The MLB wild-card era began in 1995 with an iconic series that ended with an iconic photo: Ken Griffey Jr. peeking out from a pile of Seattle Mariners teammates with a smile as big as Mount Rainier after scoring the winning run in the American League Division Series.

Thirty years later, the 2025 season ended with another iconic series and photo: Yoshinobu Yamamoto in the middle of a swarm of his Los Angeles Dodgers teammates, his expression a mix of joy and exhaustion after his legendary performance in winning the final two games of the World Series.

Since the expanded playoffs began — initially eight teams, then 10 and now 12 — there have been 1,097 postseason games. The New York Yankees have played in the most games (232) and have the most wins (131) and championships (five). The Pittsburgh Pirates have played the fewest games (eight) and have the fewest wins (three). Sixteen of the 30 franchises have won the World Series in that span, and another seven have played in one.

Let’s celebrate the past 30 years of playoff baseball by handing out awards and superlatives as we look back at the greatest October players, the games we won’t forget, the moments that make us cry tears of joy — and tears of anguish — and more.

The all-time wild-card era team

October legends were once made in one moment or one series. With more rounds and more games, October greatness is now accumulated over many moments and series. Here’s the All-October team from the past 30 years, considering results only since 1995.

C: Yadier Molina (.273/.326/.357, 4 HR, 36 RBIs, 104 G, 2 rings)

Catcher was the hardest position to fill as nobody stands out as a lock. Jorge Posada leads in home runs (11) and RBIs (42) and played in six World Series, although he didn’t hit particularly well in them (.211). Molina can’t match Posada’s power but did hit .328/.395/.403 in four World Series.

1B: Albert Pujols (.319/.422/.572, 19 HR, 54 RBIs, 88 G, 2 rings)

Prime Pujols was on another level. He hit .500 with four home runs in the 2004 National League Championship Series and his home run off Brad Lidge in the 2005 NLCS finally landed three weeks ago. Pujols hit .478 in the 2011 NLCS and followed that up with a three-homer game in the World Series. He had more walks than strikeouts in his postseason career.

2B: Jose Altuve (.271/.337/.505, 27 HR, 56 RBIs, 105 G, 2 rings)

An easy choice at second base, although with an asterisk if you wish. Altuve’s home/road splits in the postseason from 2017 to 2019: 1.154 OPS at home, .705 on the road. His name is all over the all-time playoff leaderboard, however, including ranking second in home runs and runs scored. His 21 runs in the 2021 postseason are tied for the most in a single postseason.

3B: Pablo Sandoval (.338/.386/.535, 6 HR, 20 RBIs, 42 G, 3 rings)

Chipper Jones, Justin Turner and Alex Bregman merit consideration based on more games played, but Sandoval made a huge impact in his three postseasons with the San Francisco Giants. He was the World Series MVP in their sweep in 2012 thanks to a three-homer game and then hit .429 in the 2014 World Series.

SS: Derek Jeter (.308/.374/.465, 20 HR, 61 RBIs, 158 G, 5 rings)

Corey Seager is a two-time World Series MVP, but Jeter’s volume, overall productivity and five rings earn him the nod here. In basically a full season of postseason play — 158 total career games — Jeter finished with 200 hits, 111 runs and an .838 OPS that was higher than his career mark in the regular season. He was World Series MVP in 2000, when he hit .409 in a five-game win over the New York Mets.

LF: Manny Ramirez (.285/.394/.544, 29 HR, 78 RBIs, 111 G, 2 rings)

The all-time leader in postseason home runs, Ramirez appeared in 11 different postseasons with Cleveland, the Boston Red Sox and the Dodgers, homering in 17 of the 23 series he played in. Amazingly, the Red Sox beat the Yankees in the 2004 ALCS even though Ramirez didn’t drive in a run, but he then won World Series MVP in Boston’s four-game sweep of St. Louis.

CF: Bernie Williams (.275/.371/.480, 22 HR, 80 RBIs, 121 G, 4 rings)

Always the underappreciated star on the Yankees teams that won four titles in five years from 1996 to 2000, Williams is the all-time postseason leader in RBIs, although his best work came in the LCS rather than the World Series.

