Thoughts on Yankees/Red Sox Playoff 36 Years Later
Is it possible that it has been 36 years since Russell “Bucky” Dent hit a two out, top of the seventh inning home run that put the New York Yankees ahead to stay in a one game playoff win at Boston vs the Red Sox?!
That win gave the Yankees their third straight AL East title and they would go on to win a second straight World Series and third straight American League Pennant.
The Red Sox who had such great or near great players as Carl Yastrzemski, Dwight Evans and Jim Rice suffered another horrible defeat in that game.
Even now, it is hard for me to express the disappointment of that loss nor how low I felt when Jim Woods’ call of Dent’s home run came crackling through on the radio.
Two things bring solace, one is my admiration for such Yankees organization members as Roy White, who was in the middle of so many big Yankees moments in 1978 and was on base when Dent homered, and broadcaster Phil Rizzuto who exhorted about his fellow shortstop, while interviewing Dent after the game.
The other good thing is that there was no “safety net” of being a wild card team for the losing team. As was the case in 1951, 1962 and other great pennant or divisional races before 1994 (the horror wild card was instituted but there were no playoffs due to a labor dispute that year) or 1995 (first playoffs with a wild card team), it was a true race with the drama of the winner moving ahead and the non winner sent home.
Andy B Sports 