ATLANTA -- The Atlanta Braves have been rehearsing this scene for the last five years, and when the ball dropped into center fielder Marquis Grissom's glove for the final out, they unleashed a celebration that could be heard all over the deep South.
The Braves, behind the brilliant pitching of starter Tom Glavine and David Justice's home run in the sixth inning Saturday night, defeated the Cleveland Indians, 1-0, winning the World Series, four games to two in front of a frenzied crowd of 51,875 at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium.
The Braves, who have had baseball's best record the last five years, but lost in the 1991 and 1992 World Series and the playoffs in 1993, are World Series champions for the first time since moving to Atlanta in 1966.
"This is a big relief for the whole city,'' pitcher John Smoltz said. "There has been a lot of frustration. We should have won this a long time ago."
It was only appropriate that Glavine and Justice, the two players who have had a strange love-hate relationship with Braves' fans, would emerge as the heroes in Atlanta's greatest moment.
Glavine, viciously booed on opening day for his outspokenness during the players' strike, pitched a magnificent one-hitter through eight innings and closer Mark Wohlers pitched a perfect ninth inning. It was the first one-hitter in a deciding game in World Series history.
"From Day 1 we were on a mission,'' said Glavine, who was too tired to pitch the ninth. "We knew the only thing that would make our season a success would be a World Series title.
And it was Justice, the man who 24 hours earlier ridiculed Braves' fans for their passive behavior and was more nervous than at any time in his life, who led off the sixth inning with a home run off Jim Poole into the right-field seats.
"The fans were the biggest factor,'' said Justice. "They proved me wrong. I just wanted to get 'em fired up. I like 'em. All I wanted to do was get them to rally behind us.''
The Indians, who came into this Series boasting about having the finest offensive team since the 1961 Yankees, batted only .179 -- the lowest average in a six-game World Series since the New York Giants in 1911.
"Their pitching was unbelievable,'' shortstop Omar Vizquel said. "We heard it was good, and we heard all of the reports, but I don't think any of us believed it could be that good.''
Glavine opened the game by pitching five hitless innings. It was the longest hitless stretch in a World Series game since Charlie Leibrandt in 1985 for the Kansas City Royals. Catcher Tony Pena, the No. 8 hitter, ended the drought with a bloop single to right-center leading off the sixth.
Cleveland manager Mike Hargrove left Poole in to bunt, but he failed in three attempts, fouling out. Kenny Lofton then hit a bouncer back to Glavine for the force at second. Lofton stole second, but was left stranded when Vizquel fouled out.
Justice then led off the sixth by hitting a 1-and-1 fastball into the seats. Justice pumped his right fist, then his left fist, and shook his fists at the crowd in exhilaration when he crossed home plate.
Unlike Glavine, Indians starter Dennis Martinez had been working in and out of trouble all game.
Helped by one of the prettiest double plays in recent memory, Martinez kept the game scoreless through the fifth.
Martinez walked the first two batters in the second. An out later, Rafael Belliard hit a bouncer that two-time Gold Glover Vizquel fielded behind the bag and flipped, with his glove, to second baseman Carlos Baerga, who barehanded the toss and completed the double play.
The game was the fifth one-hitter in Series history and first since Jim Lonborg for Boston in 1967. Glavine, as in Game 2, used his changeups and breaking balls to fool the best-hitting team in the game, and was voted Series MVP.
The Indians remained without a World Series title since 1948, when they beat the Boston Braves. Cleveland's last Series appearance was 1954, when it got swept by the New York Giants.
(LAT, AP)
The Braves, behind the brilliant pitching of starter Tom Glavine and David Justice's home run in the sixth inning Saturday night, defeated the Cleveland Indians, 1-0, winning the World Series, four games to two in front of a frenzied crowd of 51,875 at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium.
The Braves, who have had baseball's best record the last five years, but lost in the 1991 and 1992 World Series and the playoffs in 1993, are World Series champions for the first time since moving to Atlanta in 1966.
"This is a big relief for the whole city,'' pitcher John Smoltz said. "There has been a lot of frustration. We should have won this a long time ago."
It was only appropriate that Glavine and Justice, the two players who have had a strange love-hate relationship with Braves' fans, would emerge as the heroes in Atlanta's greatest moment.
Glavine, viciously booed on opening day for his outspokenness during the players' strike, pitched a magnificent one-hitter through eight innings and closer Mark Wohlers pitched a perfect ninth inning. It was the first one-hitter in a deciding game in World Series history.
"From Day 1 we were on a mission,'' said Glavine, who was too tired to pitch the ninth. "We knew the only thing that would make our season a success would be a World Series title.
And it was Justice, the man who 24 hours earlier ridiculed Braves' fans for their passive behavior and was more nervous than at any time in his life, who led off the sixth inning with a home run off Jim Poole into the right-field seats.
"The fans were the biggest factor,'' said Justice. "They proved me wrong. I just wanted to get 'em fired up. I like 'em. All I wanted to do was get them to rally behind us.''
The Indians, who came into this Series boasting about having the finest offensive team since the 1961 Yankees, batted only .179 -- the lowest average in a six-game World Series since the New York Giants in 1911.
"Their pitching was unbelievable,'' shortstop Omar Vizquel said. "We heard it was good, and we heard all of the reports, but I don't think any of us believed it could be that good.''
Glavine opened the game by pitching five hitless innings. It was the longest hitless stretch in a World Series game since Charlie Leibrandt in 1985 for the Kansas City Royals. Catcher Tony Pena, the No. 8 hitter, ended the drought with a bloop single to right-center leading off the sixth.
Cleveland manager Mike Hargrove left Poole in to bunt, but he failed in three attempts, fouling out. Kenny Lofton then hit a bouncer back to Glavine for the force at second. Lofton stole second, but was left stranded when Vizquel fouled out.
Justice then led off the sixth by hitting a 1-and-1 fastball into the seats. Justice pumped his right fist, then his left fist, and shook his fists at the crowd in exhilaration when he crossed home plate.
Unlike Glavine, Indians starter Dennis Martinez had been working in and out of trouble all game.
Helped by one of the prettiest double plays in recent memory, Martinez kept the game scoreless through the fifth.
Martinez walked the first two batters in the second. An out later, Rafael Belliard hit a bouncer that two-time Gold Glover Vizquel fielded behind the bag and flipped, with his glove, to second baseman Carlos Baerga, who barehanded the toss and completed the double play.
The game was the fifth one-hitter in Series history and first since Jim Lonborg for Boston in 1967. Glavine, as in Game 2, used his changeups and breaking balls to fool the best-hitting team in the game, and was voted Series MVP.
The Indians remained without a World Series title since 1948, when they beat the Boston Braves. Cleveland's last Series appearance was 1954, when it got swept by the New York Giants.
(LAT, AP)
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