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Mark Lemke had no idea what to expect as Game 3 of the
1991 World Series approached. But it wasn't because of
the dramaor a lack of preparation or eventhe seeming
randomne s of the MLB postseason.It was much simpler:
Lemke didn't know whether he'd even play.Despite having
played second base for the Braves for most of the stretch
run of their worst-to-first season, he found himself out
of the lineup in Game 1. It was a little odd, he thought,
but no big deal he'd be ready for Game 2. And, yes, he
played in Game 2, but it was almost like he didn't."I was
0-fer in Game 2," he told Sporting News. "So now we've
got two games in the series, I
https://www.redsoxgearfan.com/boston-red-sox-
jersey/mitch-moreland-jersey haven't even gotten a hit. I
don't think I've been on base."So when he arrived at
Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium for Game 3, there was
definitely a mystery around whether he'd be in Bobby
Cox's starting nine as the Braves, down 0-2 in the series
to the Twins, looked to find any spark to rejuvenate
their team.And this is where the story becomes both
interesting and a little humorous. Not only did Lemke not
know https://www.redsoxgearfan.com/boston-red-sox-
jersey/johnny-pesky-jersey what to expect in Game 3, but
he also had no idea what was about to happen. Those might
sound like the same feelings, but they turned out to be
quite different and what unfoldedmade Lemke perhaps the
greatest example of the notion that October baseball is
predictably, but joyously,unpredictable.MORE: From Game 3
through the end of the series, Lemke hit .417 with 10
hits, three triples and four RBIs. His walk-off hit in
the 12th inning of Game 3 gave the Braves their first
World Series win, and he scored the winning run in
Atlanta's walk-off win in Game 4.By the time the series
was over, he led both teams in average, on-base
percentage (.462) and OPS (1.170), and he certainly
would've been series MVP had the Braves won. Contrast
that with his regular-season 1991 slash line of
.234/.305/.312.Forget that Lemke didn't see it coming
nobody saw it coming.For the entire season, and then
pretty much for the rest of his career, the 5-10 Lemke
was the definition of a light-hitting second baseman. But
not in the 1991 World Series. There was no rhyme or
reason, other than this: Anything can happen in
October.Lemke didn't doanything differently entering Game
3. He didn't make any adjustments or take a different
approach. He played his normal game and everything
clicked https://www.redsoxgearfan.com/boston-red-sox-
jersey/nomar-garciaparra-jersey , which sometimes happens
to unheralded players in October and is never easy to
explain or predict.That walk-off hit in Game 3 was
Lemke's second of the game, but it was the one that
really caused him to find that rare postseason-hero
gear."That was probably the moment where I said, 'Wow,
not only did you get a hit, you won a World Series game.
And not only a World Series game, a first World Series
win for the Atlanta Braves,'" Lemke said. "Then it all
sunk in."Lemke, a Utica, N.Y., native, remembers seeing
the light-hitting Brian Doyle, a Lemke forerunner of
sorts, go off in the 1978 World Series and hit .438 for
the champion Yankees. Lemke said one reason why he, Doyle
and others are able to come from nowhere to mash in the
World Series is because they tend to hover below radar as
opposing teams make plans to handle the stars of the
lineup."For me, it wasn't anything more other than,
'They're probably going to come after you, and you don't
have anything to lose,'" he said. "'You've got to just
take advantage of it. You might get some good pitches to
hit.'"Lemke took advantage in 1991, much to the chagrin
of Twins manager Tom Kelly."He was a real pain," Kelly
told SN, still sounding frustrated 30 years later. "And I
don't mean that derogatory. I mean that, God, he played
good."MORE: While Lemke didn't expect to break out on
baseball's biggest stage, and while Kelly and Twins
didn't plan on him being a thorn in their collective
side, one Braves player remembers telling Lemke that the
World Series presents a tremendous opportunity."Before
the thing got going, he had an offensive year that wasn't
one https://www.redsoxgearfan.com/boston-red-sox-
jersey/christian-vazquez-jersey of his favorites. He
talked about how bad he was and (how) he didn't do
anything here in the playoffs against Pittsburgh," Terry
Pendleton, who joined the Braves for the 1991 season
after playing on two pennant winners in St. Louis, told
SN.So Pendleton, who was brought to Atlanta in part to be
a mentor to the Braves' young core, offered Lemke some
sage postseason wisdom."I said, 'Dawg, listen: You've got
a chance to prove to the world how good you can be.
Nobody even cares what you did the last playoff series,
nobody even cares what you did during the season. The
only thing that matters is these seven games,'" he said.
"So I said, 'Just go out and relax and do what you can
do, man. These seven games, people will remember.' And he
goes on to have that type of series."Succe s often breeds
more succe s, but it can also breed a
https://www.redsoxgearfan.com certain outlook that can
fuel motivation especially in the World Series."Once you
start getting some confidence and get some hits, now you
say to yourself, 'Not only do I want to play in these
games, I want to make sure I'm staying in the game,'"
Lemke said. "And you've got to produce for that."Lemke's
performance in October 1991 guaranteed him a place in
baseball lore as one of those How did that even happen?
postseason stories that get retold nearly every
autumn.With plenty of postseason left to be played in
2021, and with Game 3 between the Astros and Braves set
for Friday in the same town where Lemke seized his
moment, it makes one wonder whose name could be added
next.
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John Short, Jr
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