1991 American League Championship Series

Infobox LCS
alcs = yes


year = 1991
champion = Minnesota Twins (4)
champion_manager = Tom Kelly
champion_games = 95-67, .586, GA: 8
runnerup = Toronto Blue Jays (1)
runnerup_manager = Cito Gaston
runnerup_games = 91-71, .562, GA: 7
date = October 8–October 13
MVP = Kirby Puckett (Minnesota)
television = CBS
announcers = Dick Stockton and Jim Kaat
radio_network = CBS Radio
radio_announcers = Jim Hunter and Johnny Bench
umpires = Larry Barnett, Mark Johnson, Rocky Roe, Tim Welke, Mike Reilly, Jim McKeanThe 1991 American League Championship Series was played between the Minnesota Twins and the Toronto Blue Jays from October 8 to October 13. The Twins defeated the favoured Blue Jays, winning the Series 4 games to 1. Minnesota would go on to face (and ultimately defeat) the Atlanta Braves in the 1991 World Series, ranked by ESPN as the greatest ever played.

Minnesota outfielder Kirby Puckett was named the Series MVP, based on his .429 batting average, two home runs, and six RBI.

Background

The Twins finished the 1991 regular season with a 95-67 record (.586) and handily took the American League West division crown by eight games over the Chicago White Sox. The Blue Jays were similarly successful during the 1991 season, compiling a 91-71 record (.562) and winning the American League East division by seven games over the Boston Red Sox and Detroit Tigers. The Twins and Blue Jays played their final regular season series against each other (after both teams had clinched their respective divisions and were resting their starters), with the Blue Jays winning two of the three games. Newspapers were predicting a series of tense and close contests in the following ALCS.

ummary

Toronto Blue Jays vs. Minnesota Twins

Minnesota wins the series, 4-1

Game summaries

Game 1

Tuesday, October 8, 1991 at Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome in Minneapolis, MinnesotaLinescore
Road=Toronto|RoadAbr=TOR
R1=0|R2=0|R3=0|R4=1|R5=0|R6=3|R7=0|R8=0|R9=0|RR=4|RH=9|RE=3
Home=Minnesota|HomeAbr=MIN
H1=2|H2=2|H3=1|H4=0|H5=0|H6=0|H7=0|H8=0|H9=X|HR=5|HH=11|HE=0
RSP=|HSP=
WP=Jack Morris (1-0)|LP=Tom Candiotti (0-1)|SV=Rick Aguilera (1)|

Game 1 saw a surprise starter for Toronto as Blue Jays manager Cito Gaston chose knuckleballer Tom Candiotti to face the Twins over his new young gun Juan Guzmán and his left-handed ace Jimmy Key. Twins manager Tom Kelly opted to counter with All-Star Game starter and Minnesota native Jack Morris. Gaston would draw questions later when the decision seemingly swung the series against Toronto.

In the bottom of the first, Dan Gladden singled and Chuck Knoblauch did the same. After a strikeout by Kirby Puckett, Twins first baseman Kent Hrbek flew out to center field, moving Gladden to third. Knoblauch stole second and with two on and two out, Chili Davis singled both home to give the Twins an early 2-0 lead.

In the second, the Twins added two more runs. Shane Mack singled off Candotti, stole second, and moved to third on a line out to right by Mike Pagliarulo. He then scored on a Greg Gagne single, and consecutive singles again by Gladden and Knoblauch plated Gagne to give the Twins a 4-0 lead.

In the third, Davis walked with one out, stole second, and scored on a double by Mack. Candiotti's line read: 16 batters faced, five runs, eight hits, and four stolen bases. He was also responsible for Mack, perched on second. But reliever David Wells, as well as the rest of the Blue Jays relievers shut down the Twins and held them scoreless for the rest of the game.

In the top of the fourth, the Blue Jays tried to claw back into the game. After a Roberto Alomar single, Joe Carter doubled and Blue Jays third base coach Nick Leyva sent Alomar home. Two perfect throws from the Twins nailed Alomar at the plate for the first out and the squelching of the Blue Jay rally. Carter went to third and scored on John Olerud's subsequent ground out to make the score 5-1.

In the sixth, the Blue Jays got within a single run. Five consecutive singles by Devon White, Alomar, Carter, Olerud, and Kelly Gruber with only one out plated three runs and made the score, 5-4. But Carl Willis came on to get the last two outs, and the Minnesota relief corps held the Blue Jays the rest of the way for a 5-4 victory for the Twins and starter Jack Morris. Rick Aguilera got the save while Candiotti was saddled with the loss.

