THIS DAY IN BÉISBOL October 31: Yanks’ Tino Martinez hits clutch 9-inning HR in 2001 World Series

Tino Martinez kickstarted one of the most amazing comebacks in World Series history on this day in béisbol, October 31, 2001, when the Yankees first baseman slammed a two-out, two-run homer in the bottom of the 9th inning to tie World Series Game 4 against the Arizona Diamondbacks.

The clutch bomb came against closer Byung-hyun Kim, who had relieved starter Curt Schilling in the eighth inning of a 3-1 game and was trying to preserve a lead that would give Arizona a 3-1 series edge.

With Mariano Rivera holding the score at 3-3 in the top of the 10, Kim, still i the game and working his third inning, got two quick outs then gave up a walk-off home run to shortstop Derek Jeter. It was past midnight on the morning of November 1, earning the Yankees captain his “Mr. November” moniker.

Game 5 turned into a horrific case of deja vu for the Diamondbacks as the Yankees tied the game yet again on a two-run homer off Kim with two outs in the ninth. Alfonso  Soriano then won it with a walk-off single in the 12th inning.

The Series returned to Arizona with the Yankees up 3-2, but New York would lose Game 6 and then suffer a heartbreaking defeat in Game 7 when Rivera blew the save  in the ninth.

Also on this day: In 2012, Angels pitcher Ervin Santana was traded to the Royals for a minor league reliever. The veteran was a rotation stalwart for several seasons in Anaheim before hitting a career speed bump, but the Dominican native bounced back with an all-star 2017 season. Now pitching for the Twins, Santana went 16-8 with a 3.28 ERA and led the AL in complete games (5) and shutouts (3).

Albert Pujols officially resigned in 2022 after a 22-year, Hall of Fame-worthy career in which he slammed 703 home runs, made the 3,000-hit club and drove in more than 2,000 runs.

clare_and_ben, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons; LatinoBaseball.com illustration