1987 World Series

Lore & Background

It was the first World Series to feature games played indoors, and the first in which the home team won every game. This was the third of six World Series played entirely on artificial turf. It was the first World Series in which the series logo appeared on the jerseys; only the Cardinals wore it. It was also the last World Series in which any games were played during the day. This was the third consecutive World Series to go the full seven games. This was the only World Series in history in which the bottom of the ninth inning was never played. With the Twins' win, Major League Baseball extended its record to ten straight unique World Series champions.

In Their Own Story

The air in the Metrodome was thick with October humidity, the kind that clings to your jersey and makes the stitching feel rough against your neck. You could smell the cut grass—artificial, but the memory of it was real—and the chalk dust kicked up by a baserunner's slide. Kirby Puckett stood in the batter's box, the Cardinals' pitcher winding up, and the whole dome seemed to hold its breath. The crack of the bat was not a sound so much as a shockwave. The ball rose, slow and impossibly high, over the warning track, over the lights, into the black beyond. For a half-second, nobody moved. Then the dome erupted, and a twenty-one-year-old kid in a Twins cap was already running the bases, arms pumping, mouth open in a shout that was half joy and half disbelief. Behind him, in the dugout, Terry Kennedy was on his feet. In the stands, a father was pressing his phone to his ear, saying the same three words over and over: 'We won. We won. We won.'

Reader's Guide

The Twins set the record for the worst regular season win–loss record of any World Series championship team (85–77, .525). The Twins were the first team to enter the World Series having been outscored in the regular season. The Cardinals posted a 95–67 record but were hindered by injuries, most notably the loss of first baseman Jack Clark. Game 7 was won by Minnesota on the 35th birthday of the Twins' Roy Smalley, which was also the last game of his career.

Did You Know?

• The 1987 World Series was the first to feature games played indoors.
• It was the first World Series in which the home team won every game.
• This was the only World Series in history in which the bottom of the ninth inning was never played.
• Twins pitcher Frank Viola was named the 1987 World Series MVP.