RF: Lance Berkman (.317/.417/.532, 9 HR, 41 RBIs, 52 G, 1 ring)

Berkman was a longtime star with the Houston Astros and then had one final blast of glory with the St. Louis Cardinals in 2011, when he helped them win the World Series. He hit .423 in that World Series and .410 in the two total he played in.

OF: George Springer (.271/.346/.534, 23 HR, 48 RBIs, 83 G, 1 ring)

Let’s give a fourth outfield spot to Springer, the 2017 World Series MVP who ranks third in playoff home runs and first in championship win probability added. In three World Series, he has hit .351/.444/.727 with seven home runs in 19 games.

UT: Enrique Hernández (.272/.339/.486, 16 HR, 42 RBIs, 103 G, 3 rings)

No player has stepped up his game in the playoffs like Hernández, who has a .707 career OPS in the regular season compared with .826 in the postseason. He has both a three-homer game in the playoffs (2017 NLCS) and a game with four extra-base hits (2021 ALDS), and his double play to end Game 6 of the 2025 World Series was a defensive play for the ages.

DH: David Ortiz (.289/.404/.543, 17 HR, 61 RBIs, 85 G, 3 rings)

Has anyone delivered as many clutch hits as Big Papi? His postseason legend began with his back-to-back walk-off hits in extra innings for the Red Sox in the 2004 ALCS and then was cemented with his World Series performance in 2013, when he hit .688/.760/1.188. The Cardinals finally just quit pitching to him, intentionally walking him three times in Game 6.

SP: Curt Schilling (10-1, 2.12 ERA, 15 GS, 102 IP, 92 SO, 3 rings)

Schilling had an all-time great postseason with the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2001, throwing three straight complete games to begin the playoffs and winning co-MVP honors in the World Series. He had the infamous “Bloody Sock” start in the 2004 ALCS, but everyone forgets his next start: one run in six innings in Game 2 of the World Series as the Red Sox went on to snap the curse.

SP: Madison Bumgarner (8-3, 2.11 ERA, 14 GS, 102 IP, 87 SO, 3 rings)

He had his legendary postseason run in 2014, but check out Bumgarner’s career record in the World Series: 4-0, one save (his five innings to close out Game 7 in 2014), with one run and only 14 hits allowed in 36 innings.

SP: Jon Lester (9-7, 2.51 ERA, 22 GS, 154 IP, 133 SO, 3 rings)

Lester won two rings with the Red Sox and one with the Chicago Cubs, going 4-1 with a 1.77 ERA in six career World Series appearances.

SP: Andy Pettitte (19-11, 3.81 ERA, 44 GS, 276 IP, 183 SO, 5 rings)

He had some clunkers along the way, but Pettitte makes it here based on volume — most starts, most wins, most innings pitched — and some huge wins along the way, including 8⅓ scoreless innings in Game 5 of the 1996 World Series (when the series was tied), another scoreless start in the 1998 World Series and four wins in the 2009 postseason.

SP: Chris Carpenter (10-4, 3.00 ERA, 18 GS, 108 IP, 68 SO, 2 rings)

Carpenter had one of the great clutch postseasons in 2011, outdueling Roy Halladay with a 1-0 shutout in Game 5 of the NLDS and then starting three times in the World Series and winning twice, including Game 7 on three days of rest.

RP: Mariano Rivera (8-1, 0.70 ERA, 42 SV, 141 IP, 110 SO, 5 rings)

Rivera was so untouchable — he allowed just 13 runs and 11 earned runs in 141 innings — that he might be regarded as the postseason MVP of the entire wild-card era. He allowed just two home runs, and in his 42 saves, he allowed a total of just four runs. In an era of one-inning closers, 31 of his saves were more than one inning, including 14 of two innings.

Best single-season postseasons

We just saw Yamamoto and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. post huge results this past October. Let’s see if either cracks the top five.

Top five hitters

1. David Freese, 2011 St. Louis Cardinals (.397/.465/.794, 5 HR, 21 RBIs)

Freese has been a reluctant hero, even declining an invitation to join the Cardinals Hall of Fame in 2023, saying he wasn’t “deserving” of the honor. But what a postseason he had: His 21 RBIs are the second most in one postseason, and he was the NLCS and World Series MVP in 2011, hitting a two-out, two-run triple in the ninth inning of Game 6 of the World Series to send the game into extra innings and then delivering the walk-off home run in the 11th. In Game 7, he hit a game-tying two-run double as the Cardinals went on to win.

