Infinite Cleveland

1997 World Series: Game 3
FLORIDA MARLINS @ CLEVELAND INDIANS
OCTOBER 21, 1997
TIMELINE 40
GAME LOG
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Florida Marlins 2 1 1 0 0 0 2 0 0 6 11 6
Cleveland Indians 0 2 7 3 0 0 0 4 X 16 15 2
Indians Erase 4-2 Deficit With 14-Run Barrage, Win Game 3
Eisenreich tripled to right in the first inning, 100 mph off the bat, and scored on a passed ball two pitches later — Florida leading before Leiter had even taken the mound. They added single runs in the second and third, and through three innings the Marlins led 4-2 with the comfort of a team that had found soft spots in Nagy's command early and intended to keep pressing them.

The bottom of the third disabused them of this notion in the span of twenty minutes. Roberts doubled to start it, and from there the inning accumulated runs the way a drain collects water — not through any single catastrophe but through the steady failure of routine plays. A throwing error by the left fielder. A walk. A fielder's choice, a sacrifice fly. Then an error by the shortstop on a ball hit directly at him, and another walk. Vizquel singled through the left side to score two, and Roberts, batting for the second time in the inning, doubled home two more. Seven runs on four hits and two errors, and the Marlins had now committed two errors in the inning, their fielders' hands apparently refusing to cooperate with their intentions.

Three more scored in the fourth on Fernandez's double and a productive groundout, and Williams hit a first-pitch three-run home run in the eighth — 375 feet, 111 off the bat, the loudest sound of a loud evening. The final was 16-6, fifteen Cleveland hits spread across a game that Florida's defense seemed determined to lose on its own. Six errors in nine innings — one for every inning and a half of play — and Nagy won comfortably despite allowing seven hits in five and two-thirds innings, because a pitching line matters less when the fielders behind you are donating runs to the opposition.
FLORIDA 1997 BATTING LINESCORE CLEVELAND 1997 BATTING LINESCORE
Player AB R H RBI BB K LOB AVG HR RBI
E. Renteria SS 4 2 2 0 1 1 3 .500 0 0
J. Eisenreich LF 5 1 2 1 0 1 2 .400 0 1
M. Alou DH 3 1 1 1 1 1 3 .333 0 1
G. Sheffield RF 3 1 1 0 2 1 0 .333 0 0
B. Bonilla 3B 4 0 1 1 0 0 5 .250 0 1
D. Daulton 1B 5 1 2 1 0 0 3 .400 0 1
C. Johnson C 5 0 2 1 0 1 2 .400 0 1
D. White CF 2 0 0 0 2 1 2 .000 0 0
C. Counsell 2B 3 0 0 0 1 0 3 .000 0 0
Totals 34 6 11 5 7 6 23
BATTING
Doubles: E. Renteria (1, 1st Inning off C. Nagy, 0 on, 0 outs) D. Daulton (1, 2nd Inning off C. Nagy, 0 on, 0 outs)
Triples: J. Eisenreich (1, 1st Inning off C. Nagy, 1 on, 0 outs)
Total Bases: G. Sheffield , E. Renteria 3 , C. Johnson 2 , J. Eisenreich 4 , D. Daulton 3 , B. Bonilla , M. Alou
2-out RBI: D. Daulton
Runners left in scoring position, 2 outs: , E. Renteria 2 , D. Daulton , M. Alou
GIDP: C. Counsell , B. Bonilla
Sac Fly: B. Bonilla , M. Alou
Team LOB: 9

FIELDING
Errors: T. Saunders , E. Renteria 2 , J. Eisenreich , B. Bonilla 2
Double Plays: 1 (Renteria-Counsell-Daulton)
Player AB R H RBI BB K LOB AVG HR RBI
O. Vizquel SS 6 1 1 2 0 1 4 .167 0 2
B. Roberts LF 6 1 3 2 0 1 1 .500 0 2
D. Justice DH 5 0 0 0 1 2 4 .000 0 0
S. Alomar Jr C 4 2 2 1 1 0 0 .500 0 1
J. Thome 1B 3 3 1 0 2 0 2 .333 0 0
M. Ramirez RF 5 3 2 0 0 1 4 .400 0 0
T. Fernandez 2B 3 3 2 3 1 0 4 .667 0 3
M. Williams 3B 5 2 2 5 0 0 2 .400 1 5
M. Grissom CF 4 1 2 1 1 0 0 .500 0 1
Totals 41 16 15 14 6 5 21
BATTING
Doubles: B. Roberts 2 (2, 3rd Inning off A. Leiter, 0 on, 0 outs; 3rd Inning off F. Heredia, 2 on, 2 outs) T. Fernandez (1, 4th Inning off F. Heredia, 2 on, 1 out)
Home Runs: M. Williams (1, 8th Inning off T. Saunders, 2 on, 1 out)
Total Bases: S. Alomar Jr 2 , M. Williams 5 , O. Vizquel , J. Thome , B. Roberts 5 , M. Ramirez 2 , M. Grissom 2 , T. Fernandez 3
2-out RBI: M. Williams , O. Vizquel , B. Roberts , M. Grissom
Runners left in scoring position, 2 outs: , M. Williams 2 , O. Vizquel , D. Justice 3
GIDP: T. Fernandez
Sac Fly: T. Fernandez
Team LOB: 6

FIELDING
Errors: S. Alomar Jr , J. Thome
Double Plays: 2 (Fernandez-Vizquel-Thome, Vizquel-Fernandez-Thome)
PB: S. Alomar Jr
FLORIDA 1997 PITCHING LINESCORE CLEVELAND 1997 PITCHING LINESCORE
Player IP H R ER BB K HR PI PS ERA
A. Leiter L (0-1) 2.2 7 9 3 3 2 0 76 44 10.12
F. Heredia 2.1 5 3 3 1 1 0 40 24 11.57
T. Saunders 2.1 2 4 3 2 1 1 44 25 11.57
L. Hernandez 0.2 1 0 0 0 1 0 14 10 0.00
PITCHING
Game Score: A. Leiter 15
Batters Faced: A. Leiter 19, F. Heredia 13, T. Saunders 12, L. Hernandez 4
Ground Outs - Fly Outs: A. Leiter 3-3, F. Heredia 5-1, T. Saunders 2-3, L. Hernandez 1-0
Pitches - Strikes: A. Leiter 76-44, F. Heredia 40-24, T. Saunders 44-25, L. Hernandez 14-10
Inherited Runners - Scored: F. Heredia 2-2 , T. Saunders 1-0
WP: T. Saunders
Player IP H R ER BB K HR PI PS ERA
C. Nagy W (1-0) 5.2 7 4 4 5 1 0 110 58 6.35
A. Morman 1.1 2 2 2 2 1 0 35 18 13.50
E. Plunk 2.0 2 0 0 0 4 0 31 19 0.00
PITCHING
Game Score: C. Nagy 35
Batters Faced: C. Nagy 27, A. Morman 8, E. Plunk 8
Ground Outs - Fly Outs: C. Nagy 11-3, A. Morman 1-2, E. Plunk 1-1
Pitches - Strikes: C. Nagy 110-58, A. Morman 35-18, E. Plunk 31-19
Inherited Runners - Scored: A. Morman 2-0 , E. Plunk 1-0
WP: C. Nagy , A. Morman
GAME NOTES
Player of the Game: Tony Fernandez
Ballpark: Jacobs Field
Weather: Rainy (47 degrees F), 25 MPH wind (left to right)
Start Time: 8:24 PM EST
Time: 4:11
Attendance: 44,880