2001 American League Championship Series
Encyclopedia
Game 1
Wednesday, October 17, 2001 at Safeco FieldSafeco Field
Safeco Field is a retractable roof baseball stadium located in Seattle, Washington. The stadium, owned and operated by the Washington-King County Stadium Authority, is the home stadium of the Seattle Mariners of Major League Baseball and has a seating capacity of 47,878 for baseball...
in Seattle, Washington
Seattle, Washington
Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
Game 1's starting date was the latest ever for a League Championship series. The Yankees took a 1–0 lead on a Chuck Knoblauch
Chuck Knoblauch
Edward Charles "Chuck" Knoblauch is a retired Major League Baseball player. He played all or part of twelve seasons in the majors, from until , for the Minnesota Twins , New York Yankees and Kansas City Royals...
single that scored Jorge Posada in the second, then increased it to 3–0 on a Paul O'Neill home run in the fourth. The Mariners got on the board on a 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 ....
groundout that scored Edgar Martinez
Edgar Martinez
Edgar Martínez , nicknamed "Gar" and "Papi", is a former Major League Baseball third baseman and designated hitter. He spent his entire 18-year Major League career with the Seattle Mariners. He is the cousin of Carmelo Martínez.-Seattle Mariners:On December 19, 1982, the Seattle Mariners signed...
in the fifth. The score remained 3–1 until the ninth when the Yankees increased their lead to 4–1 on a David Justice
David Justice
David Christopher Justice is a former outfielder and designated hitter in Major League Baseball who played for the Atlanta Braves , Cleveland Indians , New York Yankees , and Oakland Athletics .-Early life:David was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, the son of Robert and Nettie Justice...
single that scored Alfonso Soriano
Alfonso Soriano
Alfonso Guilleard Soriano is a Major League Baseball outfielder for the Chicago Cubs....
. The Mariners got that run back in the bottom of the inning when Mariano Rivera
Mariano Rivera
Mariano Rivera is a Panamanian right-handed baseball pitcher who has played 17 years in Major League Baseball for the New York Yankees. Nicknamed "Mo", Rivera has served as a relief pitcher for most of his career, and since 1997, he has been the Yankees' closer...
threw a wild pitch to Bret Boone
Bret Boone
Bret Robert Boone is a former Major League Baseball second baseman.-Personal life:Boone was born in El Cajon, California to Susan G. Roel and Bob Boone. He is a graduate of El Dorado High School and the University of Southern California. He is the grandson of former major leaguer Ray Boone and...
that scored Ichiro Suzuki
Ichiro Suzuki
, usually known simply as is a Major League Baseball right fielder for the Seattle Mariners. Ichiro has established a number of batting records, including the sport's single-season record for hits with 262...
, but Rivera retired Boone and the next batter, Edgar Martinez, to end the game.
Game 2
Thursday, October 18, 2001 at Safeco FieldSafeco Field
Safeco Field is a retractable roof baseball stadium located in Seattle, Washington. The stadium, owned and operated by the Washington-King County Stadium Authority, is the home stadium of the Seattle Mariners of Major League Baseball and has a seating capacity of 47,878 for baseball...
in Seattle, Washington
Seattle, Washington
Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
In Game 2, the Yankees took a 2–0 lead in the second against Freddy García
Freddy García
Freddy Antonio García , nicknamed "The Chief", is a Venezuelan Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher who is currently a free agent...
on a Scott Brosius
Scott Brosius
Scott David Brosius is a former Major League Baseball third baseman for the Oakland Athletics and the New York Yankees . Brosius is currently the head baseball coach at Linfield College, his alma mater....
double that scored Tino Martinez
Tino Martinez
Constantino "Tino" Martinez is a former Major League Baseball first baseman.Martinez was the first round draft pick for the Seattle Mariners in out of the University of Tampa where he starred during his time on campus. He began his Major League career in and has played for the Mariners, New...
and Jorge Posada
Jorge Posada
Jorge Rafael Posada Villeta is a Major League Baseball player who is currently a free agent and has played his entire career for the New York Yankees. He served as the Yankees primary catcher for most of his career, though following off-season knee surgery, he was moved to designated hitter for...
