David Ortiz's 2004 ALCS Game 4 walk-off home run squares off against Tim Thomas' stick save on Steve Downie in the second round of Boston's Greatest Sports Moment tournament.
Red Sox fans wanted to win Game 4 of the 2004 ALCS to avoid a sweep and the inevitable trash-talking that would have come from Yankees fans. But David Ortiz gave the Boston supporters something more. His walk-off home run in the bottom of the 12th inning gave them hope — even if it was just the slightest flicker. That game, that home run, teammates later said, was the catalyst for the greatest comeback in baseball — perhaps in all of sports — history. The storybook ending started with a two-run eighth inning, but wasn't cemented until Ortiz's heroics. Manny Ramirez led off the inning with a single and Ortiz, the next batter, sent Paul Quantrill's pitch over the right-field fence to give the Sox a 6-4 win and the chance to play another day.
Tim Thomas transformed into a Boston legend during the 2011 NHL playoffs by leading the Bruins to their first Stanley Cup championship in 39 years. Thomas won the Conn Smythe Trophy for playoff MVP and made countless tremendous saves, but few were more incredible -– or more important — than the one on Tampa Bay's Steve Downie in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference finals. With Boston holding a 2-1 lead early in the third period and the series tied 2-2, Downie controlled a rebound off the end boards and shot on a wide-open net. Thomas would not be beaten, however, as he dove to his right across the crease, just barely tipping away the puck with the end of his stick. "The Save" enabled the B's to hold on to win Game 5 and eventually win the series in seven games.
Which is a greater Boston sports moment?
« 1. Pats win SB XXXVI vs. 8. Orr's No. 4 retired | 3. Tuck rule play vs. 6. Impossible Dream »
Share your thoughts about Boston's Greatest Sports Moment on Twitter at @NESN. Include #BGSM in your tweet.
