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| CATEGORIES ABOUT 2003 NATIONAL LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES | |
| national league championship series | |
| 2003 in baseball | |
| chicago cubs | |
| florida marlins | |
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The 2003 National League Championship Series was a Major League Baseball playoff series played from October 7 to October 15 to determine the champion of the National League , between the Central Division champion Chicago Cubs and the wild-card qualifying Florida Marlins . The Cubs, by virtue of being a division winner, had the home field advantage. The two teams were victorious in the NL Division Series (NLDS), with the Cubs defeating the Eastern Division champion Atlanta Braves 3 games to 2, and the Marlins defeating the Western Division champion San Francisco Giants 3 games to 1. The series is most remembered for events that unfolded in the top of the eighth inning of Game 6. Coming into the game, the Cubs led the series three games to two with the final two games at Wrigley Field in Chicago . The Cubs also had their best two pitchers, Mark Prior and Kerry Wood , slated to start the final two games. Leading 3-0 and just five outs away from their first World Series since 1945 , Steve Bartman , a fan, reached for a foul ball hit by Luis Castillo off of Prior, preventing Cub outfielder Moises Alou from catching it. Castillo proceeded to walk and Prior and the Cubs never recovered from the incident. Aided by Castillo's walk and later an error by Cubs shortstop Alex S. Gonzalez on a potential double-play grounder, the Marlins went on to score eight runs in the inning and won the game 8-3. The Marlins went on to win Game 7 and then to defeat the New York Yankees in the World Series . Chicago manager Dusty Baker , who won the NL pennant in 2002 with the San Francisco Giants, fell short in his bid to become the first manager ever to take different teams to the World Series in consecutive years. Managers: Dusty Baker (Chicago), Jack McKeon (Florida) Umpires: Jerry Crawford (Games 1, 3-7), Chuck Meriwether , Fieldin Culbreth , Larry Vanover (Game 2), Mike Everitt , Larry Poncino , Mike Reilly Series MVP: Iván Rodríguez (Florida) Television: Fox ( Tom Brennaman , Steve Lyons and Al Leiter announcing) GAME 1 , Chicago, Illinois The Marlins took Game One of the series, coming back from an early 4-0 deficit. They scored 5 runs in the third on 3 home runs from Juan Encarnacion, rookie Miguel Cabrera, and Ivan "Pudge" Rodríguez. In the 6th inning, down 6-4, the Cubs tied the game on an Alex S. Gonzalez home run off Josh Beckett. The game remained tied until the 9th where the Marlins took a 2 run lead. With 2 outs and one on in the bottom of the 9th, Sammy Sosa hit his first postseason home run off of Ugueth Urbina to tie the game and send the game into extra innings. In the top of the 11th, pinch-hitter Mike Lowell hit a solo home run off Mark Guthrie that ultimately proved to be the game winner.
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