PHOENIX — The 1st of November, 2023 is a night that will live on forever in the memories of all Rangers fans. Fittingly, the ever-unique franchise waited until the calendar turned away from October to claim the ultimate victory.
With their 5-0 win in Game 5, the Rangers became the Boys of November and won their first ever World Series in franchise history. It was the night that the demons of 2011 were cast out and an entire fanbase felt like it could breathe the crisp autumn air again.
As the years go on and the magic of this night is recaptured, inevitably, someone in a bar is going to ask you what you remember from the 2 hour, 54 minute game that altered the course of the franchise forever. Well, here’s a quick guide to help you remember all the little details for when you get quizzed about the greatest night in Texas Rangers history:
Attendance – 48,511 at Chase Field in Phoenix, AZ.
Home Plate Umpire – Brian Knight. 49-year-old Montana native Knight began umpiring in the Major Leagues in an infamous year in Rangers’ history – 2011. The 2023 World Series was his first World Series and he will always be synonymous with Texas’ first title as the man that called the strike three pitch that gave the Rangers their Game 5 victory.
First Pitch – 7:06 p.m. CST. Diamondbacks: 94 mph Fastball; Rangers: 96 mph Fastball. Zac Gallen’s impressive trek that saw him throw 5.2 perfect innings began with a ball to Marcus Semien. Nathan Eovaldi began his night with a pitch out of the zone to Corbin Carroll.
First Out – Rangers: Marcus Semien flied out to Alek Thomas; D-Backs: Ketel Marte on a grounder to Semien. Semien, who would eventually put the final nail in the Arizona coffin, started off the game by flying out to the person whose error was pivotal in giving the Rangers insurance runs in the 9th, Alek Thomas. Marte, who would record the final out of the season, pushed Corbin Carroll to 3rd base with a grounder to Semien.
First Strikeout – Rangers: Evan Carter on a curveball in the dirt in the 1st inning; D-Backs: Christian Walker on a 96 mph Fastball. Rangers’ rookie Evan Carter, who eventually smacked a critical 7th inning double, would take a Golden Sombrero in the game, striking out four times like he did in the 1st, on a curveball. Walker, who was a slumping player that Arizona needed to step up offensively, was the first strikeout victim of Eovaldi – in the bottom of the 3rd.
First Baserunner – Diamondbacks: Corbin Carroll in the 1st on a 4-pitch walk; Rangers: Nathaniel Lowe in the 5th on a 5-pitch walk. It was an inauspicious start to Eovaldi’s night when he put the leadoff hitter on with the first of five uncharacteristic walks. Meanwhile, Lowe broke up the perfect game bid with a hard-fought walk that didn’t lead to a run, but showed cracks in Gallen’s armor.
First Hit – Diamondbacks: Lourdes Gurriel, Jr’s single in the 2nd; Rangers – Corey Seager’s opposite field single in the top of the 7th. Even though Eovaldi walked two in the 1st, Arizona didn’t register their first hit until Gurriel led off the 2nd with a sharp grounder up the middle. Seager, who had not had a single the entire World Series, broke up Gallen’s no-no bid with a squibber that leaked down the line past third base with Arizona shading him to pull.
First Steal – Diamondbacks: Corbin Carroll in the first inning. The name of the game for Arizona throughout the playoffs was small ball and pressure-inducing baserunning, which was put on display in the first inning. The Rangers didn’t attempt a stolen base on the night.
First Run – Rangers: Mitch Garver’s 7th inning RBI-single, scoring Seager. Garver’s only hit in the World Series until Game 5 was a solo home run in Game 2. His second hit opened the floodgates for the Rangers’ offense. Miraculously, the historically pitching-deprived Texas staff held Arizona scoreless for the game despite nine at-bats with runners in scoring position.
Last Run – Rangers: Marcus Semien’s 9th inning two-run home run. Semien’s entire postseason could have been considered a complete bust until Game 3 of the World Series. Until then, his slash line was .194/.265/.226 with no homers and two RBI. In Games 3, 4, and 5, with Texas needing him the most, a switch flipped for the MVP candidate second baseman and over the next 14 at-bats, he slashed .357/.357/.929, with two homers and eight RBI, including the last runs of the Series.
First Reliever – D-Backs: Kevin Ginkel, 7th; Rangers: Aroldis Chapman, 7th. The way Gallen was pitching, it didn’t look like he was going to need any relief at all. But after three quick hits plated a run after his no-hit bid ended, Arizona manager Torey Lovullo made the move to righty Ginkel for his 2nd World Series appearance. Ginkel went 1 ⅔ innings, allowing one hit while walking two. Bruce Bochy entrusted a one-run lead to Chapman, who had been unreliable at best throughout his tenure as a Ranger. Chapman only made it ⅔ innings before being lifted for the man who would finish the game, Josh Sborz.
Last Pitch – 85-MPH Curveball, Strike 3 looking from Josh Sborz to Ketel Marte. The last legendary caught looking strikeout on a breaking ball in team history was from Neftali Feliz to Alex Rodriguez in Game 6 of the 2010 ALCS, sending the Rangers to their first World Series appearance in 2010. This breaking ball, a curve high in the zone, sealed the Rangers’ first championship.
Ending Time – 10:00 p.m. CST
The Pitching Line – W: Nathan Eovaldi (5-0), L: Zac Gallen (2-3), Sv: Josh Sborz (1). Both Eovaldi and Sborz made some history – Eovaldi became the first pitcher to win five games as a starter in a single postseason, while Josh Sborz recorded his first postseason save by pitching 2 ⅓ innings of one-hit, four-strikeout baseball. It is the longest outing of Sborz’s big league career to date.