2004 American League Championship Series
The 2004 American League Championship Series was the Major League Baseball playoff series deciding the 2004 season American League champion earning the privilege to play in the 2004 World Series. A rematch of the 2003 American League Championship Series, it was played between the Boston Red Sox, who had won the AL wild card and defeated the Anaheim Angels in the American League Division Series, and the New York Yankees, who had won the AL East with the best record in the AL and defeated the Minnesota Twins. The Red Sox became the first (and to date only) team in MLB history to come back from a 3–0 series deficit to win a best-of-seven series. Prior to the 2004 ALCS, no MLB team had so much as forced a Game 7 under those circumstances – and only one team since 2004 has been able to do so (that team being the 2020 Houston Astros, who after being down 3–0 in that year's ALCS went on to lose in seven games to the Tampa Bay Rays).
| 2004 American League Championship Series | ||||||||||
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| Dates | October 12–20 | |||||||||
| MVP | David Ortiz (Boston) | |||||||||
| Umpires | Randy Marsh Jeff Nelson John Hirschbeck Jim Joyce Jeff Kellogg Joe West | |||||||||
| Broadcast | ||||||||||
| Television | Fox (United States) MLB International (International) | |||||||||
| TV announcers | Joe Buck, Tim McCarver, Al Leiter, and Kenny Albert (Fox) Dave O'Brien and Rick Sutcliffe (MLB International) | |||||||||
| Radio | ESPN | |||||||||
| Radio announcers | Jon Miller and Joe Morgan | |||||||||
| ALDS |
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In Game 1, Yankees pitcher Mike Mussina pitched a perfect game through six innings, while the Red Sox recovered from an eight-run deficit to close within one run before the Yankees eventually won. A home run by John Olerud helped the Yankees win Game 2. The Yankees gathered 22 hits in Game 3 on their way to an easy win. The Yankees led Game 4 by one run in the ninth inning, but a steal of second base by Red Sox base runner Dave Roberts and a single by Bill Mueller off Yankees closer Mariano Rivera tied the game. David Ortiz hit a homerun in extra innings for the Red Sox win. In Game 5, Ortiz hit a 14th inning walk-off single for the Red Sox. Curt Schilling pitched seven innings in Game 6 for the Red Sox, during which time his right foot sock became soaked in blood due to an ankle injury. Game 7 featured the Red Sox paying back New York for their Game 3 blowout with a dominant performance on the road, anchored by Derek Lowe and bolstered by two Johnny Damon home runs including an upper deck grand slam. Manny Ramirez was named the Most Valuable Player of the series.
The Red Sox went on to sweep the St. Louis Cardinals in the World Series, winning their first World Series championship in 86 years and ending the so-called Curse of the Bambino.