Jordan HammIt’s been 20 years since the Arizona Diamondbacks brought Phoenix its first major championship.
In some ways, it feels longer. In some ways, it feels like it was last week.
It doesn’t feel that long ago that Bank One Ballpark was packed with a crowd of pom-pom-toting fans while hanging on every pitch from Johnson or Schilling or saying a silent prayer for Gonzalez or Womack to drive in a run.
That Fall Classic also served as a distraction and a way for the nation to come together after Sept. 11 attacks just a few weeks prior. For the first time ever, baseball crept into November, and it was unlike any other postseason we had seen before.
Sports360AZ will revisit each game of the 2001 World Series as their respective anniversaries roll around, and we’ll be joined by those who weren’t necessarily on the field, but were there to share their perspective of the Diamondbacks’ championship run.
Previous Games:
Game 1 with Jeff Munn
Game 2 with Jake Williams
Game 3 with Todd Greene
Game 4 with Michael Kay
Game 5 with Todd Walsh
For Game 6, the Arizona Diamondbacks finally broke through and dominated the Yankees 15-2. Not much happened after an explosive third inning for the Snakes, but it was very eventful in the hours after the final pitch had been thrown. Long-time ESPN reporter Pedro Gomez, who was a columnist at the time with the Arizona Republic, wrote a column about the D-backs’ Game 7 starter Curt Schilling that would not be well-received by some. Pedro passed away last February, and his long-time friend and ESPN reporter T.J. Quinn recalled that column and the reaction to it in “Remember Who You Are: What Pedro Gomez Showed Us About Baseball and Life.” He shares that story with us on the 20th anniversary of Game 6.
Profits from the book support the Pedro Gomez Foundation for the Gomez family to honor Pedro’s legacy in sports journalism.
