1993 American League Championship Series
Encyclopedia
Game 1
Tuesday, October 5, 1993 at Comiskey Park (II)U.S. Cellular Field
U.S. Cellular Field is a baseball ballpark in Chicago, Illinois. Owned by the Illinois Sports Facilities Authority, it is the home of the Chicago White Sox of Major League Baseball's American League. The park opened for the 1991 season, after the White Sox had spent 81 years at old Comiskey Park...
in Chicago, Illinois
The ALCS opened at Comiskey Park
U.S. Cellular Field
U.S. Cellular Field is a baseball ballpark in Chicago, Illinois. Owned by the Illinois Sports Facilities Authority, it is the home of the Chicago White Sox of Major League Baseball's American League. The park opened for the 1991 season, after the White Sox had spent 81 years at old Comiskey Park...
with a battle of aces, as Toronto threw Juan Guzmán against Chicago's Jack McDowell
Jack McDowell
Jack Burns McDowell is a former Major League Baseball player. A right-handed pitcher, McDowell won the American League Cy Young Award in 1993. He was nicknamed "Black Jack."...
, the eventual 1993 American League Cy Young Award
Cy Young Award
The Cy Young Award is an honor given annually in baseball to the best pitchers in Major League Baseball , one each for the American League and National League . The award was first introduced in 1956 by Baseball Commissioner Ford Frick in honor of Hall of Fame pitcher Cy Young, who died in 1955...
winner. The game was scoreless until the top of the fourth, when Jays third baseman Ed Sprague stroked a triple to right field that scored John Olerud
John Olerud
John Garrett Olerud , is a former American first baseman in Major League Baseball. Olerud played with the Toronto Blue Jays , New York Mets , Seattle Mariners , New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox ....
and Paul Molitor
Paul Molitor
Paul Leo Molitor , nicknamed "Molly" and "The Ignitor", is an American former Major League Baseball designated hitter and infielder. During his 21-year baseball career, he played for the Milwaukee Brewers , Toronto Blue Jays , and Minnesota Twins...
. The White Sox took a 3–2 lead in the bottom of the fourth with RBI base hits by Ozzie Guillén
Ozzie Guillén
Oswaldo José "Ozzie" Guillén Barrios is a Venezuelan-American former Major League Baseball player and current manager of the Miami Marlins. He managed the Chicago White Sox from 2004 to 2011 before asking for his release at the end of the 2011 season....
and Tim Raines
Tim Raines
Timothy Raines , nicknamed "Rock", is a former American professional baseball player. He played as a left fielder in Major League Baseball for six teams from 1979 to 2002 and was best known for his 13 seasons with the Montreal Expos...
, but Toronto stormed back in its half of the fifth with a two-run double by Olerud and a run-scoring single by Molitor. The Jays' designated hitter
Designated hitter
In baseball, the designated hitter rule is the common name for Major League Baseball Rule 6.10, an official position adopted by the American League in 1973 that allows teams to designate a player, known as the designated hitter , to bat in place of the pitcher each time he would otherwise come to...
added a two-run homer in the seventh that finally chased McDowell, and the Chicago batters could muster nothing more against Toronto's bullpen as the Jays took the game 7–3 and a 1–0 lead in the series.
Game 2
Wednesday, October 6, 1993 at Comiskey Park (II)U.S. Cellular Field
U.S. Cellular Field is a baseball ballpark in Chicago, Illinois. Owned by the Illinois Sports Facilities Authority, it is the home of the Chicago White Sox of Major League Baseball's American League. The park opened for the 1991 season, after the White Sox had spent 81 years at old Comiskey Park...
in Chicago, Illinois
In Game 2, the Jays' Dave Stewart faced off against the Sox' Alex Fernandez
Alex Fernandez (baseball)
Alexander Fernandez is a Cuban American former Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher. During a 11-year baseball career, he pitched for the Chicago White Sox and Florida Marlins...
. Toronto struck in the first when Rickey Henderson
Rickey Henderson
Rickey Henley Henderson is a former Major League Baseball left fielder who played for nine teams from 1979 to 2003, including four stints with his original team, the Oakland Athletics. Nicknamed The Man of Steal, he is widely regarded as the sport's greatest leadoff hitter and baserunner...
reached on an error by Dan Pasqua
Dan Pasqua
Daniel Anthony Pasqua , is a former professional baseball player who played in the Major Leagues from 1985-1994. He was drafted by the New York Yankees in the 3rd round of the 1982 amateur draft. Pasqua attended William Paterson University in New Jersey...
and later scored on a fielder's choice by Roberto Alomar
Roberto Alomar
Roberto "Robbie" Alomar Velázquez is a former Major League Baseball player , regarded by many as one of the best second basemen in MLB history. During his career he won more Gold Gloves than any other second baseman in history, and also won the second-most Silver Slugger Awards for a second...
