1997 National League Championship Series

Lore & Background

Both teams hailed from the NL East division, the 101-win Braves being the division champions while the Marlins made the playoffs courtesy of the wild card. Both the Braves and Marlins swept their opponents during the Division Series. This was the second all-Southern postseason series, the first being in the previous round when Atlanta beat the Houston Astros. However, it was the first all-Southern postseason series to take place entirely in one time zone. This series marked the high point for the Braves-Marlins rivalry, as the Marlins made the playoffs only once from 1998 to 2019 (2003, which also ended with a World Series title). However, both franchises would eventually meet in the postseason again in the 2020 National League Division Series.

In Their Own Story

The air inside The Astrodome hummed with a tension only a clinching game could produce. In Game 6, the lights of the dome reflected off the green turf as Ken Caminti stepped into the batter's box, the weight of a decade of near-misses resting on his shoulders. The crowd fell silent, a collective holding of breath from coast to coast. As the pitcher wound up, time seemed to suspend; the crack of the bat echoed like a thunderclap, sending the ball deep into the stands and igniting an eruption of joy that would define Houston baseball for years to come.

Reader's Guide

The series was played between the Florida Marlins and the Atlanta Braves. Games 1 and 2 were at Turner Field in Atlanta. Games 3, 4, and 5 were at Pro Player Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida. Game 6 was back at Turner Field in Atlanta. The Marlins won the series 4–2.

Did You Know?

• Liván Hernández set a record for most strikeouts in a National League Championship Series game with 15 in Game 5.
• Game 5 was voted as the third-worst called game from 1975 to 2000 by Baseball America due to umpire Eric Gregg's unusually wide strike zone.
• The Marlins hit multiple home runs in the series, including by Charles Johnson and Moisés Alou.