2. Barry Bonds, 2002 San Francisco Giants (.356/.581/.978, 8 HR 16 RBIs)

Bonds had famously struggled in the postseason during his career, but he was unstoppable in 2002 as the Giants reached Game 7 of the World Series — drawing an incredible 27 walks (13 intentional) along the way. His home run off Troy Percival in Game 2, an estimated 485 feet, might be the longest in World Series history.

3. David Ortiz, 2004 Boston Red Sox (.400/.515/.764, 5 HR, 19 RBIs)

Ortiz had his heroics with those walk-off hits in the ALCS and added a two-run homer in the first inning of Game 7. He then got the Red Sox going in the World Series with a three-run home run in the bottom of the first inning of Game 1 as the Red Sox went on to a four-game sweep.

4. Randy Arozarena, 2020 Tampa Bay Rays (.377/.442/.831, 10 HR, 14 RBIs)

The Rays played 20 postseason games and Arozarena homered in half of them. He homered three times in the ALDS, four times in the ALCS and three more times in the World Series, although the Rays lost in six games.

5. Carlos Beltran, 2004 Houston Astros (.435/.536/1.022, 8 HR, 14 RBI)

The Astros lost in the NLCS, but Beltran’s performance must be included. For two weeks, he played baseball as well as anyone has ever played it, bashing eight home runs in 12 games, scoring 21 runs (tied for the most in one postseason), stealing six bases and making several spectacular plays in center field.

Honorable mentions: Scott Spiezio, 2002 Anaheim Angels (19 RBIs); Alex Rodriguez, 2009 New York Yankees (.365, 18 RBIs); Corey Seager, 2020 Los Angeles Dodgers (NLCS and World Series MVP); Adolis Garcia, 2023 Texas Rangers (record 22 RBIs); Ernie Clement, 2025 Toronto Blue Jays (.411, record 30 hits); Vladimir Guerrero Jr., 2025 Toronto Blue Jays (.397, 8 HR)

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Top five pitchers

1. Madison Bumgarner, 2014 San Francisco Giants (4-1, 1.03 ERA, 52⅔ IP, 28 H, 45 SO)

Bumgarner pitched a shutout in the wild-card game, allowed one run in Game 1 of the World Series, pitched another shutout in Game 5 and then pitched five scoreless innings to close out Game 7 (when he was oddly credited with a save instead of the win).

2. Yoshinobu Yamamoto, 2025 Los Angeles Dodgers (5-1, 1.45 ERA, 37⅓ IP, 23 H, 33 SO)

Yamamoto didn’t have the volume of Bumgarner, but he became the first pitcher with back-to-back complete games in the postseason since 2001, and then he won both Games 6 and 7 of the World Series, getting eight outs in Game 7 — in the most tension-filled moments imaginable — after throwing 96 pitches the night before.

3. Curt Schilling, 2001 Arizona Diamondbacks (4-0, 1.12 ERA, 48⅓ IP, 25 H, 56 SO)

In six starts, Schilling tossed three complete games, held batters to a .150 average and had a 56-to-6 strikeout-to-walk ratio while allowing just three home runs … in the middle of the steroid era. He ended up with two no-decisions in his three World Series starts but shared MVP honors with the next pitcher on the list.

4. Randy Johnson, 2001 Arizona Diamondbacks (5-1, 1.52 ERA, 41.1 IP, 25 H, 47 SO)

Johnson lost his first start of the 2001 NLDS — and, remarkably, that was his seventh consecutive losing decision in the playoffs going back to the 1995 ALCS with Seattle. Then, he turned it on: a three-hit shutout in Game 1 of the NLCS, two runs in seven innings in Game 5, another three-hit shutout in World Series Game 2, then a win in Game 6. Like Yamamoto, he came on in relief in Game 7 and got the win when Arizona walked it off in the bottom of the ninth.