, but the Pale Hose tied the game in the bottom of the inning when Stewart walked the bases loaded and then unleashed a wild pitch, scoring Raines. The contest remained knotted at one-all until the top of the fourth, when the Jays touched Fernandez for two runs via singles by Tony Fernández
Tony Fernández
Octavio Antonio Fernández Castro , better known as Tony Fernández, is a former Major League Baseball player most noted for his defensive skills setting a record for shortstops with a .992 fielding percentage in 1989.-Career:...
and Pat Borders
Pat Borders
Patrick Lance Borders is a former catcher in Major League Baseball who is best remembered for being the Most Valuable Player in the 1992 World Series. Borders also won an Olympic Games gold medal with the United States' baseball team at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney...
. As in the first game, the ChiSox could not solve Toronto's relievers, and Duane Ward
Duane Ward
Roy Duane Ward was a Major League Baseball reliever during the late 1980s and early 1990s.Ward went to school and made his early athletic mark in Farmington, New Mexico, a small oil and gas city, and one known for its amateur baseball programs...
(who had notched a league-leading 45 saves during the regular season) secured his first playoff save as the Jays took a 2–0 lead in the series with a 3–1 victory.
Game 3
Friday, October 8, 1993 at SkyDomeRogers Centre
Rogers Centre is a multi-purpose stadium, in Downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated next to the CN Tower, near the shores of Lake Ontario. Opened in 1989, it is home to the Toronto Blue Jays of Major League Baseball and the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League...
in Toronto, Ontario
The series shifted north of the border for Game 3, featuring Chicago's Wilson Alvarez
Wilson Alvarez
Wilson Eduardo Álvarez Fuenmayor is a former Major League Baseball left-handed pitcher...
taking on Toronto's Pat Hentgen
Pat Hentgen
Patrick George Hentgen is a former Major League Baseball player. Hentgen was a right-handed starting pitcher in the major leagues and a Cy Young Award winner in...
. The two starters traded zeroes until the South Siders erupted with a five-run third, including a pair of two-run singles by Ellis Burks
Ellis Burks
Ellis Rena Burks is a former outfielder and designated hitter who played in Major League Baseball for 18 seasons...
and Lance Johnson
Lance Johnson
Kenneth Lance Johnson is a retired Major League Baseball player. At the age of 24, Johnson broke into the big leagues on July 10, 1987, with the St. Louis Cardinals after being drafted by them in the 6th round of the 1984 amateur draft. In 1987 Johnson, playing for the Louisville Redbirds, was...
. The Blue Jays got a run in the bottom half of the frame when Henderson doubled, stole third, and scored on a Devon White single, but Hentgen was pulled in the fourth after giving up back-to-back base hits. His replacement on the mound, 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...
, gave up another run when a Robin Ventura
Robin Ventura
Robin Mark Ventura is the current manager of the Chicago White Sox. He is a former professional baseball player, a third baseman who played for four major league teams, most notably for the Chicago White Sox...
sacrifice fly plated Guillén. This was more than enough for Alvarez, who went the distance as the Pale Hose cut Toronto's series lead to 2–1.
Game 4
Saturday, October 9, 1993 at SkyDomeRogers Centre
Rogers Centre is a multi-purpose stadium, in Downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated next to the CN Tower, near the shores of Lake Ontario. Opened in 1989, it is home to the Toronto Blue Jays of Major League Baseball and the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League...
in Toronto, Ontario
In Game 4, the ChiSox sent rookie Jason Bere
Jason Bere
Jason Phillip Bere is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who played for parts of 11 seasons from to...
to the hill against the Jays' Todd Stottlemyre
Todd Stottlemyre
Todd Vernon Stottlemyre is a former right-handed starting pitcher in Major League Baseball who played 15 seasons for the Toronto Blue Jays, Oakland Athletics, St. Louis Cardinals, Texas Rangers and Arizona Diamondbacks. He is the son of Mel Stottlemyre, former New York Yankees pitcher. His brother...
. The South Siders took a 2–0 lead in the top of the second thanks to a home run by Johnson, but Toronto came back in the third with an RBI double from Alomar and a two-run single by Joe Carter
Joe Carter
Joseph Christopher Carter is a former right fielder in Major League Baseball who played from to . Carter is most famous for hitting a walk-off home run to win the 1993 World Series for the Toronto Blue Jays....
, after which Pale Hose skipper Gene Lamont
Gene Lamont
Gene William Lamont is a former catcher and manager in Major League Baseball who managed the Chicago White Sox and Pittsburgh Pirates . He batted left-handed and threw right-handed...
yanked Bere and replaced him with Tim Belcher
Tim Belcher
Timothy Wayne Belcher is a retired Major League Baseball pitcher. He won the Sporting News Rookie Pitcher of the Year Award in for the National League...
