Each franchise's defining moment

[Victory Faust]

Let's say you're making a time capsule and you only are allowed one moment from each franchise to be captured on film for people to watch 5,000 years from now, which would you pick?

I'm not talking about a great season, or great statistics -- I'm talking about one moment, one play or event that could be filmed and preserved for all time.

[Tyrus4189Cobb]

It's hard to avoid the cliche ones

Red Sox: Either Fisk waves it fair or Roberts' 2004 ALCS Game 4 steal
Giants: Shot Heard 'Round the World or Mays' catch
Yankees: Luckiest Man
Pirates: Maz homer in Game 7
Braves: Aaron #715
Cardinals: McGwire surpasses Maris, Alexander gets out of Game 6 jam of '26 series
Rays: 2011 comeback in final game of season vs. Yankees
White Sox: Ninth inning defensive replacement Dewayne Wise robs homer to preserve Buehrle's perfecto, White Sox win 2005 Series for first title since 1917

[SamtheBravesFan]

I wouldn't choose Aaron's #715, I would choose Sid's pennant-winning slide. The entire sequence, of course.

[Victory Faust]

Just to be clear, I wasn't talking about something that's already been captured on film....just a moment that COULD be captured. For instance, if you wanted to say the Merkle boner for the Giants, you could (although it would obviously be the Bobby Thomson dinger for the Jints).

[SamtheBravesFan]

That's fine, VF. My answer is still the same, because I think that's their "Bobby Thomson" moment.

I'm not sure many teams would have these kinds of moments "pre-film" anyway.

[Mongoose]

Mets.

For good: Game 6.

For bad: Wilpon hijacking the team from Doubleday.

The bad isn't as interesting on film as the good, but it's been way more defining.

[desertmonk]

It would be hard to not pick tearing down Ebbets Field for the Dodgers...

[chicagowhitesox1173]

I would say the Whitesox most defining moment would have to be the BlackSox trial. I do gotta say that catch DeWayne Wise made was something else though.

[ol' aches and pains]

It would be hard to not pick tearing down Ebbets Field for the Dodgers...

I prefer to remember Jackie Robinson stealing home in the 1955 World Series.

[Blue387]

Mets.

For good: Game 6.

For bad: Wilpon hijacking the team from Doubleday.

Pretty good: Johan Santana's no-hitter

Bad: Tom Seaver getting traded to Cincinnati in 1977. Also, Nolan Ryan getting traded.

[StanTheMan]

Cardinals: McGwire surpasses Maris, Alexander gets out of Game 6 jam of '26 series

Some fan bases are tired of what can be viewed as a cliche, but Cardinal fans are smarter than that.

[RuthMayBond]