5. Stephen Strasburg, 2019 Washington Nationals (5-0, 1.98 ERA, 36.1 IP, 30 H, 47 SO)

Strasburg got the win in the wild-card game with three innings of scoreless relief, had two double-digit strikeout games leading into the World Series, and then twice beat a mighty Astros team in the Fall Classic, allowing just four runs in 14⅓ innings. Like Chris Carpenter in 2011, it would be the last good baseball Strasburg ever pitched: He would go on to win just one more game in his career.

Honorable mentions: Josh Beckett, 2003 Florida Marlins (two shutouts, including the World Series clincher) and 2007 Boston Red Sox (four starts, four wins, 1.20 ERA); Kenny Rogers, 2006 Detroit Tigers (three starts, no runs allowed in 23 innings); Cliff Lee, 2009 Philadelphia Phillies (4-0, 1.56 ERA); Nathan Eovaldi, 2023 Texas Rangers (5-0, 2.95 ERA)

Best single-game performances

As you probably well know, this past postseason was pretty spectacular. Here are the top five single-game performances of the past 30 years, focusing more on gameplay than clutch moments. Of course, 2025 tops this list.

1. Shohei Ohtani, Los Angeles Dodgers, 2025 NLCS Game 4

No player had ever hit three home runs and struck out 10 batters in the same game — not even in the regular season. Ohtani did it in a game for the ages: 3-for-3 with three home runs and then six scoreless innings on the mound with 10 strikeouts. The best player of all time? He was in this game.

2. Shohei Ohtani, Los Angeles Dodgers, 2025 World Series Game 3

Yes, Ohtani lands the top two spots. Only three players had ever reached base nine times in a regular-season game, and only one of those did it in nine plate appearances. In the 18-inning marathon that was Game 3, Ohtani went 4-for-4 with two home runs and two doubles (making him one of just seven players with four extra-base hits in a postseason game) and five walks. Nine times up, nine times on base. Absolutely incredible.

3. Roy Halladay, Philadelphia Phillies, 2010 NLDS Game 1

Halladay spun the second no-hitter in postseason history following Don Larsen’s perfect game in the 1956 World Series. Against the Cincinnati Reds, Halladay fanned eight, walked one, threw 104 pitches and threw first-pitch strikes to 25 of the 28 batters he faced. Only a two-out walk in the fifth inning to Jay Bruce on a 3-2 pitch prevented him from matching Larsen.

4. Roger Clemens, New York Yankees, 2000 ALCS Game 4

In the first inning, Clemens threw a 97 mph fastball under the jaw of Mariners shortstop Alex Rodriguez, sending A-Rod spiraling into the dirt. Then Clemens threw the next pitch in a similar location. Game over. Clemens fired a one-hit shutout with 15 strikeouts, the only hit an Al Martin double in the seventh that tipped off the glove of Yankees first baseman Tino Martinez. Clemens’ game score of 98 is the highest of the wild-card era and the 15 strikeouts tied with three others for second most behind Kevin Brown’s 16 for the San Diego Padres in the 1998 NLDS.

5. Edgar Martinez, Seattle Mariners, 1995 ALDS Game 4

Five players share the record for most RBIs in a single game in the wild-card era with seven, but Martinez’s were the most dramatic. The Mariners were down 5-0 in the third inning when he hit a three-run home run. The game was tied in the eighth when he blew the roof off the Kingdome with a grand slam against Yankees closer John Wetteland. The Mariners were alive in the series — and Martinez would deliver an even bigger moment in Game 5.

Greatest games and series

OK, it’s impossible to pick the greatest games — it almost seems a little silly to even try. After all, emotion is part of the equation, and emotions are tied to each fan’s favorite team. However, courtesy of my ESPN colleague Paul Hembekides, there is a more objective way to look at this. After the Dodgers’ win in Game 7, Hembekides noted that Game 7 had nine plays that swung the win probability by at least 15% — the most ever in a World Series Game 7.

That’s a pretty good way to look at what makes a game great — multiple nail-biting, game-changing plays. A 15% threshold is actually pretty high for a “big” play; many games don’t have any plays of that magnitude. Of course, a game can be memorable based on one or two great moments, and a low-scoring game can be full of tension. But we relied on that 15% threshold for this list of the greatest games in each round.