. Brosius would then score on a Chuck Knoblauch
Chuck Knoblauch
Edward Charles "Chuck" Knoblauch is a retired Major League Baseball player. He played all or part of twelve seasons in the majors, from until , for the Minnesota Twins , New York Yankees and Kansas City Royals...
single two batters later to make it 3–0 Yankees. The Mariners responded in the fourth on a two-run home run from Stan Javier
Stan Javier
Stanley Julián Antonio Javier [hah-ve-ERR] is a former Major League Baseball outfielder and switch-hitter who played with the New York Yankees , Oakland Athletics , Los Angeles Dodgers , Philadelphia Phillies , California Angels , San Francisco Giants , Houston...
off of Mike Mussina
Mike Mussina
Michael Cole Mussina , nicknamed Moose, is a former Major League Baseball right-handed starting pitcher. He played for the Baltimore Orioles and the New York Yankees ....
to make it a one-run game. However, neither team would score afterwards and the Yankees took a 2–0 series lead heading to New York City.
Game 3
Saturday, October 20, 2001 at Yankee Stadium (I) in Bronx, New YorkThe Yankees were poised to go up 3–0 in the series after Game 3, jumping to a 2–0 lead in the first on a Bernie Williams
Bernie Williams
Bernabé Williams Figueroa Jr. is a former Major League Baseball outfielder and Puerto Rican musician.-Early life:...
home run off of Jamie Moyer. However, they would not be able to score again until the eighth on a David Justice
David Justice
David Christopher Justice is a former outfielder and designated hitter in Major League Baseball who played for the Atlanta Braves , Cleveland Indians , New York Yankees , and Oakland Athletics .-Early life:David was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, the son of Robert and Nettie Justice...
single. Orlando Hernández
Orlando Hernández
Orlando Hernández Pedroso , nicknamed "El Duque", is a former Cuban right-handed baseball pitcher....
pitched four shutout innings before giving up a game-tying two-run single to Bret Boone
Bret Boone
Bret Robert Boone is a former Major League Baseball second baseman.-Personal life:Boone was born in El Cajon, California to Susan G. Roel and Bob Boone. He is a graduate of El Dorado High School and the University of Southern California. He is the grandson of former major leaguer Ray Boone and...
in the fifth. The Mariners then scored seven runs in the sixth capped by home runs by Boone and 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 ....
to take a 9–2 lead. They would not look back, scoring five more runs in the next three innings, including a Jay Buhner
Jay Buhner
Jay Campbell Buhner , nicknamed "Bone", is a former Major League Baseball right fielder. He was among the most recognizable players of his day, noted for his shaved head, thick goatee, and patch of pine tar on the right hip of his uniform...
home run in the ninth, off of three Yankee relievers to cruise to a 14–3 win and guarantee a Game 5.
Game 4
Sunday, October 21, 2001 at Yankee Stadium (I) in Bronx, New YorkGame 4 remained scoreless until Bret Boone
Bret Boone
Bret Robert Boone is a former Major League Baseball second baseman.-Personal life:Boone was born in El Cajon, California to Susan G. Roel and Bob Boone. He is a graduate of El Dorado High School and the University of Southern California. He is the grandson of former major leaguer Ray Boone and...
hit a home run off Yankees reliever Ramiro Mendoza
Ramiro Mendoza
Ramiro Mendoza , nicknamed "El Brujo" , is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. Mendoza played with the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox . He batted and threw right-handed. Although Mendoza made 62 starts in his major league career, he was primarily known as a middle relief pitcher...
in the top of the eighth to give the Mariners a 1–0 lead, but the Yankees responded in the bottom of the inning with a Bernie Williams
Bernie Williams
Bernabé Williams Figueroa Jr. is a former Major League Baseball outfielder and Puerto Rican musician.-Early life:...
home run off Arthur Rhodes
Arthur Rhodes
Arthur Lee Rhodes, Jr. is a Major League Baseball left-handed relief pitcher.-Career:Rhodes played high school baseball at La Vega High School in Waco, Texas. He was drafted by the Baltimore Orioles in the 2nd round of the 1988 Major League Baseball Draft.Rhodes made his MLB debut with the Orioles...
