The 2004 American League Championship Series was filled with interesting storylines. There was the 86-year “Curse of the Bambino” hanging over the Red Sox. There was the Red Sox-Yankees rivalry. And there was the most recent heartbreaking chapter (if you’re a Boston fan) in both of those stories, the 2003 ALCS that ended on Aaron Bleepin’ Boone’s walk-off Game 7 home run.
After three games, though, it appeared this series was going to be a dud. The Yankees jumped out to a 3-0 series lead and outscored the Red Sox 32-16 in those games. No team had ever come back from a 3-0 deficit to win a series, and given the way the Yankees offense was rolling, there wasn’t much reason to think this series would break that trend. As it turned out, the best storyline of all was still to come. In the bottom of the ninth inning of Game 4, the Red Sox found themselves down 4-3, facing the greatest closer in history, Mariano Rivera. But then Rivera walked Kevin Millar. Dave Roberts came on to pinch run and executed the greatest stolen base in Red Sox history.
Bill Mueller then roped a ball into center field, tying the game and forcing extra innings. That tie would not be broken until the bottom of the 12th inning, when David Ortiz crushed a two-run walk-off home run to force a Game 5.
While Game 4 provided Red Sox fans with some hope, Game 5 gave them a reason to truly believe. Once again, the game went to extra innings. Solidifying his legacy as a Red Sox legend, David Ortiz singled to center, driving in Johnny Damon for another walk-off win.
