When I was 13 my Dad got World Series tickets for the 7th game of the 1964 Series with St.Louis vs. New York Yankees.I was allowed to leave school early to attend. Our Cardinals won and I can still remember me and my brother sitting in the bleachers. Some of the players were Bob Gibson, Lou Brock, Mickey Mantle, and Ken Boyer.
Best game?I don’t know if it was the best,but certainly most memorable. One game (may have been a doubleheader) in Yankee Stadium,Sept 61 when M&M were chasing 60,and the stadium was packed for the Sat/Sun game.
Clete Boyer hit a ball to the 402 mark,that was under dispute.Indians said the ball hit the low wall and bounced back into field of play,Yankees it cleared the low fence and bounced back.Umpire made circling motion with his right arm in the air.Yankees and Boyer claimed the circling motion was a homer sign (round the bases),which Boyer did at less than a full speed trot and was tagged out? around 2nd base.
Casey comes out,and the whole crowd of 56k? starts yelling,booing,throwing containers,for what the Daily News reported in the next day’s paper,17 minutes.
You couldn’t talk to your buddy in the seat beside you,that’s how loud the din was.Fortunately we were upper deck 1st base side so the missiles mostly missed us.
About halfway thru the din (with the game being held up all this time) Jimmy Piersall jumps into the left field seats to discuss the situation with eyewitnesses,which only fired up the crowd for more.(Piersall at the time was generally regarded by fans as a nutcase).
Later that day 2 teens/20 somethings came running out on the field trying to attack Piersall.He kicked one of them square in the ass,and they both ran away towards right field where Willie Kirkland,their program listed 6’4" 225 lb.right fielder,knocked one of them down,and started pummeling him,while sitting on him,with Piersall still in pursuit of the other one.
Those drunks had to be so relieved when the security cops finally secured the scene.
After 40 some years I still have a mental picture of that scene,and day.
Sidelight,Maris hit no.56 or 57 that day,Mick was still stuck on his lower number.
Fall 1989. A’s vs. Yankees in Oakland. NY was not particularly good that year but they are the Yankees so the place was packed. Afternoon game on a weekday. Is there anything better than ditching school to catch a game on a glorious fall afternoon in the Bay Area?
Anyways, Stewart was pitching for us, I don’t remember who was on the mound for the Evil Ones. Both pitchers dominate and the games goes into the 10th tied at 1-1. Bottom of the inning, Rickey Henderson either walks or singles and promptly steals second. Rickey takes off for third and the batter hits a grounder to 2nd. 2nd baseman assumes that Rickey will hold up at third and makes the throw to 1st for the sure out. Rickey doesn’t stop and goes headfirst into home just ahead of the throw to win the game.
They won the World Series that year.
Opening Day of the 1989 baseball season, Boston vs. Baltimore at Memorial Stadium. Rocket Man started for the Red Sox, of course, going up against Dave Schmidt in really nice weather. Boston came out on the wrong end of the final score of 5-4, as far as I was concerned, but the game was terrific.
The prior season, of course, saw the Orioles get off to a resounding 0-21 start and finish with 107 losses, so they were under a bit of a cloud coming into the game. Fortunately the 1989 team had a lot of new and inexperienced players on it - 13 rookies, 22 players with less than two years in the majors - who didn’t know they were supposed to roll over and play dead and instead let it rip from the first day of the season. Outfielder Steve Finley set the tone, for me, when he made a running catch on a drive that took him into the center-field wall; he separated his shoulder on the play but held onto the ball.
Cal Ripken nailed Clemens for a three-run homer in the sixth, and Craig Worthington singled in the winner in the 11th. Dwight Evans hit a long drive down the right-field line with men on that drifted foul. President Bush Sr. threw out the first ball, Joan Jett sang the national anthem, and the crowd gave Wade Boggs a resounding ‘‘Mar-go, Mar-go’’ chant every time he batted, after news broke during the offseason of his affair with Margo Adams. All in all, a pretty good day.
The 1989 Orioles finished more than 30 games better than the 1988 team and took the contest for the American League East down to the next-to-last day of the season, when they lost a one-run game to Toronto for the second day in a row. That 1988-1990 Red Sox club wasn’t bad, but couldn’t get past Oakland in the playoffs.
