REGIONAL 51:  In round 1 of the latest regional of my endless single elimination tournament, the '87 Red Sox win behind Clemens and Sam Horn; Bob Gibson and the '66 Cards shut down the '95 Angels; the '24 Reds grind out 19 hits and no homers and Carl Mays doesn't bean any of the '50 Pirates to record the win; and in the highest profile matchup, the 103-win 2002 Yanks beat John Smoltz and the World Champion '92 Braves 8-4, with Giambi contributing a 3-run double to break the game open.

Semifinal game 1 turns out to be a classic Yankee-Red Sox battle. The Yanks start Roger Clemens to taunt Boston, as he had also started the round 1 game for the Red Sox. However, Clemens allows HRs to Sam Horn and Dwight Evans, but Boston starter Bruce Hurst can't seem to keep the Yankees off the basepaths, eventually allowing 15 hits. With the Sox loading the bases and threatening to add insurance runs in the 8th, Mariano Rivera comes in, just allowing a sac fly to Ellis Burks. The Yanks respond with 2 more runs in the bottom of the 8th, with Bernie Williams contributing his third and fourth RBI of the game, and the score is 7-6 entering the 9th. Rivera retires the Sox in order, and then the Yanks get runners on 1st and 2nd with one out in the bottom of the 9th. With no talent at all in the bullpen, the Sox stay with Hurst, and he fans Jeter and retires Ventura on a fly ball to preserve the 7-6 win for Boston. A number of these Yankee teams from this era have played in the tournament so far, and Jeter has just been useless for all of them!

The other semifinal game turns into a pitching duel between the Cards' Al Jackson vs. the Reds' Eppa Rixey. A 2- run HR by Edd Roush in the 6th off Jackson's card is all Rixey needs as the Reds gain the regional finals with a 2-1 win.

The regional finals start to test the back end of the rotation for these survivors, and that turns out to be bad news for Boston as Al Nipper gets rocked after throwing 5 one-hit innings. Calvin Schiraldi comes in to pour gasoline on the fire, and when the smoke clears the '24 Reds emerge as the regional winner with a 12-1 laugher. A Sam Horn solo shot provides the only Red Sox run, as Horn homers in all three games but it's not enough to offset Edd Roush's 4 RBI.