2011 World Series

Background

The Texas Rangers reached the World Series for the second year in a row, after falling to the San Francisco Giants in five games during the 2010 matchup. They became the first American League club to appear in back-to-back Fall Classics since the New York Yankees. Their path to the postseason began with an American League West division title, followed by series wins over the Tampa Bay Rays in the Division Series and the Detroit Tigers in the Championship Series.

The St. Louis Cardinals made their 18th World Series appearance, their third in eight seasons. They had previously lost a World Series to the Boston Red Sox and won one against the Detroit Tigers. The Cardinals clinched a playoff spot by securing the National League Wild Card on the regular season’s final day, then defeated the Philadelphia Phillies in the Division Series and the Milwaukee Brewers in the Championship Series. This was only the second meeting between the Rangers and Cardinals; their first came during interleague play in 2004, when St. Louis took two of three games in Texas.

The umpiring crew featured Greg Gibson and Ron Kulpa, both working their first World Series. Cardinals fans waved Rally Squirrel merchandise, inspired by a squirrel that dashed across the field during a playoff game. National anthem performers included Scotty McCreery, Trace Adkins, Ronnie Dunn, Zooey Deschanel, Demi Lovato, Joe, and Chris Daughtry. The Rangers, who had never appeared in a World Series until 2010—their 50th season—were previously the only MLB franchise without a postseason series win.

Matchups

Because the National League won the 2011 All-Star Game, the Cardinals had home-field advantage and hosted Games 1, 2, 6, and 7. In Game 1, C. J. Wilson faced Chris Carpenter. The game was scoreless through three innings.

In the fourth, Albert Pujols was hit by a pitch, Matt Holliday doubled, and Lance Berkman singled to drive in both runners. Mike Napoli tied the game with a two-run home run in the fifth. In the sixth, David Freese doubled, moved to third on a wild pitch, and scored on a pinch-hit single by Allen Craig.

In the seventh, Nelson Cruz singled and Napoli walked, but reliever Marc Rzepczynski struck out Craig Gentry and Esteban Germán. Jason Motte pitched a 1–2–3 ninth for the save. Controversy arose when Adrián Beltré grounded to third; replays showed he had fouled the ball off his foot before the out was recorded.

Broadcasting

Fox televised the Series in the United States and Canada, with Joe Buck calling play-by-play on his 14th World Series and Tim McCarver as color analyst on his 22nd. Ken Rosenthal was the field reporter, and Chris Rose hosted pregame and postgame coverage with analysts A. J. Pierzynski and Eric Karros. Joe Buck's call of David Freese's walk-off home run—"we will see you tomorrow night!"—echoed his father Jack's call of Kirby Puckett's walk-off home run in Game 6 of the 1991 World Series, occurring 20 years and a day apart, given the similar situation: Game 6, 11th inning, first batter, breaking a 3–3 tie.

MLB International syndicated coverage outside North America with Gary Thorne and Rick Sutcliffe. Ratings averaged 8.4 through the first five games, tying the record low set by the 2008 and 2010 World Series. Game 3 had a 6.6 rating, the second lowest ever. Games 6 and 7 raised the overall average to 9.9, and Game 7's 14.7 rating was Fox's highest for a World Series since Game 4 of the 2004 World Series.

ESPN Radio broadcast nationally with Dan Shulman, Orel Hershiser, and Bobby Valentine. ESPN Deportes Radio aired the Series in Spanish. Local broadcasts were on KESN (Rangers) and KMOX (Cardinals). BBC Radio 5 Live Sports Extra carried the games in the United Kingdom.

Aftermath

The 2011 World Series is remembered as an instant classic, becoming only the second Fall Classic where the winning team faced elimination by a single strike twice in Game 6 and also fell behind early in Game 7 before rallying to victory, a feat first accomplished by the 1986 New York Mets. David Freese’s performance in Game 6 is often called the greatest moment in St. Louis Cardinals history. As of now, the 2011 Cardinals are the most recent team to win a Game 7 at home, as the next five seven-game World Series (2014, 2016, 2017, 2019, 2025) were all won by the visiting team.

This championship was the third and final one for manager Tony La Russa, who retired on October 31, 2011, after 33 seasons. He became the first manager to end his career with a World Series win and holds the franchise record for most managerial victories (1,408). Former Cardinals catcher Mike Matheny, who played on the team that lost the World Series, replaced him. La Russa later returned to manage the Chicago White Sox in 2021 and 2022.