mitchell tied it at 2–2 for the Giants in the third on a solo homer.

Terry Pendleton

Terry Pendleton

then gave the Cards back the lead in the fourth in this nip-and-tuck game by smashing a two-out triple and scoring when Reuschel mishandled a throw by Will Clark

Will Clark

William Nuschler Clark, Jr. is a former first baseman in Major League Baseball best known for his years with the San Francisco Giants from to .Will was known by the nickname of "Will the Thrill"...

on a ground ball hit by John Morris

John Morris (outfielder)

John Daniel Morris is a former professional baseball player who played seven seasons in the major leagues for the St. Louis Cardinals, Philadelphia Phillies, and California Angels....

.

The Giants answered back in the bottom of the fourth when Jose Uribe

Jose Uribe

José Altagracia González Uribe was a Dominican Major League Baseball shortstop from until . Most of his ten-year career was spent with the San Francisco Giants...

drove in two runs with a bases-loaded single for a 4–3 Giants lead. Mike Aldrete

Mike Aldrete

Michael Peter Aldrete is a former first baseman/outfielder in Major League Baseball.Aldrete was a four-year letterman at Stanford University...

then pinch-hit for Reuschel and hit a sacrifice fly and Robby Thompson

Robby Thompson

drove in the last run with a triple. Joe Price

Joe Price

Joseph Walter Price , is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who played in the Major Leagues from 1980 to 1990. He played college baseball for Oklahoma State University from 1975 to 1976, and played for the University of Oklahoma in 1977...

then relieved Reuschel and pitched five innings of one-hit, shutout relief.

Thompson's RBI would be the last Giants run of the series.

Game 6

Tuesday, October 13, 1987 at Busch Stadium (II)

Busch Memorial Stadium

Busch Memorial Stadium, also known as Busch Stadium, was a multi-purpose sports facility in St. Louis, Missouri that operated from 1966 to 2005....

in St. Louis, Missouri

St. Louis, Missouri

St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...

Facing elimination, the Cardinals rolled out their ace, John Tudor, to face Dave Dravecky

Dave Dravecky

David Francis Dravecky is a Christian motivational speaker, author, and former Major League Baseball player for the San Diego Padres and San Francisco Giants...

once again. Tudor was injured for most of the first half of 1987, but rebounded to go 10–2 in the second half of the season. And, like his great 1985 season, Tudor was golden in the postseason. He scattered six hits in seven innings and struck out six before giving way to Todd Worrell

Todd Worrell

Todd Roland Worrell is a retired Major League Baseball relief pitcher who played for the St. Louis Cardinals and Los Angeles Dodgers from to ....

.

Tudor got the only run he needed in the second inning when Tony Peña

Tony Peña

hit what appeared to be a routine fly ball to right, but Candy Maldonado

Candy Maldonado

misplayed it and it fell for a triple. José Oquendo

José Oquendo

José Manuel Roberto Guillermo Oquendo Contreras is a former Major League Baseball infielder and the current third base coach for the St. Louis Cardinals...

then drove Pena home with a sacrifice fly.

Ken Dayley

Ken Dayley

Kenneth Grant Dayley is a former professional baseball player. A left-handed pitcher, Dayley played all or part of eleven seasons in Major League Baseball between 1982 and 1993.- Braves :...

pitched the ninth for his second save of the series.

Game 7

Wednesday, October 14, 1987 at Busch Stadium (II)

Busch Memorial Stadium

Busch Memorial Stadium, also known as Busch Stadium, was a multi-purpose sports facility in St. Louis, Missouri that operated from 1966 to 2005....

in St. Louis, Missouri

St. Louis, Missouri

St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...

The Cardinals gave starter Danny Cox

Danny Cox

a quick 4–0 lead by jumping on Giants starter Atlee Hammaker

Atlee Hammaker

in the second. Singles by Terry Pendleton

Terry Pendleton

, Tony Peña

Tony Peña

and Willie McGee

Willie McGee

produced the first run and José Oquendo

José Oquendo

José Manuel Roberto Guillermo Oquendo Contreras is a former Major League Baseball infielder and the current third base coach for the St. Louis Cardinals...

, who had homered only once during the regular season, drilled a three-run shot to left. St. Louis added two more runs in the sixth on a two-run single by Tommy Herr. Cox went the distance in the 6–0 win, scattering eight hits and striking out five. The victory gave the Cardinals their third pennant in six years and fifteenth overall. The only downside in the victory was Pendleton pulling a muscle in his ribcage running the bases, which limited his availability in the World Series.

Composite box

1987 NLCS (4–3): St. Louis Cardinals
St. Louis Cardinals
The St. Louis Cardinals are a professional baseball team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are members of the Central Division in the National League of Major League Baseball. The Cardinals have won eleven World Series championships, the most of any National League team, and second overall only to...

over San Francisco Giants

San Francisco Giants

The San Francisco Giants are a Major League Baseball team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the National League West Division....

Series stats & information

Cardinals Hitting Bests:

Series AB's
At bat
In baseball, an at bat or time at bat is used to calculate certain statistics, including batting average, on base percentage, and slugging percentage. It is a more restricted definition of a plate appearance...

