20-year Marliniversary: Wood caps season with walk-off hit as Fish top Phillies

[Mike Ferguson]

A journeyman for his baseball career, Jason Wood had gone seven years in between Major League Baseball appearances when he was called up by the Florida Marlins late in the 2006 season. On this day 20 years ago, he had perhaps his most memorable moment with the club.

In the season finale against the Philadelphia Phillies, Wood ended a marathon game with the walk-off hit. His 11th-inning single lifted Florida to a 3-2 win.

Neither team had scored since the seventh inning as the Oct. 1, 2006 contest at Dolphins Stadium went to the 11th. After the Marlins had stranded a runner in each of the previous four innings, Matt Herges worked a second straight scoreless inning out of the Florida bullpen to give his team a chance to walk it off.

Fabio Castro had worked a scoreless 10th for Philadelphia, but the 11th proved to be much more arduous. Chris Aguila opened the Florida 11th with a single. Castro then hit Alfredo Amézaga before walking catcher Matt Treanor on five pitches. With the bases loaded and nobody out, Castro was able to get Paul Hoover to ground into a fielder’s choice as the lead runner was gunned down at home.

Wood had entered the game for Florida in the sixth inning, replacing Miguel Cabrera. 0-for-3 to that point, Wood worked the count to 2-2 before rolling one into the hole between shortstop and third base. Philadelphia’s Danny Sandoval was able to get a glove on the ball but had no play. Amézaga scored to give the Marlins the walk-off victory.

It was Amézaga’s second run of the game. He scored on a Treanor single in the second to get the scoring started. After Sandoval’s RBI single tied the game in the fourth, Florida went back in front on a solo home run by Dan Uggla in the sixth. Ryan Howard tied the game with an RBI single a half-inning later. Uggla, Aguila and Wes Helms each finished with two hits for the Marlins.

Then 36 years old, Wood would play in just 153 games in parts of five seasons in the big leagues. Despite being well into his 30s when he made his debut for the Fish, Wood was productive in limited action in 2006, going 6-for-13. His final hit from that season sent the Marlins out on a high note on this day two decades ago.

View full article