. Chicago reclaimed its two-run advantage in the sixth when Frank Thomas
Frank Thomas (AL baseball player)
Frank Edward Thomas, Jr. , nicknamed "The Big Hurt", is a former Major League Baseball designated hitter and first baseman....
tattooed a solo homer and Johnson tripled to center, scoring Burks and Bo Jackson
Bo Jackson
Vincent Edward "Bo" Jackson is a former American baseball and football player. He was the first athlete to be named an All-Star in two major American sports, and also won the Heisman Trophy in 1985....
. In the bottom of the inning, another RBI double from Alomar cut the lead to one, but the White Sox again restored their two-run lead in the seventh with a groundout from Joey Cora
Joey Cora
Jose Manuel Cora Amaro was a baseball player known as "The Rooster" with an 11 year career in the MLB spanning the years 1987 and 1989-1998. He played for the San Diego Padres of the National League and the Chicago White Sox, Seattle Mariners and Cleveland Indians of the American League...
that scored Guillén and then extended it to three runs in the ninth with a single by Ventura. Roberto Hernández shut the door on the Jays in the bottom half of the inning, and the series was tied at two games apiece, dropping the Blue Jays' all-time ALCS record at SkyDome to dismal 3–8.
Game 5
Sunday, October 10, 1993 at SkyDomeRogers Centre
Rogers Centre is a multi-purpose stadium, in Downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated next to the CN Tower, near the shores of Lake Ontario. Opened in 1989, it is home to the Toronto Blue Jays of Major League Baseball and the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League...
in Toronto, Ontario
Game 5 was a rematch of Game 1, with McDowell facing Guzmán. In the first, Henderson doubled to left and then tried to steal third, but McDowell's throwing error resulted in Henderson coming home for a 1–0 Toronto lead. The Jays tacked on single runs in the second, third, and fourth, but Burks broke the shutout in the Chicago fifth with a solo home run. In the seventh, Scott Radinsky
Scott Radinsky
Scott David Radinsky is the pitching coach of the Cleveland Indians.He is also a left-handed former relief pitcher in Major League Baseball, who had an 11-year career from – and –...
and Hernández came in to stop the bleeding for the ChiSox, but they combined to give up another run. In the ninth, Ward entered to close out the game and Ventura greeted him with a two-run shot, but he maintained his composure and struck out Jackson to give Toronto a 3–2 ALCS lead.
Game 6
Tuesday, October 12, 1993 at Comiskey Park (II)U.S. Cellular Field
U.S. Cellular Field is a baseball ballpark in Chicago, Illinois. Owned by the Illinois Sports Facilities Authority, it is the home of the Chicago White Sox of Major League Baseball's American League. The park opened for the 1991 season, after the White Sox had spent 81 years at old Comiskey Park...
in Chicago, Illinois
The series returned to the Windy City for Game 6, as Stewart again faced Fernandez. In the top of the second, Borders ripped a two-run single that gave the Jays the lead, but the Pale Hose tied it in the third with a bases-loaded walk by Thomas and a fielder's choice from Ventura. In the fourth, Toronto took the lead back when Molitor reached on an error by Ventura and came home on a fielder's choice by Borders. The game stayed that way until the ninth, when White homered and Molitor cracked a two-run triple to right, giving the Jays a 6–2 lead. ChiSox reserve outfielder Warren Newson
Warren Newson
Warren Dale Newson is a former professional baseball outfielder. He played all or part of eight seasons in Major League Baseball from 1991-98. Newson played for the Chicago White Sox , Seattle Mariners and Texas Rangers...
tagged Ward for a solo homer in the ninth, but the Jays closer recovered and induced a flyout from Raines, sealing the game 6–3 and Toronto's second American League pennant in a row.
Composite box
1993 ALCS (4–2): Toronto Blue JaysToronto Blue Jays
The Toronto Blue Jays are a professional baseball team located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Blue Jays are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball 's American League ....
over Chicago White Sox
Chicago White Sox
The Chicago White Sox are a Major League Baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois.The White Sox play in the American League's Central Division. Since , the White Sox have played in U.S. Cellular Field, which was originally called New Comiskey Park and nicknamed The Cell by local fans...
Series quotes
Michael Jordan
To many sports fans, especially in Chicago, this series was an anti-climax, as it was overshadowed by Michael JordanMichael Jordan
Michael Jeffrey Jordan is a former American professional basketball player, active entrepreneur, and majority owner of the Charlotte Bobcats...
's announcement of his retirement from the NBA
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...
shortly before Game 2. Jordan was later criticized by Chicago media for trying to "steal the thunder" away from the White Sox. A few months later, Jordan signed a minor league contract with the White Sox in his attempt for a baseball career.