Game 4 of the 1984 World Series. Tigers beat San Diego, with current manager/then shortstop Alan Trammell hitting two home runs. It wasn’t the clinching game, but still, it was a World Series game at the corner of Michigan and Trumbull.
Michigan vs. Penn State football, 2002. In the first overtime game ever at Michigan Stadium, Chris Perry scores the game winning TD for the Wolverines. Also got to see the legendary JoePa in person.
Michigan vs. Ohio State football, 2003. The 100th game in the history of the Michigan-Ohio State series was a classic. With the Big Ten championship on the line, Michigan knocked off the defending national champs and earned the trip to the Rose Bowl.
Michigan vs. Notre Dame football, also 2003. Wolverines 38-Golden Domers Zero, Nothing, Zilch, Nada, Nil!!! After all the lucky breaks that Notre Dame got in past games against Michigan, it was wonderful to be in the stands to see Michigan totally dominate them.
Central Michigan vs. Michigan State football, 1991. I attended CMU for my undergrad degree and was living in East Lansing at the time of this game. All week long prior to the game, the MSU people were acting like all the Spartans had to do was show up and CMU would roll over and take a beating. Final score, Central Michigan 20-Overconfident Sparties 3!!!
Michigan vs. Louisiana Tech women’s basketball, November 17, 2000. Michigan comes back in the last minute to defeat the #8 ranked Techsters.
Michigan vs. Penn State women’s basketball, January 11, 2001: Michigan defeats the #13 Nittany Lions at Crisler Arena.
The 2002 Super 12 (rugby union) final between the Canterbury Crusaders and the ACT Brumbies. Tried to get some tickets, but they sold out within 2 hours. Eventually got some non-scalped tickets due to some unused season ticket - right on half way too.
Sat down for 90 minutes in freezing sleet, and watched the home team complete their unbeaten season. Great game to boot.
I was in Montréal for Saku Koivu’s first game back from treatment. Good game, but they lost, IIRC.
Hey, I was at that game, too! COLD AS HELL! The fat warm guys next to me left at halftime, like a BUNCH of people. I was sitting a few rows in from of the owner’s box.
Another cricket one: I was there for a day of the fabled Centenary Test. Both sides were dismissed for not much by early on the second day and it looked like the celebration of 100 years of England/Australia games at this level would be a fizzer. But after much great play and players ignoring doctor’s orders the match went the full five days and finished in exactly the same result as the match 100 years before.
Freakish.
I was at the baseball game this year when the Cubs clinched the division win. It was just a feel good day for the entire day (doubleheader - they clinched on the second game) and I even cried a little with joy during the celebration.
Game 5, 2001 World Series, Yanks vs. Diamondbacks - yep, the 2nd game in a row where the Yankees got a homerun off Kim in the bottom of the 9th, 2 outs (thank you, Scott Brosius) to tie the game and go on to win it. Bonus Round: Mr. Rockhands himself, I dropped a BP homer hit by Paulie O’Neill into the decks of right field…
My friend who has the season tickets was there for last year’s ALCS Game 7 when Pedro got shelled and Aaron “I can play basketball” Boone had his one moment of greatness - I would’ve gone, but that was the game where his wife said “oh, I’d like to go to a game maybe - it could be fun!” Not that I am bitter or anything.
1998, Cubs and Astros, the Kerry Wood 20 strikeout game. It was a crappy day (cool and drizzly), but my friend and I had absolutely unbelievable seats. To feel the excitement in the stadium build as Kerry approached the record, well, it was pretty incredible.
Another would be the Wisconsin-Purdue football game in either 98 or 99 where Drew Brees went 55 for 83 passing, but Wisconsin still won. It was a night game, the atmosphere was electric, and the game was back and forth for 60 minutes. And, the good guys won.
hajario
June 8, 1982
I had tickets to the Dodger game that night and about half of the fans – myself included – were watching the game on portable TV’s. And TV’s weren’t that portable back then. I was an absolutely obsessed basketball/Lakers, but I was also a Dodgers fan and when you’re a high school kid free tickets aren’t something you pass up. Watching the Lakers win it was the second most spectacular moment of the night.
Because I also caught a foul ball.
I was just staring into the outfield, soaking up the Lakers victory and the next thing I know everyone’s diving out of the way of an incoming ballistic. I just kinda stuck out my hands and there it was. Never caught one before or since, really blew some easy ones, TBH. The ball is probably still stuck in that palm tree adjacent to the Temple City High baseball field, lost it while taking batting practice.