to tie the game. Mariano Rivera
Mariano Rivera
Mariano Rivera is a Panamanian right-handed baseball pitcher who has played 17 years in Major League Baseball for the New York Yankees. Nicknamed "Mo", Rivera has served as a relief pitcher for most of his career, and since 1997, he has been the Yankees' closer...
pitched a scoreless ninth and the Yankees won the game 3–1 in the bottom of the inning on a Alfonso Soriano
Alfonso Soriano
Alfonso Guilleard Soriano is a Major League Baseball outfielder for the Chicago Cubs....
two-run home run off Kazuhiro Sasaki
Kazuhiro Sasaki
Kazuhiro "Daimajin" Sasaki is a former Nippon Professional Baseball and Major League Baseball right-handed relief pitcher. He played his entire NPB career with the Yokohama Taiyo Whales / Yokohama BayStars...
to take a 3–1 series lead.
Game 5
Monday, October 22, 2001 at Yankee Stadium (I) in Bronx, New YorkIn the bottom of the third inning of Game 5, an error by Mariner third basemen David Bell
David Bell
David Bell may refer to:* David Bell , Scottish television producer and director* David Bell , Irish soldier* David E...
resulted in the Yankees scoring four unearned runs, including a two-run home run by Bernie Williams
Bernie Williams
Bernabé Williams Figueroa Jr. is a former Major League Baseball outfielder and Puerto Rican musician.-Early life:...
, off Aaron Sele
Aaron Sele
Aaron Helmer Sele is a former Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher who is currently the minor league pitching instructor for the Los Angeles Dodgers.-Early years:...
. Paul O'Neill homered in the fourth to put the Yankees on top 5–0. They would break the game open with four runs in the sixth, making the score 9–0. The Mariners got their only three runs of the game in the seventh on back-to-back singles by Bell and Ichiro Suzuki
Ichiro Suzuki
, usually known simply as is a Major League Baseball right fielder for the Seattle Mariners. Ichiro has established a number of batting records, including the sport's single-season record for hits with 262...
off Andy Pettitte
Andy Pettitte
Andrew Eugene Pettitte is a retired American left-handed Major League Baseball starting pitcher.In his major league career, he played for the New York Yankees from 1995–2003. He then signed with the Houston Astros, and played for them from 2004 through 2006. In 2007, Pettitte rejoined the Yankees...
. In the bottom of the eighth, Tino Martinez
Tino Martinez
Constantino "Tino" Martinez is a former Major League Baseball first baseman.Martinez was the first round draft pick for the Seattle Mariners in out of the University of Tampa where he starred during his time on campus. He began his Major League career in and has played for the Mariners, New...
hit a three-run home run as the Yankees cruised to a 12–3 win and advance to the World Series
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball, played between the American League and National League champions since 1903. The winner of the World Series championship is determined through a best-of-seven playoff and awarded the Commissioner's Trophy...
for the fourth straight year.
Composite box
2001 ALCS (4–1): New York YankeesNew York Yankees
The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the The Bronx, New York. They compete in Major League Baseball in the American League's East Division...
over Seattle Mariners
Seattle Mariners
The Seattle Mariners are a professional baseball team based in Seattle, Washington. Enfranchised in , the Mariners are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. Safeco Field has been the Mariners' home ballpark since July...
Series quotes
Aftermath
The Yankees' streak of consecutive World Series wins ended at three, as they fell to the Arizona DiamondbacksArizona Diamondbacks
The Arizona Diamondbacks are a professional baseball team based in Phoenix. They play in the West Division of Major League Baseball's National League. From 1998 to the present, they have played in Chase Field...
in the World Series
2001 World Series
-Game 1:Saturday, October 27, 2001 at Bank One Ballpark in Phoenix, ArizonaArizona showed no fear and chased Yankees starter Mike Mussina after just three innings. The Yankees gave up five unearned runs and the Diamondbacks rode Curt Schilling's seven strong innings to a 9–1 rout...
in seven games. They would not win another World Series until 2009.
To date, the Mariners have not qualified for the MLB postseason. However, their 116 wins remain a Major League record that has not been approached since, the closet being the St. Louis Cardinals in 2004 when they won 105 games