Best wild-card game/series: 2014 ALWC (Royals 9, A’s 8 in 12 innings)

Back when it was still just a one-game showdown, this one was crazy: The A’s led 7-3, but Bob Melvin left in a tiring Jon Lester too long and the Kansas City Royals tied it with three in the eighth and one in the ninth (after the Athletics had left the bases loaded in the top of the ninth). The Royals had already burned through their good relievers by the 10th inning, so it took September call-up Brandon Finnegan to take them to the 12th. He finally allowed a run, but the Royals scored twice to win it.

Best LDS game/series: 1995 ALDS Game 5 (Mariners 6, Yankees 5)/1995 ALDS

We mentioned it at the start of this piece: the Mariners — in their first postseason appearance — against the Yankees, who were back in the playoffs for the first time since 1981. The Yankees won the opener 9-6, overcoming two Ken Griffey Jr. home runs off David Cone, followed by Game 2 in 15 innings. Both teams scored in the 12th (another Griffey home run) before the Yankees finally won on Jim Leyritz’s walk-off home run.

The series shifted to Seattle and the Mariners won Game 3 behind Randy Johnson and then Game 4 on Edgar Martinez’s eighth-inning grand slam. Then came the epic Game 5, with the Mariners literally trying to save baseball in Seattle, as there were threats to move the team. The Mariners trailed 4-2 in the eighth when Griffey homered again off Cone and then tied it on a bases-loaded walk. Johnson came on in the ninth and escaped a two-on, nobody-out jam. The Yankees broke through in the 11th. But in the bottom of the inning, Seattle’s Joey Cora beat out a bunt single (Yankees fans screamed that he was out of the baseline), Griffey singled and then Martinez delivered “The Double,” as it’s called in Seattle, to score Cora for the tying run and Griffey for the winning run. The Mariners got their new ballpark — in Seattle.

Best LCS game/series: 2003 ALCS Game 7 (Yankees 6, Red Sox 5 in 11 innings)/2004 ALCS

The life-and-death battles between the Yankees and Red Sox in 2003 and 2004 generated at least four documentaries, a dozen or so books and enough YouTube highlights to keep you busy for days. The best game was Game 7 in 2003: The Red Sox knocked out Roger Clemens early, blew a 4-0 lead when Pedro Martinez was left in too long and then the Yankees won on Aaron Boone’s walk-off home run in the 11th, leaving both Yankees manager Joe Torre and Red Sox fans in tears. The 2004 ALCS, meanwhile, had to be mythology: There’s no way it really unfolded the way it did — with Boston overcoming a 3-0 series deficit to advance to the World Series.

Best World Series game/series: 2025 Game 7/2025 World Series

There are, I would argue, six games worthy of best World Series game:

• 2001 Game 7: The Diamondbacks beat the Yankees and the invincible Mariano Rivera with two runs in the bottom of the ninth (four plays of 15% WPA).

• 2011 Game 6: The David Freese game mentioned above, when the Cardinals beat the Rangers 10-9 in 11 innings in a crazy back-and-forth contest (10 plays of 15% WPA).

• 2016 Game 7: The Cubs finally break the curse and win the World Series — and it took 10 innings for them to do it (four plays of 15% WPA).

• 2017 Game 5: The Astros beat the Dodgers 13-12 in 10 innings after the Dodgers had scored three in the ninth to tie it (10 plays of 15% WPA).

• 2025 Game 3: An 18-inning game that was definitely not boring (10 plays of 15% WPA).

• 2025 Game 7: This game had everything (nine plays of 15% WPA).

The Cardinals-Rangers game has a strong argument — except it wasn’t Game 7. The Cubs game was certainly thrilling, but it was also sloppy and lacked as many big moments. The answer for best game — and World Series — has to be the one we just watched: It was baseball at its absolute best, with defining moments on defense, huge home runs, heroic performances and role players hitting game-tying home runs two outs away from defeat. It was a World Series that finally turned on how big a lead a runner got off third base.

Controversial decisions

We can’t review this era without a quick list of controversial managerial decisions — moves, in other words, that didn’t work out. Yes, it’s easy to second-guess after the fact. But most of these decisions were second-guessed at the moment. We’ll somehow limit this to just 10.

