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- The top 5 reasons Bill Buckner shouldn't be blamed for the Red Sox' loss to the Mets in Game 6 of the 1986 World Series. Spoiler text Best of the Rest: * missed opportunities (14 LOB) * Oil Can Boyd's premature celebration * Shea Stadium scoreboard (flashed 10th inning message "Congratulations Boston Red Sox 1986 World Series Champions") Top Five: 5. Roger Clemens' exit: There was confusion between Clemens and McNamera to why he left game in the 8th inning. 4. Calvin Schiraldi: The Red Sox reliever faltered in Games 6 and 7. 3. Rich Gedman and Bob Stanley: Their failure to communicate resulted in the wild pitch. 2. Mookie Wilson's speed (he may have beaten Buckner to the bag anyway). 1. John McNamara: The Red Sox manager made several questionable decisions in Games 6 and 7.
- The top 5 reasons Steve Bartman shouldn't be blamed for the Chicago Cubs' meltdown during the 2003 National League Championship Series. Spoiler text Best of the Rest: * The Cubs were cursed. * Bartman did nothing wrong: All the fans around him reached for the ball too; it's a natural fan reaction, especially for a ball that would be a souvenir from a presumed historic pennant-clinching game. Top Five: 5. Moises Alou: His reaction incited the fans against Bartman. Plus, his unsanitary pregame rituals he later admitted to might have deterred fans from getting in his way. 4. Dusty Baker: He criticized Bartman in a postgame press conference, but Baker failed to go to the mound to settle his team down, until it was too late. 3. Alex Gonzalez's error: The Gold Glove-winning shortstop botched a double play ball that would have ended the inning. Interlude: The Cubs probability of winning was only slightly decreased after the foul ball; it plummeted later in the inning. 2. Game 7: The Cubs had another chance, with ace Kerry Wood on the mound. 1. The Marlins were better: The slugging Marlins also slayed the Giants and Yankees that year; their firepower and sense of destiny were not to be denied.
- Spoiler text Best of the Rest: * B.C.S. = B-U-Z-Z : the controversy and debate builds interest in college football * The Coaches: They like the current bowl system that gives multiple teams and coaches the chance to end their season with a win, especially if their contract is being decided in the offseason. Top Five: 5. The U.S. Supreme Court: Its 1984 ruling gave colleges the right to negotiate TV contracts; taking away the NCAA's power to impose its own system. 4. It's Better Than Before: Before the BCS, undefeated #1 and #2 teams couldn't meet in a season-ending game if their conference's bowl commitments got in the way. 3. A More Suspenseful Regular Season: College football is the only major sport in which every game truly counts. 2. The Bowl System: tradition and profits are too strong for change 1. University Presidents: They have the power to change the system, but they don't want to.