: Herr (27)
Series Runs
Run (baseball)
In baseball, a run is scored when a player advances around first, second and third base and returns safely to home plate, touching the bases in that order, before three outs are recorded and all obligations to reach base safely on batted balls are met or assured...

: Pena (5)
Series Hits
Hit (baseball)
In baseball statistics, a hit , also called a base hit, is credited to a batter when the batter safely reaches first base after hitting the ball into fair territory, without the benefit of an error or a fielder's choice....

: Pena (8)
Series Doubles
Double (baseball)
In baseball, a double is the act of a batter striking the pitched ball and safely reaching second base without being called out by the umpire, without the benefit of a fielder's misplay or another runner being put out on a fielder's choice....

: Dan Driessen
Dan Driessen
Daniel Driessen is a former Major League Baseball infielder who played for five teams in his eighteen year career, and is best known as a member of the Cincinnati Reds "Big Red Machine" of the 1970s....

(2)
Series Triples
Triple (baseball)
In baseball, a triple is the act of a batter safely reaching third base after hitting the ball, with neither the benefit of a fielder's misplay nor another runner being put out on a fielder's choice....

: Pena, McGee, Terry Pendleton
Terry Pendleton
Terry Lee Pendleton is a former third baseman in Major League Baseball, and a former hitting coach and current first base coach of the Atlanta Braves. He played primarily for the St. Louis Cardinals and Atlanta Braves, but he also spent time with the Florida Marlins, Cincinnati Reds, and Kansas...

, Ozzie Smith
Ozzie Smith
Osborne Earl "Ozzie" Smith is an American former baseball shortstop who played in Major League Baseball for the San Diego Padres and St. Louis Cardinals from 1978 to 1996...

(1)
Series HR's
Home run
In baseball, a home run is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to reach home safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team in the process...

: Oquendo, Lindeman (1)
Series RBIs
Run batted in
Runs batted in or RBIs is a statistic used in baseball and softball to credit a batter when the outcome of his at-bat results in a run being scored, except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play. The first team to track RBI was the Buffalo Bisons.Common nicknames for an RBI...

: Coleman, Oquendo (4)
Series Base on Balls
Base on balls
A base on balls is credited to a batter and against a pitcher in baseball statistics when a batter receives four pitches that the umpire calls balls. It is better known as a walk. The base on balls is defined in Section 2.00 of baseball's Official Rules, and further detail is given in 6.08...

: Coleman (4)
Series Batting Average
Batting average
Batting average is a statistic in both cricket and baseball that measures the performance of cricket batsmen and baseball hitters. The two statistics are related in that baseball averages are directly descended from the concept of cricket averages.- Cricket :...

(at least 10 at bats): Pena (.381)

Giants Hitting Bests:

Series AB'S: Mitchell (30)
Series Runs: Thompson (4)
Series Hits: Leonard (10)
Series Doubles: Clark (2)
Series Triples: Thompson (1)
Series HR's: Leonard (4)
Series RBIs: Leonard (5)
Series Base on Balls: Thompson (5)
Series Batting Average (at least 10 at bats): Leonard (.417)

----

Cardinals Pitching Bests:

Series Wins
Win (baseball)
In professional baseball, there are two types of decisions: a win and a loss . In each game, one pitcher on the winning team is awarded a win and one pitcher on the losing team is given a loss in their respective statistics. These pitchers are collectively known as the pitchers of record. Only...

: Cox, Tudor, Mathews, Forsch (1)
Series Saves
Save (sport)
In baseball, a save is credited to a pitcher who finishes a game for the winning team under certain prescribed circumstances. The number of saves, or percentage of save opportunities successfully converted, is an oft-cited statistic of relief pitchers...

: Dayley (2)
Series Complete Games
Complete game
In baseball, a complete game is the act of a pitcher pitching an entire game without the benefit of a relief pitcher.As demonstrated by the charts below, in the early 20th century, it was common for most good Major League Baseball pitchers to pitch a complete game almost every start. Pitchers were...

: Cox (2)
Series IP
Innings pitched
In baseball, innings pitched are the number of innings a pitcher has completed, measured by the number of batters and baserunners that are put out while the pitcher on the pitching mound in a game. Three outs made is equal to one inning pitched. One out counts as one-third of an inning, and two...

: Cox (17)
Series SO's
Strikeout
In baseball or softball, a strikeout or strike-out occurs when a batter receives three strikes during his time at bat. A strikeout is a statistic recorded for both pitchers and batters....

: Tudor (12)
Series ERA
Earned run average
In baseball statistics, earned run average is the mean of earned runs given up by a pitcher per nine innings pitched. It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number of innings pitched and multiplying by nine...

(at least 4 innings pitched): Dayley, Worrell (2.66)

Giants Pitching Bests:

Series Wins: Dravecky, Krukow, Price (1)
Series Saves: None
Series Complete Games: Dravecky, Krukow (1)
Series IP: Dravecky (15)
Series SO's: Dravecky (14)
Series ERA (at least 4 innings pitched): Dravecky (0.60)

Series quotes

External links

1987 NLCS at Baseball Reference

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