The victory gave the Twins a 1-0 lead in games in the ALCS. It also put them one win short of tying the post-season record for most consecutive wins at home held by the New York Yankees.

Game 2

Wednesday, October 9, 1991 at Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome in Minneapolis, MinnesotaLinescore
Road=Toronto|RoadAbr=TOR
R1=1|R2=0|R3=2|R4=0|R5=0|R6=0|R7=2|R8=0|R9=0|RR=5|RH=9|RE=0
Home=Minnesota|HomeAbr=MIN
H1=0|H2=0|H3=1|H4=0|H5=0|H6=1|H7=0|H8=0|H9=0|HR=2|HH=5|HE=1
RSP=|HSP=
WP=Juan Guzmán (1-0)|LP=Kevin Tapani (0-1)|SV=Duane Ward (1)|

The number two pitcher on each staff faced off as Juan Guzmán took the hill for the Blue Jays and Kevin Tapani for the Twins. A win would not only give the Twins a 2-0 lead, it would also enable the Twins to set the record for the most consecutive home field wins in post-season history, having won their first seven post-season games (including 1987) in the Metrodome. Unfortunately for the Twins, the Blue Jays came out swinging and held on for a 5-2 win.

Devon White began the scoring in the top of the first when he singled, stole second, moved to third on Roberto Alomar's bunt, and scored on Joe Carter's single to give the Jays a 1-0 lead. In the third, White and Alomar struck for two more Blue Jays runs when White doubled, moved to third on Alomar's single, and both scored after Alomar stole second and Kelly Gruber singled both home with two outs. The Blue Jays led, 3-0. The Twins got a run back in the bottom of the third when Chuck Knoblauch singled, stole second, and scored on Kirby Puckett's single. Knoblauch scored again in the sixth when he walked, moved to second on Puckett's ground out, and scored on a single by Brian Harper. The run cut Toronto's lead to 3-2.

Game 3 was a show for Devon White and Roberto Alomar, and in the seventh they put the contest out of reach. After Manuel Lee walked, the Twins relieved Tapani with Steve Bedrosian. White walked to put runners on first and second with one out. Alomar's single scored Lee, and White moved to third on an error by Shane Mack. White then scored his third run of the game on a sacrifice fly by Joe Carter, giving the Blue Jays a 5-2 lead. That was how the game ended.

Juan Guzman was the winning pitcher, and Keven Tapani the loser. Duane Ward got his first post-season save. The Blue Jays ended Minnesota's quest for a record home winning streak and both teams headed to Canada with the games count standing at one win apiece.

Game 3

Friday, October 11, 1991 at SkyDome in Toronto, OntarioLinescore
Road=Minnesota|RoadAbr=MIN
R1=0|R2=0|R3=0|R4=0|R5=1|R6=1|R7=0|R8=0|R9=0|R10=1|RR=3|RH=7|RE=0
Home=Toronto|HomeAbr=TOR
H1=2|H2=0|H3=0|H4=0|H5=0|H6=0|H7=0|H8=0|H9=0|H10=0|HR=2|HH=5|HE=1
RSP=|HSP=
WP=Mark Guthrie (1-0)|LP=Mike Timlin (0-1)|SV=Rick Aguilera (2)
RoadHR=Mike Pagliarulo (1)|HomeHR=Joe Carter (1)|

With the series tied at one win apiece, the teams ventured across the border to Toronto's Skydome where Jimmy Key squared off against the Twins' twenty-game winner, Scott Erickson. The Blue Jays quickly jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first when Joe Carter homered with two outs. The Jays got another run when Kelly Gruber singled, John Olerud singled, and Candy Maldonado doubled Gruber home.

The Twins got on the board in the fifth when Shane Mack led off with a triple and scored on Kent Hrbek's ground out. The Twins tied it in the sixth when Chuck Knoblauch doubled and scored on Kirby Puckett's single. The tie got rid of Jimmy Key as David Wells came on in relief.

The score stayed 2-2 until the tenth. Reliever Mike Timlin came on and after retiring Gene Larkin, gave up an eventual game-winning homer to pinch-hitter Mike Pagliarulo, who was hitting for Scott Leius. Rick Aguilera closed out the bottom of the tenth with a 1-2-3 inning to give the Twins a 3-2 win and a 2-1 lead in games. Another notable event in this game was the hamstring injury to Joe Carter, the Blue Jays' most influential hitter, who injured himself trying to make a circus catch in the outfield. Although Carter played in the next two games as the Designated Hitter, he was in obvious discomfort and was largely a non-factor in the following two games.

