In this bonus episode of the Best Podcast in Baseball, we bring you PlayBacks, an audio series that brings to life the archives of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

Don Denkinger didn’t have the cushion of an instant-replay review on that October night when the Cardinals took a 1-0 lead into the bottom of the ninth inning at Royals Stadium, just three outs away from the championship.

Pinch-hitter Jorge Orta led off with a slow bouncer to the right side. First baseman Jack Clark ranged wide to field the ball and flipped a high throw to reliever Todd Worrell covering the bag.

Orta was still in the air on his final stride when the ball beat him by a half-step. Denkinger recounted he was standing too close to the play — by the time he saw Worrell catch the ball and looked down, Orta’s foot was on the base. Denkinger ruled him safe.

“I wish I would’ve gotten it right,” he said. “But I didn’t.”

The rest, as Denkinger said, is part of baseball lore.

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