Wild Card Mania by Jared Carrabis
It doesn't matter how you get in, as long as you get in


The following is Jared Carrabis' debut column for the Saugus Advertiser.

Saugus - If you’re a GM, manager or on the roster of a team that calls the American League East “home,” then you thank God every day that the Wild Card was introduced to Major League Baseball in 1994.

Since Wild Card mania hit the game of baseball 15 years ago, a winner has emerged from the American League East 10 times.

The Wild Card was created with the intentions of giving a team from both the American and National Leagues with the next best record in their respective leagues that failed to win a division title a spot in the postseason.

Since 1994, the Boston Red Sox have claimed the American League Wild Card as their entry into October postseason baseball more than any other club.

Boston’s six Wild Card finishes stand tall over those in the National League, as no team has ever won it more than twice.

Winning it first in 1998, the Red Sox were bumped in the American League Divisional Series by the Cleveland Indians in four games of a best of three out of five series.

In 1999, Boston stormed back into the postseason via the Wild Card, and again made a date with the Tribe. Only this time, backed by the mighty bat of Nomar Garciaparra and the flame-throwing arm of Cy Young Award winner, Pedro Martinez, the Red Sox advanced to the American League Championship Series. There, they met their AL East rivals, the New York Yankees.

Boston’s lone win came at home against Roger Clemens, who traded in his red socks for pinstripes via the Toronto Blue Jays.

The Sox knocked its former ace around the yard, en route to a 13-1 victory. It was Boston’s only win against New York, as the Bronx Bombers won their second of three consecutive World Series titles (1998-2000).

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Published on August 26, 2009

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