1. Grady Little leaves in Pedro Martinez (2003 ALCS Game 7)

Martinez was still great in 2003, but everyone knew his numbers declined the more pitches he threw in a game, especially after reaching 100. Everyone, apparently, except his manager, who left him in to throw 123 pitches and blow a 5-2 lead in the eighth inning. The Red Sox won the World Series in 2004 — after firing Little and hiring Terry Francona.

2. Kevin Cash takes out Blake Snell (2020 World Series Game 6)

Snell had allowed just one hit through five innings, but with the Rays nursing a 1-0 lead, Cash took him out after he allowed a one-out single in the sixth. Overused reliever Nick Anderson quickly squandered the lead as the Dodgers clinched the World Series. “We were all kind of excited that Snell was out of the game,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said.

3. Buck Showalter doesn’t use Zack Britton (2016 AL wild-card game)

Britton wasn’t just the best reliever in the majors in 2016, he also had one of the greatest relief seasons ever with 47 saves and a 0.54 ERA. The Baltimore Orioles would lose the wild-card game to the Blue Jays in 11 innings — with Britton somehow never even getting into the game.

4. Showalter leaves David Cone in to throw 147 pitches (1995 ALDS Game 5)

Poor Buck. The Yankees led 4-2 in the eighth when Griffey homered. With two outs, the Mariners loaded the bases with two walks and a single. Still, Showalter left Cone in. “He will go down with his best,” says announcer Brent Musburger. On his 147th pitch, Cone walked Doug Strange on a 3-2 slider that wasn’t close. The Mariners won in 11 innings — and Joe Torre replaced Showalter as Yankees manager for the following season.

5. Aaron Boone brings in Nestor Cortes (2024 World Series Game 1)

Cortes hadn’t pitched in more than a month when Boone brought in the lefty in the highest of high-leverage situations: Game 1 of the World Series, bottom of the 10th, two runners on, one out, Yankees leading 3-2, Shohei Ohtani at the plate. Cortes got Ohtani on a foul popout, but the runners advanced when left fielder Alex Verdugo tumbled into the stands making the catch. Boone issued an intentional walk to Mookie Betts, loading the bases for Freddie Freeman, who slammed a first-pitch fastball for one of the most dramatic home runs in World Series history.

6. Bob Brenly brings Byung-Hyun Kim back in (2001 World Series Game 5)

Brenly is the only manager here who went on to win the World Series in the year in question, but it didn’t look like that would be the case after the Diamondbacks lost Game 5 to go down in the series. In Game 4, Kim allowed the game-tying two-run home run in the ninth and then the game-losing home run to Derek Jeter in the 10th — while throwing 61 pitches. But he was back out there in Game 5 for some reason and served up another game-tying two-run homer in the ninth to Scott Brosius. The image of Kim crouching on the mound lives on, one of the ultimate pictures of World Series devastation.

7. Terry Collins leaves in Matt Harvey (2015 World Series Game 5)

The Mets were leading 2-0 heading into the ninth, trying to stay alive in the World Series against the Royals. Harvey had a four-hit shutout going and had thrown 101 pitches. Collins told Harvey his night was done, but Harvey lobbied to remain in the game. Collins left him in. The Royals scored twice and then won in 12 innings.

8. Joe Torre moves Alex Rodriguez down to eighth in the lineup (2006 ALDS Game 4)

After getting shut out in Game 3 of the ALDS, Torre moved his cleanup hitter down in the lineup — all the way to eighth, which the New York press made a big deal of. A-Rod was 1-for-11 in the series and 4-for-his-last-38 with no RBIs in the postseason going back to Game 5 of the 2004 ALCS. He went 0-for-3 in Game 4 and the Yankees were eliminated. A-Rod would finally break out of his postseason funk in 2009, when he hit .365 with six home runs to lead the Yankees to the World Series title.

9. John Schneider’s pinch-running decisions (2025 World Series)

Let’s just say all these moves failed to work for Toronto in spectacular fashion.

10. A.J. Hinch takes out Zack Greinke — and doesn’t use Gerrit Cole (2019 World Series Game 7)

The Astros were leading 2-0 when Greinke served up a home run to Anthony Rendon in the seventh inning, just the second hit he had allowed to the Nationals. Pitching carefully to Juan Soto, Greinke walked him, but he was still at just 80 pitches. Hinch brought in Will Harris to face Howie Kendrick, who hit a two-run, go-ahead home run. The Nationals tacked on three more runs over the final two innings. Cole started warming up on his own, but Hinch would go on to say he was going to use Cole only to start an inning and with a lead.