Game 4

Saturday, October 12, 1991 at SkyDome in Toronto, OntarioLinescore
Road=Minnesota|RoadAbr=MIN
R1=0|R2=0|R3=0|R4=4|R5=0|R6=2|R7=1|R8=1|R9=1|RR=9|RH=13|RE=1
Home=Toronto|HomeAbr=TOR
H1=0|H2=1|H3=0|H4=0|H5=0|H6=1|H7=0|H8=0|H9=1|HR=3|HH=11|HE=2
RSP=|HSP=
WP=Jack Morris (2-0)|LP=Todd Stottlemyre (0-1)|SV=
RoadHR=Kirby Puckett (1)|HomeHR=|

For the fourth game, Morris returned to the mound for Minnesota against Toronto's Todd Stottlemyre. The Blue Jays took the lead in the bottom of the second, when Candy Maldonado singled to center, took second on a wild pitch by Morris, and came home on a single by Pat Borders. The Twins, however, came back in a big way in the fourth – Kirby Puckett hit a solo home run, Chili Davis, who had doubled, scored on a single by Mike Pagliarulo, and a two-run single by Dan Gladden plated both Pagliarulo and Shane Mack. This turn of events gave the Twins a 4-1 lead.

Game 5

Sunday, October 13, 1991 at SkyDome in Toronto, OntarioLinescore
Road=Minnesota|RoadAbr=MIN
R1=1|R2=1|R3=0|R4=0|R5=0|R6=3|R7=0|R8=3|R9=0|RR=8|RH=14|RE=2
Home=Toronto|HomeAbr=TOR
H1=0|H2=0|H3=3|H4=2|H5=0|H6=0|H7=0|H8=0|H9=0|HR=5|HH=9|HE=1
RSP=|HSP=
WP=David West (1-0)|LP=Duane Ward (0-1)|SV=Rick Aguilera (3)
RoadHR=Kirby Puckett (2)|HomeHR=|

With their backs against the wall, the Blue Jays sent Candiotti to the hill for Game 5 against the Twins' Tapani. In the top of the first, Puckett hit a solo home run to give Minnesota a 1-0 lead. The Twins added another run the next inning, when Davis singled, moved to second and then third on consecutive passed balls by Toronto catcher Pat Borders, then came home on a single by Mack.

In the bottom of the second, Tapani struck out Maldonado, but Blue Jays manager Cito Gaston did not agree with home plate umpire Mike Reilly's call. He continued arguing until Reilly finally ejected him, depriving the Jays of the guiding hand of their manager. Nevertheless, Toronto took a 3-2 lead in their half of the third courtesy an RBI single by Alomar, an RBI double by Carter, and a groundout by Olerud. Alomar added a two-run single in the fourth to give the Jays a 5-2 lead.

In the sixth, the Twins stormed back to tie the game. Mack singled, stole second, then moved to third on a base hit by Pagliarulo. The Jays tried to nab Mack at the plate when Gladden hit into a fielder's choice, but Borders missed the throw by third baseman Gruber and Mack scored. Knoblauch followed by lashing a double to right field that scored both Pagliarulo and Gladden, and the game was knotted at 5.

In the eighth, Minnesota took the lead for good when Gladden singled, stole second, moved to third on a base hit by Knoblauch, and came home on a single by Puckett. Hrbek then drove both Knoblauch and Puckett in with a single to left, giving the Twins an 8-5 advantage. Rick Aguilera shut the door on the Jays in the bottom of the ninth, giving the Twins their second American League pennant in five years.

Composite Box

1991 ALCS (4-1): Minnesota Twins over Toronto Blue JaysLinescore
Road=Minnesota Twins
R1=3|R2=3|R3=2|R4=4|R5=1|R6=7|R7=1|R8=4|R9=1|R10=1|RR=27|RH=50|RE=4
Home=Toronto Blue Jays
H1=3|H2=1|H3=5|H4=3|H5=0|H6=4|H7=2|H8=0|H9=1|H10=0|HR=19|HH=43|HE=7Total Attendance: 263,987 Average Attendance: 52,797|

Quotes of the Series

Notes

External links

* [http://www.baseball-reference.com/postseason/1991_ALCS.shtml Baseball-Reference.com] - 1991 ALCS