Ken Hill outdueled Randy Johnson to give the 1994 Montreal Expos the chance they needed against the 1998 Houston Astros. Hill allowed just one run on 4 hits through 7 innings. Meanwhile. the Big Unit had another tough-luck start. Johnson allowed 2 runs in the 3rd inning on three seeing-eye singles. Dave Clark singled in Brad Ausmus in the 8th to tie the game at 2. With 13 strikeouts, Johnson pitched into the 9th, but allowed a leadoff single to Wil Cordero and walked Lenny Webster. Jay Powell got Sean Berry to fly out and then struck out Juan Bell. That’s when Cliff Floyd came off the bench to pinch-hit. Floyd worked the count and then drilled a 3-1 pitch into the gap, scoring Cordero and Webster to give Montreal a 4-2 lead. John Wetteland pitched a scoreless 9th for just his 2nd save, advancing the Expos to the NL Championship Series. That series will be a rematch between the Expos and the top-seeded 1998 Atlanta Braves. The Astros lost to the Expos in Game 5 for the 2nd time in the Tournament. Johnson ended the Tournament 0-3, despite averaging over 10 Ks per start.

’94 Expos @ ’98 Astros – 9/28/24

Things looked grim just a few days ago when the top-seeded 1998 New York Yankees dropped the 1st two games of the series against the 1993 Toronto Blue Jays. But they won Game 3 in extra innings, and dominated in a 10-4 win in Game 4 to send the series back to New York. The Yankees offense kept rolling, scoring 5 runs in the 1st two innings against Juan Guzmán, broken open by a 2-run double from Jorge Posada. Toronto fought back, closing the gap to 5-3 after a 2-run homer by Paul Molitor in the 4th. The Yankees kept the pressure up, scoring a run in the 5th and 6th. Toronto threatened in the 7th against a tiring David Cone, who walked two with 2 outs before giving up an RBI double to Roberto Alomar. Ramiro Mendoza got Joe Carter to pop up to end the threat. Paul O’Neill put the final nail in with a 3-run homer off Tony Castillo in the 8th to make it 10-4 again. The controversial decision to start Cone over Andy Pettitte paid off, as Cone allowed 3 earned runs on 8 hits in 6 2/3 innings. Ramiro Mendoza allowed just one hit the rest of the way. The heartbreaking loss after being up in the series 2-0 won’t be soon forgotten by the Blue Jays, who head home wondering what might have been. The Yankees get a chance at a rematch with the 1990 Oakland Athletics, who topped them 3-1 in the last series they faced each other. Chuck Knoblauch set the table for the Yankees offense, going 3 for 4 with a walk, stealing two bases and scoring 4 runs.

’93 Blue Jays @ ’98 Yankees – 9/28/24

David Wells finally kept the ball in the park (mostly), and the 1998 New York Yankees offense exploded against Todd Stottlemyre and the 1993 Toronto Blue Jays, taking Game 4 10-4 and forcing a decisive Game 5. Jorge Posada got the scoring started in the 2nd inning with a 2-out 2-run home run, his 1st of the Tournament. The Yankees scored two more runs in the 3rd, and 4 in the 4th on 2-run base hits by Paul O’Neill and Tino Martinez. Posada added another 2-run homer in the 5th to give the Yankees a 10-1 lead. Homers had plagued Wells in his prior starts, but he only allowed a solo shot to Ed Sprague in this game. Wells allowed just 2 runs, scattering 10 hits in 8 innings, giving New York relievers a breather. Meanwhile, the Blue Jays starter didn’t make it past the 4th inning for the 2nd straight game. Posada finished 4 for 5 with 2 homers and 4 RBI. The teams will travel back to New York in a final elimination game.

’98 Yankees @ ’93 Blue Jays – 9/26/24

The 1994 Montreal Expos scored at will against Mike Hampton, and Butch Henry pitched the game of his life, leading the Expos over the 1998 Houston Astros 11-0 to force Game 5. Hampton never seemed comfortable as the Expos scored twice in each of the 1st two innings and 4 runs in the 4th. Hampton allowed 8 runs on 11 hits in just 4 innings. Needing a win, Henry pitched a 3-hit shutout. After Craig Biggio singled in the 3rd inning, Henry didn’t allow another hit until Richard Hidalgo singled with 2 outs in the 9th. Carl Everett is expected to miss a few days after he collided with the wall in the 2nd inning. The Expos will be without Rondell White for the rest of the tournament. White suffered a thumb injury swinging in the 6th inning. White was 3 for 4 with a double and two triples before leaving the game.

’98 Astros @ ’94 Expos – 9/26/24

The 1998 Houston Astros won their 2nd straight game, putting on an offensive show against Jeff Fassero to top the 1994 Montreal Expos 10-7 and take a 2-1 series lead. Tim Bogar hit a 2-run single in the 2nd inning with 2 outs, and Craig Biggio followed with his 1st home run of the Tournament. Derek Bell added a 2-run single in the 4th, and Richard Hidalgo drove in another to give Houston an 8-1 lead. Montreal’s Moisés Alou hit a 2-run homer in the 5th, but they still trailed 8-3. When Jeff Bagwell hit a solo shot in the 9th, Houston had a 10-3 lead. José Lima allowed 3 runs on 8 hits in 8 innings to improve to 2-0. Wil Cordero and Darrin Fletcher had back-to-back 2-run base hits in the 9th against Mike Magnante, but Mike Lansing grounded out to end any comeback hopes. Montreal faces elimination tomorrow in another game in front of the home crowd.

’98 Astros @ ’94 Expos – 9/25/24

Orlando Hernández allowed 3 runs on 4 straight hits in the 1st inning against the 1993 Toronto Blue Jays, but the 1998 New York Yankees were able to bounce back, eventually winning 7-6 in 11 innings to avoid a sweep and keep their tournament hopes alive. Bernie Williams led off the 2nd with a home run against Dave Stewart. After Tino Martinez walked, Darryl Strawberry tied the game with another homer. The Yankees added 3 more runs in the 3rd, thanks to a 2-out 2-run double by Jorge Posada. New York bats went quiet after that, allowing the Jays to get back in the game. Ed Sprague hit a 2-run shot in the 7th to tie the game. Hideki Irabu made up for a Game 1 relief loss, allowing just one hit in 3 1/3 innings of relief. Williams hit his 2nd homer of the game in the 11th, and Mariano Rivera pitched a scoreless inning to give the Yankees the win and pick up his 5th save. The Yankees made 3 more errors, for a total of 10 in the series. New York hitters also grounded into 4 double plays.

’98 Yankees @ ’93 Blue Jays – 9/25/24