Goats of October

October 25, 1986 was a day Bill Buckner would rather forget. That was the night Mookie Wilson's grounder eluded him and prevented the Red Sox from sending Game 6 of the World Series into extra innings. Of course, the Red Sox eventually blew a 3-2 series lead and Buckner became reviled in New England for the next decade or so.
This postseason has seen its fair share of ugly performances as well - and not just by the umps.
In game 2 of the NLDS between St. Louis and the Dodgers, the Cards had two out in the ninth and a 2-1 lead. A lazy fly ball drifted toward leftfielder Matt Holliday and promptly landed in his bread basket before careening onto the field. The Cards went on to blow the game and head back to St. Louis down 2-0 instead of all tied up. It was a truly pathetic performance by the impending free agent Holliday.
Friday night, the Twins nursed a 3-1 lead heading into the bottom of the ninth. Closer Joe Nathan came on and let up a single to Mark Teixeira. One batter later, Alex Rodriguez tied the game with a bomb. The Yanks went on to win in extra innings. Again, the team with the opportunity to tie a series completely blew it. And tonight in Minnesota, Nathan is getting hit around again as the Twins sit just three outs from elimination.