Here's my file

Arizona Diamondbacks: Gonzalez bats in Bell to win World Series 2001/11-04
Randy Johnson's perfect game 2004/05-18
Alanta Braves: Braves scored in 10th & 12th to win WS game 1914/10-12
Aaron's 715th career home run 1974/04-08
Braves won World Series 1957
Braves won World Series game 6 1995/10-28
Braves score in 9th & 10th to win NLCS 1999/10-19
Aaron's walkoff HR clinches pennant 1957/09-23
Baltimore Orioles: Orioles won World Series G 1983/10-16
Won World Series 1966
Won World Series 1970
Won World Series game 4 1979/10-13
Ripken's 2131st consecutive game 1995/09-06
Boston Red Sox: first World Series 1903/10-01
World Series 1915
World Series 1916
World Series 1918
Fisk's game-ending HR in World Series 1975/10-21
Won World Series 2004
Williams HRs in last at-bat 1960/09-28
TWilliams plays,gets .400 BA 1941/09-28
Snodgrass drops fly ball in last game of World Series 1912/10-16
DHenderson's game-winning ACLS HR 1986/10-12
Chicago Cubs: first night game 1988/08-08
World Series 1907, 1908
Cubs won WS game 6 1945/10-08
Double no-hitter 1917/05-02
Homer in Gloamin' 1938/09-28
Cubs got five in 9th of WS game 1 1908/10-10
Chicago White Sox: won World Series game 5 1917/10-13
Swept World Series 2005/10-26
World Series game six 1906/10-14
Baines HR wins in 25th by 7-6 1984/05-08/09
Cincinnati Reds: Pete Rose breaks career hits record 1985/09-11
World Series 1990
Browning perfect game 1988/09-16
Moose's wild pitch gave pennant to Reds 1972/?
Winning 76 WS, only NL back-to-back since 1922
Reds won WS game 2 1919/10-02
Reds won World Series game 7 1940/10-08
First night game 1935/05-24
Vander Meer's 2nd straight no-hitter 1938/06-15
Youngest player Joe Nuxhall 1944/06-10
Cleveland Indians: Won World Series 1920
Won World Series 1948
Indians clinch first postseason play in 41 years 1995/09-08
SAlomar's HR to win All-Star game 1997/07-08
Indians won World Series game 5 1995/10-26
Indians down 14-2 in seventh but won 15-14 2001/08-05
JDiMaggio's hit streak ended 1941/07-17
Joss' perfect game 1908/10-02
Len Barker's perfect game 1981/05-15
Babe Ruth's 500th homer 1929/08-11
Colorado Rockies: Down 2 R in XIP playoff but won, Holliday's slide 2007/10-01
Detroit Tigers: Tigers won World Series 1935/10-07
Gibson's 2nd HR in World Series winning game 1984/10-14
World Series 1945
CRobertson's perfect game 1922/04-30
Detroit beat Cleveland 21-0 1901/09-15
Florida Marlins: Renteria knocks in winning World Series run 1997/10-26
Won World Series 2003
Steve Bartman incident 2003/10-14
Houston Astros: Mike Scott's clinching no-hitter 9/25/1986
Billy Hatcher's 14th inning HR, Ryan's fifth no-hitter ??
18 inning NLDS win vs Braves
Oswalt win after Lidge meltdown
Kansas City Royals: Denkinger mistakenly calls Orta safe in WS 1985/10-26
Brett's 3000th hit
Oliva's line 5-2-5-5 w/2 HR 1969/06-29
Los Angeles Angels: Angels winning World Series game seven 2002/10-27
Baylor 7-3-3-8 w/2 HR as they beat Toronto 24-2 1979/08-25
Los Angeles Dodgers: Gibson's game-winning WS homer 1988/10-15
Jackie Robinson plays first game 1947/04-15
Dodgers won World Series game 5 1955/10-02
Dodgers win playoff in 12th 1959/09-29
World Series 1963
Monday's NLCS homer 1981/10-19
Milwaukee Brewers: Brewers won World Series G 5 1982/10-17
First comeback from 2-0 LCS deficit to win pennant 1982/10-10
Yount's 3000th hit 1992/09-09
Minnesota Twins: Morris shuts out Braves,Larkin hits WS winner 1991/10-27
Senators won WS G 7 1924/10-10
Won World Series 1987
Won World Series game 6 1965/10-13
New York Mets: Buckner missing grounder in World Series 1986/10-25
Mets win LCS in sixteenth inning 10/15/1986
Seaver World Series game 4 1969
Koosman 10/12/1969
Agee's catch 1969/10-??
Ventura's "grand slam" 1999
New York Yankees: Lou Gehrig's "luckiest man" speech 1939/07-04
Larsen's perfect World Series game 1956/10-08
Maris' 61st HR 1961/10-01
Yanks come back to win playoff 1978/10-02
World Series game 7 1947/10-06
Ruth's "called shot" 1932/10-01
Ruth homering on Opening Day 1923/04-18
Reggie's three WS HR 1977/10-18
Chambliss & ABoone?
Oakland Athletics: World Series 1910
World Series 1911
World Series 1913
World Series 1972
World Series 1973
World Series 1974
Rickey Henderson calls himself greatest basestealer or
Hunter's perfect game 1968/05-08
As played their 1st WS game 1905/10-09
Philadelphia Phillies: McGraw fans Wilson for World Championship 1980/10-21
2008 World Series
Bunning's perfect game 1964/06-21
Schmidt's 500th HR 1987/04-18
Pittsburgh Pirates: Maz's World Series winning HR 1960/10-13
Pirates won World Series game 7 1925/10-15
1st WS G @ NL park 1903/10-06
Pirates won World Series game 5 1909/10-13
Pirates won World Series game 5 down 3 games to 1 1979/10-14
Haddix's twelve perfect innings 1959/05-26
Won World Series 1971
San Diego Padres: Garvey's walkoff NLCS HR 1984/10-06
World Series 1998
San Francisco Giants:
World Series 1905
World Series 1921
World Series 1922
World Series 2002
trading for Christy Mathewson
WMays caught Wertz's shot 1954/09-29
Thomson's HR 1951/10-03
Giants get 4 in 9th to win playoff 1962/10-03
Bonds 71st HR 2001/10-05
St. Louis Cardinals won WS G 7 1964/10-15
Slaughter's dash to win World Series game 7 1946/10-15
Cards won WS G 7 1931/10-10
Alexander fans Lazzeri/Ruth caught stealing 1926/10-10
McGwire's 62nd homer 1998/09-08
Cards won World Series game 7 1964/10-15
Seattle Mariners: Edgar Martinez bats in Ken Griffey to win ALDS 1995/10-08
M's win playoff to clinch first division title 1995/10-02
winning 116th in regular season 2001/10-07
Tampa Bay Rays: Boggs HR for his 3000th career hit 1999/08-07
Knotting the World Series one game each 2008/10-23
Winning the ALCS 2008/10-19
Texas Rangers: Rangers up 3-2 in World Series 2011/10-24
Ryan's seventh no-hitter 1991/05-01
Witt's perfect game 1984/09-30
Kenny Rogers' perfect game 1994/07-29
Toronto Blue Jays: Joe Carter's World Series-winning HR 1993/10-23
World Series 1992
Toronto beat BoSox 7-6 in 17 1980/10-04
Whitt had 3 HR & Toronto beat Orioles 18-3 1987/09-14
Washington Nationals: DMartinez perfect game 1991/07-28
Expos beat Padres 11-10 1969/08-20
Expos beat Cubs in 18 innings 1973/06-27
Bailey's line 6-2-4-7 w/2 HR 1972/07-03

[Bothrops Atrox]

For STL: Alexander in '26, Slaughter's Mad Dash in 46, or David Freese's triple & HR in 2011 fighting it out.

[Victory Faust]

One thing that hit me when I read SamTheBravesFan's statement that most defining moments are already caught on film: He's right, of course, but I wonder if that's not a little chicken-or-the-egg at play.

Did those events become defining moments BECAUSE they were filmed, and thus, rendered so ubiquitous, and so ingrained in the public's consciousness, that they became defining moments?

[ian2813]

One thing that hit me when I read SamTheBravesFan's statement that most defining moments are already caught on film: He's right, of course, but I wonder if that's not a little chicken-or-the-egg at play.

Did those events become defining moments BECAUSE they were filmed, and thus, rendered so ubiquitous, and so ingrained in the public's consciousness, that they became defining moments?

I would have to think so. There were lots of great moments that weren't captured on film, and hardly anyone knows about them except hardcore fans like those of us here.

Earl McNeely, Bing Miller and Goose Goslin all got World Series-ending hits, but how often do you hear about them? McNeely's moment is somewhat well-known, but the name most people associate with the play is Fred Lindstrom.