Five absolutely bonkers moments

If you’re not familiar with these, go check the hard-to-believe highlights on YouTube.

1. Roger Clemens throws the broken bat shard at Mike Piazza in the 2000 World Series.

2. Pedro Martinez throws 72-year-old Yankees coach Don Zimmer to the ground during the Red Sox-Yankees brawl in the 2003 ALCS.

3. Midges attack Yankees pitcher Joba Chamberlain in the 2007 ALDS as he blows a 1-0 lead with a walk and two wild pitches.

4. The Bartman Game: The Cubs implode in the eighth inning of Game 6 of the 2003 NLCS, allowing eight runs to blow a 3-0 lead after Cubs fan Steve Bartman interferes with Moises Alou’s attempt to catch a foul ball.

5. A.J. Pierzynski reaches first base after striking out in Game 2 of the 2005 ALCS. After the Angels won Game 1, the White Sox were tied 1-1 in the ninth inning of Game 2. Chicago’s Pierzynski struck out on a low pitch that Angels catcher Josh Paul appeared to catch cleanly and ran to first base as Paul tossed the ball back to the mound and headed to the dugout. In those pre-replay days, the umpires said Paul trapped the ball and Pierzynski was safe. Pinch runner Pablo Ozuna stole second and scored on a game-winning double, and the White Sox went on to win the World Series.

Finally: The unsung heroes

The beauty of baseball: Anyone might be the hero. Here are five non-stars who stepped up when their teams needed them the most in October:

1. Jeremy Affeldt, 2010/2012/2014 San Francisco Giants

The secret ingredient to the Giants’ three titles in five years: the bullpen, which had a 2.42 ERA over three postseasons. And nobody was better than Affeldt, who allowed just two runs in 26 innings, including 2⅓ scoreless innings in Game 7 in 2014 ahead of Madison Bumgarner’s five scoreless innings.

2. Will Klein, 2025 Los Angeles Dodgers

This one is fresh in our memories, but Klein’s 72-pitch, four-inning relief outing in Game 3 will go down as one of the most amazing relief appearances in World Series history. It’s not just that Klein was the last pitcher on the staff — an obscure reliever added to the roster due to extenuating circumstances — but the number of pitches he threw. Other relievers have thrown more pitches in a game, but all except one were starters working in long relief or mop-up duty in blowouts. (The only other pure reliever to throw more pitches was Jeff Nelson of the Mariners, who threw 79 in Game 4 of that 1995 ALDS.)

3. Curtis Leskanic, 2004 Boston Red Sox

When the Red Sox stayed alive in Game 4 against the Yankees, everyone remembers Dave Roberts’ steal and David Ortiz’s home run, but only the most diehard of Red Sox fans remember Leskanic got the win. He came on with the bases loaded in the 11th and induced Bernie Williams to fly to center. He then pitched a scoreless 12th and got the win. It was the final game he pitched in the majors.

4. Tony Womack, 2001 Arizona Diamondbacks

Everyone remembers the final highlight, but Luis Gonzalez’s broken-bat blooper doesn’t happen if Womack doesn’t first hit a broken-bat game-tying double (and Mark Grace got the rally going with a leadoff single).

5. Mike Montgomery, 2016 Chicago Cubs

With the Cubs looking to end their 108-year World Series curse, manager Joe Maddon went into Game 7 looking to use three pitchers: Kyle Hendricks, Jon Lester and Aroldis Chapman. But when the game went into extra innings, he needed a fourth pitcher. Carl Edwards Jr. got two outs in the 10th but then allowed a run, so Maddon called upon a fifth pitcher with the tying run on base.

Twenty Hall of Famers have thrown the final pitch of a World Series. Sometimes the final pitch comes from a less famous pitcher: Josh Sborz for the Rangers in 2023 or Jason Motte for the Cardinals in 2011. And the biggest out in Cubs history went to Montgomery, who faced one batter and induced Michael Martinez to ground out to Kris Bryant at third base. It was Montgomery’s first career save in the majors.