Just how important is Game 1 of the World Series? In MLB's Wild Card era -which dates back to 1995 -the winner of Game 1 has gone on to hoist the Commissioner's Trophy 24 out of 31 times. (And the Toronto Blue Jays came one Miguel Rojas homer, one ball wedged in the outfield wall and one Isiah Kiner-Falefa secondary lead from making it 25-of-31 last year .)
But Game 1 isn't just important; it's also produced some of the most instantly iconic moments in baseball history, featuring some of its biggest stars, from Freddie Freeman to Derek Jeter to Bob Gibson to Willie Mays. So much so that our list of the greatest World Series Game 1s in MLB history wound up as a top 11, simply because we couldn't fit everything into a top 10.
Will the Tampa Bay Rays and Milwaukee Brewers add to that list when they meet at American Family Field to kick off this year's Fall Classic on Friday night? We'll just have to wait to find out, but the bar has been set very high.
Los Angeles Dodgers Kirk Gibson, 1988 World Series | John Iacono/GettyImages
The battle for No. 1 really comes down to which Dodgers grand slam you prefer. And while recency bias pulls us strongly toward Freeman -don't worry, we'll be getting to him in just a second - I'm still giving Kirk Gibson the nod.
Nearly 40 years later, it's hard to fully appreciate just how dramatic this moment was in real time. Yes, Freeman was battling an ankle injury of his own, but he was still in the starting lineup for Game 1 against the Yankees in 2024. Gibson had injured both legs so badly in the NLCS that he wasn't even expected to play at all. But he stayed ready anyway, watching the game on television while undergoing physical therapy in the clubhouse. And when Tommy Lasorda unexpectedly called his number with L.A. down by a run with a man on and two outs in the top of the ninth against A's star closer Dennis Eckersley, he delivered the swing of his life.
Of course, Freeman's grand slam was spectacular in its own right . He too was battling injury that entire postseason, and he too snatched victory from the jaws of defeat -and quite possibly swung the entire series in the process. It only ranks No. 2 here because it was slightly more expected than GIbson's blast
Willie Mays Catching Baseball | Bettmann/GettyImages
But enough about the Dodgers. At this point, Willie Mays' sprinting, over-the-shoulder catch in deep center field at the Polo Grounds has been included in highlight reels so many times that you might not recognize the context in which it took place. Which is a shame, because the context somehow makes it even more impressive.
The teams entered the eighth inning tied at two when Cleveland put the first two runners on. Vic Wertz cracked one that looked sure to be an extra-base hit that would give his side a late lead ... until Mays somehow tracked it down. The Giants escaped the inning unscathed, then won it in the 10th on a walk-off three-run homer from Dusty Rhodes.
For my money, this one doesn't get the attention it deserves. It started with a bang, as Alcides Escobar started the bottom of the first by sprinting around the bases for a leadoff inside-the-park homer. But the Mets got up off the mat and took a 4-3 lead in the eighth, six outs away from snatching home-field advantage.
Until Alex Gordon stepped up. The longest-tenured Royal delivered the swing of his life off of Jeurys Familia in the bottom of the ninth, launching a game-tying homer to dead center field. The game would remain deadlocked all the way to the 14th inning, still the longest in World Series history, when an Eric Hosmer sacrifice fly off of Bartolo Colon sent everybody home.
New York Mets' Robin Ventura (left) and Timo Perez are disap | New York Daily News Archive/GettyImages
Sorry, Mets fans, I promise that your misery is almost over. While Familia's name lives in infamy in Queens, he's got nothing on Timo Perez, who started premature celebrating what he thought was a go-ahead homer off the bat of Todd Zeile in the sixth inning ... only to get thrown out at home plate when the ball hit the top of the wall and somehow bounced back into the field of play.
The Mets actually rallied to take the lead anyway, handing a 3-2 advantage to Armando Benitez to start the bottom of the ninth. But Benitez gave up a sac fly to Chuck Knoblauch to force extras, and in the 12th, Jose Vizcaino of all people lined a game-winning single to left against Turk Wendell.
St. Louis was an out away from securing a dramatic Game 1 win, only for Red Sox outfielder Tom McBride to deliver a single that tied the game at two and forced extra innings. From there, it was Rudy York's turn to produce some two-out dramatics, launching a game-winning homer that silenced the Cardinals faithful. Of course, Boston went on to blow a 3-2 series lead, and their World Series curse would last another 58 years or so. But hey, you can't blame York.
World Series - Arizona Diamondbacks v. Texas Rangers - Game One | Daniel Shirey/GettyImages
It seemed for all the world like Arizona's Cinderella run that October was set to continue in Game 1 of the World Series, as the D-backs took a 5-3 lead to the bottom of the ninth in Arlington. But Corey Seager had other plans:
Seager's stunning two-run homer off of Paul Sewald sent the game to extras, where Adolis Garcia stole a win for the home team with a dinger of his own. It's hard not to imagine how much differently that series could have played out had the D-backs held on in Game 1.
Legendary Senators pitcher Walter Johnson had waited his whole career to finally appear in the World Series, and he didn't disappoint, holding the Giants to just two runs across 11 innings of Game 1. The dam broke in the 12th, though, as Johnson allowed two runs to cross the plate that gave New York a 4-2 lead.
Washington tried to mount a dramatic rally in the bottom half, scratching back one run and putting the tying run on third with two outs, but Goose Goslin grounded out to end the threat. The Senators did get Johnson his ring, though, thanks to another 12-inning affair in Game 7.
World Series: Cardinals v Red Sox Game 1 | Jed Jacobsohn/GettyImages
It felt like the Red Sox were the team of destiny after erasing a 3-0 deficit to dispatch the Yankees in the ALCS. But somebody forgot to tell the Cardinals that: Despite trailing 4-0, then 7-2, then 9-7, St. Louis' big bats kept answering the bell, sending Game 1 to the bottom of the eighth inning improbably tied at nine.
And then the most improbable World Series hero of all emerged: Mark Bellhorn. Boston's No. 9 hitter came up with the swing of his life at the perfect time, drilling a two-run homer off of Julian Tavarez to give the Red Sox an 11-9 win and set the stage for their eventual sweep.
Admittedly, this is less about the game itself and more about one individual performance. But when you set a new record for strikeouts in a playoff game, well, you earn a spot on this list.
Bob Gibson was otherworldly in 1968, with a 1.12 ERA (!) and 13 shutouts (!!) across 304.2 innings (!!!). But even by his own lofty standards, his performance in Game 1 against Detroit was incredible: a whopping 17 strikeouts while allowing just five hits and a walk in nine scoreless innings. It remains the standard to which all other World Series starts aspire.
World Series - Philadelphia Phillies v Houston Astros - Game One | Rob Carr/GettyImages
Yes, there was a time when the name Nick Castellanos was met with something other than groans in Philadelphia. The Red October Phillies had shocked the baseball world yet again, erasing an early 5-0 deficit in Houston against the powerhouse Astros. With the potential winning run on second in the bottom of the ninth, Jeremy Pea lifted a dangerous fly ball to shallow right - but Castellanos was there to make the play and force extras.
In the top half of the 10th, it was JT Realmuto's turn, shooting a go-ahead homer to right that would stand up as the difference in a 6-5 win. The Phillies couldn't hold on from there, eventually losing in six games. For one night, though, it seemed like they had the blessing of the baseball gods.
This article was originally published on www.fansided.com as The best World Series Game 1s in MLB history, ranked .
