The following is a list of games that have been given names that are widely used or recalled in reference to the game or as part of a Major League Baseball (MLB) team's lore. This list does not include games named only after being a World Series game unless they are referred to by a name besides their official yearly name. The list also includes games with names given to them based on associated promotional events, such as Disco Demolition Night.
Game 4 of the 1929 World Series: Famous for an Athletics rally from 8–0 that included a three-run inside-the-park home run, being the last inside-the-park home run in a World Series game until Game 1 of the 2015 World Series and helping to make the largest deficit overcome in postseason history.[4][5]
Promotional game where fans collectively made managerial decisions for the team using double-sided placards reading "yes" and "no" for voting purposes.[8][9]
Infamous promotion held by the Cleveland Indians selling beer for ten cents, culminating in a violent riot of fans that forced the chief umpire to forfeit the game to Texas.[10][11][12]
Game 3 of the 1977 National League Championship Series: Dubbed as such by Philadelphia due to the Dodgers winning the game when trailing going into the ninth inning.[13]
1978 American League East tie-breaker game: Named after light-hitter Bucky Dent's three-run home run to give the Yankees a 3–2 lead and ultimately win the game.[14][15][16]
Promotional game that gave discounts to those who brought a disco record, resulting in all the collected vinyls being blown up in the middle of the field, provoking a riot and causing significant damage to the field, thus forcing Chicago to forfeit the next game to Detroit.[17]
Game featuring a controversial umpire ruling stating that Royals batter George Brett had exceeded the amount of pine tar allowed on his bat, negating a two-run home run with an out that required the game to be restarted from the point of the home run.[18][19]
Game where Ryne Sandberg hit two home runs in the ninth and tenth innings to bring the Cubs victory despite holding deficits of 7–1, 9–3, and 11–9.[20][21]
Game 2 of the 2007 American League Division Series New York–Cleveland matchup, where a swarm of tiny insects circled the mound in the late innings, causing the game to stop momentarily.[28][29]
2008 American League Central tie-breaker game, known for being the lowest-scoring game in MLB tie-breaker history and for fans wearing all-black clothing to show support for the White Sox.[30][31]
A near-perfect game played by Detroit pitcher Armando Galarraga that was ruined one out short after first-base umpire Jim Joyce incorrectly ruled that Indians batter Jason Donald reached first base safely on a ground ball.[32][33]
Game 5 of the 2022 National League Championship Series, where Philadelphia player Bryce Harper hit a two-run home run to left field, giving the Phillies a one-run lead and causing a "delirious reaction" from the home fans.[40][41][42]
Game where Oakland Athletics fans protested the team's relocation to Las Vegas by getting as many fans to attend the game as possible in order to demonstrate that there was still a sizable market for Major League Baseball in Oakland.[43][44]
Notable for being the 2024 White Sox's 121st loss of the season, beating the record for the most losses by any team in a MLB season post-1900. The game was also notable for Detroit's win clinching their first playoff berth since 2014.[45][46][47][48]
Base-running error made by New York rookie Fred Merkle by failing to advance to second base on what should have been a game-winning hit, leading to a tied game with Chicago winning the replayed game that allowed them to take the 1908National League (NL) pennant.[52][53]
Home run hit by Yankees batter Babe Ruth in Game 3 of the 1932 World Series, preceded by him making a pointing gesture widely interpreted as him calling the direction he would send the ball.[56][57][58]
Home run hit by Chicago future Hall of FamerGabby Hartnett in darkness, due to the late hour of the ninth inning with no artificial light present, leading to the Cubs' victory and allowing them to reach the 1938 World Series.[59][60][61]
Play in the 7th game of the 1946 World Series where St. Louis right fielder Enos Slaughter allegedly ran through third base coach Mike González's stop sign and ran for home, while Boston shortstopJohnny Pesky continued to hold the ball instead of throwing to home, costing the Red Sox the deciding game of the World Series.[65][66]
Play made during Game 1 of the 1954 World Series where New York player Willie Mays caught Vic Wertz's deep fly ball, preventing a score and helping the New York Giants win the World Series.
Play during Game 5 of the 1969 World Series, where a pitched ball hit New York batter Cleon Jones on the foot. The Orioles claimed the ball hit the dirt and not Jones, but when inspected, a spot of shoe polish was found on the ball, resulting in Jones being awarded first base.[74][75]
Home run hit by Boston player Carlton Fisk in Game 6 of the 1975 World Series, during which Fisk gestured to try and wave the struck ball away from the left field line in hopes that it would not end up as a foul ball.[76][77]
Tenth-inning error in Game 6 of the 1986 World Series where Boston player Bill Buckner failed to catch a ground ball in between his legs, culminating in the Red Sox's loss of the game and eventually the World Series and leading to several death threats, derisive comments, and pop culture references to Buckner.[84][85][86]
Controversial play during Game 6 of the 2003 National League Championship Series, where a Marlins-hit ball that was attempted to be caught by Cubs player Moisés Alou was inadvertently deflected away by Cubs fan Steve Bartman, after which the Marlins scored eight runs and won. Bartman was subsequently doxed and harassed by enraged Cubs fans.[100][101][102]
Play made by Cincinnati player Nick Castellanos made famous for occurring in the middle of an on-air apology from play-by-play announcerThom Brennaman after he said an anti-gay slur on a hot mic during the pre-game, resulting in Brennaman interrupting his apology to call the play as a drive into deep left field by Castellanos which was a home run, to make it a 4–0 ballgame, before resuming the apology. Subsequently, many sports fans and publications began to document home runs made by Castellanos at similarly inopportune or awkward times.[107][108][109]
^Macht, Norman (2008-09-23). "Scoring the Merkle Play"(PDF). The Inside Game. 8 (4). Society for American Baseball Research: 6. Archived from the original(PDF) on 2016-08-12.
^Fernandez, Gabriel (October 2, 2020). "Lou Gehrig confirmed Babe Ruth's famous 'called shot' in the 1932 World Series in recently found audio clip". CBS Sports. Retrieved February 17, 2022. Everybody agreed that the high point of the whole works was Babe's homer in the fifth inning of the third game out in Chicago. So what does he do? He stands up there and tells the world that he's going to sock that next one. And not only that, but he tells the world right where he's going to sock it, into the center-field stands. A few seconds later, the ball was just where he pointed, in the center-field stands. He called his shot and then made it. I ask you: What can you do with a guy like that?
^Olson, Lisa (October 15, 2003). "Fan latest goat in historic hex". New York Daily News. p. 65.
^Mariotti, Jay (April 2, 2008). "Damage can't be undone – Alou's remorse over Bartman incident a case of too little, too late". Chicago Sun-Times. p. 78.