Did Armando Benitez cost the Orioles a chance to go to the World Series in 1997?

[TINSTAAPP]

I mean they were 9-47 with RISP against the Indians in that series. The offense was more to blame for the series loss than Armando Benitez giving up the game winning run in three of the four losses to the Indians, right?

[eddie83]

We had no luck that series at all. Benitez was awful. That said the umps missed a check swing on Thome in Game 2. Inning should have been over and Grissom never gets to the plate.

[Frobby]

I mean they were 9-47 with RISP against the Indians in that series. The offense was more to blame for the series loss than Armando Benitez giving up the game winning run in three of the four losses to the Indians, right?

It's correct, at least as to Game 6. I doubt that's the answer you were looking for, but your statement is right. And I was there.

[JR Oriole]

Yes he did. Plain and simple. We were up 4-2 in the 8th inning in Game 2. The Thome pitch was very borderline and it unfortunately went against us. The pitch Benitez threw to Grissom was a fat slider instead of his best fastball (apparently he learned nothing from watching Wohlers do the same thing to Leyritz the year before) and that completely changed the series around. Game 3 was brutal and we definitely got shut down. I remember thinking that Palmeiro really came up small in that series. We needed him to hit like he did all year and he just could not come up with an important RBI.

We scored PLENTY in Game 4 but it wasn't enough and Benitez served up the game winner to Oriole executioner Sandy Alomar. We did get shutdown in Game 6, but I remember it was cold that day and the wind was definitely blowing in because Hoiles hit one that should have left the yard and didn't.

As bad as 2014 was, 1997 still takes the cake for me as the most painful playoff series loss of my lifetime. We were the best team that year....period. Familia for the Mets is the new Armando Benitez.....great all season and then in October he crushes your heart.

[Aristotelian]

The situations are not even close to comparable. Benitez had the lead and blew it. His game logs from that series were just unbelievably bad. He singlehandedly cost the Orioles not one but two games. Just thinking about it raises my blood pressure.

[FlipTheBird]

No one player ever costs a team a game, or series. It just doesn't happen, no matter how much people like to say it. Benitez gets a lot of blame because he had the most visible struggles in the series. But by the same token, Game 6 should never have gone to extras. Mussina threw a masterpiece that should have forced Game 7, and the bats **** the bed. And it wasn't because Nagy was that effective - he put 12 guys on in 7.1 and the O's never took advantage of it.

There's also the previously mentioned just oddball bad luck the O's ran into.

Then, on top of that, other guys didn't look good. Randy Myers gave up three runs in his five innings of work. Eric Davis was 2/13 in the series. Mike Bordick was 3/19. Chris Hoiles was 2/14. Roberto Alomar was 4/22.

Team effort, always.

[Redskins Rick]

No one player ever costs a team a game, or series.

You know, you are 100% correct and my brain agrees with you.

But, my heart, I still have a sore spot with Todd Zeile throwing the dang ball to the ground in the 96 ALCS. No I dont hate him, like the Boston fans do with Buckner, but, still, thats still a memory in my memory banks.

[Frobby]

The situations are not even close to comparable. Benitez had the lead and blew it. His game logs from that series were just unbelievably bad. He singlehandedly cost the Orioles not one but two games. Just thinking about it raises my blood pressure.

I've reviewed the box scores to remind myself. No one player lost that ALCS, though Benitez certainly deserves plenty of blame. I'd put game 2 squarely on him, since he came in with a 2-run lead and left with a 1-run deficit, in a game where the offense had been respectable and the starting pitcher had done a good job. In the 8-7 game, he gets some blame for allowing the winning run to score, but Erickson is the one who allowed 7 runs in 4.1 IP, and Mills is the guy who put the winning run on base. In Game 6, Benitez allowed the game-winning homer, but it's the offense that didn't score in 11 innings, going 0 for 12 with runners in scoring position. I'd put the vast majority of the blame for the loss on the offense in that game. And in Game 3, Benitez pitched a scoreless inning and we lost 2-1 in extras, Randy Myers coughing up the winning run. So whatever blame you put on Benitez for Game 6, you have to put on Myers in Game 3.

[Aristotelian]

I've reviewed the box scores to remind myself. No one player lost that ALCS, though Benitez certainly deserves plenty of blame. I'd put game 2 squarely on him, since he came in with a 2-run lead and left with a 1-run deficit, in a game where the offense had been respectable and the starting pitcher had done a good job. In the 8-7 game, he gets some blame for allowing the winning run to score, but Erickson is the one who allowed 7 runs in 4.1 IP, and Mills is the guy who put the winning run on base. In Game 6, Benitez allowed the game-winning homer, but it's the offense that didn't score in 11 innings, going 0 for 12 with runners in scoring position. I'd put the vast majority of the blame for the loss on the offense in that game. And in Game 3, Benitez pitched a scoreless inning and we lost 2-1 in extras, Randy Myers coughing up the winning run. So whatever blame you put on Benitez for Game 6, you have to put on Myers in Game 3.

For sure he is not the only guy. Team loss, etc. But if you could pick any one guy to blame it would have to be Armando.

[JR Oriole]

I've reviewed the box scores to remind myself. No one player lost that ALCS, though Benitez certainly deserves plenty of blame. I'd put game 2 squarely on him, since he came in with a 2-run lead and left with a 1-run deficit, in a game where the offense had been respectable and the starting pitcher had done a good job. In the 8-7 game, he gets some blame for allowing the winning run to score, but Erickson is the one who allowed 7 runs in 4.1 IP, and Mills is the guy who put the winning run on base. In Game 6, Benitez allowed the game-winning homer, but it's the offense that didn't score in 11 innings, going 0 for 12 with runners in scoring position. I'd put the vast majority of the blame for the loss on the offense in that game. And in Game 3, Benitez pitched a scoreless inning and we lost 2-1 in extras, Randy Myers coughing up the winning run. So whatever blame you put on Benitez for Game 6, you have to put on Myers in Game 3.

The hit by Grissom changed the entire series in the exact same way that Leyritz's homer off Wohlers changed the 1996 World Series. We were going to take a two games to none lead going to Cleveland....I had no doubt. I could not believe it when Grissom hit that homer and I think it shocked everyone in that stadium, including the players. Obviously we still had a chance in the series because we took Game 5 and it was scoreless in Game 6 into extras. But damn that Game 2 was a crusher. Of course, leave it to a 1989 Blue Jay (Tony Fernandez) to beat us in the end. I was just glad he made that huge error against Florida to lose them the World Series.

[DrungoHazewood]

For sure he is not the only guy. Team loss, etc. But if you could pick any one guy to blame it would have to be Armando.

Chapter 8 of the Official Guide to Being a Real Fan is "How to assign a goat in a team loss and loathe him forever."

[Redskins Rick]

Wow nightmare from the past. Didn't he start that brawl in NY in '98?

What a brawl that was.

[video=youtube;n0QlGsgNLIg]