October 1, 1961. Red Sox vs. Yankees, Yankee Stadium. Tight pitchers battle, finally won 1-0 by New York.
Oh, yeah. Fellow name Maris hit a home run. His 61st that year.
I remember that wild pitch that Greg Olson threw against the Jays like it was yesterday…“Why Not?”
Two 2003 Red Sox games spring to mind …
Sox vs. Royals (Fenway Park, Boston) – Not sure of the date of this one, but I’d brought a German coworker to her first pro ballgame. First baseball game period, actually … I spent the 30-minute train ride in explaining the whole game to her. (Every tried doing that, it’s tougher than it sounds!! After 10 minutes, she says “Okay, so it’s good to be the team in the field, because that’s when you score points.” “ummmm, no. lemme start over.”)
Anyway, Sox were down by 3 runs in the bottom of the 6th. Bases loaded, 2 outs … no runs scored. Same thing in the bottom of the 7th inning. Bottom of the 8th inning, Sox score 3 to tie it up. Top of the 9th, the Royals score 2 more … and the Sox score 3 in the bottom of the 9th to win it. Wasn’t a playoff game or anything, but BY FAR the most exciting game I’ve ever seen personally.
Favorite game – Red Sox vs. White Sox, 1986. Fenway Park, immediately behind the visitors’ dugout. MY first pro baseball game. My dad got us the tix from my cousin, I believe, and I absolutely ate the experience right up. Literally. My dad recalls I ate one of everything in the park … hot dogs, popcorn, candy, soda, you name it. And HIS high point of the game? Me looking up at the upper decks and saying “Dad, why couldn’t we get seats up there?? The view must be SO much better from up there!!”
Gimme a break, I was 9 … now I want seats behind home plate, TYVM.
Bloody Buffalo Bills. I had my heart broken at that game. 
The best game I was ever at was on Memorial Day, 1999.
Spurs hosting the Blazers.
Game 6, Western Conference Finals (I think.)
Blazers were ahead the entire game. Then, in the fourth, the Spurs started pouring it on. Finally, with only a few seconds left…
“Sean Elliot. He fires an off-balance three… BANG!”
Ah, what a great one.
Actually, it was Leonard Marshall of the Giants who sent Joe into “semi-retirement” with a helmut driven into Joe’s back, in the 4th quarter of the 1990 NFC championship game. The 49ers were leading the Giants 13-9. For this, I will always hate Leonard Marshall.
This leads to the greatest game I ever saw. After Joe left the Niners and went to the Kansas City Chiefs, we went to the 9/11/94 game of the 49ers at the Chiefs.
This was the only time in my life I’ve ever rooted against my beloved Niners. In the end, Joe and the Chiefs beat the 49ers 24-17.
Best game ever. I was hoarse for 3 days. Good times.
Damn, you stole my game. I was there, too. Played hooky from work with some friends and caught the Cubs game. Picked a good day to do it.
I still have the ticket stub. I’m sure it’s worth thousands by now.
College football: Nov 19, 1982. Cal vs Stanford. You’ve all seen the clip…game ends on a kickoff return with 5 laterals, through the Stanford band. And I was there. What is never mentioned, though, is that (a) it is The Rivalry Game in N. California, with all that entails (ie, it could’ve been Ohio State - Michigan) and (b) up to that point it had been one of the top 5 games ever played in the 85 year history of the game. Stanford had gone ahead with 4 seconds left, as John Elway leads a length-of-field drive (at one point converting a 4th-and-17) and Stanford kicked a (seemingly game-winning) field goal.
Honorable mention: Cal vs Oregon, Oct 1993. 3rd-best comeback in NCAA history, as the Bears come back from 30 points down.
Baseball: Late Sept 1997. Giants/Dodgers, at the 'Stick. Sellout crowd (for a weekday game), with the division lead on the line going into the final two weeks of the season. Giants tie it up late on a HR (either Bonds or JT Snow – both homered in the game, and I can’t remember which) and it was probably the noisiest I have ever heard a sports crowd in my life. The Dodgers load the bases with nobody out in the top of the 10th, but Rod Beck gets Eddie Murray to hit into a 1-2-3 DP. Then Giants backup catcher Brian Johnson leads off the 10th with a walkoff HR. Sheer madness.