IN THE NEWS: In the first game of a 3-game showdown between the Mets and Cardinals, Ron Darling and John Tudor each pitch 10 shutout innings before Darryl Strawberry belts a titanic home run off reliever Ken Dayley. The Mets' 1–0, 11-inning win cuts the Cardinals' lead in the National League East to two games.
The Angels go back into 1st place in the American League West, beating the Royals, 4–2. Mike Witt and DonnieMoore combine on a 6-hitter.
Houston's Charlie Kerfeld beats the Braves, 2–0, handing the loss to starter to Steve Bedrosian (7-15). Bedrock is not around at the end and finishes none of his 37 starts this year, a ML record.
IN THE NEWS: The Dodgers clinch the National League West title with a 9–3 win over the Braves. Orel Hershiser raises his record to 19-3 with his 11th consecutive victory.
In a duel of 20-game winners, Doc Gooden (24-4) beats Joaquin Andujar (21-11) to pull the Mets to a game in back of the Cardinals.
Tigers 1B Darrell Evans hits his ML-leading 40th home run of the season and becomes the first player to have a 40 home run season in each league. Evans hit 41 homers for the Braves in 1973. Jack Morris tops Dave Stieb in Detroit's 4–2 win over Toronto. Whitt and Gibson also homer.
IN THE NEWS: The Phillies score eight runs in the 3rd inning at Montreal, and hold on for an 8–7 win. Rick Schu has a pair of doubles in the big score, the first Phillie ever to hit a pair of doubles in an inning. The win is just the 2nd in 13 games for the Quakers.
Bud Black fires a 3-hitter and George Brett slaps a 3-run inside-the-park homer to beat the Angels, 4–0, moving KC back in a tie for the Al West.
IN THE NEWS: George Brett drives in two runs with a bases loaded single and his 2nd inside-the-park homer in two days as the Royals trip the A's, 4–2. The win gives the Royals at least a tie for the American League West title.
IN THE NEWS: The Cardinals, Royals, and Blue Jays all clinch their division championships. John Tudor pitches a 4-hitter and Cesar Cedeno goes 3-for-3 with a home run, as St. Louis beats the Cubs 7–1. It is Tudor's 20th win in 21 decisions after starting the season 1–7.
Willie Wilson singles home the winning run as Kansas City beats Oakland 5–4 in 10 innings. Doyle Alexander pitches a 5-hitter, as Toronto beats 2nd-place New York 5–1 to wrap up its first American League East crown. Dave Winfield drives in the lone run, his 100th RBI of the year. He is the first Yankee to have 100 RBIs and score 100 runs in the same year since Joe DiMaggio in 1941-42.
IN THE NEWS: Phil Niekro finally wins his 300th career game 8–0 over the Blue Jays on the final day of the regular season. He allows four hits in the CG win. At 46, he is the oldest hurler ever to pitch a complete-game shutout.
Hubie Brooks drives in his 100th run of the season in Montreal's season-ending 2–1 win over the Mets, becoming the first National League shortstop with 100 RBI since Ernie Banks in 1960.
Angels OF Rudy Linares, collects two singles and a 3-run homer off Rangers Rick Surhoff to pace California to a 6–5 win. For Linares, the home run comes in his last ML at bat. The veteran hit a homer on July 20th, in his first at bat for California.
National League Managers Chuck Tanner and Bob Lillis are fired by the Pirates and Astros, respectively. Lillis is offered a front-office job, while Tanner will be hired to manage the Braves just three days later.
IN THE NEWS: George Brett's bat (4-for-4, four runs, three RBI, 11 total bases) bails out 20-game winner Bret Saberhagen, and the Royals squeak past Toronto 6–5.
IN THE NEWS: In game four of the ALCS, Al Oliver's 2-run pinch double in the 9th inning gives Toronto a 3–1 win over Kansas City and a 3-1 lead in the series. Until this year's best-of-7 format was adopted, the three wins would have sent the Blue Jays to the World Series.
St. Louis runs the Dodgers out of Busch Stadium 4–2. The Cardinals' first three runs are aided by three stolen bases and two errant pickoff attempts.
IN THE NEWS: The Royals stave off elimination behind Danny Jackson's 8-hit shutout 2-0 over the Blue Jays.
The Cardinals rout the Dodgers 12–2 to even the NLCS at 2-2, but also lose rookie sensation Vince Coleman to one of the more bizarre injuries in ML history. Coleman is stretching before the game when his left leg becomes caught in Busch Stadium's automated tarpaulin as it unrolls across the infield, trapping him for about 30 seconds. He is removed from the field on a stretcher and will not play again this year.
IN THE NEWS: Ozzie Smith homers off Tom Niedenfuer with one out in the bottom of the 9th to give the Cardinals a 3-2 lead in the NLCS. It is the switch-hitting Smith's first ML home run while batting lefthanded.
IN THE NEWS: The Royals once again stave off elimination to the Blue Jays, aided by George Brett's 3rd home run of the series, all off Doyle Alexander. The Royals win 5–3.
IN THE NEWS: Baseball gets its first intrastate World Series since 1974, as the Royals and Cardinals win their respective playoff series. Kansas City beats Toronto 6–2 in game seven to cap a comeback from a 3-games-to-1 deficit. While in Los Angeles, Jack Clark drills a 3-run home run off Tom Niedenfuer with two outs in the top of the 9th and 1B open to give the Cardinals a 7–5 victory and a 4-2 series win.
IN THE NEWS: The Royals get a 2nd 9-inning effort, this time from Danny Jackson, to win again 6–1. Cards rookie reliever Todd Worrell strikes out all six batters he faces.
IN THE NEWS: The Angels announce that they will not offer 7-time batting champion Rod Carew a new contract for the 1986 season, effectively ending his 19-year career. Carew finishes with 3,053 hits and a .328 career batting average.
The Blue Jays name 3B coach Jimy Williams manager, replacing Bobby Cox, who resigned to become GM of the Braves.
IN THE NEWS: Aided by a blown call, a bungled pop-up, and a passed ball, Kansas City scores two runs in the bottom of the 9th to beat St. Louis 2–1 and even the World Series at three games apiece. The Cardinals are three outs away from the World Championship when Jorge Orta reaches base on a disputed infield single. The next batter, Steve Balboni, lofts a foul pop that Clark loses track of and lets fall untouched, then singles. After Darrell Porter's passed ball puts runners on 2B and 3B and Hal McRae is intentionally walked to load the bases, pinch hitter Dane Iorg singles home two runs to end the game.
IN THE NEWS: The Royals rout the Cardinals 11–0 in game seven to become only the 6th team to rally from a 3-1 deficit and win the World Series. Series MVP Bret Saberhagen pitches the shutout while Cardinals ace John Tudor allows five runs in 21/3 innings and fellow 20-game winner Joaquin Andujar is ejected for arguing balls and strikes during Kansas City's 6-run 5th inning. The Cardinals finish the World Series with a .185 team batting average, lowest ever for a 7-game Series.
Billy Martin is fired by the Yankees for an unprecedented 4th time and is replaced by former Yankees OF Lou Piniella, who had been the team's hitting instructor since retiring as a player in 1984.
IN THE NEWS: Cardinals pitcher Joaquin Andujar is suspended for the first 10 games of the 1986 season as a result of his game seven tantrum during which he twice bumped home plate umpire Don Denkinger.
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