FILE - In a Oct. 21, 1987 file photo, Minnesota Twins Starting pitcher Frank Viola throws during the first inning at night against the St. Louis Cardinals in game four of the 1987 World Series, St. Louis, Mo. The New York Mets said Tuesday, March 25, 2014 that Viola will undergo heart surgery next week in New York. Viola was hired by the Mets in January as pitching coach of Triple-A Las Vegas of the Pacific Coast League. (AP Photo/Jim Mone, File)
The 1987 World Series was notable in several regards…..as It featured the first World Series games played in an indoor stadium at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome…..and, to date, the last World Series game to start earlier than prime time in the eastern United States….when Game 6 would start at 4:00 p.m. ET/3:00 p.m. CT….and it was the first World Series in which all games were won by the home team…..whereas four previous series had the home team winning the first six games….including the 1965 World Series….when the Twins dropped Game 7 to the Dodgers.
The bottom half of the ninth inning was never played in any game of this Series….and this was the first and only time this has ever happened. In 1987, the Twins set the record for the worst (full 162 game) regular season win-loss record of any World Series championship team (85–77, .525). This record stood until it was broken when the Cardinals won the 2006 Series after going 83–78 (.516)…..however, the latter was due to the incorporation of a third division in each league….which did not exist in 1987.
Besides setting a record for the worst ever regular season winning percentage for a World Series winner and hosting the first ever World Series game indoors….the Twins were the first team to ever enter the World Series having been outscored in the regular season. The Twins, as a team, were pretty much outnumbered in virtually every major statistical category in 1987….as ABC play-by-play commentator Al Michaels put it in the pregame show for Game 1 “They were out everything!”…..as seen in this video herewith.
