One night after the only game-ending obstruction call in the history of the World Series, the St. Louis Cardinals and Boston Red Sox delivered another unlikely Fall Classic first: A game-ending pickoff. The Red Sox were clinging to a 4-2 lead with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning of Game 4 when Cardinals pinch-runner Kolten Wong was picked off by closer Koji Uehara to end the game.
"I knew I was dead once I went to plant and push off and I felt nothing go," an emotional Wong told reporters after the Red Sox got even in the World Series 2-2, via Jerry Crasnick of ESPN. "My foot slipped out and I was done.''
Cardinals manager Mike Matheny called on Wong to pinch-run for Allen Craig after his one-out single. After Uehara induced a pop fly from Matt Carpenter, the Cardinals were down to their final out. That out belonged to Carlos Beltran, one of the most dangerous postseason hitters in history. With the count 1-1, Uehara wheeled toward first base and fired a pickoff throw to Mike Napoli. Wong was tagged out as a he was diving back to the bag. Beltran, representing the tying run, was left standing in the batter's box as the Red Sox celebrated.
To sum up, the 2013 World Series has produced a game-ending obstruction call and a game-ending pickoff play. What next?
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