A Look Back At This Date In Cleveland Indians Playoff History; Oct. 1

October 1

1954 World Series Game 3, Cleveland Stadium: Giants 6, Indians 2

Eschewing a day off after Games 1 and 2 in New York, the teams headed to Cleveland for Game 3 on Friday. Mike Garcia took to the rubber and had to work in the first. Whitey Lockman led off with a single. Don Mueller hit a double play ball, but Bobby Avila erred on his throw, only retiring Lockman with Mueller ended up at second where Willie Mays could drive him in with his single. In the third, Al Dark and Mueller opened the frame with singles. Mays hit a grounder to Hank Majeski at third, who got Dark in a rundown at home, but Mueller and Mays ended up at second and third. Hank Thompson was walked intentionally and Dusty Rhodes once again pinch hit for Monte Irvin, this time in the third inning! He kept his hot streak alive, singling in Mueller and Mays. Garcia then had an error on a squeeze bunt, the lead grew to 4-0. Bob Lemon pinch hit for Garcia in third, ending his day.

Art Houtteman came in to relieve and gave up an RBI single in the fourth to Wes Westrum. Mays tacked on one more in the sixth off Ray Narleski and they led 6-0. Vic Wertz homered to right center in the seventh getting one of the runs back. Ruben Gomez of the Giants was cruising on his side though. He walked three and had four hits in 7.1 innings, with the only runs scored being a Wertz solo shot leading off the seventh and one on a Bill Glynn double and Al Dark error. Hoyt Wilhelm got of the jam in the eighth and retired the side in order in the ninth, with the Giants winning 6-2.

1996 ALDS Game 1, Oriole Park at Camden Yards: Orioles 10, Indians 4

After winning the AL Central title, going away for the second year in a row (14.5 games up on the White Sox), the 99-62 Tribe faced the Wild Card team, the 88-74 Orioles. David Wells took the hill for the Orioles and dodged a Kevin Seitzer single and a Todd Zeile error on Albert Belle's grounder in the top of the first. Brady Anderson homered to lead off the bottom half and Charles Nagy worked around a Robbie Alomar single and Bobby Bonilla walk to keep it 1-0. Manny Ramirez tied the game in the second, and BJ Surhoff returned the favor by also homering. The Orioles doubled their run total in the third on a Todd Zeile single, a Rafael Palmeiro double and a Cal Ripken single.

In the fourth, the Tribe pulled within one when Manny singled, Jeff Kent doubled, Sandy Alomar singled and Omar Vizquel flew out to right. Nagy was finally yanked in the sixth after a pair of walks to Chris Hoiles and Zeile sandwiching an Anderson single. Alan Embree retired Robbie Alomar on a fly ball, but Hoiles scored and then he hit Palmeiro to load the bases. Paul Shuey grooved a 3-2 pitch to Bonilla and he scored everyone with a grand slam to deep right, extending the lead to 9-3.

The Tribe chased Wells in the seventh on an Omar Vizquel double, steal of third and a Kenny Lofton single. After Jesse Orosco hit Jim Thome, Terry Mathews retired Belle on a grounder after wild pitching Lofton and Thome to second and third. The final run of the came on a Surhoff solo shot leading off the seventh. Mathews gave up singles to Julio Franco and Manny in the eighth, but Arthur Rhodes got the last two batters and Randy Myers retired the side in order in the ninth to take a 1-0 lead in this best of five series.